The definition of legacy that is relevant to our discourse is something transmitted by or received from an ancestor or predecessor or from the past.

Herod the Great in a fit of status preservation as the super powerful client king answerable to Rome ordered the massacre of the innocents in the vicinity of Bethlehem as detailed in Matthew 2:16-18 (TPT)

When Herod realized that he had been tricked by the wise men, he was infuriated. So he sent soldiers with orders to slaughter every baby boy two years old and younger in Bethlehem and throughout the surrounding countryside, based on the time frame he was given from interrogating the wise men. This fulfilled the words of the prophet Jeremiah: I hear the screams of anguish, weeping, and wailing in Ramah. Rachel is weeping uncontrollably for her children. And she refuses to be comforted, because they are dead and gone.

While there are no written details of how he raised his three children, their life stories showed the same traits of murder, even worse, an unparalleled egoistic madness manifest by the third generation, in the life of his grandson, Herod Agrippa.

Herod Archilaus his first son was deposed by Pontus Pillate. Named in his father’s will as ruler of the largest part of the Judaeo kingdom—Judea proper, Idumaea, and Samaria—Archelaus went to Rome (4 BC) to defend his title against the claims of his brothers Philip and Antipas before the emperor Augustus. Augustus confirmed him in possession of the largest portion but did not recognize him as king, giving him instead the lesser title of ethnarch to emphasize his dependence on Rome.

Archelaus was half Idumaean and half Samaritan and, like his father, was considered an alien oppressor by his Jewish subjects. Their repeated complaints against him caused Augustus to order him to Rome again in AD 6. After a trial in which he was unsuccessfully defended by the future emperor Tiberius, he was deprived of his throne and exiled to Gaul. In the account of Matthew 2:22, it was fear of Archelaus’ tyranny that led Jesus’ family to settle outside his domain at Nazareth in Galilee —Culled from Britannica

The second son, Herod Antipas who received a quarter of Herod the Great’s kingdom had the same trait of ego, unwilling to change his word to Salome, Herodias’ daughter, when she asked for the head of John the Baptist. The killing of an innocent servant of God who spoke the truth to him many times. The twin evil of pride and pleasure were in full bloom in his life. This is the one the Lord Jesus Christ called the Fox, that we will expand upon next.
 
Beloved parents, we owe it a duty to God and to our legacy to teach our children humility. This is blatantly not the case with the elites and ‘nouveau riche’ parents in our nation. We teach them arrogance and pride at home by our life conduct and utterances and send them to schools where these evil traits are reinforced. No wonder we have a truly evil generation that live the words written by apostle Paul to his son Timothy (2 Timothy 3:1-5 (NKJV).
 
For avoidance of doubt and in the words of Mary Fairchild, 

humility is highly prized in the eyes of God. The Hebrew word for humility carries the idea of crouching down, bowing low to the ground, or being afflicted. Several terms in the Greek language convey the concept of humility: submissiveness, meekness, abasement, modesty of character, lowliness of spirit, neediness, and smallness, to name a few. Yet the Bible teaches that true humility and fear of the Lord “lead to riches, honor, and long life” (Proverbs 22:4, NLT). In both the Old and New Testament, humility is essential for establishing a right relationship with God and other people. Humility is maintaining a proper perception of ourselves, a character trait that greatly pleases God and one that God highly praises and rewards. Humility describes a character quality that properly values and accurately assesses oneself, especially in light of one’s sinfulness; in this sense, humility is a virtue that involves modest self-perception. It is the direct opposite of pride and arrogance. Humility is the appropriate posture people ought to have with God. When we maintain a humble attitude, we reveal our dependence on God. The Lord blesses, honors, and favors those who are genuinely humble.

If you take to heart God’s word that God resists the proud in James 4:6 and understand that the Greek word translated as “opposes” literally means “raging in battle with” or “at war with”, you will do our utmost in not pitching your children against God. You cannot win, and that much is evident in the lineage of Herod the great. You can no longer claim ignorance, please do the needful today. Selah.
 

Pastor Afolabi Oladele