Does God Need Us?

God doesn't need us. It seems like Christians often use this statement to keep people from being crushed under a weight of unmet expectations. We don't want people to feel condemned, and God does not want us feeling condemned either. However, that doesn't mean that this statement biblical.

Believing that God doesn't need us can settle us in a mindset where, whether we do what we are supposed to do or not, God's will shall always come to pass in every situation.

Therefore, we don't need to feel any pressure if we miss an opportunity to do something that God called us to do. Unfortunately, when we constantly tell ourselves that God doesn't need us, we can become comfortable in a place of fear and disobedience. Opportunities to be bold for Jesus can pass us by every minute of every day, and in the back of our heads we can tell ourselves things like, "It doesn't matter. God doesn't really need me. He is going to do it anyway."  I realize that this is difficult to talk about, because I know for a fact that God doesn't want any of us walking around feeling condemned or defeated.

Condemnation is 100% from the enemy.

However, it does not mean that there is not a weight of responsibility that comes with Jesus' instructions to His disciples. When Jesus left the earth He gave His disciples (us) the great commission to go and make more disciples. He was putting a very real responsibility on our shoulders. He said that He would be with us always, but He did not say that He was going to do everything for us.

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Recently, after a church service, the Holy Spirit led me to pray for the man who was sitting in front of me. One of his legs was in pretty bad shape, and I knew that God wanted to heal this man. When I approached the man and asked if I could pray for him, he would not let me. The man said that if God wants to do it, He will just do it one day. He did not want to fight for and pursue the promises of God. He didn't feel like he needed to. Personally, all the miracles I have witnessed have come when someone exercises their faith through prayer.

If God was just going to do everything, and He doesn’t need us, then why did He choose our faith as part of the recipe for miracles?

I am not even sure where I settle on this theologically. Does God need us or doesn't He? Maybe people can offer some comments on their perspective. What I know for certain is that, if we are using the phrase "God doesn't need us" to establish the thought process that our obedience or disobedience has no effect on eternity, it is not biblical. It cannot be. Jesus charged us with way too much responsibility. He was intense with His disciples when trying to get them to understand their purpose on the earth. This wasn't just some sort of game to Jesus. He wasn't saying, "You should try to help me out with this mission, but it doesn't really matter how successful you are. The end result is always going to be the same no matter what."He really did give us the keys to the Kingdom of God, and He expects us to use them to bring Heaven to Earth. If we don't obey Him, then things that should be happening won't and things that shouldn't be happening will.In the past, I just blindly accepted the idea that God doesn't need me. I liked that idea, because it didn't really force me to change. It didn't demand that I get uncomfortable in my pursuit to live like Jesus lived, it simply allowed me to remain comfortable. Sometimes even in dysfunction or sin. It allowed me to sit back and pursue the blessings of God, rather than pursuing His transformation of my life.

So, does God need me?

Does He need you? While He doesn’t need us in order to feel complete and whole, He does need us to embrace the calling on our lives. If heaven is truly going to break through into the lives of those around us, He needs us to surrender to Him and follow Him. He doesn't need us condemned. Jesus died to do away with that. However, He does want us to fully embrace the conviction and correction that will transform us into effective disciples of Jesus.

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In a way, He chose to need us. He chose to leave things in our hands. He chose to give us real responsibility, and all the power we will ever need to embrace it. God needs us to fully embrace Him, and the life that He created us for!