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Themes: The Incomparable Christ Some people seem to have it "altogether". They are good at whatever they do. Success seems to come naturally.
One man who was like this is perhaps one of the greatest and most famous of Americans - Benjamin Franklin. He was born in 1706, the youngest son of a Boston soap and candle maker. When he was only seventeen, he ran away to Philadelphia. It was here that his fortune and fame began.
He began as a printer and journalist. Soon he expanded into many other roles. He became a scientist, experimenting with everything from special stoves to heat homes, to lightning rods and electricity. He is famous for having found out how to avoid lightning strikes with lightning rods. But, unlike the Lord Jesus in our story, he could never stop the storm. The best he could do was to prevent damage in the storm.
Franklin also was the Postmaster General of the new country. He was responsible for organizing the mail and seeing that people received messages from each other. But he never gave them a message directly from God. The Lord Jesus did that every time He spoke.
One of Franklin's greatest inventions was a special stove, called the Franklin stove, to heat homes during the cold winter. This became very popular and helped people to keep warm and avoid getting sick. But, you guessed it, he never cured anyone of a disease like leprosy. Only the Lord Jesus could do that.
But Mr. Franklin's greatest success was in politics. He was never president or even vice president, but he did attend every important assembly which worked to form the United States. He signed the Declaration of Independence and the Constitution. He was our ambassador to France for many years. He helped to bring peace to the world after the war between the United States and Great Britain.
The peace which Mr. Franklin brought lasted only 32 years. Then war came again. Mr. Benjamin Franklin was a great man. But the only person who can give lasting peace, eternal peace, is the Lord Jesus Christ. He could command the storm and the waves to be still and give the disciples peace. But to give you and to give me peace, He had to die upon Calvary for our sins. "The Punishment of our Peace was upon Him, and with His stripes we are healed." Isa. 53:5.
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Peter Orasuk
