Legacy

I attended the Urban Youth Workers' Institute conference last week(end). Good conference, but I was an exhibitor, so I didn't get to attend any workshops. (I was too distracted by the printer shipping the wrong books to place on everyone's chair.) So one of the best things about the conference was meeting new friends. I had great conversations with many people about the role of Scripture in their lives and evangelism.

The theme of the conference was "Legacy." An interesting thought emerged from this theme in one of the plenary sessions. Harvey Carey, a pastor from Detroit, spoke of legacy building on previous legacy. He called on the story of Elijah and Elisha as a example. Elisha asked for a double portion of Elijah's spirit, and seemingly carried Elijah's fantastic accomplishments to an even greater level. The question is, how does this impact us today? Carey pointed out that when we're talking about legacy, we speak of Martin Luther King, Jr. among others, usually people who did great things half a century ago. His challenge is to take King's mantle and do even greater things.

Carey also pointed out that Jesus told his disciples that they would do greater things than he. Where did that go? He took a jab at dispensationalism: "Are you telling me that my God can't do whatever he wants today?" I've been wondering about that a quite a bit lately. What's to say that this restoration of creation that Jesus started bringing about isn't supposed to continue today, e.g., healing of disease, etc.? I'm taking a systematic theology class at Fuller this summer that will address this, so I'm excited to explore this idea of healing further. Coming from my very conservative background, it surprises me to say this. But I'm feeling more and more that Christians need to look at what God is trying to accomplish in the world, and I don't think it's only Pietistic "heart change."

So whether legacy implies some filial or civic or spiritual significance, I think we should heed Carey's word and work through God's grace to bring the restoration of Jesus even more than those before us.