Independent, self-reliant, self-made—those values have been stamped on the psyche of the American people, and with good cause when they refer to a spirit that refuses to expect or rely on subsidies and handouts in order to live, or when it speaks against a socialistic form of government. We also train our children to be independent in various practical ways—the first time they feed themselves, the first steps they take, learning to dress themselves, read, make their beds, obtain a driver’s license. We applaud each of those milestones on that journey to independence, and we properly equate each of those steps with a growing maturity. However, those values are contrary to what God expects and His Word calls us to in our spiritual walk and service and in our relationship to Him. In fact, spiritual maturity might well be defined in the opposite fashion—as total dependence on the Lord.

            We need look no further than the example of Christ to discover the truth regarding this aspect of maturity. John’s Gospel gives a remarkable testament to Christ’s complete dependence on the Father. Consider these quotations from the mouth of the Lord Jesus.

Truly, truly, I say to you, the Son can do nothing of Himself, unless it is something He sees the Father doing; for whatever the Father does, these things the Son also does in like manner (5:19).

I can do nothing on My own initiative. As I hear, I judge; and My judgment is just, because I do not seek My own will, but the will of Him who sent Me (5:30).

I have come down from heaven, not to do My own will, but the will of Him who sent me (6:38).

I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me (8:28).

For I did not speak on My own initiative, but the Father Himself who sent Me has given Me a commandment as to what to say and what to speak (12:49).

The words that I say to you I do not speak on My own initiative, but the Father abiding in Me does His works (14:10).

          That’s remarkable, is it not? The Son of God, co-equal and co-eternal with the Father, Creator of heaven and earth, sustainer of the universe, commander of all the mighty angels, and giver of life to every creature, did nothing and said nothing without the Father’s direction and approbation. Refusing to exercise His will apart from His Father’s direction, He lived a life of total dependence on God.

            We, by contrast, deceive ourselves that the essence of maturity is acting independently—making our own decisions; doing what we want to do when, where, and how we want to do it; refusing to seek counsel from the godly people with whom God has surrounded us; forgetting or refusing to pray about a problem, need, decision, or desire; and neglecting to consult the wisdom of the Word of God that is able to make us wise. But the truth is that true spiritual maturity is reflected in an ever-increasing reliance on the Lord, and our goal should be total dependence on Him. We need not guess that such is the case because John’s Gospel also quotes the Lord telling His disciples to abide in Him because “apart from Me you can do nothing” (15:5). Christ’s life on earth attests to the fact that total dependence on God does not mean that we live a mindless, spineless existence with no purpose, energy, or ambition. On the contrary, total dependence on the Lord results in a vital, purposeful, effective existence—a life that glorifies the Lord, whose actions are empowered by the Lord, and whose activities produce eternal fruit. Someone has said: “That which comes nearest to omnipotence is impotence.” Because when we are weak, He is strong.