LEAVE A LEGACY?
Growing up, I didn’t really watch wrestling. I still don’t. But I did watch the Netflix documentary about Hulk Hogan and it was inspiring and heartbreaking. It highlighted the magnitude of wrestling and how prominent Hulk was on our minds.
But about half way through the series, he said something that stuck with me. His phrase went something like this: “Just like people are still talking about World War I and World War II, people will always remember Hulkamania and how big of a deal it was.” I couldn’t believe what I was hearing. He legitimately thought that his PR victory in 1984 would somehow resonate through all of history.
Similarly, I saw a video of a recent concert where David Lee Roth was singing “Jump.” He was all smiles, but it was sad looking. He was moving so slow but he was counting on the audience to remember his iconic performance of the song. He also relied on the audience to sing along, since he was having trouble vocally.
Finally, I saw Axl Rose performing “Welcome to the Jungle” in 2026 and he was dancing and singing. It was less than stellar.
But all of it was so bizarre—Hulk, Roth, Rose. Trying to convince themselves that the world cannot live without their contribution to it.
LEAVE A LEGACY?
The phrase “Leave a legacy…” has taken root in the past thirty years. Popular in business, coaching, and ministry circles, the idea is that you should live your life so that when you leave, people will know what you stood for and the things you built will live on.
But the problem is this—I’m not even sure it’s possible. Within a few years, people may not remember you. And after 50 years, it’s almost guaranteed that no one will remember you. I have no idea what my great grandfather did or who he was. If you make the iconic film or write the great American novel, after 50 years who will know or care? If you cast vision among your team and inspire them to greatness, surely that vision will fade upon your departure.
Is it possible to leave something with my family and friends when I leave?
Maybe it’s a thought we don’t want to consider—that so much of what we do will be forgotten or discarded. My blood sweat and tears will be lost in translation of the flow of history.
TREASURES….BUT WHERE?
What is biblical about the legacy we leave? What does the Bible say about all of this?
If you had to choose one chapter in the Bible to keep close and memorize, what would you choose? Matthew 6 is precious to me. It goes like this:
“And your Father who sees in secret will reward you.
19 “Do not lay up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust[e] destroy and where thieves break in and steal, 20 but lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust destroys and where thieves do not break in and steal. 21 For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also.”r it is, the way you tell your story online can make all the difference.”
How do we do this? How do we lay up treasures in heaven?
The “legacy” we most remember in history is when people sacrifice for others. We went to see the movie Young Washington, and he was overcome with ambition, it’s true. But there was a transformation where he begins seeing his duty as a calling, laying down his life for those around him.
And here’s a good spot for AW Tozer. Contrast the world’s idea of acclaim and creating a legacy versus his idea: “Be Thou exalted over my reputation. Make me ambitious to please Thee even if as a result I must sink into obscurity and my name be forgotten as a dream.”
It’s not a popular idea these day—of casting yourself down and intentionally being forgotten.
HOW?
How do we live our days with a biblical legacy? I think it’s the path of quiet self sacrifice. The acts of quiet service we partake in and the prayers we pray are the most enduring legacies we can build.
While do have the option of looking to ourselves to create our own legacy. We also have the potential to the world to validate ourselves to craft our legacy.
But the goal is to emulate Jesus and the way he looked to the Father for his own justification, validation, and legacy. And when we cast ourselves down in self sacrifice, we do the same.
It is an act of faith to intentionally place your treasure elsewhere. The entire chapter of Matthew 6 is about quietly looking toward God to validate you and meet your needs.
If you follow the world’s system, you seek validation from the world through the world’s ways. But if you follow the principles in Matthew 6, you look toward the Father to satisfy your desire for treasure and that treasure’s permanence.
The world’s system is symmetrical. The kingdom of heaven is asymmetrical.
“Be Thou exalted over my reputation. Make me ambitious to please Thee even if as a result I must sink into obscurity and my name be forgotten as a dream.”