God's View on Legacy

Throughout the Bible, God encouraged leaving a legacy based upon Him and His commands. This was to ensure that future generations would know of Him, honor Him, and obey Him.

As early as Genesis we see this handing down of the birthright.

"So Issac called for Jacob and blessed him and commanded him: 'Do not marry a Canaanite woman. Go at once to Paddan Aram, to the house of your mother's father Bethuel. Take a wife for yourself there, from among the daughters of Laban, your mother's brother. May God Almighty bless you and make you fruitful and increase your numbers until you become a community of peoples. May he give you and your descendants the blessing given to Abraham, so that you may take possession of the land where you now live as an alien, the land God gave to Abraham.'" Genesis 28:1-4

Do you have instruction and blessing to pass on to your descendants or only material possessions?

In some of Issac's last words, he passes on to his descendant, Jacob, instruction and blessing. He instructs his son as to what God would want in regards to whom he should marry. He also blesses him through tangible, as well as intangible means. The Expository Dictionary of Bible Words explains that within the old covenant, the blessing did include the possession and enjoyment of the land. However, this spiritual blessing also included "the joy of being in an intimate, personal relationship of favor with one's God." Issac desired to pass on a Godly legacy to his heir; he wanted to be assured that his family would continue to follow and obey God. Thus, he specifically communicated this to Jacob.

These specifically communicated instructions were intentional. Issac called for his son Jacob and verbally gave him specifics about how he wanted his son to carry on.

How do you pass on the Godly instructions and blessings to the next generation?

God Himself will give some suggestions on this in our next two posts.