The Fantasy Seduction

Pastor Marty and Barb Carnegie

By Pastor Marty Carnegie

I showed a video to the congregation recently about a boy in Japan named Sal, who got married to a video game character.

It seems humorous, but something is really going on here.

A lady in Virginia approached me for prayer recently because she and her husband were separated and on the verge of divorce.

When I asked what the problem was, her immediate response was “Video games!”

Her husband, a 35-year-old man, spends most evenings ignoring his wife and kids in the real world while he enjoys the fantasy world of video games.

I’ve heard this before, and frankly I am concerned that video games are now being marketed for adults.

Think about it: grown men playing games once designed just for kids. And he’s not just playing these games; he’s allowing them to destroy his marriage.

That’s not just abnormal – it’s a destructive strategy.

This is what the Apostle Paul warns us about in II Timothy 4:1-5, speaking of a time when people would “turn from the truth and turn to fables.”

That word fables is the Greek word muthos, which is used to describe things that are not real; things which are fictional; make-believe, or pretend reality.

God is talking about something that sweeps through a generation and seduces it to the point of dangerous infatuation.

If you read the verse, you’ll see the apostle’s call to Timothy is to “preach, exort, teach, and rebuke.”

God is reminding him to be firm and determined lest this generation be completely taken over by this onslaught of fantasy.

I’m writing this article because I no longer believe that generation is coming.

I believe that generation is here. Our generation.

Anyone who has paid careful attention to trends has noticed the sudden rise in fantasy as a form of entertainment.

I have always been concerned about the effects of fantasy, fiction, and make-believe on our society, but never as much as I have recently.

Though fantasy has always been a part of literature, its popularity in gaming and video sales is fairly recent.

I don’t like to be over-dramatic or alarmist, but a few things regarding this trend must be taken into consideration by both parents and youth.

I was reading the other day about the success of the fantasy blockbuster Avatar. The amount of money the film took in was amazing, and this got me thinking about all of the other fantasy films that have not only been successful, but have generated millions of dollars in product sales which were mainly aimed at the youth of this generation.

Stop and think about it: Harry Potter, Lord of the Rings, and The Golden Compass – just to mention a few. How about all the recent Star Trek films and the multitude of classic science fiction movies?

I don’t think for a moment that this is just a new wave of creative inspiration. I think it’s a real strategy of Satan for these last days before Christ returns.

Fantasy is a very seductive form of entertainment. It allows people to escape the hard reality of life and enjoy the pleasures of a perfect world that does not exist.

It may seem great for the moment, but its danger is in its addictive potential.

Fantasy is really starting to alter people’s lives because the line between the real world and the fantasy world becomes blurred and they imagine themselves to be something they are not.

The Bible is clear that we are to be shaped into the image of Christ. But look around: that’s not what we see.

Body piercings, multi-colored hair, strange fashions – and this is not just among the youth but adults as well. I recently saw a man with a leopard-print tattoo on the side of his face. What is he creating himself in the image of?

Why do decent young men want to look like gangsters? Why do precious young ladies want to look like prostitutes?

It’s the seduction of fantasy. Unreal images that produce unreal results.

God’s message to Timothy is to constantly inject truth through the process of preaching the Word into people’s lives.

Why? Because truth is the cure for the seduction of fantasy.

I just read in the USA Today newspaper that Stephen Hawking, a noted British physicist, said in an interview that aliens exist out there in outer space.

Imagine: a university-trained professional with an international platform who believes in aliens. Fantasy is truly making its mark.

So much of our social sickness can be traced back to the seduction of fantasy.

Drug addiction is simply an infatuation with an unreal state of mind we call “getting high.” It’s not real. It’s an artificially altered state, stimulated by chemicals and demons. Nevertheless, people pay lots of money to create that fantasy over and over.

The Bible in II Corinthians chapter 10 says we are to “cast down imaginations” and bring them into subjection to the obedience of Christ.

God is telling us not to play with fantasy, but to cast it down.

This is speaking of an attitude we must have to defeat this last-days strategy.

Trying to get people to part with their fantasies is not easy, but we must consider the eternal consequences.

Years ago I stopped reading fiction, and many think this is a bit over the top. Well, maybe so. But my decision came because I realized I need lots of truth in my life.

I have a real family with real issues. I preach to real people. I live in a real world. I serve a real God. Heaven is real, hell is real, and salvation is real.

Fiction adds nothing to my world, and does nothing to equip me to be better at my responsibilities.

Reality is not always pleasurable, but it will keep us anchored, and it will inspire in us good judgment.

The seduction of fantasy will only increase; thus, our determination to resist it must increase. In order to bring fantasy into subjection to the obedience of Christ, we must know the words of Christ.

We must come back to a love for the Word of God.

We can stand in these last days. To do so we must have a basis of reality in our lives, and nothing is more real than Christ, who is the Word of God.

Let us stand firm in the truth of His Word.