Self-Sufficient God

Self-Sufficient God – The Definition
God, being identified and defined as self-sufficient, means He possesses within Himself every quality, ability, and supernatural command with never-ending measure. Every attribute or mighty and wonderful power is His endlessly. God wants for nothing and lacks nothing; He is complete.

There are many names for God in the Bible. Each name is actually a word that describes His nature and attributes. For instance, in the original Hebrew text, “El-Shaddai” was first used in Genesis 17. It is used throughout the Bible and is still an accepted name for God today among Christians and Jews. “The most simple translation is ‘God’ (‘el), THE ALL-MIGHTY ONE (shadday), to clearly differentiate the One true God from other ‘gods, as ‘el’ was a common term for any god at that time, age and area. It is significant that it is THE Name that God uses in reference to Himself as He begins to set aside a people for Himself, to be uniquely His as a possession, and to be uniquely His as His representatives on this planet. It was at this point that God revealed Himself as ‘THE ALMIGHTY GOD’, or

the omnipotent,
omnipresent,
omniscient One.”¹

Others names include Jehovah Rapha—the LORD who heals; Jehovah Jireh—the LORD who provides. For as many things as you can name, He has a name declaring His ability to fulfill it.

Why did Self-Sufficient God Create Us?
Many wonder why a self-sufficient God would need to create the human race and this world. Well, He didn’t need to; He was not lonely. First, He wasn’t alone (Genesis 1:26, John 1:1). Secondly, He created us out of His supernatural, divine love. We are an expression of God’s love, made in His own image, and He breathed His very breath of life into us.

The Lord God is the ultimate, original artist of the ultimate, original masterpiece—all of creation. We might say He made us because He loves to create. He made the world and all it contains, saying “It is good,” before He made mankind and after which He said “It is very good.” Unlike a human artist, He did not have to go back and ‘redo’ a brushstroke of clouds in a vibrant blue sky, a majestic mountain, or a clear and pure babbling stream. All was perfect. He then blessed man and gave him dominion over all the earth (Genesis 1:27-31).

One source states, “...particularly in relation to his people, the answer is this: though he doesn’t need us, he loves us, and his purpose in creating and redeeming us [after the fall] is not that we might fill up some lack in him, but that he might fill us up with himself. He made us empty to be filled with his fullness, thirsty to drink the water of life, weak to receive his strength, foolish to be instructed and corrected by his wisdom. In his love, he longs to give, to share the bounty. He wants us to experience in finite measure the fullness of joy and blessing that he knows infinitely—all to rebound to the praise and glory of his name, the Giver and Provider of all the good we enjoy.”²

How has the Self-Sufficient God revealed Himself to man?
The self-sufficient El Shaddai, The Almighty, has shown Himself to man completely in the New Testament and by the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ—God with us, come in the flesh, to be All-in-All.

Colossians 1:15-20 says this about Jesus: “He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. For by him all things were created: the things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers of rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. He is before all things and in him all things hold together. And he is the head of the body, the church, he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy, For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood shed on the cross.”

To some, these quotations and Scriptures may be mere words. However, through a personal acceptance of and relationship with Jesus, we can truly know and experience the only self-sufficient God. “No one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and those to whom the Son chooses to reveal to him. Come to me, all you who are weary and burdened, and I will give you rest. Take my yoke upon you and learn from me, for I am gentle and humble in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For my yoke is easy and my burden is light.” – Matthew 11:27-28

Learn More of God’s Attributes!

Footnotes:
¹ R.A. Hanes, elshaddai.org
² 3riversgrace.org