ROBERT MURRAY M'CHEYNE: SAINT AND PREACHER

Article by Keith Walker

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PART 2

A MAN OF GOD

We move on from history to analysis. What was it made M'Cheyne so useful? Was it his preaching style? Was it his pastoral ministry? Was it his theology? Well, doubtless, all played their part, but chiefly it was his character, his personal God-given qualities.

The first quality, I would mention is holiness. I need say no more than I have done already to prove that he was eminent for this, but I would add a few illustrations.

He was scrupulous about Sabbath observance:

I am almost tempted to send this (a letter) tonight (Saturday) to the Post Office; but it is not right to encourage Sabbath mail.

He was sensitive concerning sin:

Nobody ever made less use of affliction than I do. I feel the assaults of Satan most when I am removed into a corner; every evil thought and purpose rushes over my soul. None but God knows what an abyss of corruption is in my heart.

Speaking on revival at a prayer-meeting M'Cheyne once lamented his own deadness. One listener commented afterwards 'the whole church would be better for more of such deadness.'

Advising a missionary candidate M'Cheyne wrote, 'It is not great talents God blesses so much as great likeness to Jesus. A holy minister is an awful weapon in the hand of God'. He saw holiness as vital to the preacher. When ill he wrote to his church, 'Oh that you can pray, pray that I may come back a holy minister - a shepherd not to lead the flock by the voice only, but to walk before them in the way of life'. Before leaving Palestine he wrote to William Burns, 'Take heed to thyself. Your own soul is your first and greatest care. You know a sound body can work with power; much more a healthy soul. Keep a clear conscience through the blood of the Lamb. Keep up close communion with God. Study likeness to Him in all things. Read the Bible for your own growth first, then for your people.'

A cynical critic in Alexandria was holding forth against the hypocrisy of Christians, but when asked if she had met no Christian whom she could regard as a genuine 'man of God' she replied: 'Yes, I saw one, a man, a minister in this hotel, a tall spare man from Scotland. He was a man of God. I watched him, and felt that he was a genuine Christian. His very look did me good'. M'Cheyne lived Christ in a way that those who denied Christ could not fault. In all the contemporary (as opposed to posthumous) records of M'Cheyne's life, there is only one who fairly criticises the godly minister of St Peter's and that is the humble man of God himself.

The second secret of M'Cheyne's ministry was prayer. From the beginning of his work he set prayer alongside preaching as the two key elements of his calling. During illness he wrote: 'To me that grace is not now given to preach to you … (Oh how great a grace it is! …) still he allows me to give myself unto prayer … my soul does not rest in silence. I am permitted to go in secret to God …; and … I can make mention of you all in my prayers and give thanks for the little flock'. The man-servant in the manse at Collace said of M'Cheyne's prayer life, 'Oh to hear Mr M'Cheyne at prayers in the morning. It was as if he would never give over, he had so much to ask'.

We could add to these qualities warmth, humour, hard work. But holiness of living and communion with God are primary.

THEOLOGY

Next to these in importance M'Cheyne place expository preaching. 'Expound much' he wrote to Burns, 'it is through the truth that souls are sanctified, not through essays on the truth. Be easy of access, apt to teach, and the Lord teach you and bless you'. His preaching style we shall come to later. The question for the moment is, 'What was the truth for M'Cheyne?' What was his theology?

Firstly he was, of course, soundly evangelical. He was a Bible-man. Secondly, though he had a clear biblical theology, his preaching does not exhibit a rigid system of theology. But he was certainly a Calvinist, and a firm five-pointer at that. Indeed, if we can trust the notes of one listener, a sermon on election from John 15.16 might appear hyper-Calvinistic. Quoting the Rich Young Ruler as his example he is reported to have said, 'Christ chooses some that seek him, and not others'. But he rushes on to say, 'Some here perhaps say, If I am elected, I will be saved, live as I like. No; if you live an unholy life, you will not be saved'. Holiness of life was for M'Cheyne the chief ground of assurance; 'Do you bear fruit? Without holy fruit all evidences are vain.' 'Some may say' he went on, 'If I am not elected, I will not be saved, do as I like. Whether you are elected or not, I do not know, but this I know - if you believe on Christ you will be saved.' Without any shadow of doubt M'Cheyne believed in particular redemption, 'Adore Jesus, that He passed by millions, and died for you' he wrote in sermon notes. In his day the doctrine caused dispute in the Church of Scotland. And the stance of M'Cheyne and the Bonars is interesting in the light of it. Three men in particular - Thomas Erskine, John MacLeod Campbell and Edward Irving - caused a stir by rejecting the doctrine. (All three incidentally were involved in the early Pentecostal and Brethren Movements. Irving was the founder of the pentecostal Catholic and Apostolic Church, and an eccentric theologian to say the least!) For a time, wise Dr Chalmers, unlike many other evangelicals, held fire from castigating these three. He felt that their stress on the freeness of the Gospel was a healthy counter-balance to much contemporary preaching. But a comment he made in private is especially interesting, 'One thing I fear, I do fear that the train of his thoughts might eventually lead Mr Erskine to doubt the eternity of future punishments'. Whether or not Chalmers' prediction was correct, these three men did indeed slip away from biblical doctrine; Campbell became a Universalist; Erskine taught a universal view of God's Fatherhood; and Irving ended up inter alia preaching baptismal regeneration. In each case it is not hard to see the link with universal redemption. It is highly important for us to note that M'Cheyne, like Chalmers and the Bonars, held firmly to all the doctrines of grace and saw no inconsistency between them and the free offer of salvation and man's responsibility. M'Cheyne preaching on, 'Unto you, O men, I call', said.

Nobody ever came to Christ because they knew themselves to be of the elect. It is quite true that God has of His mere good pleasure elected some to everlasting life, but they never knew it till they came to Christ. Christ nowhere invites the elect to come to Him.

One could speculate whether it was also the influence of men like Erskine which caused M'Cheyne to attack the separation of faith and repentance.

Another man hopes to be saved by faith as a work. He reads 'Abraham was justified by faith'. Now, he says, if I could get this faith I would be saved. You think that God would save you of you had faith? No such thing, God will not save you for your faith. I believe this is one of the commonest ways by which many deceive themselves. (and later) It is not some new view, some new opinion - it is not such things; conversion is something real. Ah, that is no true conversion that does not come from God! There are many that get new views; but if you would be saved, you must come to God.

So whilst always holding to the sovereignty of God in election and redemption, M'Cheyne always made plain the freeness of the offer of the gospel and man's responsibility. 'Be sure of this', he wrote to unconverted parishioners, 'that you will only have yourselves to blame if ye awake in hell. You will not be able to plead God's secret decrees …'

Another aspect of M'Cheyne's theology is worthy of comment. He, like the Bonars, was a premillenialist. The Bonars were overtly so and were considered something of a peculiarity by older evangelicals in this respect. Andrew doubted whether Horatius would be called to Kelso because of his outspoken opinions on unfulfilled prophecy. M'Cheyne on the other hand made little or no reference, that I can find, to this matter. Perhaps it says something for his maturity that he appears to have been able to resist mounting what for the Bonars became something of a hobby-horse.

PASTOR AND TEACHER

Finally let us look at M'Cheyne's ministry as a whole. Whilst he had the highest possible view of preaching he came to see that a pastoral charge extends to much else, if it is to prosper. At a service for the ordination of elders he said, 'I remember well when I first entered upon the ministry among you, I had a very inadequate view of the duty of ruling well the house of God. I thought my great and almost only work was to pray and preach'. He went on to tell of his persuasion that he should give himself also to church discipline. Indeed we find him giving himself to everything in the life of the church, and of this his elders were not left long in doubt.

M'Cheyne had the ability to gather a large band of co-workers around him, but it was his responsibility to lead them and feed them. In addition to the elders, the Dundee church maintained a large staff of tract distributors. M'Cheyne carried on a Bible class for adults; he lectured specially to the Sunday School teachers; he preached in Sunday School - yes, preached, I say, and he preached for immediate conversion. 'Flee now from the wrath to come. Fly to the Lord Jesus without delay. Escape for thy life: look not behind thee. Some of you may think that you shall not die because you are young. You forget that one half of the human race die before they reach manhood. The half of the inhabitants of this town die before they are 20. Oh, if you had to stand as often as I have beside the dying bed of little children, to see their wild looks and outstretched hands and to hear their dying cries, you would see how needful it is to fly to Christ now. It may be your turn next'. In addition to all this there was a singing class midweek to prepare for Sunday; and then the Thursday prayer meeting. This meeting included a twenty-minute address, prayer and often a talk on some historic Revival or some aspect of missionary work. M'Cheyne had a particular interest in mission to the Jews, as has been said, doubtless deriving from his eschatology, but his missionary interest was not exclusive to this field.

So much for organised congregational activity, but furthermore, M'Cheyne also gave himself to visitation of the sick, baptismal visits, visits to the bereaved, to the seeking; and the manse door was never closed to the needy.

The constant danger which M'Cheyne feared amidst all his labours was that men might follow him rather than the Saviour. It was said of him that he brought into the pulpit 'all the reverence for Scripture of the Reformation period; all the honour for the headship of Christ of the Covenanter struggle; all the freeness of the Gospel offer of the Marrow theology; all the bright imagery of Samuel Rutherford; all the delight of the Erskines in the fulness of Christ.' Possibly he would not have welcomed this last allusion. When preaching at an ordination service he told the people, 'Love and reverence (your pastor) much. But do not make an idol of him; that will destroy his usefulness. It was said of the Erskines that men could not see Christ over their heads'. He foresaw the possibility of becoming a cult figure himself, and once wrote during an absence from his pulpit, 'I feel that to many this trial has been absolutely needful. Many liked their minister naturally, but had little relish for the message he carried.'

How did he preach? Perhaps the diary of his co-Elder, William Lamb, best reflects his style. He was sensitive and practical, 'beautifully affectionate - he draws you to Christ'. 'I felt composed and comforted, though downcast because of my walking too much away from Christ'. He was earnest and serious, sometimes solemn, always searching. His style was simple. Though well read, he made no parade of learning and rarely quoted other than from Scripture.

Did he preach long sermons? Some lasted only twenty minutes; but on one occasion the congregation left Collace kirk at eleven o'clock at night, 'the folk couldn't give over listening, and Mr M'Cheyne couldn't give over speaking.'

It was M'Cheyne's rule always to make gospel application. On one occasion he reproved Andrew Bonar, 'Brother, I enjoyed your sermon; (always a bad omen!) to me it was sweet. You and I and many, I trust, in our congregations shall see the King in his beauty. But, my brother, you forget there might be many listening to you tonight who unless they are changed by the grace of God, shall never see Him in His beauty.'

How did he choose his text? Sometimes with great difficulty; 'This is Friday evening, and I do not know what to preach on Sabbath next'. We know that on occasions he would preach a series; on a topic, prayer, for instance; or would supply consecutive exposition. But he was not bound to any method.

What of his structure? It changed as the years passed. Early in his ministry he wrote out a fairly full introduction. This was followed by a brief, one-sentence, statement of doctrine which his text conveyed. In this he seems to follow Simeon's advice to young preachers to isolate the dominant thought. He then went on to unwrap the doctrine and apply it, sometimes in considerable detail, always retaining a clear structure and logical flow. Later in his ministry the introduction, at least in his notes, shortened dramatically and the one-sentence doctrinal statement vanished.

One last thing needs to be said about his preaching. His exposition of the Old Testament was typically and delightfully Scots. He was quite unrepentant in using Old Testament texts as illustrations of truths. This becomes particularly apparent in his printed sermons on the Song of Solomon. He could never be accused of being prosaic or unadventurous in his use of the Old Testament.

In sum, the most remarkable thing about his preaching was its power and effectiveness. Ultimately the manifestation of such power rests in the sovereignty of God, but inasmuch as M'Cheyne had any part in God's working I would suggest two primary reasons: his close communion with God, and his faithful stewardship of the Word of truth. Preaching on the Transfiguration he spoke of himself albeit unconsciously,

'There have always been men in the church greatly honoured by God. Some are not only of the twelve, but of the three. There are many men in the church who have been eminent believers. Ah! brethren, covet earnestly the best gifts. It is good to be among the twelve, but it is far better to be among the three.'

This paper was first given to the Preachers' Class at the Independent Chapel, Spicer Street, St Albans, 14 March 1983. At that time Mr Walker was the assistant pastor at the chapel.

This was originally published in two parts in The Banner of Truth magazine (Issue 246, March 1984, pages 18-26; Issue 247, April 1984, pages 1-6), and is reproduced with permission from the publishers.

This article was transcribed by David F. Haslam. HTML file copyright D.F. Haslam © 1997-1998.
Some minor spelling variations have been amended in the transcript.

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