Jesus Came to Meet Your NEED and Not Your Needs

By Mark W. Christy, PhD

Modern psychology holds that people essentially exist to have their needs and wants met so as to attain unto a state of satisfaction. This has only led to a rise in self-fulfillment being the chief aim for many if not most. Unfortunately, the Church often allows itself to be polluted with this worldly philosophy by focusing its message on felt needs whereby the individual self becomes central in worship. Typically, this is all done in name of evangelism under the banner of ‘meeting people where they are at’. In their presentations of the gospel, Jesus becomes a means whereby God fulfills (and caters) to their perceived needs and desires. Whatever your problem, they argue, Jesus is there to help you. Such a gospel is most certainly a false gospel that fails to prepare people for their own cross.

Paul speaks of this sort of false gospel in Philippians 3:17-21:

“Brethren, join in following my example, and observe those who walk according to the pattern you have in us. 18 For many walk, of whom I often told you, and now tell you even weeping, that they are enemies of the cross of Christ, 19 whose end is destruction, whose god is their appetite, and whose glory is in their shame, who set their minds on earthly things. 20 For our citizenship is in heaven, from which also we eagerly wait for a Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ; 21 who will transform [n]the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself.”[i]

In v. 19, Paul states that their “god is their appetite.” In other words, they seek after getting their own needs met. To put this another way, their own comfort is their chief aim. Such people are not unlike the crowd that followed Jesus to the other side of Sea of Galilee after the feeding of the five thousand. To them, Jesus had this to say, “Truly, truly, I say to you, you seek Me, not because you saw signs, but because you ate of the loaves and were filled” (John 6:26).

Instead of this self-fulfilling approach to God, the true gospel requires a humble, self-effacing approach to God whereby true repentance is rendered and deep gratitude for God’s forgiveness is born. Those who would come to Christ must set their minds solely upon Him irrespective of their needs. As Jesus says, “If anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross daily and follow Me. For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it” (Luke 9:23-24).

According to Jesus, Christians are to take up their cross, the emblem of suffering in this world, and follow Him. While God may meet some of their earthly desires along the way, their focus should be on Christ who alone is their one true need as opposed to concentrating on their earthly needs and desires. With such a focus, the faithful Christian will diligently search the Scriptures and humble himself/herself under its teachings by obeying the Word of God just as Christ Himself exemplified. While this goal of holy perfection will ultimately prove elusive, the writer of Hebrews makes it clear that Christ serves as the example for all Christians to imitate in their personal struggle against sin:

“Therefore, since we have so great a cloud of witnesses surrounding us, let us also lay aside every encumbrance and the sin which so easily entangles us, and let us run with endurance the race that is set before us, 2 fixing our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of faith, who for the joy set before Him endured the cross, despising the shame, and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. 3 For  consider Him who has endured such hostility by sinners against Himself, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart” (12:1-3).

As v.2 states clearly, the Christian is to focus on Jesus alone and keep His example in mind so as to gain strength when struggling. While Christians will never be able to manifest complete perfection in this life, they can through repentance maintain a life of obedience since God’s commands include the admonition to repent of sin. With this in mind, Christ could declare, “He who has My commandments and keeps them is the one who loves Me; and he who loves Me will be loved by My Father, and I will love him and will disclose Myself to him” (John 14:21). Given Christ’s words, real Christians love God and obey His commands regardless of whether or not their needs are met.

Employing this Christ-centered and self-effacing mentality, Paul speaks of his struggles in 2 Corinthians 1:8-11:

“For we do not want you to be unaware, brethren, of our affliction which came to us in Asia, that we were burdened excessively, beyond our strength, so that we despaired even of life; 9 indeed, we had the sentence of death within ourselves so that we would not trust in ourselves, but in God who raises the dead; 10 who delivered us from so great a peril of death, and will deliver us, He on whom we have set our hope. And He will yet deliver us, 11 you also joining in helping us through your prayers, so that thanks may be given by many persons on our behalf for the favor bestowed on us through the prayers of many.”

With his needs clearly going unmet to the point that desperation and the certainty of impending death set in, Paul rejoiced that God was teaching him through these painful occurrences to trust in Him alone. Throughout it all, he kept his hope firmly on God and not what he wanted God to provide. Ultimately, his faithful endurance through his own struggles became a source of inspiration for his fellow Christians.

[i]All Scripture references are taken from NASB1995.