Okay so my on opinion is this. Yes and No.
It all depends on how you want to shoot. When I shoot weddings I use natural light, and reflectors (if one of my voice activated light stands is available. Ah... interns). However, when it is dark and I am at a reception trying to get some dancing, available light doesn't work. I have yet to see and iso that can make it work, even on a D700. I can get a fast lens, but even that doesn't always work. So at that point I switch to a diffuser on my on camera flash.
Now this is a general rule, and I don't always use it. I actually sometime use my on camera flash to chip in a little light because it adds a little something to the photo.
Now for art shots, I use a flash all the time. I usually have two sb800's on light stand with umbrellas and softboxes and an on camera flash that I can remove and have an assistant use it. This allows me to do much more with the artistry of the shot. Hell, if the couple is right, I might even do this at a wedding shoot for part of the time.
I do real estate photography as well, and I have to use flash there, and usually all three off camera. I have to balance exposing exterior view properly with exposing the indoors, and making any interior light work. But there it is a special circumstance, and you could probably make something passable using a no flash.
So the real answer as a new photographer is simply your question. Do I need a flash? It would be good to ask yourself every time you hit the shutter, what do I want this to look like? If natural light is going to make you vision come true, use the tools you have at hand; flash, reflections, ambients or reflectors.
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