Cedarville Magazine Spring 2022

Genesis 3. Ever since that time, God’s Word tells us that all of creation groans for a renewal that is yet to come. The world we now observe contains the effects of sin through thorns, weeds, and mosquitoes. Despite the effects of the fall, we clearly see that God’s work displays elements of Hi s character , inc luding excellence. As followers of Christ who desire to reflect the nature and character of God in our own lives, we must pursue excellence in all we do. Think back to the building of the temple. God gave deta i l ed ins t ruc t ions on how to bui ld the temple. Scripture records the names of people with the ability to weave beautiful tapestries and sculpt precious metals. This construction created a visible shadow of the heavenly reality. God demanded that this place of worship demonstrate excellence in construction and in the rules of purification for worship. In doing so, God revealed to mankind something of the heavens and of His own nature. God is excellence. Humanity is fallen, and we feel the temptation in our nature to cut corners, to cheat, to allow the end to justify improper means, and to get away with whatever we can. This behavior reflects the nature of Satan, the father of lies who seeks to tear down and destroy. Yet, God Almighty stands alone as the good and excellent one. For Christians desiring to become more like God, we cannot be satisfied with mediocracy. Good enough isn’t good enough when living for Christ. We have a stewardship of the body, time, talents, and opportunities that God has given us. To reflect the character of our Creator, we must pursue excellence. Excellence and quality don’t happen by accident. Excellence demands hard work, thorough thought, careful attention to detail, and relentless pursuit. Sometimes we don’t achieve our goal, but through constant pursuit and through accepting nothing less than excellence in our effort, we demonstrate good stewardship pleasing to the One who provided the opportunities. In doing the best we can in every situation, we serve God and our fellow man well. The pursuit of reflecting God’s character through excellence in everything can also create Gospel conversations. Others may look at our work and wonder why we work so hard, pay attention to every detail, or strive for such a high standard. The question allows us to point back to life as a stewardship and not an ownership. We must give account for what we do, and the God whom we will stand before is a God of excellence. Our only hope is grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone, but our reasonable service to our God is excellence in all we do. Our God defines good. Our God personifies excellence. We seek excellence not for the applause of man but in service to our Savior. THE ADMONITION OF SCRIPTURE Scripture instructs followers of Christ to pursue excellence. Consider the following verses: § Ecclesiastes 9:10: “Whatever your hand finds to do, do it with your might, for there is no work or thought or knowledge or wisdom in Sheol, to which you are going.” § 1 Corinthians 10:31: “So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.” § Colossians 3:23–24: “Whatever you do, work heartily, as for the Lord and not for men, knowing that from the Lord you will receive the inheritance as your reward. You are serving the Lord Christ.” Scripture encourages us to work with might and excellence because we serve a Savior who sees all and knows all. This demands our best. This demands that we don’t skip our reading just because we can get away with it or cut corners on that project because no one will ever notice. God sees, and He notices. We see other examples of excellence in Scripture, such as Daniel. In academic matters of studying, Daniel and his friends demonstrated excellence. Daniel 1:20 states, “And in every matter of wisdom and understanding about which the The Spirit working through the Word of God must transform our lives to reflect the character of God. 4 | Cedarville Magazine