Volume 28, No. 3                                                      
January 19, 2003

A Blast From the Past

   It was an explosive development that changed the world forever.     

   In 1846, Italian chemist Ascanio Sobrero stumbled upon a formula for what eventually came to be known as nitroglycerine.  Though powerful, the explosive was incredibly unstable.  It was hard to make without blowing yourself up, and almost impossible to transport safely.  It would go off at the slightest bump, a change in air pressure, or even long exposure to sunlight.  That also made nitro difficult to detonate in a controlled, predictable fashion.

   So when bankrupt Swedish weapons maker Immanuel Nobel began working with nitroglycerine, it cost him dearly.  His 20-year-old son, Emil, was killed in a blast that blew up the family workshop.  Even so, Nobel’s other son, Alfred, was determined his brother’s sacrifice wouldn’t be in vain.  His tenacity paid off in 1865 when he invented the blasting cap.  Instead of setting off nitroglycerine directly, the new device detonated a small amount of gunpowder, and the resulting shockwaves touched off the nitro.

   A few years later, Alfred Nobel solved the instability problem by mixing the volatile explosive with a thick soil that absorbed the nitro and turned it into a putty-like “plastic” explosive that could be shaped and dried into sticks.  He called the new material dynamite, after dynamis, the Greek word for power.  Eight times more potent than gunpowder, dynamite exploded onto the market, making Nobel very rich,  thanks to construction and a war between France and Germany.

   But when the inventor’s brother, Ludwig, died in 1888, several newspapers thought it was Alfred who had died and wrote scathing obituaries describing him as a monster, warmonger and merchant of death.  Deeply disturbed, the wealthy industrialist drew up a will that would shock the world.  When Alfred Nobel died for real in 1896, the will stipulated that his vast fortune be liquidated and invested.  Each year, the interest was to be divided and awarded to the people who had done the most to benefit humanity in five areas:  physics, chemistry, medicine, literature and peace.  The Nobel Prize was born.

   There’s a much more valuable Prize that enriches the human experience and it, too, is rooted in an explosive development that changed the world forever.  When God introduced his creation to love, He unleashed something both powerful and unpredictable, valuable but potentially violent;  a blessing and a curse, depending on how it’s used.

   We’ve all seen the volatility and instability of love.  It can explode and do inconceivable damage when the conditions in a relationship change even slightly.  When we don’t understand the true nature of love, it’s impossible to use it or carry it with us without devastating results.  That’s why our loving Father was so intent that we learn what love was, and how to channel its awesome power and beauty.  But to do that cost him dearly.  It cost him the life of his Son.

   To further our understanding, Jesus willingly placed himself in grave danger.  Let him be your inspiration.  Like Alfred Nobel, be determined that your Brother’s sacrifice won’t be in vain. You’ve already discovered through the grace and revelation of God that love becomes stable and controlled when mixed with faith.  You can use that potent combination to build or obliterate your relationships, and that choice is entirely yours, no matter how others react.

   Maybe you’ve made some bad choices;  done some serious damage;  watched in horror as others have written up or written off your life as a colossal failure, based on your past. The Good News is, it’s not too late to leave a legacy of constructive love.  Just make a committed decision to die to yourself.  Invest your entire being in support of the church as, together, we make the world a better place by sharing the love of Jesus — a dynamic, truly sacrificial love that must be touched off in our hearts to send shockwaves into a culture that desperately needs the unleashing of God’s awesome might.  “May you experience the love of Christ... Then you’ll be filled with the fullness of life and power that comes from God.”  (Eph. 3:19)  It’ll be a blast.

By Rick Gamble, published in Cross Current, the weekly newsletter of the Followers of Christ congregation in Brantford, Ontario, Canada.  Reprint at will in not-for-profit publications.  To subscribe, contact sgamble@bfree.on.ca