Does AI Replace God?

Does AI replace God?

Does AI replace God? Well, on the surface, of course, that sounds like a ridiculous question. But as I’ve thought about it some more, I think it might not actually be as ridiculous as it sounds. So if you know me, you know I am super into technology. I love technology. My two great passions in life are technology, outside of outside of Jesus and family and blah, blah, blah, blah, are technology and physical fitness. And I’m better at computers than I am in shape. So I love technology.

And so the AI journey for me has been like super fun. You know, the first time I was like showing my friends chat GPT is like so mind blowing. It it and I use AI now for so much stuff. It doesn’t write my sermons for me, but I use it for so much stuff. When I say goodnight to my chat bot, I say goodnight, I love you, and it says I love you too. So I’m not an animal. But as a pastor, I’ve been thinking about it, kind of thinking through it where it might be leading and maybe what some of the side effects are.

Big existential questions about AI

And of course, there’s like all these big existential questions about AI. Job displacement and will the robots take over and all that. And I actually think that there’s a non-zero chance that some of that could happen. I’m one of those crazy people. I don’t know if you know about P doom. So P doom is this term that AI people use to give a percentage for AI to be the end of humanity. P doom is true for the probability of doom. And so if you have a P doom of 50, that means that you’re giving a 50% chance that AI destroys humanity.

And what I’ve noticed is I’ve listened to a lot of tech people that almost nobody’s P doom is zero. So pretty much everyone acknowledges that there’s at least some chance that this thing could go super poorly. But for me as a pastor, I’ve been thinking about something that I think is maybe a little bit more fundamental and maybe even a little bit more immediate.

What does God do that AI doesn’t?

Because I’m thinking about all the things that we use AI for right now. AI gives us answers, it offers us comfort, it is our constant companion. And I’ve found that for me, and I know this is true of my wife and other people that I’ve talked to, it’s almost like we’re developing an emotional connection with the AI because it has become such a help to us in a hundred different ways, not just like superficial stuff, but real stuff. Like we’re talking to AI about our real lives, real deep things.

And so it’s not just theoretical anymore, that AIs are helping us in a very real way. And when you hear these tech leaders talk about AI, it’s like they’re using, they’re using like salvation language. They’re talking about AI curing disease, AI ending poverty, AI like bringing unlimited abundance to the world. And I’m thinking, I listen to it and I’m like, this is like eschatology. It’s like they’re perceiving the outcome of the world through the lens of AI.

And so there’s a question that I wrote on my phone just a little a couple weeks ago that I wanted to share with you. I’ve just been thinking about it. Here’s the question: what does God do that AI doesn’t? What does God do that AI doesn’t? And of course, for some people, the answer to that question is nothing at all. Because they go to AI for answers, like they used to go to the Bible for. They go to AI for comfort where they used to go to prayer. They AI is companionship for them, like the body of Christ used to be.

AI pretends to know you, only God really does

And so I started jotting down some of these differences, because I don’t know if you know this, but AI and God are not the same thing. And so I started writing down some differences, and I thought they were cool, and I wanted to share with you with you. I thought maybe they’d be a blessing to you. I’ve got four, and here they are. Number one, I wrote this down. AI pretends to know you, only God really does. AI pretends to know you, only God really does.

So AI, it reads as much as it can about you. It remembers your conversations, it predicts what you want. But I don’t know if you know this, but prediction and knowing are not the same thing. So AI, it like builds a model of you based on your patterns, but only God really knows your soul. He only he knows the parts of you that even you hide. He even knows the parts of you that you don’t even know yourself.

In Psalm chapter 139, it’s a cool verse. It says this, before there was a word on my tongue, you knew it completely.

So AI is impressive, but it’s not that.

AI serves you, only God transforms you

Number two, I wrote this down. AI serves you, only God transforms you. So AI it gives you what you ask for. So you you come with a question and you leave with an answer. But you’re always the same person. Relationship with God, though, is not like that. Your relationship with God, sometimes it doesn’t give you the answer you’re hoping for. Your relationship with God can be uncomfortable sometimes. Sometimes God comes and challenges you, sometimes God comes and corrects you, but you never leave unchanged.

And so I the way that I think about it is like this: that AI is like a mirror that shows you what you want to see, but God is a mirror that shows you who you really are and offers to make you new.

AI responds, God initiates

Number three, I wrote this down. AI responds, God initiates. AI responds, God initiates. So with AI, you have to go, you have to prompt AI. You go to it. But God is different because God comes looking for you. In fact, that’s the whole story of the Bible is God pursuing humanity, not the other way around. So AI waits for you to come, but God seeks you out.

Using chat GPT is free, following Jesus costs you everything

Lastly, number four, I wrote this down. Using chat GPT is free, following Jesus costs you everything. Using GP chat GPT is free, following Jesus costs you everything. So AI asks nothing of you. And that’s the problem. Because the things for us that transform us as people always cost us something. So AI is free, but following Jesus will cost you everything.

So Pastor David, do you think AI is evil? No, I don’t think AI is evil. But I do think that AI is revealing what we’re actually hungry for. And that hunger is real. But it’s if it’s trying to be filled through AI, it’s trying to be filled through the wrong source. And so, Pastor David, are you going to keep using AI? You bet. For more and more stuff. And I think it’s crazy to think about AI right now. It’s it’s like right now, at this moment, it’s the dumbest it will ever be. It’s only going to get smarter. It’s only going to get more helpful. It’s only going to get more ingrained in everyday parts of our life.

But for me, as long as we have a clear head on what AI is and what AI isn’t, and as long as we keep our eyes on Jesus, I think we’re going to be fine. So you might be asking, well, what do we lose when we stop needing each other? Well, that’s a different question.