Living Illustrations, Part 2
Teamwork.
Continuing to read about Mr. Einstein, Mr. Kaku, related a story of how Mr. Einstein came to get the mathematical calculations for the field theory of gravity (matter-energy –> curvature of space-time). It required his efforts, a friend’s help, and the work of a man published 60 years earlier. Here’s Kaku’s summary, from page 93:
“Nevertheless, Einstein was still missing a piece of the puzzle. He had discovered the correct physical principle, but lacked a rigorous mathematical formalism powerful enough to express this principle. He lacked a version of Faraday’s fields for gravity. Ironically, Riemann had the mathematical apparatus, but not the guiding physical principle. Einstein, by contrast, discovered the physical principle, but lacked the mathematical apparatus.”
Because he had no knowledge of Mr. Riemann and his metric tensor, Einstein worked for 3 frustrating years, trying to accomplish the math. Finally he contacted his friend, Marcel Grossman, begging his help. As Grossman researched the issue, he accidentally came across Riemann’s work and relayed it to Eistein. But to continue with Mr. Kaku’s story:
“To his shock, Einstein found Riemann’s celebrated 1854 lecture to be the key to the problem. He found that he could incorporate the entire body of Riemann’s work in the reformulation of his principle. Almost line for line, the great work of Riemann found its true home in Einstein’s principle. This was Einstein’s proudest piece of work, even more than his celebrated equation E=mc2. The physical reinterpretation of Riemann’s famous 1854 lecture is now called general relativity, and Einstein’s field equations rank among the most profound ideas in scientific history.”
Mr. Kaku also quotes Einstein saying that Grossman “checked through the literature and soon discovered that the mathematical problem had already been solved by Riemann, Ricci, and Levi-Civita. . . . Riemann’s achievement was the greatest one.”
WOW!! Such humility and giving of credit where credit is due. It also reminded me that God made us to be part of His Team, that it is God’s desire that we work together, being content with our own contributions, yet pursue all that He has for us.
The Bible, New American Standard Version (NASB)
God wants us to be part of His Team
It is God’s desire that we be content where we are, working together in love,
Philippians 4:11 Not that I speak from want; for I have learned to be content in whatever circumstances I am.
Ephesians 4:15-16 But speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him, who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by that which every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love.
I Corinthians 12:12, 14, 18-20 For even as the body is one and yet has many members, and all the members of the body, though they are many, are one body, so also is Christ. …For the body is not one member, but many… But now God has placed the members, each one of them, in the body, just as He desired. And if they were all one member, where would the body be? But now there are many members, but one body.
yet pursue all that He has for us.
I Corinthians 14:1 Pursue love, yet desire earnestly spiritual gifts, but especially that you may prophesy.
Proverbs 25:2 It is the glory of God to conceal a matter, but the glory of kings is to search out a matter.
Proverbs 3:13 How blessed is the man who finds wisdom, and the man who gains understanding.
Proverbs 2:2 Make your ear attentive to wisdom, Incline your heart to understanding,
Matthew 7:7 Ask, and it shall be given to you; seek, and you shall find; knock, and it shall be opened to you.
Philippians 3:14 I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus.
To sum it all up, Romans 12:5-6 says “So we, who are many, are one body in Christ, and individually members one of another. Since we have gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let each exercise them accordingly…”