Hidden in Christ: Tucked Inside

I’ve always loved a crafty project, but in those years of raising the boys and working full time, I had little margin or energy to give to such passions. But, in this new season, it’s fun to dabble in the ‘arts’. Most recently I’ve been trying my hand at embroidery. 

There’s much work to do before the actual embroidering begins – choosing a pattern, selecting threads, preparing the fabric, threading the needle. I’ve become quite fascinated by the floss, aka: thread.

What looks like one thread is actually six threads, or ‘plies’, woven together. Sometimes a stitch requires all six plies, but most of the time I’m unraveling them to pull the number necessary for each flower and leaf. I can get so focused on each stitch that I’m surprised by what’s been created! 

In much the same way, my hyper focused unpacking of my ‘Word of the Year’ has pushed my eyes to the tinier details of its prepositions and particular words:

“For you died, and your life is now hidden with Christ in God.”

Colossians 3:3

I’ve pondered the possibilities as to why Paul says we are hidden ‘with Christ,’ ‘in God’. I’ve wondered why he uses the words, ‘died’ and ‘hidden’. 

So, I’ve turned to the scholars, learning that Paul had a purpose for saying this principle the way he did. And I’ve discovered that – as is true with so much of Scripture – there’s not just a ‘single’ meaning to what he’s written, and that simply feels overwhelming. But, as I’ve begun comparing these truths to my new hobby, I’ve been better able to grasp some of the layers.

All the Threads

Because I’m a novice at embroidery, I still have a school-girl fascination with watching the way each stitched leaf, petal, and stem become a garden, coming to life on the fabric tucked inside my hoop. 

While the fluffy roses need all six plies of palest pink in order to stand off the canvas, the daisy’s white petals require only three threads. The outline on the tiny bumble bee uses one thin thread of black, but the green stems should have at least two. As the creation moves along, I’m unwinding and unraveling floss of various colors to use them for the purpose they’ve been given. 

Understanding what it means to be ‘hidden’ in Christ can look an awful lot like an embroidered garden – because in Him are many threads of varying numbers and needs, shades and scopes. 

But, first – Jesus. His life is the pattern we’re to follow. As one scholar says, “the Christian life is defined by the believer’s identification with Jesus Christ.”¹ It’s one thing to know about Jesus, but until we identify ourselves as having died with Christ, we will fail to live from the truth that we’ve died to sin, been raised to new life, and become one with our Lord. 

When we plot our every step and stitch along the paths and lines He has laid before us, we “step into Christ.”¹ We join Him in life because we’ve died with Him to sin (Romans 6:4-7). And because we’re sealed and filled by the Spirit, we’re also brought into the oneness of the Body of Christ (see 1 Corinthians 12:12-13). 

That new package of DNC thread has been twisted together to become one strand. When we enter into this relationship with Jesus we’re no longer a lone thread whipped by every wind that blows in the world. We’re no longer by ourselves. We’re always and forever one with Christ, wrapped together with the Holy Trinity – stronger in them, given a purpose with them. 

And at the same time, we are intertwined with other believers. A cord of three is not breakable, Solomon says (Ecclesiates4:12). We are not alone – not spiritually, not physically. God intends for us to have Him in His fullness (Colossians 1:19), and He intends for us to have each other. And depending on the season, the place, and the purpose, our strands look differently. Sometimes we’re part of a purple strand of six, held together by the Spirit for years. Then we find ourselves in another time when our strand is much smaller and of different hues. But no matter how our strand looks, we’re always and forever held together – by and with – the Father, the Son, and the Spirit.

Tucked Inside

The threads are certainly pretty in their packaging, but until they go through the eye of the needle and begin the tedious work of being stitched onto the fabric, they don’t fulfill their purposes. Some stitches require a straight line while others get spun around the needle. But my favorite is the ‘stem stitch’. The overall effect is a straight line, but the stitches, individually, tuck inside one another so they end up looking woven – as one.

In this life with Jesus, Paul tells us that we are “hidden with Christ in God” (Colossians 3:3). Rather than using the simpler, ‘hidden in Christ’, Paul specifically chose this phrasing for a reason – because he wanted to point us back to one of Jesus’ final teachings when He said that He was in the Father and that His followers were in Him and He in them (John 14:20).

A layering occurs where we become One with the Son, tucked into Him, who is – at the same time – in the Father. As Paul says, we are with Christ in the Father, like that stem stitch, where the individual green threads hold together with one another so that when sewn they become tucked in each other and become ‘one’. 

Christy Nockels, songwriter and worship leader…and author, uses a brilliant visual aid in her book to demonstrate all this ‘with-ness’ and ‘in-ness’.² First, she writes Jesus’ name on a small slip of paper and slides it into an envelope, bearing her name: Christ is in her. Then she puts that envelope into a larger one with Jesus’ name on it: Christ in her and she in Christ.*

Next, she takes all of that and tucks them into the third and largest envelope with the Father’s name, demonstrating that when we’re with Jesus, we’re also in God. And finally, she seals the Father’s envelope with a sticker – just as we are sealed by the Holy Spirit.²  

Our three-in-one God has hemmed us in on every side – He’s in us, with us, and sealed over us. Friends, we are safely, lovingly tucked inside.

All the ‘Hiddens’

The idea of being ‘hidden’ in the Trinity contains multiple meanings and purposes. But before listing a few, it’s important to note that being ‘hidden’ in this scenario is good. We don’t ‘hide’ in Christ as a way to avoid the hard things or because we feel shame. To be ‘hidden’ in Him is to find shelter and security, belonging and great love. 

It can also convey the idea that our old life is over and we’ve gained a brand new life – with Christ in us (Galatians 2:20). In this place of hiddenness that is new life, God sees us as a new creation – both like Christ and ever transforming into His image (2 Corinthians 3:18, 5:17).¹ 

Being hidden in Christ can also allude to the reality that when we choose Him, we become His – in the best and most beautiful of ways.³ He becomes our Defender and Protector, our Way and Truth and Life, our Good Shepherd (John 10:11,14:16). He provides and guides. He claims us as His own and will never let us go.

To be hidden with Christ in God is also to be separated from sin – its power over us has been defeated (Titus 3:5?).³ We’ve died with Christ in order to die to sin (Romans 6:8-11). And in Christ, we are hidden from the world’s ways – we live in the world but aren’t swayed by it (John 17:11,14–15). 

And, being hidden in Christ becomes a way of saying we abide in Him – like a state of being.³ It’s a living out the reality of being tucked inside, of dwelling in the Word of God, who is, all at once, Father and Son and Spirit.

In the Secret

The threads of the garden look quite differently on the other side of the fabric – more like a rogue, untended piece of land. Stray threads frizz. Knots bump randomly. And all the stretching from one leaf to another looks more like zigzags than a plant. And this is okay – because in embroidery, the backside is never meant to be seen by anyone but the maker. 

Similarly, our spiritual lives are worked out in the secret places that only the Creator ever sees. “The fullness of our inner life in Christ is hidden from the world’s views and sometimes even from us.”¹ The world isn’t meant to see or know what work we do behind-the-scenes with the Father. Our spiritual work with the Father is done behind closed doors, in the inner spaces. And when we let go of people-pleasing and performance-based spirituality, we better embrace this hidden life with Christ in God.

As odd as it may sound, God’s work in us can be hidden from us – because as we surrender ourselves to Christ, the Spirit works in the unseen places of our soul, unseen even by our eyes. With each obedient choice, with each moment in Jesus’ presence, and with every decision to trust God, a work is happening within us whether we realize it or not. John Mark Comer famously encourages believers who desire to grow in their faith to accept the slowness of it.⁴ Perhaps we also need to embrace the hiddenness of it – that it’s so slow and so deep that the changes are nearly undetectable. Maybe it’s not until someone points it out or we take time to reflect on our journey with God that we can ‘see’ how far we’ve come.

Like the variety of threads that trace the moves of the needle on the backside, there’s also an invisible work we won’t see coming until it happens – that moment of completion when all of us hidden with Christ in God will be raised from the dead, given glory-bodies, and taken to live our immortal lives with Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:51–53).¹ On that day everything will be revealed – the hidden becomes seen because we will live with our Triune God, face-to-face. 

Friends, living out the truth that we’ve died and are now hidden with Christ in God has enough layers that we could go on so long that “if every one of them were written down…even the whole world would not have room for” them (John 21:25). This is true in part because for each of us the patterns and purposes are unique. It’s also true because God’s ways are infinite. We literally cannot imagine them. But. We can choose to thread the needle we’ve been given and follow the lines drawn out for us by Christ Himself. And with each decision to obey and trust and surrender to the Almighty, we transform – each day becoming more like Christ because we’ve chosen to live hidden with Him in the Father.

Father God, the way You hold all of us together within yourself is a bit much to comprehend. Yet, this life in You is one of such beauty that we marvel at your creative mind, your deft hand, and your ability to use each one of us uniquely in the bigger picture You are creating. We choose to surrender to You, giving You our bodies, hearts, minds, and souls, so that You can do your hidden work in us. Lord Jesus, it’s becoming more and more clear that your years on earth really are the pattern for us to live by. Thank You for showing us how to tuck ourselves into You, becoming one with You and with the Father. Thank You for being the bond that not only holds us to You but to one another – by faith and love. Holy Spirit, we know that your work is the most invisible and unseen transformative power that works in our deepest places – and we know it’s for our good. We know it’s your heart to shape us into the likeness of Christ. So, we acquiesce. We choose to trust You in all the ways You lead and challenge and move us. We ask for your help in keeping us on the path that Jesus has lined out for us so that one day we can look back and see the growth and maturity in ourselves. We pray that You’d continue to be the bind that keeps us hidden with Christ in God, as well as one with other believers. In Jesus’ name, amen.
(inspired by Colossians 1:17, 3:3; Romans 8:29, 12:1; 2 Corinthians 3:18, 4:16-18, 5:17; John 14:26, 17:21; Ephesians 1:13-14, 4:3-6)

I was trying to think of how such ‘hiddenness’ connects with Lent, and the tomb where Jesus was buried came to mind — talk about tucked inside… No one could see Him, but they knew His body lay behind that large stone sealing the entrance. Of course, the miracle of Easter is that the tomb was empty! But before that bright and glorious morning, the tomb looked like the end. It appeared that Jesus had failed — because He’d died. But death was not the end. It was, in fact, the means for new life! This is a good time for us to ponder these truths — how so often it looks as though God has failed us when really He’s still at work though we cannot see it. Our role is to keep trusting Him by continuing to tuck ourselves into Him with Christ.

Resources: I love sharing with you the books, podcasts, articles, and anything else that has inspired, encouraged, or taught me. These are humble with no expectations.

• 1 – This article does a good job of outlining ways we are hidden with Christ in God.
• 2 – Christy Nockel’s book, The Life You Long For,^ ends with a flourish, including a beautiful description (the envelopes) of what it looks like to live hidden with Christ in God. So good!
• 3 – This article lists several ways we are hidden in Christ. 
• 4 – The That Sounds Fun podcast episode where Annie F. Downs interviews John Mark Comer is nothing short of AMAZING.
• The hymn, “Man of Sorrows.” lays out the story of the cross and tomb beautifully — and it’s on our Hidden in Christ playlist. I think it will aid us to listen to it either before or as we contemplate the way God is always working for our good — whether we can see it or not.
• *This week’s “Teacup Video” won’t be posted on social media till Wednesday — BUT, you can watch that very teacup video right now. I thought You might want to see a visual demonstration of what Christy Nockels describes with words (the envelope visual). You can find all the videos on my Facebook Author Page and Instagram.
• The Lent edition of The Abiding Life, Newsletter released last week. It’s packed full of behind-the-scenes glimpses of this blog series, as well as, an unusual Lenten practice that I’ve picked up again this year — and it’s not too late if you want to, as well. If you didn’t get your newsletter, email me. You can subscribe for future issues here!

Rhythms: As my newsletter’s title infers, we seek to develop an abiding life in this space — a place where we can get informed but also be transformed as we learn to abide in God’s presence throughout our days. I like to think that developing rhythms is what aids us in our desire to become more Christlike.

• Our rhythm this Lent is simply, and so importantly, WORSHIP. Christy Nockels, of course, has much experience with ‘worship’. So, my ears perk up when she speaks on the subject, and in her book she wanted us to know that we are not the only ones delighting as we worship:
  
  “You have a Father who sees you and sings over you. You are invited every day to be tucked underneath the mighty arm of the original Singer of life as He belts out His love over you. Zephaniah 3:17 says, ‘He will rejoice over you with gladness; he will quiet you by his love; he will exult over you with loud singing.’ That word exult there simply means ‘to delight or celebrate'” (p.93).
  
  Friends, however we choose to lift our eyes to the Father this week and adore Him — through song or nature or journaling or art — we can accept His invitation to tuck ourselves inside His presence, His love. We can know that as we delight in Him, the feeling is mutual. What joy!
• Finally, as a community, let us not neglect sharing God’s story with others! And, don’t be shy to tell your God-stories, too.
• Lent is a great time to invite a friend to walk through this series with us. Share this site. We don’t want anyone walking through this life alone, lost, or over-burdened and without hope. We can all get ‘hidden’ in Christ together!

Featured Photo by Raelle Gann-Owens on Unsplash. “All the Bits and Pieces” photo by Aleksandra Sapozhnikova on Unsplash.
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