Coram Deo
CORAM DEO – the Big idea of the Christian life
“What’s the big idea of the Christian life?” Coram Deo, a Latin phrase, sums it up best.
To live coram Deo is to live one’s entire life in the presence of God, under the authority of God, to the glory of God.
The thing I need to share is this, faith is active. We are not passive recipients of God’s love. We need to live out our faith.
To live in the presence of God is to understand that whatever we are doing and wherever we are doing it, we are acting under the gaze of God. God is omnipresent. There is no place so remote that we can escape His penetrating gaze.
In 1 Timothy 4:7 Paul writes for us to train ourselves for godliness.
We are to toil and strive because our hope is set on the living God who is our Savior (1 Timothy 4:10). We are to seek Him first in all our ways (Matthew 6:33).
We are to love God with all our heart and soul and mind and strength and love our neighbor as ourself (Matthew 22:37-39; Deuteronomy 6:5-9).
We are to teach God’s Word and ways to our children, keep His Word before us at all times (Deuteronomy 6:5-9).
As beloved children of God we are to put on compassionate hearts, kindness, humility, patience, meekness. We are to bear with each other, forgive each other. We are to let His peace rule in our hearts (Colossians 3:12-15).
Do you see that? I’ve bolded the action words – train, toil, strive, seek, love, teach, keep, put on, bear, forgive, let….I could go on with so many scriptures. We need to be doers of the word, not hearers only (James 1:22).
To be aware of the presence of God is also to be acutely aware of His sovereignty. Living under divine sovereignty is not reluctant submission to God motivated by fear. No, it is recognizing there is no higher goal than to offer honor and glory to God no matter what we are doing – washing dishes, preparing food, working, changing a diaper, talking with someone...all of our life, every moment, is to be Matthew 6:33 and Colossians 3:2 put together – we are to be seeking His Kingdom first in all we do and to set our minds on things above, not on things of this earth.
To live all of life coram Deo is to live a life of active faith and integrity. It is a life of wholeness that finds its unity and coherency in the majesty of God. It is a life that is open before God. It is a life in which all that is done is done as to the Lord. It is a life lived by principle, not expediency; by humility before God, not defiance. It is a life lived letting God’s Word dwell richly within so we can walk in His wisdom, with thankfulness in our hearts, so that whatever we are doing in word or deed, it is done in the name of Jesus, before the face of God (Colossians 3: 16-17).
Coram Deo … before the face of God. That’s the big idea. Seeking Him first in ALL we do.