My wife and I had an interesting conversation the other day.
We were talking about how…
Even as Bible-believers you can forget the events revealed in Scripture really did happen…
… There really was a young man, David, who killed a giant with a slingshot.
… And a guy named Paul who got shipwrecked and bit by a snake.
We forget these things really occurred… here on the same planet earth… because we’re all affected — to some degree — by a philosophy known as dualism.
According to dualism…
There’s an immaterial world and a material world… functioning separately from one another.
The immaterial world is the realm of the spirit, ideas and faith.
And the material world is the realm of matter — where real life happens.
But according to the Bible… the immaterial and material world function together.
We see this in the way…
God created humans in a material world to live in dependence on Him, the unseen ruler of creation.
We can also tell there’s no hard wedge between the seen and unseen…
By the way Jesus came announcing His kingdom was at hand… here in the tangible world.
And, of course…
God gave us the Holy Spirt to lead us in the truth, regarding real world issues we all face (Jn. 16:13).
This has great significance for how we live.
Because…
If dualism were correct, it means you ought to confine your faith to your own private thought life.
But if dualism is in error, and the material and immaterial world interact…
… Having been joined by a sovereign Creator…
Then you should have no inhibitions applying your faith to everything.
In other words…
Just as Bible characters engaged their world to advance God’s purpose…
So are we to do the same today.
Faith is for applying here and now.
