SPIRITUAL LANDMARKS
Remove, Replace or Remain.
[7-minute read]
Would you use an AI-generated avatar to replace someone you wish you could have a better conversation or relationship with? No matter how real the avatar looks and sounds, you know it is not the real person and you are only using technology to trick your emotions and entertain your fantasies of perfection.
Today, generative artificial intelligence (or generative AI) seems unstoppable as it penetrates education, medicine, law, and all aspects of modern life. Inevitably, the time has come when even believers wonder if AI-generated church service can replace in-person church service. It takes little effort to think up all that technology offers. We no longer need to leave the home, or dress up, or sit near people who dress too loud or have body odour, or sit in uncomfortable seats, or tolerate human shortcomings, or respond to over-enthusiastic preachers and worship leaders trying too hard to elicit response from a disengaged congregant.
If we are not careful, we will be taken up very quickly by every wind of teaching and technology and risk allowing generative AI to strip us of our humanity and the sacredness of the five-fold ministry that God has given us to build the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:11-16)? We will allow the enemy to encroach on sacred places of kingdom values and vision, and replace them with self-serving ideologies and imaginations of God.
Some may read this and think: I am a tech idiot and I’m not into ChatGPT, so AI will have no impact on me. Interestingly, that was likely what people thought when printing was first invented and Bibles were printed for the first time. Those who were illiterate thought the invention of the printing press would make no difference in their lives even when it exponentially spurred the growth of literacy and church expansion worldwide. So we should stop pretending that this current ‘generative AI tsunami’ won’t have any effect on our non-digital lives. It is time for us to wake up from any form of spiritual slumber and slothfulness and be mindful of developing our media literacy and spiritual discernment.
Let us take a sobering word of advice from Proverbs 22:28 that says, “Do not move an ancient boundary stone [ancient landmarks] set up by your ancestors.” God has given us landmarks that define His boundaries for our spiritual well-being. Landmarks invoke memories and are artifacts of our oral history. These spiritual landmarks remind us of God’s promises and assurance in the past, and we tell our children and future generations about them. They help us to stay focused on what God has promised us. As long as we live within those boundaries, we can be sure that our souls will thrive no matter what happens, and we will prosper through our knowledge of God and our relationship with Him. Spiritual landmarks cannot be easily removed and replaced by replicas.
Deuteronomy 11:1 reminds us to ‘Love the Lord your God and keep His requirements, His decrees, His laws and His commands always.’ And then in verse 16, ‘Love the Lord your God and keep His requirements, His decrees, His laws and His commands always.’ Who are we bowing down to when we worship with AI-generated avatars?
Surely, we don’t need technology to improve our relationship with God. What we need now and always is the human desire for God, our dependence on Him, a life of prayerfulness, a love for God’s Word that is passed on from generation to generation. There is nothing ancient about loving and trusting God, and nothing modern about not wanting Him, too. Rather, the Word of God teaches us about the blessing of obedience and the curse of turning away from God (Deuteronomy 11:26-28).
Let’s look at the two tiers of spiritual landmarks that God has given us:
First landmark: THE WAY TO GOD
If you try to activate the services of Telco A while your phone is inserted with Telco B’s SIM card, you know for sure that it will not work! Similarly, there are no alternative ways to reach God except what Jesus taught in John 14:6: “I am the Way and the Truth and the Life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” The only way is Jesus Himself; the only Truth is Jesus Himself; and the only life worth living is a life with Jesus.
When Jesus told His first disciples to ‘follow me’, it was not complicated. No dress code, no address. There was nothing onerous when He said ‘follow me’ - then as now. The way to God is to love Him with all our heart, all our soul, all our mind and all our strength. (Mark 12:30, Deuteronomy 6:5).
Yet unwittingly, we have left open our spiritual backdoors. We have stopped reading the Bible - book by book, chapter by chapter - because we prefer to read online articles for their feel-good content. We have greater trust in our estimation of outcomes on best-case scenarios than we trust God in dealing with less-than-desirable circumstances. We leave churches in pursuit of the perfect church that fits our imagination and fantasy.
There is no security in ignorance. Whether we are tech-geeks, tech-idiots or something in-between, there is a thief who ‘comes only to steal and kill and destroy’; but Jesus promised that He alone had come that we might have life, and have it to the full. (John 10:10). The Lord had said, ‘If you hold tightly to My teachings, you are truly My disciples. Then you will know the Truth, and the Truth will set you free’ (John 8:31).
The way to have a relationship with God is through Jesus. Do not let this landmark be replaced by technology or what it promises. Your life is a landmark that is seen by others around you, even your adversaries. What does your landmark look like today?
Second landmark: THE WORD OF GOD
God is most quoted but also most misunderstood and misquoted ever! AI thrives in a culture where people believe that anything that sounds right must be true. Our response must be to study the Bible and God’s Word persistently and thoroughly. These are the days when those with half-baked Bible knowledge, who haphazardly use words like ‘all things are possible with God’, or ‘just believe’ to perpetuate positive thinking and promote pleasant feelings, will be exposed and called out by true believers.
To be sure, the Word of God is not a resource for anyone to use simply to justify whatever they fancy. It is a sin to misuse the Word of God for selfish purposes. “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the servant of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work.” (2 Timothy 3:16-17). When used properly, the Word of God keep us honest and accountable to each other – whether pastors or laity. No one is above its reproach.
During crunch time, our default should be to turn to God – to seek Him, read and meditate on His Word – rather than turn to ‘spiritual advisers’ and alternative ideas because we want something that does not demand anything from us and are easy on the ears!
When we are in a flux and do not know exactly what to do, we can stop acting on our emotions and our mental feedback loop and trust that ‘blessed are those who hear the Word of God and obey it.’ (Luke 11:28). When we are in the dark, we can be sure that God’s Word is a lamp for our feet, and a stable light on our path. The Word is like a high beam that lights the path ahead of us. (Psalm 119:105).
Finally, the Word of God ‘is alive and active. Sharper than any double-edged sword, it penetrates even to dividing soul and spirit, joints and marrow; it judges the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of Him to whom we must give account.’ (Hebrews 4:12-13). We surely do not need to rely on any soulless algorithms or innovative technology to understand it. And we cannot replace the Bible with AI-generated Scriptures because we risk over-estimating our familiarity with the Word and under-estimating AI’s inaccuracy.
As AI advances into our lived realities, these two spiritual landmarks must be preserved in our lives and guarded with greater intentionality.
This is a summary and reflection based on a virtual BIR Session held on 17 June 2023.
