Does God need us to build His Kingdom? If we would cooperate with His agenda, would the Kingdom of God be bigger right now?
Does the selfishness of His people prevent God from doing all He could if everyone was more generous? Would God be more well-known if the liberal media didn’t take references to God out of news reports and television?
The Bible’s answer: No.
God does not need you to build His Kingdom. Our God sits in the heavens and does all that He pleases. There is no task which God wishes to accomplish that He is unable to complete for lack of human cooperation. Upon Peter’s confession, Jesus responds, “On this rock I will build my church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” Nothing will stop God’s Kingdom from being built.
God does not need your money. Our God owns the cattle on a thousand hills. If He were hungry, He would not tell you, for the world is His. In Acts 17, Paul criticizes the Greeks for their belief that God would need man for anything. It is God himself who gives to man life and breath and everything! God does not need your sacrifice or your money.
God does not need you to make Him famous. The heavens are telling the glory of God, and the sky above proclaims Him. Everyone can see God must have created all things and understand His attributes of justice, goodness, power, and truth. God has made Himself known to men through His power and nature since the creation of the world, so people are without excuse. God does not need you to make Him known.
God does not need you… But God wants you.
God wants you to join Him in His work in the world. God is not limited by any of man’s lack of cooperation. Yet, God chooses to invite men into his work. Consider: Not only did God forgive you, redeem you, adopt you as His own, but God also invites you to join Him in reconciling all things to himself. He has given to us the ministry of reconciliation. This is not a duty, but a delight of God’s family.
God wants you to give your money to support Kingdom causes. This is not primarily because your church or Christian ministries need your money. God does not need you to give so He can grow His kingdom. God wants you to give so He can grow your faith.
The purpose of your generosity is not to give God something He does not have, but to give you what you need: release from the bonds of materialism. God does not need you to give your money, but you need to be released from money worship.
God wants you to make Him famous. While His power is clearly seen by all people, the message of the Gospel is only known by those who have heard it from those who have been Romans 10 sent – “How beautiful are the feet of those who bring good news.”
But the good news is only good if it gets delivered in time. There is an urgency for us to share. Not because God needs us, but because others need God.
In Matthew 6, God gives us a sweet assurance for the fears that surface if we live the life God wants for us. “Do not be anxious about what we will eat, drink, or wear… your heavenly Father knows that you need them. But seek first His Kingdom and His righteousness, and all these things will be added to you.”
God does not need you. God wants you. But do you want God?