The Legacy

J. Earl Martin

1924-2003

“And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others” (2 Timothy 2:2).

Earl Martin lived well, died well and left a godly legacy on many. The visitation was held in our church (which I think is great) and many came out to pay their respects to this man of God. A wonderful display of photos showed Earl with his family through the years and I greeted each family member starting with his grandchildren. What a demonstration of the legacy of a godly man. One grandson, who will be returning to Asbury as a senior this fall, is majoring in Bible and Theology and planning on planting a church in the inner city.

In the display I picked up a newspaper article written about Earl in 1984 when his farm was recognized as a century farm (that is, in the same family for 100 years). Earl was quoted, “The Lord’s been good to us and the best crop we’ve raised here is our children.” What an interesting description of ministry in the family and beyond. It describes the Biblical pattern for ministry. “And the things you have heard me say in the presence of many witnesses entrust to reliable men who will also be qualified to teach others.”

That’s been the pattern for two thousand years and continues to this day and will most certainly continue until the trumpet sounds. One generation passing down the faith to the next. You’re reading this and hopefully you have the faith. Someone has passed it down to you. Are you passing it on? Are you leaving a godly legacy as Earl Martin did to those who come along behind you? That’s our call.

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