The God Who Needs No Words

Acts 17: 24-25

New American Standard Bible
"The God who made the world and all things in it, since He is Lord of heaven and earth, does not dwell in temples made with hands; nor is He served by human hands, as though He needed anything..."

The Message Bible
"The God who made the world and everything in it, this Master of sky and land, doesn't live in custom-made shrines or need the human race to run errands for him, as if he couldn't take care of himself..."

It is always quite humbling to discover that the Lord of the Universe does not need you. As a believer sometimes I get on my moral high horse and think, "I am just doing so much for God here lately and I sure hope he appreciates my help." Idiotic... Stupid...Egocentric...Heretical...Arrogant...Prideful...Highfalutin...Cocky...Snobbish...Pretentious...Haughty...Supercilious... These are all words to express the disdain that we as Christians must have for such statements and people whose lives express such statements. God does not need you; this is a trap set by a smiling Satan himself.

I was listening to an awesome friend of mine last night talk about her frustration at the words spoken by a popular Christian artist that she heard in concert. As she spoke, I was struck by this truth that I am writing to you tonight. I was deeply troubled when I thought about the magnitude of what this artist had actually said. This man (who needs to spend less time picking the guitar and more time reading his Bible) had the nerve to say in front of a live audience these words:

"As I write and sing my songs of praise to the Lord, I sense the Lord saying thank you John (name changed so as to not get sued). I hear the Lord saying I really appreciate your praise to me. Your talent brings me glory, and I thank you."

What in the heck is this guy thinking? God is not in his ear telling him thank you. Can you imagine the God of the universe groveling at the feet of this artist to thank him for his music? I will tell you what he is hearing. He is hearing the words of a smiling silver tongue devil that is puffing up his pride in order to take glory away from the father. This guy is ignorant and dead wrong. Our God does not need us for anything.

Paul, as he is preaching in Athens, points out the absurdity of such a statement in regards to the creator and lord of the universe. We serve a God who could just as easily annihilate us as desire a relationship with us. Thank God he does desire a relationship with us, but he is in no way dependent towards us. We can never give God enough praise. We can never serve him enough. We can never work hard enough for him to thank us. This is ridiculous. We serve a God who needs no words. Oftentimes he is proud of us (I am reminded of Christ standing for Stephen), but this is different than a groveling thank you. Never get to the point where you think that you deserve the thanks of God. Always remember that he chose to have a relationship with us, and for this we are indebted to him eternally (literally).

Two other verses are necessary to point out also that pertain to this subject:

Job 22:2-3

"Can a vigorous man be of use to God,
Or a wise man be useful to himself?
"Is there any pleasure to the Almighty if you are righteous,
Or profit if you make your ways perfect?

Psalm 50:9-12

"I shall take no young bull out of your house
Nor male goats out of your folds.
"For every beast of the forest is Mine,
The cattle on a thousand hills.
"I know every bird of the mountains,
And everything that moves in the field is Mine.
"If I were hungry I would not tell you,
For the world is Mine, and all it contains.

We would serve a weak God if he needed us for anything. I hope you are humbled by these verses. Every time God has loved and provided for you, he did not have to.

This is why I will speak out forcefully if I am ever in the presence of someone who thinks they deserve the thanks of the Lord of the universe, as I hope you will too.

I praise the God who needs no words...Godspeed!