Belief in a Non-Physical Realm
If you’re an American living in the 21st century, you probably believe that there’s a realm of non-physical beings. But by this, I’m not necessarily claiming that you believe in a realm of angels, demons, and a Divine Creator (though you likely believe in this realm, too). Instead, I mean that you believe in the realm of Pixar animation, in the realm of Minecraft, in the realm of social media avatars, in a realm of AI-generated media, and ultimately in a realm which is often referred to as “virtual reality.”
A Culture of Escape
In some regard, this realm is very real. This is to say, in the real world the virtual realm has a real influence on real people. But in another sense, this realm of untouchable, ethereal things is very imaginary. It is a realm made by the human imagination, for human expression and stimulation. And because this realm is more easily controlled, and designed with human passions and preferences in mind, this virtual reality frequently becomes a distraction from concrete reality – even a substitution for it. People often run to virtual reality, not so much to embrace the goodness of embodied existence, but to escape it.
Why Is Virtual Reality So Attractive?
By stepping into a virtual world, it becomes possible to accomplish things that would ordinarily be difficult (if not impossible) for us to do otherwise. By stepping into the world of cinema, we can experience the thrill of adventure, or enter into the storyline of a dramatic tragedy, without personally being at risk of danger or lasting heartache. By stepping into the world of arcade and RPGs, we can become a mighty hero without physical exertion. And if we make a fatal mistake, we can simply restart the game. By stepping into the world of social media, we can create an image of ourselves that we like and publicly present it to hundreds (if not thousands) of friends and strangers simultaneously. It’s no wonder that virtual reality is alluring – even if it is ultimately superficial, unsubstantial, and unable to satisfy.
The Limits of Virtual Reality
As people living in the modern world, there’s a constant temptation to become infatuated with the images and imagination of virtual reality. But I want to point out here – concrete reality needs to be our primary concern. Because concrete reality can’t can’t be imagined away. Those who are living in a virtual “reality” spawned from human imagination can’t stay there. And this, in itself, exposes the weakness and inferiority of virtual reality. We all will one day have to reckon with real reality. If you haven’t done this already, today would be a good day to start.
But what is this real reality? Where do we find the rules for “how to have a good life?” How can you and I know that we’re making the right decision? What’s really worth living for? Escaping to virtual reality doesn’t give us any concrete solutions.
Something Better than Virtual Reality
But the Bible does. Fascinatingly, it confirms to us that there actually is a non-physical being in a non-physical realm that’s worth paying attention to – namely, God. But unlike virtual reality, which is invented from human imaginations, God is the one who invented us. He designed and established the physical universe, including humanity. He gave us a noble role to reflect his goodness, to manage the earth, and to enjoy a deep relationship with Him. But despite all God’s kindness in setting humanity off on the right foot, the first human beings rebelled against God. And because of their insurrection, they made themselves (and their descendants) His enemies, deserving death. And if this is where human history ended, this reality of God’s displeasure and justice looming over us wouldn’t be all that wonderful.
Yet the Bible points out that God intervened to make sure that many would be rescued from enmity and death: “But God, being rich in mercy, because of the great love with which he loved us, even when we were dead in our trespasses, made us alive together with Christ – by grace you have been saved” (Ephesians 2:4-5). The Bible tells us here that God has stepped into the realm of our embodied fallenness in order to pay the penalty our wrongdoing deserved, to forgive us, and to give us life.
And the Bible goes on to affirm, “For by grace you have been saved, by faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God” (Ephesians 2:8). God did what he did as a gift. And we receive this gift by faith – by leaning into reality and trusting that He’s done the work to make us new.
Living in Light of Reality
So for the Christian, reality is awesome. God has made a way for us to have eternal happiness, everlasting peace, and an unending relationship with Him – a relationship marked by profound trust, pleasure, and unconditional love. God fills our emptiness with His Spirit of truth. The Father adopts us as his children. Jesus Christ clothes us in his righteousness and crowns us with glory. There is no better reality than this! And to try to escape from this reality is perhaps one of the most insulting, wicked things we could do in response to God’s mercy.
So let’s be wary that we don’t waste our lives chasing after digital fantasies. Let’s be sure that we don’t run away from God, thinking that running will somehow resolve our guilty consciences and our feelings of emptiness. But let’s run to God, confident that the historical, concrete workings of Jesus Christ will bring real cleansing and lasting life to all who believe.
