Once again, here’s the chorus of Nicole Nordeman’s song, “Legacy”:
I want to leave a legacy.
How will they remember me?
Did I choose to love?
Did I point to You enough to make a mark on things?
I want to leave an offering.
A child of mercy and grace who blessed Your name unapologetically
And leave that kind of legacy.
If Jesus had been asked to name a person who left a great legacy, I think he would have answered quickly: “Among those born of women there has not risen anyone greater than John the Baptist.” Jesus then gave insight into prophesy learned Jews often pondered. “For all the Prophets and the Law prophesied until John. And if you are willing to accept it, he is the Elijah who was to come.”
The interesting thing is that John didn’t see himself so clearly. He readily confessed, “I am not the Christ.” So the curious asked, “Then who are you? Are you Elijah?” and John replied, “I am not.” John wasn’t lying; he just didn’t know.
The greatest legacies in God’s eyes are left by those who don’t know everything. John knew he was a voice calling in the desert, “Make straight the way of the Lord.” Isaiah’s words had special meaning for John, but he could only preach the things God showed him. As he baptized with water, he talked about One who would baptize with the Holy Spirit. John was simply faithful. When the Messiah was revealed, he was overjoyed. The legacy of John was that he was consumed with another. Nicole Nordeman would say he pointed to Jesus “enough to make a mark on things.”
But though he was faithful, things didn’t turn out the way John expected. His ministry brought criticism. Some concluded, “He has a demon.” Others simply discounted his message of repentance. Then a wicked king threw him in jail… and a wicked queen asked for his head. In the cloud of lonely suffering, doubts invaded the mind of the prophet. “Did I miss it? Is he really the One? Was I somehow deceived?” One whose legacy depends on Christ stands on a solid Rock but often feels like he’s on an uncertain journey. When everyone deserted Jesus after his difficult teaching in John 6, the apostles were a little stunned. “You don’t want to leave too, do you?” Jesus asked. “Lord, to whom shall we go? You have the words of eternal life. We believe and know you are the Holy One of God.” Peter gave this wonderful reply, but John the Baptist asked a different question. “Go ask Jesus, ‘Are you the One who was to come, or should we expect someone else?’” Jesus told his friends to go report the powerful things he was doing: the blind received sight, the lame could walk, the lepers were healed, the dead were raised, and the good news was preached to the poor. Then Jesus added an intriguing sentence: “Blessed is the man who does not fall away on account of me.”
John’s response to Jesus’ message is not recorded in Scripture, but I’ll bet he was encouraged. “OK… It’s not about my plan; it’s about God’s. I’ll trust him to the end.”
“John’s disciples came to him and said, ‘Teacher, the man you met on the other side of the Jordan River, the one you said was the Messiah, is also baptizing people. And everybody is going over there instead of coming to us.’ John replied, ‘God in heaven appoints each person’s work. You yourselves know how plainly I told you that I am not the Messiah. I am here to prepare the way for him – that is all. The bride will go where the bridegroom is. A bridegroom’s friend rejoices with him. I am the bridegroom’s friend and I am filled with joy at his success. He must become greater and greater, and I must become less and less. He has come from above and is greater than anyone else. I am of the earth, and my understanding is limited to the things of the earth, but he has come from heaven. He tells what he has seen and heard, but how few believe what he tells them! Those who believe him discover that God is true. For he is sent by God. He speaks God’s words, for God’s Spirit is upon him without limit. The Father loves his Son, and he has given him authority over everything. And all who believe in God’s Son have eternal life. Those who don’t obey the Son will never experience eternal life, but the wrath of God remains upon them.” John 3:27-36 (New Living Translation)