I’m reading in the Sermon on the Mount. And, you know, I don’t know that I can say this is one of my “favorite passages.” And I think that’s because I find the incredibly high-standards of Jesus a bit unsettling. You know, you can think you’re doing ok in this Christian walk . . . maybe start lining yourself up against others, and figure you’re doing alright, but then, you come across the Sermon on the Mount. And there you are confronted these incredibly high standards the Lord has for those who would live for the kingdom of heaven. You start reading of sin that’s in the heart and not in the actions (5:21-22, 27-28) . . . of hacking off body parts off in order to avoid sinning (5:29-30) . . . of letting people slap you around and going the extra mile for those who would seek to take advantage of you (5:38-42) . . . of loving your enemies and blessing those who curse you (5:44) . . . and then, to top it off, He says, “Therefore you shall be perfect, just as your Father in heaven is perfect” (5:48). Brother! Talk about your “type A” spirituality. What do you do with all that?

But as I get to the first part of Matthew 6 and read of doing charitable deeds and praying and fasting . . . I am reminded that I really am not left alone to try and take a shot at this radical way of living. I have a Father. And repeatedly in this first part of Matthew 6, in my NKJV Bible, He is referred to as “your Father who is in the secret place” and “your Father who sees in secret” (Matt 6:4, 6, 18).

And there is something, again, a bit unsettling of being reminded that God sees in secret . . . that He knows the concealed . . . that He’s fully aware of what I might be considered to be hidden. But though it might have it’s unsettling effect, isn’t there something also amazingly comforting about knowing that God knows me . . . and still desires relationship with me as “My Father?” No need to hide . . . no use in hiding. But by His grace, and because of the blood of His Son, He peers into the secret and sees a work in progress. A work He has begun (Php. 1:6) . . . a work He has created in Christ Jesus (Eph. 2:10) . . . a work that, through His Holy Spirit, He is shaping more and more into the image of His Son (Rom. 8:29). And so, though it can be un-nerving sometimes, I don’t fear that God sees in secret . . . in fact, it’s something to be embraced.

He is the God of “the secret place.” And it’s there where we really start to live out this calling we have in Christ. It’s not about putting on a show before men, it’s about honestly stumbling along before God. It’s not about being seen by others as a “good Christian” it’s about being rewarded by our Father who sees in secret. Whoever captured that phrase, “Audience of One”, nailed it. Oh, that I would be more and more aware of the secret place and the One who desires to meet me there. That I would, by His power, continue to cultivate the inner man such that it operates more and more from a desire to please Him alone.

To embrace the secret place, it seems to me, is to rest in the forgiveness of the cross. To desire the secret place is to experience the “Daddy, Father” Spirit of adoption which drives us to His arms. To go to the secret place is to believe that He is working a working in me that He will complete. So, while the Sermon on the Mount may be somewhat intimidating, while it presents a heavenly high standard, I’m not left to seek the kingdom alone. I have a Father who sees in secret . . . One who will meet with me in the secret place . . . One who will faithfully and patiently continue to mold this lump of clay for His purposes.

Father, thank You for the reminder of the secret place . . . for the fresh realization that You know my heart. Continue to teach me how to meet You there . . . to cultivate that which would allow me to be motivated, in all things, to live in light of Your kingdom and calling . . . for Your glory, amen!