“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything.” -Acts 17:24-25
God is eternal. Before anything ever existed, God was there. The Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit were all living in perfect fellowship and in perfect love with each other. The three persons in the One Triune God were—and are still today—completely satisfied in their relationship with one another.
God is completely sufficient in himself. He cannot be given anything that can give him more value. He cannot be helped by someone or something outside of himself, because this would mean that there was something lacking in himself. And if this were the case, then he would not be God at all. For God to be God means that he must lack nothing. If God had decided in the beginning that he was not going to create anything at all, he would have been just as sufficient in himself as he is today. He would be just as deserving of all glory, honor, power, and praise then, as he is right now as I write this sentence.
It is out of this truth of self-sufficiency that God creates human life, planets, grass, trees, clouds, oceans, sharks, komodo dragons, an atom, lungs, fried chicken, sweet tea, “life, breath, and everything.” He did not create all things and all people because of something that he lacked, or out of boredom in hopes that maybe we would keep him company. No! Everything he creates is out his own love and grace that he longs to pour out and reveal.
We get to experience and personally know the steadfast love, kindness, and the immeasurable grace of God because he longed for us to share in the joy of who he is! He gives us himself so that we might partake in his love and his joy. This is incredible and undeserved love that is extended to us from the Almighty, All-powerful, Eternal God.
Because of our sin, the ability to enjoy God and experience his love was damaged. So God in his mercy sent Christ on our behalf to deliver us from our sin, and bring us back to God (1 Pet. 3:18). This was so that we might know him and enjoy a relationship of walking with God in love.
Jesus said to his disciples something that is staggering. “As the Father has loved me, so I have loved you. Abide in my love. … These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full” (John 15:9, 11). Jesus said that God loves us, his children, as much as he loves his Son, Jesus! He said that his joy is in us – the very joy of God! Because of our redemption in Christ Jesus, we get to experience the very same joy and love of God that has existed in his self-sufficient character since before time began..
That’s amazing.
Therefore, every ounce of work we do today—every sandwich we buy for the hungry man, every song we sing in church, every word we type in our office, every minute we raise our kids in the instruction of the Lord, every time we obey our parents and unload the dishwasher—is not to be done under the delusion that we are somehow adding something to God, as if he needs us on his team. No! Rather, all of it is meant to be done out of a heart of worship to God as we get the privilege of sharing in his love, joy and grace. Just like when an earthly father includes his 6-year-old son to help him build a bookshelf. The father does not actually need his son to build it, but he longs for his son to experience joy and love he has for him as his father by including him in the project. This is a small fraction of the picture of our amazing God.
Let us worship God for his self-sufficiency!