Does God Want You To Be Independent?

Mike Hosey, An Elder

In America, the idea of independence is a sacred one.  It is woven into our history from the very beginning. We fought a war, spilled blood, and spent treasure to become independent from Britain and her king, and to become our own, self-governing nation. In doing that, we became one of the most influential and powerful nations in all of human history.   And we achieved that in a remarkably short time relative to most societies.  Those beginnings, and that success, developed some strong and distinct American cultural ideals rooted in that original concept of independence. For instance, until recent decades, Americans were soaked in an idea popularized by Herbert Hoover, and noted by cultural historians called rugged individualism. It was the idea that each individual could make his or her own way without involvement from government regulations, interference, or even help, and that society was best when people embraced that rugged individualism. At its extreme, American’s didn’t even need other people. Implicit in the idea was that individuals could be self-sufficient. It was the idea of individual independence. Most Americans believed in the idea at a core level, even if they didn’t really always practice it.

The idea has some validity. We are able to do many, many things on our own. And society is generally better when people do.  But no man is totally independent of others.  Further, when it comes to our relationship with God, either collectively or individually, independence is an idea wholly alien to the Bible. There are no biblical heroes who were independent of God. Not one.  In fact, every single biblical hero is IN dependence of God.  They are unable to do ANYthing without his help or involvement.  From Jesus, to the apostles, to the Old Testament’s hall of fame, every single biblical role model of faith stands in dependence on God’s power, presence, plan, and relationship with them.  And that’s the way God wanted it. In fact, it’s the way it needs to be.  A lightbulb, after all, is completely useless when it is independent of its source.

Paul reveals this concept to us in 2 Corinthians 12:9.  In that chapter he boasts of his accomplishments, but then recalls how he had to suffer persecution from a thorn in his flesh. God tells him that His power is made perfect in Paul’s weakness. Paul recognizes his weakness and embraces God’s power as well as embracing his own weakness, realizing that when he is weak and dependent on God, that he is also strong! In God’s system, dependence is a sacred idea.