In a recent correspondence with a friend of mine I was asked:
"What do you want to leave behind (a legacy) if you could?"
"Why do you want to leave a legacy behind?"
"What would Jesus do?"
I responded with a simple answer, but feel that there should be more said now, so here it is.
First, I am going to address the topic of legacy in general. What I think of it and what not.
Legacy by definition of Merrium-Webster goes like this: "something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past." Now when I first hear the word "legacy," I think of something big, unique, or something that will be remembered for many, many years. It might change the way people live their lives, in either good or bad ways. But, hearing this definition, and thinking a little more about it, a legacy doesn't need to be that big at all. For instance, having children can be a legacy, a will could be another form of a legacy, or even something as simple as a memory. I don't think that I'll ever forget my sister, grandma, grandpa, or any of the other people that I know, but aren't here on earth anymore. It's not that they did anything amazing that many people will remember them for, just lived their lives. So, when I asked the question "Why do you want to leave a legacy behind?" I was thinking more along the lines of a big one. I just don't see myself, nor want to have a legacy of me left behind for a whole bunch of people. What would I, a guy from mid-west United States, have that no one else in the whole past of the world have that couldn't have been left behind already. Now that sounds pretty lame doesn't it, I am nothing but a compilation of things of the past. That's not what I'm saying. I am the only Ben Lambert, whether there are other people named Ben Lambert in the world, I am the only me. But how do I learn to live life? One, by learning things from experiences of my own, but also from those who have lived before I did and know things I don't. And those things are for me to learn, live by, and leave behind. If I leave a legacy behind because of how I live my life, big or small, then so be it, if I don't, then let it be.
So, Jesus' legacy. What did Jesus leave behind?
To put it simply, in three words, I would say that He left behind love, forgiveness, and life.
Love. Agape (that is Greek) love more specifically. Meaning loving everyone. Now, sadly, Christians, or perhaps people who call themselves Christians, are not very good at this, I'll even admit it myself, but it's what Jesus did and what we should do. In books that I have read, people were amazed of the love of the first Christians, it was something that they hadn't seen before. I'm not saying it's gone today, but I feel that Agape love is outweighed by the superficial love.
Forgiveness. This is one of the main reasons of Jesus' life. To be a sacrifice for our sins, to forgive us. In the Old Testament the Jews had to give a sacrifice of a bull, ram, sheep, grain, or birds to be forgiven. These animals had to be with out defect, first choice, or spotless. Jesus is just that, perfect. But not only did he forgive those sins that were covered by these sacrifices but even those that were punishable by death. In Deuteronomy 22 it says that those who commit adultery are to be put to death to rid the community of evil, but in John 8 Jesus forgives a woman who has done just that. Jesus triumphs over evil and will forgive if you ask Him. Now does this mean that you can go live life however you please and just ask for forgiveness? No. Jesus both told people to "Go and sin no more," and didn't sin himself.
Life. "My purpose is to give them a rich and satisfying life." Not only did Jesus give us life, but he showed us life. Jesus tells us to do as he did, to live life as he lives his. Something that I love about him is that he is always himself, but he becomes who he needs to be, if that makes sense. He will always teach the same things, love people as he loves, and be Jesus. But how he teaches these things will be different. In a book I just read titled 'Bruchko' about a man who went to tell the Motilone natives in South America who Jesus is. After he had been there a long time, years, he was finally able to tell them, in Motilone terms, meaning same teaching but in a way they would understand,, about Jesus. Bruce prayed that Jesus would become Motilone, and he did. The image of Jesus in these natives mind was one who looked just like them, walked their trails, wore a loin cloth, and carrier a bow and arrow. That is Jesus. He shows us life, gives us life, and becomes a part of our life.
So what is Jesus legacy? I would say that it is himself. What he said and did were one and the same. And that is how Christianity, Jesus, has lived this long, because he didn't die, minus a few days. He isn't remembered, He's alive. People know Jesus, learn from him, and striving to do and be as Jesus is.
