Inheritance and Heritage

“An inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade – kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4 NIV

Whatever your net worth, live that your Godly influence blesses generations.

My thoughts and comments today are about “inheritance and heritage.”

Inheritance first suggests the transfer of property and wealth from one generation to the next, yet it can be so much more. My Dad died in a highway accident just forty-four years old. My Dad, a pastor, had married Gayle and me just three weeks earlier. I was twenty-one, a senior in college. He left a modest home with a mortgage, a negligible bank balance, and a $4,000 life insurance policy.

Yet, the heritage he left me is of incalculable worth, even though not in property and wealth. Those are certainly desirable, a beneficial boost to a new generation when given wisely to them and used wisely by them. But there are less tangible things as important as property and wealth seem to be – such as personal example, core beliefs, priority of family and friendships, character, convictions, gratitude, Godly faith, moral values, fidelity, work ethic, family priorities, wise money management, generosity, and integrity.

Still today, my Dad’s words, wisdom, and example shape my personal, marital, relational, and ministry life. My friend, Carlos, often reminds me how frequently I quote my Dad’s words about practical areas of life and faith, even fifty years after his death.

The Bible says, “A good man leaves an inheritance to his children’s children.” Proverbs 13:22 NKJV. One’s lifetime should be viewed through the lens of Godly generations. With six grandchildren and our first great-granddaughter, Kaylee Grace, Solomon’s words are meaningful to Gayle and me. When Solomon referenced, “a good man,” I think the inheritance he would leave included values and convictions more intrinsic to the man himself than his material wealth. I think I might distinguish the first as, “heritage,” differentiating the latter as, “inheritance.” Whatever your final net worth, substantial or minimal, live that your Godly influence extends to and blesses generations.

Ahab, a wicked king, envied a vineyard adjoining his palace, which belonged to Naboth. Ahab offered Naboth a even better vineyard or a just price. Read 1 Kings 21. There is something noble and Godly about Naboth’s response, “The Lord forbid that I should give you the inheritance of my fathers.” 1 Kings 21:3 NIV. Property and price were not the issue for him; honoring a sacred trust was. Naboth had received more than property; his vineyard was both an inheritance to enjoy and a heritage to protect. Protect the heritage you’ve been given and the one you will leave for those who follow. Every compromise of convictions steals something from the next generation.

What your “children and children’s children” value will reflect what you have consistently lived before them.I learned from my Dad this truth, “In his great mercy [Christ] has given us new birth . . into an inheritance that can never perish, spoil or fade – kept in heaven for you.” 1 Peter 1:3-4 NIV. I agree with King David; “Lord, You are the portion of my inheritance . . The [boundary] lines have fallen to me in pleasant places; [Surely], I have a good inheritance.” Psalms 16:5-6 NIV.

My prayer for you today is that you have the courage of your convictions.