Walking with the Wise #52: Loving and Leaving A Legacy

“The memory of the righteous is a blessing,

but the name of the wicked will rot.”
—Proverbs 10:7

Legacies. Whether it's good or bad, we all have one. A legacy is that which we leave behind that testifies to our presence here on earth. It is either the memory of the successes we’ve left behind or the good we’ve done that’s looked upon with fondness, or it’s the memory of the evil, misdeeds or failures of our lives.

For those who live righteous lives of godly pursuit, their memory is a blessing. Those who seek God will seek to prioritize their lives according to God’s Word. They will seek to love and worship God with all of their heart, mind, soul and strength—everything else will be secondary.

For the man who loves God, he will seek to love his wife as Christ loved the church and will recognize his children as gifts from God of which he is a steward. He will seek to be diligent in his work, honest in his business, and above reproach in all areas of life. He will be a man of transparency and authenticity, recognizing and hating the sin in his life and relying on Christ to help him be the man God desires that he be.

For the woman who loves God, she will seek Him above all things, drawing close in intimacy and devotion, making sure that she delights in God more than earthly beauty. If she is married, she will diligently and faithfully love and respect her husband, love and nourish her children and run her household in fairness and equity. By God’s grace she will refrain from gossip and backbiting, being busy in the tasks God has given her to do, while exemplifying Christ in all areas of life. If she is single, she will show her devotion to Christ in purity and chastity, making sure that her love for Christ trumps all of her other pursuits.

Knowing what Christ has, and what He desires for and from us, does not mean that our hearts will automatically follow. We mess up, we sin, and we fail. But those who seek to be righteous know this, and by God’s grace operating and applied by His Holy Spirit, we are continually reminded of our need for repentance, confession and humility. We may fail, but we admit and own our faults, confessing them to God, knowing that He will forgive those who come to Him in repentance and faith (cf. 1 John 1:9).

Lives of authentic transparency that have been ordered to God’s Word and set to reflect His worth in radiant worship, will leave legacies not quickly forgotten. God will honor those who honor Him, but will cause those who hate him to be forgotten on the garbage dumps of time.

We must have the courage to honestly ask ourselves: What kind of legacy am I leaving? Is it one of godliness or godlessness? What will those who have known me remember about me once I am gone? Or better yet, what kind of legacy does God say I’m leaving behind?

Leave a legacy of loving God and it will be established forever. Leave a legacy of sin and selfishness and you will be forgotten. Love God, love your neighbor, and He will take care of the rest. Amen.