Legacy That Lasts
By Matt Watson
The U.S. birthrate is not only declining but is at a record low. Data from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention show that the birthrate of 1.66 children per woman is the lowest on record since tracking began in 1979. The Wall Street Journal points to factors such as men and women delaying having children to establish careers first and increased access to contraceptives.
Why is this a problem? Apart from being unable to replace the population—an issue that Japan and China are facing—it suggests we've found another way to defy God's command. Genesis 1:28 instructs Adam and all those after him to "Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it, and have dominion over... the earth." Yet, we are increasingly choosing not to multiply.
Some people don't have a choice. For various reasons, God has providentially prevented some from having children. My wife and I struggled to conceive our first child for four years, and we've been trying for over a year and a half for a second. We know many others in our church who have struggled with infertility. Two of my best friends also went through seasons of infertility. We know another couple unable to conceive due to the husband's cancer treatments. These are real struggles and not at all their fault.
Can you be a biblical and faithful disciple (who makes disciples of Jesus) without having children? Of course. Many have. But the reasons are important. God does not open some wombs. Sometimes men and women remain single. But these are general exceptions to the norm that God gave to mankind.
Can you "multiply" spiritual children rather than raising biological children? Certainly, but the same caveats apply. Many of the Apostles and Prophets did not have wives or children. But Paul had Timothy and Titus, and through them, many more.
Childbirth is normative, not the exception. Often, we hold up exceptions as excuses to ignore the obvious applications of something. Let's not miss the forest for the trees: if you love Jesus and can have kids, then you should. If you don't love Jesus, or you can't have kids, then don't. It's that simple.
Pagans everywhere have decided to stop having children either because of fears of over population and global warming, or because of how a child will make them die to themselves and leave a life of selfishness. They think they will be happiest and freest without a child to care for. Being kings and queens of irony, they will talk of dehumanization and victimization, but then dehumanize children by describing them with derogatory slurs, or simply murdering them in the womb.
Feminists and the LGBTQ+ community, those bastions of tolerance and sanity, eschew procreation. Honestly, that’s fine. Let them. It’s better for the world if they don’t, and it’s better a child is not conceived than murdered by their mother.
Take a lesson from the Shakers. The United Society of Believers in Christ’s Second Appearing, or the Shakers (so called because of their pre-charismatic dancing), was a Protestant sect founded in the 18th century. Shakers were celibate, neither marrying nor having children. The only way they could multiply was through recruitment. Today, Shakerism is dead; only a handful of Shakers remain, living in a commune in Maine. It is no longer either a sect or a movement, but a few people living in delusion and seclusion in New England.
This is the same model held by the aforementioned alphabet soup activists. They cannot procreate naturally, so they find ways to do so unnaturally. They indoctrinate children in state schools, through TV, local libraries, and grooming. If they can’t have children, they’ll make others in their own image. If they can’t have their own children, they’ll take yours.
So what does that teach us? A godly ethic for procreation is to do it—and to do it within the context of a marriage covenant with the God of the Bible. It is all the better for the church that the world is not making disciples through childbirth. Like the Shakers, eventually their movement will die out as Christians continue to outproduce them.
If you are a married man and woman who love the Lord, and you can have children, then you should. This is not a matter of salvation but of obedience. That means single people, unmarried people, and those struggling with infertility are off the hook. And of course, regardless of whether you can have children or not, every Christian should also be making disciples in other ways.
The key point to keep in mind is legacy. Do you consider how the decisions you make now now affect not just you but also your children and their children? Here are two biblical examples—one positive, one negative.
Boaz married Ruth, who had Obed, who had Jesse, who had David, and so on until Jesus was born (Ruth 4:18–22; Matt 1:1–16). Boaz’s obedience to God by being a kinsman-redeemer (which includes having children!) set the stage for the ultimate legacy: redemption through his descendant Jesus. Dads should be like Boaz in that he was good at his job, was productive and profitable, had a good reputation, and most importantly, was faithful to God.
But dads, don’t be like Hezekiah. Although considered a good king, Hezekiah was a deadbeat dad regarding legacy. We read in Isaiah 39 that envoys from Babylon came to Hezekiah with honeyed words but putrid intentions. Hezekiah not only welcomed them, but showed them all of his riches and wealth.
“And Hezekiah welcomed them gladly. And he showed them his treasure house, the silver, the gold, the spices, the precious oil, his whole armory, all that was found in his storehouses. There was nothing in his house or in all his realm that Hezekiah did not show them”
Isaiah 39:3 ESV
Then Isaiah the prophet comes with some choice words for the king. He said,
“‘Behold, the days are coming, when all that is in your house, and that which your fathers have stored up till this day, shall be carried to Babylon. Nothing shall be left, says the Lord. And some of your own sons, who will come from you, whom you will father, shall be taken away, and they shall be eunuchs in the palace of the king of Babylon.’ Then Hezekiah said to Isaiah, ‘The word of the Lord that you have spoken is good.’ For he thought, ‘There will be peace and security in my days.’”
Isaiah 39:6-8 ESV
With big boomer energy, Hezekiah said “Oh. That won’t effect me. Just my kids. Nothing to worry about then.” Dads, don’t be like that. That is not legacy. Legacy is families doing what is needed now for the benefit of those who come after them. Husbands and wives should get out of debt, get healthy, and find productive ways to work so that their kids are not burdened with debt, obesity, or lack of skills to offer their community.
So here is the call to action: Don’t be foolish by following the world. Follow Jesus, fight sin, and fulfill the mission. The commander’s intent to make disciples includes, but is not limited to, procreating and teaching your children to obey the Lord. It also includes, but is not limited to, teaching others outside your family to obey the Lord. We can do better than the world’s standards of joy and freedom because we have ultimate joy and freedom in Christ’s Word, will, and ways. Go forth and multiply and you will change the world.
This article was originally published by Matthew Watson with Awake! Put on strength!, and is used under a CC BY-SA 4.0 license.