Higher Ground | Day 3
A HIDDEN LIFE
Instructions:
Pray | 2-3 minutes
Open your heart to the Lord. Tell Him
you love Him. Make the verse your
prayer.
Read | 5 minutes
Prayerfully read the verses and
paragraphs.
Write | 5 minutes
Write down what you appreciate or any
questions you have.
Matt. 13:3b, 5-6 – Behold, the sower went out to sow…And [other seed] fell on the rocky places, where they did not have much earth, and immediately they sprang up because they had no depth of earth. But when the sun rose, they were scorched; and because they had no root, they withered.
What is a root? It is growth that occurs beneath the soil. What are the leaves? They are growth that occur above the soil. In other words, roots are the hidden life, whereas leaves are the manifest life. The trouble with many Christians is that, while there is much apparent life, there is very little secret life. In other words, there is the lack of a hidden life. How much of your life is hidden from view? How much is unknown to others? You stress outward works. Yes, good works are important; but apart from that manifest expression of your life, how much of your life remains hidden? If all your spiritual life is exposed, you do not have any root. Are all your virtues before God manifested before man, or is there something more that is unknown to man? If all your experiences are manifested, then all your growth is upward; there is no downward growth. If this is the case, you are a person who has only leaves without root, and you are on shallow ground…May God work in us so that we can take root downward. (Deep Calls unto Deep, pp. 2, 5)
Those who do not have any root before the Lord will be dried up in their life…Nothing can preserve you as much as a hidden life. If you see that a brother has fallen or failed, or has come into trouble, without asking anyone, you can surely say that prior to this trouble he lost his hidden life. He lost his hidden life during the previous weeks, months, or even years. Your spiritual life depends very much on your hidden life before God. If you cannot sustain a hidden life, you will be weak before the Lord. Therefore, you should realize the importance of the hidden life. (CWWN, vol. 11, “The Present Testimony (4),” pp. 834-835)