Colossians 2:6-70

“So then, just as you received Christ Jesus as Lord, continue to live your lives in him, rooted and built up in him, strengthened in the faith as you were taught, and overflowing with thankfulness.”

Under the Surface – Hiding the Word & Secret Prayer 

Consider this: We are, in this study, proposing that by having a “relationship” with an invisible God that we will begin to “overflow” and bear fruit EVEN in hard times. BUT – how do you relate to a God you can’t see and who does not speak audibly? One facet of the answer is tied directly to “where” we relate to Him. Consider how God might have spoken to King David as a boy… “I have hidden your word in my heart that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11).

What do you think David meant when he said “hidden your word in my heart”?

Similarly, Jesus contrasted the religious people of His day’s attitude toward public prayer with a very interesting truth…

“But when you pray, go into your room, close the door and pray to your Father, who is unseen. Then your Father, who sees what is done in secret, will reward you” (Matthew 6:6).

Why is “secret” prayer important in the life of the believer as opposed to “public” prayer? (see context of verse)

In rooting into your relationship with Christ, Him speaking to you (hiding the Word), and you speaking to Him (secret prayer), become the two primary mechanisms through which practical relationship happens. The “deeper life” in Christ happens when more secret “Word & Prayer” happens (and NOT by some mystical acquisition of knowledge or some weird unexplained “feeling”).

Think about your past week and add up the time you’ve spent in the Word and Prayer in public verses in private. Where have you spent the most time? ___________________ What is the danger of simply “going to church and sitting under the teaching of the Word, and praying at church and at the dinner table” but never spending quality alone time with Christ?