On this day in history, July 14, 1853, the first major World’s Fair opened in New York City. The full name of the five-month fair was the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations and was visited by over a million people.
In a time before television, radio or movies or American amusement parks, World’s Fairs provided a novel attraction and entertainment. Steam-power engine technology meant that more people could travel great distances by railroads and steamships. The Fair was a national showcase where America sought to boast of its accomplishments, technology and wealth.
New York’s exhibition was modeled on the 1851 Exhibition in London. At that exhibition, crowds were amazed at the Crystal Palace, a large greenhouse glass structure made to look like a palace. Yet it was an elevator that really wowed the crowds. American Elisha Otis created a safety feature to ensure that the elevator would break in case the main ropes were to deactivate. Two months after the Exhibition, Otis Elevators was founded and it is still in business today.
Also featured at the Exhibition was the Latting Observatory, a wooden 315 -foot tower. This Exhibition is a modern-day picture of man’s need to build, showcase and draw people from all over the world. This is not inherently wrong but just like the Tower of Babel, man’s motives can often be sinful in enacting building a great tower for their own fame and name.
The builders of the Tower came to ‘“build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and [to make] . . . a name for ourselves’” (Gen. 11:4). In response, God dispersed them and confused their language. Not because He is spiteful, but because He is merciful. God knows what is best for His people is to rely on Him, not themselves.
Shortly thereafter, God established a covenant with Abraham and all his descendents by faith and promised him: “I will make you a great nation, and I will bless you and make your name great, so that you will be a blessing” (Gen. 12:2). This was an act of grace. Abraham was not seeking God; but sought Him. And God made Him great so that Abraham’s descendents would be “ as numerous as the stars in the sky and as the sand on the seashore” (Gen. 22:17). Through years and many trials, Abraham received the promises of God as he relied on His faithfulness and not his own. Today, God’s promise is still being fulfilled because Abraham’s name is still revered by billions of Jews and Christians around the world.
This is the counter-intuitive nature of the gospel. By boasting in His name, He makes our name great. By losing our life, we find it (Mat. 10:39). By humbling ourself, He lifts us up (Jam. 4:10). By destroying man-made towers, He promises a heavenly city with “that shines with the glory of God, and its brilliance was like that of a very precious jewel, like a jasper, clear as crystal” (Rev. 21:11).