Leaving A Spiritual Legacy

As I look back over the first 65 years of my life [65 years, two months, and two weeks, to be precise, tick tock], I’ve been thinking a bit more about what difference my life has made so far, what more I would like to accomplish, and what I will be leaving behind, when eventually I “shuffle off this mortal coil”. My “legacy”, to use a somewhat pretentious term. Now, hopefully, I’ll have many more years to add to my legacy, but it’s appropriate, I think, for all of us to look back as well as forward, to reflect on the life we’ve lived, and how we can finish well. And so that’s what I’ve been doing.

Perhaps some of you have had similar thoughts, triggered by a life event, such as the birth of a child or grandchild, or a marriage, or a graduation, or retirement, or the passing of someone close to you. All of those are milestones which are reminders that our time on earth is both finite and diminishing. And when that realization comes, that time is passing, each of us might ask what is it that we want to leave behind, for our children and grandchildren, and for the church and for the community? How can we ensure that we are passing on to them an inheritance, a legacy, that really matters?

Some people are focused on passing on a financial inheritance. They are striving to ensure that their children and grandchildren are well provided for from a monetary point of view. They want their sons and daughters, their grandsons and granddaughters, to be able to follow their dreams, to get an education, to live in relative comfort. And so they labor to earn as much as possible, to create wealth and invest it wisely, so that they can leave behind a legacy of financial security. Perhaps they work to build a business, or to acquire land and equipment, or a large bank account or stock portfolio. And I want to be clear: there’s nothing inherently wrong with doing that. On the contrary, many of us here this morning have been blessed by the hard work of our own parents and grandparents. Proverbs 13:22 tells us this:

“A good person leaves an inheritance for their children’s children,

but a sinner’s wealth is stored up for the righteous.”

This proverb is one of a series of short sayings, or aphorisms, in Proverbs that contrast the outcomes of a wise and godly life versus a foolish and sinful one. And in general, this Proverb is telling us, a life guided by righteousness and wisdom, and specifically the wisdom of the Bible, is more likely to lead to prosperity, and thus the ability to leave an inheritance for your offspring. A sinful life, on the other hand, may generate wealth, but it will ultimately slip through the wicked person’s fingers. And so in the end, the righteous will benefit from it, rather than the sinner’s own descendants.

Now understand, this is not a guarantee. Proverbs are statements of wisdom. They aren’t promises; they are observations about how life generally works. And the way things generally work out, even though we can all think of exceptions, is that a wise, righteous life leads to prosperity. And so working to leave an inheritance of this kind, a financial inheritance, is a good thing. There’s nothing wrong with it. As we see here in Proverbs,

the Bible speaks of it in a positive way. Yes, it can be marred by sin or greed or selfishness, as can anything, but in itself, it’s a good thing.

Here’s a similar statement from Ecclesiastes, another Old Testament wisdom book:

“Wisdom, like an inheritance, is a good thing

and benefits those who see the sun.” (Ecclesiastes 7:11)

What does Ecclesiastes says about an inheritance. Like wisdom, it’s a “good thing”. So if you are working, or have worked, perhaps for many years, to give your children and grandchildren the blessings of property, or finances, or some other kind of wealth, such as an education, or an established business, then that’s a good thing.

The problem, however, is that this kind of inheritance, an inheritance of worldly wealth, an inheritance of money, or land, or buildings, or livestock, or equipment—this kind of inheritance doesn’t necessarily last, even for one generation.

King Solomon wrote about this, also in the book of Ecclesiastes. Remember, Solomon was incredibly wealthy. Immensely wealthy. 1 Kings 10:23 tells us that he was, “. . . greater in riches and wisdom than all the other kings of the earth.” He had a lot of “stuff” to pass on. But as he reflected on what was to become of all his wealth, he realized something:

“17 So I hated life, because the work that is done under the sun was grievous to me. All of it is meaningless, a chasing after the wind. 18 I hated all the things I had toiled for under the sun, because I must leave them to the one who comes after me. 19 And who knows whether that person will be wise or foolish? Yet they will have control over all the fruit of my toil into which I have poured my effort and skill under the sun. This too is meaningless. 20 So my heart began to despair over all my toilsome labor under the sun. 21 For a person may labor with wisdom, knowledge and skill, and then they must leave all they own to another who has not toiled for it. This too is meaningless and a great misfortune.” (Ecclesiastes 2:17-21).