Jesus Doesn’t Need You – Reasons Not to Follow Jesus (part 2)

In this series of posts, I’m exploring all the reasons you should NOT follow Jesus Christ. As I explained in the last post, this isn’t a gimmick or some kind of reverse psychology. Choosing to become a follower of Christ is a game-changing decision, a life-altering covenant – one that, like marriage, should not be entered into lightly. Even more so because marriage ends at death but we follow Jesus into the after-life and beyond. (Really not my intention to make Him sound like Buzz Lightyear.)

Reason number one not to follow Jesus was “You’re feeling the need for some religion in your life.” See previous post for details on why that never works out well. https://loriroeleveld.com/reasons-not-to-follow-jesus/maybe-you-should-turn-back-now-reasons-not-to-follow-jesus-part-1/

Reason number two not to follow Jesus may surprise some of you and offend others. Jesus doesn’t need you.

That’s right. Jesus doesn’t need you. Not at all. Not even a little.

He’s not lonely. He’s not hurting. And He’s not like Tinkerbell- only existing if people believe in Him.

He puts it this way in Psalm 50:9-12 NIV “I have no need of a bull from your stall or of goats from your pens, for every animal of the forest is mine, and the cattle on a thousand hills. I know every bird in the mountains, and the creatures of the field are mine. If I were hungry I would not tell you, for the world is mine, and all that is in it.”

God does not need you in anyway. He doesn’t need you to validate His existence. He doesn’t need you to build His kingdom. He doesn’t need you to worship Him. He doesn’t need you to love Him. He doesn’t need you to work for Him. He doesn’t need your time, your talents, your money, your attention or your life. He is self-sufficient. He is all-sufficient.

Even knowing that God is love and that love seeks an object of love does not mean that God needs you. The Father, Son and Holy Spirit are in perfect loving relationship so He is sufficient even in this.

Often, the broken church makes God out to be a sad and lonely beggar god who weeps and waits for you to carry His message to a hurt and lonely world. “Without you,” the broken church preaches, “God is impotent, handless, legless, paralyzed, mute and alone. Without you, someday the church may just wither and die.”

That’s moving but it isn’t true.

Jesus told the Pharisees that if He silenced His followers, the rocks and stones would cry out in praise. God can raise an army of followers from a field of dead dry bones.

Because God just is. Even without us.

Doubt me? Read the final chapters of Job, 38 through 41, for a remarkable speech by the Lord on His superiority to humans. It’s a beautiful, breathtaking and relationship-defining speech.

He is God and there is no other. There is no one like Him. He lacks for nothing.

So, if you’ve chosen to follow Jesus because He needs you, maybe you need to reconsider your choice. If you’re someone who enters relationships based on what you have to offer, you may not be up for this relationship because it’s like no other and it’s ALL on His terms.

You have no bargaining chips with God because He doesn’t need you.

No matter how great you are on earth, no matter what power or relational currency you are accustomed to bringing to the table, acquiring you as a follower is no great coups for God. The soul of an untouchable beggar on the streets of Calcutta is as valuable and desirable to Him as the most powerful world leader. Neither of them has anything to offer to Him that He needs but His desire is that they should both know Him.

It can be terrifying to be in a relationship with someone who holds all the cards. Our only other experience with this is based on other humans and because of sin; the imbalance of power usually results in the person who offers nothing suffering abuse. That doesn’t happen with God but trusting that requires one giant leap of faith for a lot of us.

He is all-sufficient and He is love. His nature is such that He needs nothing from us and offers His love freely. It’s a relationship like no other on the planet.

We have no experience with such a relationship. It will feel strange, unfamiliar, unsettling, disturbing. He will resist all of our efforts to make it fit our usual parameters. He will not let us bribe, barter, bargain, bluff, bully or bewitch our way into a place of power with Him. He’ll be patient while we try it all out but He will resist even as we persist until we accept that we would always be beggars at His doorstep if He had not make a way for us to be adopted as sons and daughters.

It’s kind of mind-blowing, really. You may not be up for it.

You may get into and find you can’t deal with it. When you are stripped of what you think you have to offer to another – what are you? Maybe you don’t want to know. Maybe it’s too terrifying. Or maybe being unconditionally loved by a being who has no desire to use you and no need of anything from you and who sees YOU without all the stuff you use as a cover will be the most freeing, transforming experience of your life. Maybe.

But it’s not for everyone. It may not be for you. It takes courage to begin the relationship and it takes guts to go deeper with it every single day of existence this side of glory.

So, this may be the post where you decide to turn back. Knowing that Jesus does not need you may be the deal breaker. Go in peace, friend.

But maybe, maybe you want to stick around for the next post. Maybe, I’ll see you there.