The quest for excellence is rife in today’s world. Both individuals and organizations strive to build a culture of excellence in order to gain and stay relevant in a rapidly advancing world. The margin of error is getting slimmer by the day as companies and organizations compete to outperform one another in the marketplace. A lot of organizations spend so much on cutting edge technologies, training, hiring the best brains, advertisement, quality brands, etc. in order to build and maintain a culture of excellence. But beyond a culture, there is a spirit that powers excellence. Clearly, this spirit emanates from God who Himself is the Author of excellence. The Prophet Daniel exemplified a life with the spirit of excellence. In the sixth book of Daniel, the Bible states: “Then this Daniel distinguished himself above the governors and satraps, because an excellent spirit was in him; and the king gave thought to setting him over the whole realm. So, the governors and satraps sought to find some charge against Daniel concerning the kingdom; but they could find no charge or fault, because he was faithful; nor was there any error or fault found in him” (Daniel 5:3-4). This was clearly the secret of Daniel’s impeccable rise to stardom in Babylon. The spirit of excellence stands men out from among their peers, making them peerless just as it was in the case of Daniel.
The spirit of excellence stands men out from among their peers, making them peerless just as it was in the case of Daniel.
God – The Originator and True Model of Excellence
Every manifestation of excellence today by individuals, organizations or nations is traceable to God, who Himself is an excellent God. The Psalmist expressed God’s excellence and majestic work in several parts of the Psalms. David extols God’s excellent name in the eighth book of the Psalms thus, “O LORD, Our Lord, how excellent is your name in all the earth, Who have set Your glory above the heavens! When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which you have ordained, what is man that You are mindful of him, and the son of man that you visit him?” (Psalm 8:1, 3-4). David also praised God’s love as being excellent – “How excellent is thy loving-kindness, O God! Therefore the children of men put their trust under the shadow of thy wings” (Psalm 36:7). He further closes the Psalms by praising the excellence of God’s greatness: “Praise Him for His mighty acts; praise Him according to His excellent greatness!” (Psalm 150:2).
At creation, we see God’s excellence at work. The Psalmist could not but marvel at the excellence of God’s creation (Psalm 8:3). In man’s entire quest to attain excellence, human systems still fail no matter the level of excellence committed to them. In contrast, as interwoven and complex as creation is, the Creator has upheld everything by the word of His power (Hebrews 1:3). Despite all the efforts by some scientists to explain away the creative hand of God in creation, the wonder of the infallibility and perfection of creation, and the reflection of the Creator’s Person in all its forms still stare us in the face from day-to-day. From age to age, the water cycle, nitrogen cycle, revolution of the earth, the solar system – sun rise and sun set, seasonal changes – seed time and harvest, the ecosystem, and much more have continued unfailingly. This can only be the excellence of the Almighty at work. How about the human body – a masterpiece of the handwork of God? Scientists are still awed by the complexity, the interconnectivity and yet effortlessness of the workings of the human body. This is but a mystery that can only be explained by the finger of God’s excellence.
Despite all the efforts by some scientists to explain away the creative hand of God in creation, the wonder of the infallibility and perfection of creation, and the reflection of the Creator’s Person in all its forms still stare us in the face from day-to-day. From age to age, the water cycle, nitrogen cycle, revolution of the earth, the solar system – sun rise and sun set, seasonal changes – seed time and harvest, the ecosystem, and much more have continued unfailingly. This can only be the excellence of the Almighty at work.
In His relationship with man, God has demonstrated His uncompromising stance in the matter of excellence. In the building of Noah’s ark, all the specificity was laid out by God, and He expected it to be strictly followed and done according to the instruction given to Noah. God was so detailed that the kind of wood to be used, rooms, number of stories, the number and positions of the doors and windows, and how all the animals were to be led into the ark were all specified (Genesis 6:14-16). And Noah did according to all that God commanded him (Genesis 6:22). The whole of Exodus chapters 25, 26 and 27 were dedicated to laying out the details of the ark and tabernacle while Chapter 28 was completely dedicated to the making of the priests’ garments and the adornment of the priests. Details as simple as colours, type of materials to be used, dimensions, etc. were given by God for the building of the tabernacle and the making of the priest’s garment. And God has reasons for each detail. This was so dear to Him that He had to specially anoint the men who were to do the work. Also, Moses was warned of God to “…see to it that you copy [exactly] their pattern which was shown you on the mountain” (Exodus 25:40). We see the same pattern in the building of Solomon’s temple as all the plans were revealed to David by the Spirit of God (1 Chronicles 28:11-12), which he handed to his son Solomon because David was not allowed to build the temple. The temple, an excellent demonstration of artistry became an object of attraction to other nations of the world for its allure because God, the Author of excellence, laid out its framework.
Biblical Examples of Men with the Spirit of Excellence
In reading through the Scriptures, we find men who had the spirit of excellence, and applied it in ways that left a positive imprint on their generations and beyond. First of these men are Bezalel and Aholiab of whom it was written, “Look, I have chosen Bezalel son of Uri, grandson of Hur, of the tribe of Judah. I have filled him with the Spirit of God, giving him great wisdom, intelligence, and skill in all kinds of crafts. And I have appointed Aholiab son of Ahisamach, of the tribe of Dan, to be his assistant. Moreover, I have given special skill to all the naturally talented craftsmen so they can make all the things I have instructed you to make” (Exodus 31:2, 6). In a bid to excellently replicate what was in His mind of the ark and tabernacle, God had to release His Spirit of excellence on Bezalel and Aholiab for the work. Without a degree in Architecture or any form of Engineering, they were able to perfectly reproduce what was in God’s mind. And this they did with ease because they were divinely enabled. God used them to set up a symbol of His Presence among His people – the Ark, and a place of worship – the Tabernacle. These symbols today have spiritual connotations for God’s children.
The second person in the Bible with the spirit of excellence was Daniel (Daniel 6:3). By this spirit of excellence, Daniel so stood out among his peers that they couldn’t find fault with his work or a defect in his character. By the spirit of excellence, Daniel was able to live a balanced life and was relevant in four Babylonian governments. He provided solutions to the challenges of the kings so that he was promoted in every government he worked in. He exalted God in a strange land by the spirit of excellence upon him. Daniel impressed both God and the kings by how he did his duties because of the spirit of excellence that was upon him.
The Need for the Spirit of Excellence in Today’s World
Today, the world is in dire need of men and women with an excellent spirit – those who will reveal God to their world by the woks of their hands. God is honoured and glorified when we, His children, do our work well: “Let your light so shine before men that they may see your moral excellence, and your praiseworthy, noble, and good deeds and recognize and honour and praise and glorify your Father who is in heaven” (Matthew 5:16). Excellence entails giving our best to whatever task that is entrusted to us.
God is honoured and glorified when we, His children, do our work well.
If the people of the world can demonstrate a level of excellence in what they do, we have an advantage as children of God by His Spirit. Elihu, one of Job’s friends revealed that “there is [a vital force] a spirit [of intelligence] in man, and the breath of the Almighty gives men understanding (Job 32:8). No longer should we copy the world’s system, but the world should look up to the Church for direction, and the right way of doing things. This is God’s eternal purpose: “[The purpose is] that through the Church the complicated, many-sided wisdom of God in all its infinite variety and innumerable aspects might now be made known to the angelic rulers and authorities (principalities and powers) in the heavenly sphere” (Ephesians 3:10). God’s will is that through the display of the spirit of excellence by His children, the world would be drawn to Him. Are you a medical Doctor? God requires excellence in your practice. Are you an Engineer? God requires excellence. Are you a businessman or businesswoman, a petty trader or an artisan? God requires excellence in the way you carry out your duties or business. Are you into ministerial work? God wants to use your Ministry to reveal His excellent greatness to your world. The wisest king of Israel, Solomon summarized excellence as, “Whatever you do, do well. For when you go to the grave, there will be no work or planning or knowledge or wisdom” (Ecclesiastes 9:10). It entails doing the best you can by what you’ve got. And believers, we’ve got the Spirit of God to our advantage. The prophet Isaiah confirmed this when he spoke about Christ: “And the Spirit of the LORD shall rest upon Him – the Spirit of wisdom and understanding, the Spirit of counsel and might, the Spirit of knowledge and of the reverential and obedient fear of the Lord” (Isaiah 11:2). We have the same Spirit, and we can’t have this rich multi-dimension of the Holy Spirit in His fullness and handle our life’s assignment in a shoddy way.
On a final note, inasmuch as we have the spirit of excellence, this does not in any way exempt us from continuous training, mentorship or learning under more experienced people whom God has placed over us. Daniel had an excellent spirit yet he was well trained in Babylon. When we are given to continuous training, it helps to sharpen our skills and helps us stay up-to-date with emerging technologies and techniques as we learn new skills. May you receive the grace to properly represent God in your generation. Amen.
World Changers Magazine 