Matthew 6.1-18 Importance Of Private Devotion To God

First: In discussing private devotion we are not simply talking about piety or spiritual disciplines apart from Christ. In Private Devotions as in all spiritual disciplines the stumbling block is Jesus and we must be careful not to stumble over Him. (Wheel: table illustration vs. as originally intended.)

Second: Our appeal to authority is that of the holy, eternal, inerrant, written Word of God. The sole source of revelation and revelatory authority for the church age.
God is not what we believe, by Faith we believe what God is as revealed in His Holy Word
God's will is not what we believe, by Faith we believe God's will as revealed in His Holy Word.
God does not do what we believe, rather by Faith we believe what God does as revealed in His Holy Word.
By a word of faith command, God does not do our bidding, rather by faith in the commands of His Holy Word we do His bidding.
Faith is not the ability to get God to act on our behalf, rather by faith we believe that He has acted and is acting on our behalf and trust in His sovereign, good and holy will.
God can do anything, but He doesn't, He only does His good and holy will as revealed in the holy, eternal, inerrant written Word of God.