Track 2 on Coram Deo
Live Coram Deo
Built on 2 Corinthians 12:7–10, Hebrews 12:1–2, and Galatians 2:20
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The study behind the song
Built on 2 Corinthians 12:7–10, Hebrews 12:1–2, and Galatians 2:20.
This song is a sung biography of Charles Spurgeon, set beside the passages that explain both his labors and his sufferings. The verses walk through the record in the lyrics: thousands gathered at the Tabernacle, sixty-three volumes of sermons, nine hundred pastors trained, an orphanage, two hundred new churches. Then the song turns to the cost: a wife confined to bed, gout, Bright's disease, deep depression. Here it reaches for Paul's "thorn in the flesh" in 2 Corinthians 12, where God's grace is sufficient and His power is made perfect in weakness.
The chorus keeps the focus where Spurgeon kept it. It is glory to Jesus, thanks to God for giving the church this doulos, this servant, and a call to live Coram Deo, before the face of God, without fear of man. Hebrews 12 shapes the outro: run the race, and look past the man to Jesus, the author of faith. The song admits Spurgeon was not flawless and calls his greatness a free gift. It closes on his simple testimony, "Jesus died for me," echoing Galatians 2:20.
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Lyrics
Yo, he stood at the Tabernacle, five thousand in sight,
Called 'em all out by name in the theological light.
No sacred-secular divide, he shattered the lens,
Every floor that you scrub is a worship that wins.
Sixty-three volumes of sermons, the heaviest weight,
Bigger than the Britannica, stacked at the gate!
The largest collection from a single man's hand,
Exalting King Jesus all across the land.
Reading six serious books every week of the year,
With photographic memory, crystal and clear.
Over a hundred times through Pilgrim’s Progress he paced,
Running the race, sustained by God's grace.
Glory to Jesus, the King on the throne!
By His sovereign mercy, He claims us His own!
And thank You for Spurgeon, the doulos You gave,
To point to the Cross and the One who can save!
From London to glory, the story is clear:
Live Coram Deo, with no human fear!
Fourteen thousand four hundred and sixty joined in the flock,
He interviewed 'em all, built 'em up on the Rock.
Nine hundred young pastors he trained in the college,
Dropping the doctrine, the fire, the knowledge.
Twenty-five thousand sermons sold every single week,
In twenty different languages, letting God speak!
A soul saved every week just by reading the print,
Preaching ten times a week, he was catching no hint
Of stopping or slowing, he started an orphanage home,
Edited the Sword & Trowel, no time just to roam.
Ten million people heard the boom of his voice,
Two hundred new churches, making Britain rejoice!
But look at the cost, look at the thorn in the flesh, While he’s writing five hundred letters, trying to refresh.
His beautiful Susie, an invalid, stuck in the bed,
While the gout and rheumatism racked his own head.
Bright’s disease blooming, depression so deep,
A third of his Sundays, he’s weeping asleep.
Fifty-seven years old, the workload took its toll,
But the fire of the Spirit was burning his soul!
Yeah, he had his sins, he wasn't flawless or clean,
But his greatness was a free gift, if you see what I mean.
A gift to the church, a gift from the Son,
Till he entered the glory and the battle was won!(Outro)
So don't envy the mountain, just look at the Maker,
The Author of faith and the ultimate Shaker.
Spurgeon died with a testimony simple and true:
"Jesus died for me"—and He did it for you.
Live before His face.
Coram Deo.
Amen.
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