(Meant for Good 8) Blessing and Legacy
Published by Olwin Gosal in 2026 · 16 August 2026
Joseph: Meant for Good 8
Blessing and Legacy
What if today were your last day or the day you die? What is the most important thing you would want to pass down to your children and grandchildren? And what do you think people will remember about your life? Reflecting on this, I pray: God, I only want to be faithful in my faith to You, and in loving and serving You. Today, we will reflect on Genesis 48-49.
1. God's faithfulness from generation to generation
"When we read Genesis chapters 48-49, it tells the story of the end of Jacob's life and his death. What did Jacob do at the end of his life? Everything spoke about God and His faithfulness. Jacob witnessed God's faithfulness to His promise. As written in Genesis 48:3-4: Jacob said to Joseph, “God Almighty appeared to me at Luz in the land of Canaan, and there he blessed me and said to me, ‘I am going to make you fruitful and increase your numbers. I will make you a community of peoples, and I will give this land as an everlasting possession to your descendants after you.” This is God's promise that has been passed down from generation to generation starting from Abraham, and God keeps His promise."
Verses 15-16: Then he blessed Joseph and said, “May the God before whom my fathers Abraham and Isaac walked faithfully, the God who has been my shepherd all my life to this day...” Jacob looked back and witnessed that the same God who faithfully cared for Abraham and Isaac was the very same God who had cared for and guided his own life.
My brothers and sisters, this is where we see God's faithfulness from generation to generation. God's faithfulness never changes, even though humans change. As written in 2 Timothy 2:13: “if we are faithless, he remains faithful, for he cannot disown himself.” God's faithfulness does not depend on human faithfulness. However, this does not mean we should think, 'Then it is okay if I am unfaithful to God.' Such a thought is deeply saddening, because it is not the mindset of a believer or someone who has tasted God's love. John Newton, "My memory is nearly gone, but I remember two things: that I am a great sinner, and that Christ is a great Lord and Savior."
The life Jacob lived was not always easy, but God’s presence and care secured his life. And that is exactly what God does from generation to generation in the lives of those who believe in Him. We may not understand everything that God is doing, but believe that God is faithful. Let us not focus only on the problems we face today; instead, let us look back and see how God has led our lives up to this day. Perhaps we have walked down 'twisting roads,' 'climbed hills that seemed to never end,' or walked through dark valleys where everything ahead of us looked pitch black. Yet, the fact that we are still standing here today is all because of the faithfulness of God, who is our Good Shepherd.
2. The Greatest Legacy and Blessing
"What is the greatest inheritance and blessing that we hope for and want to leave behind for the next generation? In verse 20: “He blessed them that day and said, “In your name will Israel pronounce this blessing: ‘May God make you like Ephraim and Manasseh.” So he put Ephraim ahead of Manasseh.’’ As he neared the day of his death, Jacob was not busy thinking about dividing material wealth among his children and grandchildren; instead, he kept speaking about God, His promises, and His blessings. This means that Jacob wanted to give an inheritance of faith and the knowledge of God to the next generation. He wanted them to understand who God is and what He has done from generation to generation. My brothers and sisters, a parent's greatest inheritance and blessing is not a house, money, or any other material wealth, but faith and the knowledge of the Lord. What are we passing down to our children and the next generation?"
Next, in Genesis 49:1: “Then Jacob called for his sons and said: “Gather around so I can tell you what will happen to you in days to come.” Before his death, Jacob was used by God to reveal the future of his children. Everyone's future was different, yet all remained securely in God's hands. We can prepare for our future and that of our family, but we cannot control it at all. Therefore, we must trust it to God because He is the one in control. As written in Proverbs 16:9: “In their hearts humans plan their course, but the Lord establishes their steps.”
In the end, the greatest blessing is not just a good life where everything seems guaranteed. The greatest blessing is the knowledge of Christ and salvation in Him. Paul says in Philippians 3:8 and 10-11: “What is more, I consider everything a loss because of the surpassing worth of knowing Christ Jesus my Lord, for whose sake I have lost all things. I consider them garbage, that I may gain Christ... 10 I want to know Christ—yes, to know the power of his resurrection and participation in his sufferings, becoming like him in his death, 11 and so, somehow, attaining to the resurrection from the dead”
Think about how great God's faithfulness has been in our life's journey, long for an ever-deepening knowledge of Him, and let us pass down faith and the knowledge of the Lord to our children and the generations to come.