enthusiastic dualism

Enthusiastic dualism is a term that I heard well over a year ago when Lawrence Singlehurst was speaking at a NET leaders event in Amblecote. You may never of heard of it before – I hadn’t until Mr Singlehurst uttered it all those months ago. So what is it?

Every Friday (or whatever day your church youth meet) and Sunday young people will lift hands in worship to God, sing the songs and do the “church thing”. Then on “none church” days do as their friends do smoking, drinking, swearing and be sexually active with people who are not their husbands or their wives. They do each with enthusiasm and see no problem; hence “enthusiastic dualism”. Now clearly this is a generalisation as there are lots of young people that live passionately for Jesus and do not engage in the same things as their friends but live counter-culturally to them. Enthusiastic dualism is not only evidenced in young people but adults as well…

As social networking gathers increasing pace such as Facebook, Twitter, Bebo etc they are one way in which I see this demonstrated which has prompted this post. As a local church pastor it is actually quite concerning to see what people who are Christians say and do on what is a great tool to keep in communication with people. The applications, language and status updates are a dead giveaway for those who are enthusiastically dualistic. Now again it is dangerous to make generalisations but it happens when there is a disconnect between the good news of Jesus and everyday life.

Why does it happen? I believe it happens most when people are entrenched in church tradition and not Jesus. When we understand who Jesus is and what he came to do we cannot fail to see our lives in light of this and his light exposes our darkeness. However. His exposure of our darkness enables us to see how far we have fallen from God’s original plan. Jesus is the answer to this problem and provides us a way out in and through Himself in the cross.

It’s not that dangerous though is it? Well actually I think it a dangerous virus that will kill the effectiveness of the church in the days ahead. As followers of Jesus we are called to be different and stand out to those who do not know Jesus. Those who claim to be Jesus followers yet do not stand out as his disciples cause confusion amongst those who do not know Jesus. If those who do not know Jesus do not see any difference in his supposed followers then why turn from living selfishly and for ones self?

Jesus calls us to wholehearted, wholelife discipleship everyday of the week and not just on Sunday’s or when we are in church see . This is what Jesus has to say… “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple. Whoever does not bear his own cross and come after me cannot be my disciple. For which of you, desiring to build a tower, does not first sit down and count the cost, whether he has enough to complete it? Otherwise, when he has laid a foundation and is not able to finish, all who see it begin to mock him, saying, ‘This man began to build and was not able to finish.’ Or what king, going out to encounter another king in war, will not sit down first and deliberate whether he is able with ten thousand to meet him who comes against him with twenty thousand? And if not, while the other is yet a great way off, he sends a delegation and asks for terms of peace. So therefore, any one of you who does not renounce all that he has cannot be my disciple. (Luke 14:26-33)

There is a cost to following Jesus and that means leaving behind or rejecting the things that lead us away from or erode our friendship with Jesus. There really is no place for enthusiastic dualism in the church only people who have given their lives to Jesus in response to his gracious gift. Life in Jesus cannot be earned through our good works but only through faith placed in him which places us in right standing with God. When we get it I believe that the propensity to live a dualistic lifestyle will ceases as because the reality of the impact of the gospel really sinks in.

I write this a former enthusiastic dualist from my teenage years and now in light of the continuing work of the gospel grace seek to life dependant on Jesus and as a pastor trying to inspire and teach the congregation I lead to wholelife discipleship.