“The line separating good and evil passes not through states, nor between classes,
nor between political parties either,
but right through every human heart.”
—Alexander Solzhenitsyn
The Greek philosophy of dualism has found its way into much of western culture. Plato's understanding of reality divides the world into the material realm and the realm of forms. The realm of forms is the immaterial world, thus, the world of ideas, the mind, and spirit. He taught that the material world is inferior, corrupt, and temporary, but the immaterial world of forms or ideas is what's really important and lasting. Dualism is responsible for the notion that the spiritual world is superior to the physical world because the physical world will not last.
Even Christians unwittingly buy into the concept that God only cares about spiritual things. Material things are unimportant. But that isn't the biblical view of reality. God created all the material world and declared it to be good. All that God created was good. Everything. The mountains, the oceans, the rivers and trees, the sun, moon, and stars. And people. God created all things good, but we know all is not right in the world. Sin entered the world through the rebellion of Adam, but the brokenness of evil and sin of our world is not inherent in creation.
Our world is defiled by sin, but one day, God will restore the world because of the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The death and resurrection of Christ reverse the curse of Adam. One day God will fully restore all of God's creation.
In the meantime, we must live out the Gospel of what God is restoring. And until that day, the principle of sin will be present, and the world system will continue to misuse all that is in the world. On the other hand, the church must properly use all that is in the world for God's glory.
"Whether, then, you eat or drink or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God" (1 Corinthians 10:31). All that we do in this world, in our bodies, with our bodies, is to be directed to making God’s glory known.
What are some things in the world to be used for His glory? Music, film, the internet, art, science, sexuality, politics, and medicine. The Apostle Paul said, "I know and am convinced in the Lord Jesus that nothing is unclean in itself" (Romans 14:14). Through Christ, we are set free to use all of the things of this world for good purposes. Many things in this world are neutral and can be used for good or bad. As Nancy Pearcey points out in Total Truth, "The line between good and evil is not drawn between one part of creation and another part, but runs through the human heart itself—in our own disposition to use the creation for good or for evil."
All of these are "clean" if used for the glory of God. But it all depends on how the human heart utilizes these good things. Music is a beautiful thing created by God but can be used to send an immoral message. Art can be used to brilliantly display human creativity that reflects God's image but can also be used to convey chaos and vulgarity. Science reveals the mathematical precision of the universe encoded by God, but can also be used to deny the very existence of God in the universe. Medical discoveries and technology can be used to enhance and prolong life, but can also be used to end the lives of unborn children. Sexuality was created by God for marriage—for pleasure, procreation, and a picture of the Gospel of Christ and His Bride, but too often is used to pervert the human experience of that which God means for good.
Some things are temporary and some things are eternal. But we are to be stewards of all things entrusted to us, physical and spiritual. Our faithfulness to this task is what will be lasting. As exhorted in 2 Corinthians 5:9, “Therefore we also have as our ambition, whether at home or absent, to be pleasing to Him.”