Coram Deo. Christians in the 16th century used this simple Latin phrase to capture a profound idea. Coram Deo means “before the face of God.” It says we live before the One who sees all that we are and do. And it says we should act accordingly. Living before the face of God means we walk with integrity under His loving eyes. It means His smile is all that really matters to us.
Jesus came into the world to open our eyes, and this theme of “seeing” runs through much of His teaching (Luke 4:18). In the Sermon on the Mount, He shows us that idols dull our sight (Matthew 6:19-22), that “logs” in our eyes blur our vision (Matthew 7:5), and that He opens our eyes to see the unseen God at work in the world around us (Matthew 6:26-30).
Jesus also opens our eyes to the Coram Deo life. Three times in His sermon He mentions that our Father “sees everything”—our giving to the poor (Matthew 6:3-4), our praying (Matthew 6:6), and our fasting (Matthew 6:17-18). And He knows our motives for doing all three. If we announce our generosity with “trumpets” (Matthew 6:2), turn our prayers into a performance (Matthew 6:5), and proclaim the reason why our tummies growl (Matthew 6:16), our spirituality is not done before the face of God nor for the benefit of others—it is done for ourselves. In the Coram Deo life we seek the approval of God, not the applause of others.
“Most of us, whether we are aware of it or not,” writes author Os Guinness, “do things with an eye to the approval of some audience or other.” That audience may be our friends, bosses, colleagues, partners, teachers, or followers on social media. But in the Coram Deo life only one audience matters—the audience of the God who loves us.
NLT 365-day reading plan passage for today: Daniel 5:1-30
More:
Consider the words of Numbers 6:25 and the blessing God brings as He smiles on us.
Next:
When are you most tempted to seek the applause of others for the things you do? How will you focus on the face of God today?
Gary Shultz on June 1, 2016 at 6:08 am
Yes Sheridan, that is where we need to be. What ever term or phrase, we need to be “before the face of God”. To stand voluntarily before His “loving eyes” with a growing relationship is what He always desired. If we don’t, then we will stand under some form of judgment or loss in the future. The life under God’s “smile” was of original intent. I am so thankful this great opportunity has been extended to mankind; “joy unspeakable and full of glory, the half has never yet been told”. Thanks Sheridan.
Mike Wittmer on June 1, 2016 at 6:55 am
What a comforting and challenging thought! Comforting because God seeing me means that we matter, and challenging because we must give Him our all. This is a good reminder to start my day. Thanks, Sheridan!
Sheridan Voysey on June 2, 2016 at 3:28 am
Thanks Mike. Your summary will ring in my ears today too.
Tom Felten on June 1, 2016 at 8:12 am
Sheridan, it’s such an encouragement to me that the Holy Spirit helps us live out this Coram Deo life. Paul notes that the “power of the Spirit” will provide what we need as we’re “led by the Spirit” (Romans 8:13-14). May we submit to the Spirit’s leading today!
hsnpoor on June 1, 2016 at 10:51 am
Amen!
Sheridan Voysey on June 2, 2016 at 3:29 am
Such an important factor, Tom. It’s by His strength (and cleansing) that we live before God’s gaze at all.
gagirllive on June 1, 2016 at 8:27 am
Sheridan, this is a passage of scripture that I visit often because I need the reminder to check my motives and to ask myself, “Am I seeking the approval of God or man?” I can’t imagine anyone born into this world not struggling on some level with this. If we’re honest, it’s what we crave at our core. We lost so much in the Fall and Christ is the only one who can restore us back to that place of acceptance, approval, and security. There is a children’s book (really, a book for all ages) by Max Lucado that is one of my favorites among books ever written. It’s called You Are Special. I read it over and over to my children as they grew up, even into their teen years. It’s about a wemmick ( a wooden boy) named Puncinello who seeks the approval of other wemmicks. If they approved of him he got a bright star sticker put on him; if not a gray dot. Everyone in the town had dots and/or stars. Punchinello grew tired of seeking the approval of other wemmicks and went to his maker, Eli, the woodcarver for help. And of course, this is where he learned who he was and that he only needed and had the approval of his maker. In fact, as he spent more time with Eli all of his dots fell off! Very cute story that’s packed with meaning. Your post today made me think of that story and how important it is that we seek to live for an audience of One. Encouraged by this, Sheridan. Thanks
hsnpoor on June 1, 2016 at 10:53 am
Sounds like a much loftier version of Pinocchio. I like it and the lesson taught!
godlove on June 1, 2016 at 2:13 pm
Nice story to go with the devotional, thanks for sharing gagirl. The approval craving between wemmicks amongst themselves and relative to their maker is quite a good reflection of that which we humans have between each other and also relative to our Maker. Just wondering, was it written as a Christian story or is it just a coincidence that the moral of the story really speaks to us Christians?
gagirllive on June 1, 2016 at 4:46 pm
Oh, it’s definitely a Christian story, godlove. Max Lucado is a very popular Christian author here in the US. The story absolutely reflects what I call our tendency toward “fear of man”…being too concerned about what other people think of us. I made a mistake in my earlier post that was quite significant. I stated that the more time Puncinello spent with his maker, Eli, all the “dots” began to fall off him. The correction is that both dots AND stars fell off him. He learned, as we must all learn, that neither the applause nor the frowns of “fellow wemmicks” tell us who we are. We are “in Christ”…and in Him we meet God’s approval. No need to try to impress anyone else, right? 🙂
godlove on June 2, 2016 at 9:41 am
Certainly, gagirl, no need at all. 🙂 I really like that story, I’m not sure I will find Max Lucado books over here but I will try to search online for electronic versions of the story.
elegantstarr1 on June 1, 2016 at 1:22 pm
When the Lord woke me up this morning, the song “You Can’t Beat God’s Giving” was in my head. I continued to sing it as I reached for my cell phone. Once I retrieved my phone, the first thing I saw was a devotional message from a friend about giving, going the extra mile and always doing more than what’s expected. Then when I began my morning devotion, today’s Our Daily Journey opens with Matthew 6:1-4, which teaches about giving to the needy. After reading Sheridan’s wonderful devotional about Coram Deo, all I could say was wow, can’t get any clearer than that…
gagirllive on June 1, 2016 at 4:49 pm
Amen, elegantstarr1. Sounds like God’s setting you up to bless someone or be blessed by someone. 🙂
Sheridan Voysey on June 2, 2016 at 3:31 am
Agreed! Ha! Love how God works.
godlove on June 1, 2016 at 2:11 pm
Matthew 6, great Scriptural passage of Jesus’ teachings. It’s so true, Sheridan, that we all constantly seek, in fact crave, for approval from the visible audience, either consciously or unconsciously. I guess it comes with our always trying to fit in and to be admired by those we see. It’s so easy to forget that the One from whom we should really be seeking approval is the One who sees us all the time, wherever we may be, whatever we may be doing, at every instant and every moment, in light and in darkness, in the deepest depths and on the highest tops, our Almighty and Eternal God. Actually, I think as we develop the habit to seek to please only Him and He alone, we will slowly forget about the (judging) eyes of the visible audience and be completely focused only on serving Him and seeking His face. Thanks Sheridan. May the Lord smile on us all today and be gracious to all.
gagirllive on June 1, 2016 at 5:02 pm
Amen, godlove. You know, our desire for approval is not wrong. It is just misplaced…all because of the Fall. Can you even imagine what perfection Adam and Eve experienced before they sinned? Completely healthy in their mind, body, and spirit. How I long for the day to be completely self-forgetful….unaware of myself because I am so enamored with Him. May we grow in increasing measure to desire ONLY His eyes upon us. God bless you, my brother.
Sheridan Voysey on June 2, 2016 at 3:33 am
I’m constantly challenged by my use of social media and what I’d like others to think of me through it. Coram Deo instead! And sometimes the best recalibration of these ‘approval seeking’ tendencies is solitude – time alone with God, as long as possible – where only His gaze counts and matters.
godlove on June 2, 2016 at 9:37 am
So true, Sheridan, social media has sort of accentuated the permanent need for approval from fellow men, with the constant seeking for “likes” and “retweets” and “views”, when the only “likes” we should really be seeking for are those from our heavenly Father.