Neal Pollard
According to Joey Green, author of Contrary to Popular Belief, Edison did not invent the lightbulb. Predating Edison’s work was that of English chemist Sir Humphrey Davy (1802), French physicist Jean Foucault (1844), American inventor J.W. Starr (1845), Russian electrical engineer Paul Jablochkov (1867), and English physicist Sir Joseph Wilson Swann (1878), each with inventions that were a type of lightbulb. Edison’s famed work occurred in 1879, when he patented his carbon-filament lamp. Green suggests Edison became known as the “father of the light bulb by building local power plants to generate and distribute electricity” (199).
Edison did more than invent something, he provided a means to make its use more possible. He took something that was already available and found a way to make it beneficial to more people. Obviously, Edison’s work was invaluable!
You and I can do the same thing. We did not invent the Word, but we do have the power to spread its light far and wide (Mt. 5:14,16). Many are content to leave it in the church building or under a bushel (cf. Mt. 5:15), but God needs men and women who are ready and willing to distribute it far and wide. Nothing is more beneficial to people’s lives, and nothing is more necessary for eternal preparation (Jn. 12:48). God is relying upon our finding whatever ways we can to spread the gospel to as many people as possible. We do not need to (and must not) invent or change the message. We just need to get the Word out there!
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