Being Wrong
Adam Thompson of Cincinnati, Ohio, was the first American to fill a
bathtub. Doctors who heard of it predicted rheumatism and inflammation of the
lungs. Some cities banned the new 'bathtub exercise'. Today a home is not
complete without a bathtub or shower. The crowd was wrong. England once had a
law forbidding anyone to drive a vehicle faster than four miles an hour without
a person going before them with a red flag. Today we have vehicles capable of
more than one hundred times that speed. The crowd was wrong.
Musicians and critics groaned and laughed at the music of Richard Wagner. But
his compositions transformed the music world. The crowd was wrong. Westinghouse
was called a fool for daring to think that he could stop a train with wind. Now
Westinghouse air brakes are being used the world over. Again the crowd was
wrong.
"What is radium?" the crowd jeered at Madame Curie. Today it is a valuable asset
in fighting disease. The crowd was wrong. For eleven years Goodyear and his
wife worked on vulcanizing rubber. Everyone laughed at them, but today millions
ride on Goodyear tires. The crowd was mistaken.
There have been advances in medical science hailed at the time, but were
later proved to be disastrous. The drug Thalidomide comes to mind. In the early
1950's the world hailed the first jet airliner, the 'Comet', which cut traveling
time by half. Several crashed and many were killed. The designers were wrong
about the effect that speed and altitude had on aircraft construction. They
learned from that mistake and today air travel is even safer than driving the
car.Publishers told Zane Grey that he had no writing ability. But his books
are still being read. The crowd was wrong.
Being wrong can be a serious matter, and that applies particularly to our
relationship with God. Too much is at stake. We can be wrong about many
things. The world can be wrong about things - it has been through the ages.
However, we dare not be wrong about Jesus. God offers us eternal life through
Jesus Christ. He so loved the world that He gave His only Son, and whoever
believes in Him shall not perish but have everlasting life.
Ron Clarke w4w@keypoint.com.au