Reading with M’Cheyne

1 Corinthians 4:1 "This is how one should regard us, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God. Moreover, it is required of stewards that they be found trustworthy." The apostle Paul was neither afflicted with false modesty nor with any sort of apostolic pomposity. He understood...

It is sobering to see the extent to which David, 'the man after God's own heart', spent so much of his life embroiled in conflict. From the obvious tensions between him and his brothers when we first meet him, through his encounter with Goliath, the persecution he experienced at the hand of Saul,...

Life has its low points for us all and, for David, the events that lay behind this particular psalm rank close to the nadir. The title of the psalm links its composition to the time when David 'pretended to be insane before Abimelech'. On the run from Saul, he sought refuge among the Philistines,...

Singing new songs is one of those things that stirs different thoughts and feelings in different Christian circles; but here in this psalm David vigorously encourages the practice! But before either side in the worship discussion gets too excited about what he says, we would do well to pause and...

What is the epitome of blessing in the life of faith? Different Christians would no doubt offer different answers: from personal peace and happiness through to the salvation of many as the gospel is proclaimed. It is certainly true that there are all kinds of blessings promised to those who put...

It so happens, as I sit at my computer preparing these notes, that we are very much in the midst of one of those defining experiences of life - a major relocation to a new church. So the sentiments expressed by David in these verses have a certain resonance - in particular where he says, 'My times...

"One thing I have asked of the Lord, that will I seek after: that I may dwell in the house of the Lord all the days of my life, to gaze upon the beauty of the Lord and to inquire in his temple."--Psalm 27:4 As enemies threaten King David on every side, he is not worried. He does not fear. Why?...

"Make me to know your ways, O Lord; teach me your paths Lead me in your truth and teach me; for you are the God of my salvation for you I wait all day long." Kind David tells us in Psalm 23 that the Lord is our Shepherd. This is a deeply comforting image for us, because a true shepherd always cares...

There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus."--Romans 8:1 There is no condemnation for you. Do you believe that? The more time I spend with my own heart, and with other Christians, the more I've become aware of how much false condemnation we carry. Despite what the...

There are some commands that shock us into seeing ourselves for who we really are. Thou shall not covet is one of them. "I would not have known what it is to covet if the law had not said, 'You shall not covet.' But sin, seizing an opportunity through the commandment, produced in me all kinds of...