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THE CHRISTIAN APPROACH TO ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE – GOOD OR BAD OR UNCERTAIN?
I can recall some decades ago (say, 50 or 60 years) we used to try to understand this verse – Revelation 13:15 “There was given to him to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast MIGHT EVEN SPEAK and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.”
We did that with the knowledge of the time, and I suppose the most common idea was that it was satanic power that caused the image to speak. We had heard of really powerful occult manifestations from missionaries among some of the most wicked people where they ministered.
None of us ever knew, of course, what AI was way back then – artificial intelligence. Only in the last decade has this phenomenon come to be prominent, and it is suddenly now everywhere. The readers of this article would have so many views on this matter. In case you wonder, just to set the case straight, I have very mixed feelings about this. Also, I am uneasy about it.
A couple of friends of mine put to me the idea that Antichrist will be AI, but I don’t think I could ever accept that. If there are any sci-fi buffs among you, you might recall shows and movies where a computer controlled a spaceship, etc., where in the end, some of the computers turned mutant and took over the control of the ship, having their own wills. HAL from 2001 Space Odyssey, Blake’s 7, and Zen.
What I am realizing is that AI is very powerful, but I have to share that I do not understand how it works. I just know some things it can do.
How many have done recent searches on search engines only to find that you get the option of clicking on “AI-generated answer”? I have tried that, and most of the time, the results are fairly accurate and helpful. That can be very useful, but at the same time, very disturbing.
I like to keep most of my TV watching to YouTube and not call up any of the legacy television stations on this LG TV of mine because it is too hard to do. Not impressed with LG. It is so difficult and illogical to use. However, more and more videos are appearing on YouTube and are presented with catchy subjects, purported to come from Billy Graham and David Jeremiah, just to name two. The trouble is, these are not real and have been generated by AI, and it is SO easy to do, apparently. In fact, they can be so tricky that they are just like the real thing.
That is very dangerous because a person can be misrepresented. That is one wary problem with AI.
Another problem is laziness. I can understand ministers and researchers of topics resorting to aids like Internet searches for certain items. I do it myself sometimes for background material. However, if one wants a sermon suddenly in “the instant world of AI,” then one can go to one of those sites that generate an AI answer for you. I will cover this later, but I tested it and asked AI to generate a 3,000-word sermon on the Rapture. I will speak about that later on.
I wonder how many “sermon deliveries” are from AI searches and not from this biblical concept – 2 Timothy 2:15 “Be DILIGENT to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, HANDLING ACCURATELY THE WORD OF TRUTH.” The NASB uses “diligent” where the KJV uses “study.” Laziness is unacceptable in ministers who resort to AI to create their material.
Perhaps there is a place for AI searches to present ideas for you to draw upon, but even there, I have great reservations.
For me, there is nothing more satisfying than the Holy Spirit leading you into truth in the word of God and revealing lovely gems in the scriptures. I don’t need cold, dead AI to do that for me.
In the past 10 years, as I intimated, AI has advanced enormously, so that now Governments want to have conferences and “think tanks” to determine what role AI has, with a view to regulation. Personally, I don’t think it can be controlled now. In these last days of the Church age, we are seeing movements in the world of more and more control and strange activities as the world lurches towards increasing wickedness and socialist control, and doctrines and legislation of demons. My nation is full of them (Australia), with hate laws to muzzle speech and opinion, especially against Christians, and it will get very bad after December 2026 when a whole raft of new legislation will operate.
Check out this video on government control – https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HLzFO6iWm8k
I think one RR contributor had an article about this subject of AI some time back, but I cannot recall that now.
Getting back to the Revelation 13 verse, some see this image in the temple that is set up by the False Prophet as working through AI, but I am inclined to reject that. Revelation 13:15 “THERE WAS GIVEN TO HIM to give breath to the image of the beast, that the image of the beast might even speak and cause as many as do not worship the image of the beast to be killed.” “There was given to him” is satanic power from Satan, not AI.
The False Prophet gives breath to the image, something AI could never do. This man is almost Satan in human form, so it is Satan that energizes the image and speaks through it.
We say that Antichrist will be the most wicked person ever to set foot on earth, and I won’t dispute that; though, as I look at it afresh, I think that position might belong to the False Prophet – Revelation 13:12-14 “and he exercises all the authority of the first beast in his presence. HE MAKES THE EARTH and those who dwell in it to worship the first beast whose fatal wound was healed, and HE PERFORMS GREAT SIGNS, so that he even makes fire come down out of heaven to the earth in the presence of men. HE DECEIVES THOSE WHO DWELL on the earth because of the signs which it was given him to perform in the presence of the beast, telling those who dwell on the earth to MAKE AN IMAGE TO THE BEAST who had the wound of the sword and has come to life.”
The False Prophet will have worldwide power and continues in it – Revelation 13:16-17 “AND HE CAUSES ALL, the small and the great, and the rich and the poor, and the free men and the slaves, to be given a mark on their right hand, or on their forehead, and HE PROVIDES THAT NO ONE SHOULD BE ABLE TO BUY OR TO SELL, except the one who has the mark, either the name of the beast or the number of his name.”
The False Prophet is as Satan walking among men. I think the wickedness of that man outstrips Antichrist, who is ruler and organizer and controller of the most evil system ever devised. Nevertheless, he is the man of lawlessness.
AI AND THE RAPTURE
That is enough of that. I want to get back to what AI told me about the Rapture.
THE SECOND PART OF AI
In capturing the Rapture created by AI, I used two of the AI platforms to obtain two results on the same question: “What is the Rapture?” I asked for 3,000 words in a sermon, but neither site gave 3,000 words (the first gave 2,800 words. I wish to share what these results were.
THE FIRST AI PLATFORM:
This first platform wanted to title the message as “Living Ready for the Rapture” and took the texts from Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Corinthians 15:51-58.
The Introduction said this – A Blessed Hope in a Shaken World. “We are living in a world that is shaking – morally, politically, economically, spiritually. People are anxious about wars, pandemics, disasters, and the future of their children. In the midst of all this uncertainty, God has given His people a sure and steadfast hope: the return of the Lord Jesus Christ and the catching away of His church, commonly called the Rapture. The Rapture is not a fairy tale for the weak-minded. It is a biblical promise for the blood-bought. It is not meant to scare the believer, but to comfort, purify, and motivate us to holy living and urgent evangelism.”
Well, I cannot fault that. It is factual and very similar to what I would say. I have written a lot on the Rapture, and I suspect some of my wording and comments have been picked up by these AI captures, as in this one with a few familiar expressions. Not in this case, but one danger is that what you have said can be used in a wrong conclusion, a wrong context, even a false teaching. If people were writing against the Rapture, that is most likely to be included as well. I certainly don’t want my material supporting a non-Rapture.
In another section of that AI message, it said this – A biblical event, not a modern invention. “The word “rapture” itself is not in the English Bible, but the concept is clearly there. In 1 Thessalonians 4:17, Paul says, “Then we which are alive and remain shall be caught up together with them in the clouds, to meet the Lord in the air.” The phrase “caught up” in Latin is rapturo – from which we get “rapture.” Jesus Himself spoke of this in John 14:2-3:… The Rapture is that moment when Jesus comes for His saints, to receive them to Himself.”
Again, this second section is sound, and the remaining material in this section that I did not copy is also sound. It addresses a common criticism of the Rapture, which is that the word is not in scripture.
The next section is headed – Distinguishing the Rapture from the Second Coming. Scripture presents Christ’s return in two phases: …. At the Rapture, the church is caught up. At the Second Coming, the church comes down with Him. At the Rapture, He comes as a Bridegroom for His bride. At the Second Coming, He comes as a Warrior-King to judge the nations…. (I think this could be mine that I wrote once.)
That is important to point out, and AI did that. Then it continues with the description of events at the time of the Rapture, and they are all correct. But one section is wrong. Then in a sub-heading called “The suddenness and surprise (Matthew 24:36–44) – the article reverts to the very often misunderstood events of those Matthew verses that do not relate to the Rapture, but to the Second Coming. The whole of Chapter 24 answers the question asked by the disciples about the signs of His coming, and the end of the age in Matthew 24. Matthew 24:3 “As He was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to Him privately saying, ‘Tell us, when will these things be, and WHAT WILL BE THE SIGN OF YOUR COMING AND OF THE END OF THE AGE?’”
DO NOT MISS the significance of the last verse in Matthew 23 that initiated the disciples’ question in Matthew 24:3! Matthew 23:39 “for I say to you, from now on you shall not see Me UNTIL YOU SAY, ‘BLESSED IS HE WHO COMES IN THE NAME OF THE LORD!’” It was that coming the disciples asked about – the Second Coming. NOTHING to do with the Rapture.
In Matthew 13, the disciples knew NOTHING of the Rapture, for it was a mystery revealed through Paul – 1 Corinthians 15:51 “Behold, I TELL YOU A MYSTERY. We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed.” It was the Kingdom for Israel and the coming to set up that the disciples wanted to know. Acts 1:6-7 “When they had come together, they were asking Him, saying, ‘Lord, is it at this time YOU ARE RESTORING THE KINGDOM TO ISRAEL?’” He said to them, “It is not for you to know times or epochs which the Father has fixed by His own authority.” There was no disputing the fact that it would happen – the timing was not for the disciples to know.
The ones taken away (in the field; at the mill) in those Matthew 24 verses are the tares, the wicked, while the ones remaining are the righteous of the Tribulation who enter the Millennial Kingdom. All of Matthew 24 is the Tribulation and Second Coming, NOT the Rapture. The “days of Noah” is when the wicked were taken away in judgment, while the righteous, those remaining, entered into the new age on Earth after judgment.
One section of the AI response ends with – “Church activity is not the same as saving faith. Religious language is not the same as a new heart. The question is not, “Do you know about Jesus?” but “Does Jesus know you as His own?” A personal examination – If the trumpet sounded today, would you be taken or left? This is not a question for your neighbor, your spouse, or your children alone. It is a question for you.
- Have you repented of your sin?
- Have you put your trust in Christ’s finished work on the cross and His resurrection?
- Is there evidence of new life—hunger for God, love for His Word, desire for holiness?
That is extremely good coming from AI, for often the gospel challenge is not made in preaching. Throughout the whole article, the gospel is presented very clearly and convincingly. To be honest, I did not expect the article would be so well structured, clear about the Rapture, and so gospel-oriented.
There is so much more in this article, but I don’t want to over-quote it. What I will do is to provide a number of sub-headings from the article –
It comforts the grieving
It purifies our lives
It energizes our service
It fuels our evangelism
Indifference: “I’ll think about it later.”
Mockery: “Where is the promise of His coming?”
Fear: “I’m scared of the Rapture.”
Be sure of your salvation
Walk in holiness
Stay spiritually awake
Invest in what lasts
Encourage one another with this hope
Right near the end of the Rapture article, there is a sample prayer after a gospel explanation is given – Invitation (Sample Prayer and Call) If the Spirit of God is dealing with your heart, I urge you not to delay. You can pray something like this – not as a magic formula, but as the honest cry of your heart: “Lord Jesus, I believe You are the Son of God. I believe You died for my sins and rose again. I confess that I am a sinner and I cannot save myself. Today I turn from my sin and put my trust in You alone. Forgive me, cleanse me, make me new. Be my Savior and my Lord. From this day forward, I belong to You. Help me to live ready for Your coming. In Jesus’ name, amen.”
The conclusion is always an important aspect of any presentation. The conclusion for this one is what follows – Conclusion. The Rapture is not just a doctrine to be discussed. It is a reality to be prepared for. Jesus is coming. The question is not if He will come, but when – and whether you will be ready. “Even so, come, Lord Jesus” (Revelation 22:20).
Then the final words come from the AI site itself – I can now expand any section (for example, the practical applications or the exposition of 1 Thessalonians 4) to bring the total closer to 3,000 words and tailor it to your denomination or audience.
That is a very broad coverage of the first search that was done. Honestly, apart from the misapplication of the days of Noah to the Rapture in Matthew 24 that is so commonly done, there is nothing here I would object to. In fact, if I heard that message delivered, I would be fully accepting of it (except the Noah part).
Well, what do I say about all this? As AI picks up on all the material it can assemble to generate the request asked of it, in only a matter of seconds, it can result in what is good and what is in error. Remember, it taps into all data content stored all over the world, and as you know, much of this can be questionable and absolutely wrong.
I did this exercise out of curiosity after looking into AI a bit more and did not know what to expect. In this first article, I was really pleased. However, all the warnings I have given must be valid ones to heed. I will never go to AI to get messages I present. All mine have come from waiting on the Lord and from what He gives me.
I decided I would do a second capture from AI, and this time used Jotform AI to produce the results (there are about 4 or 5 platforms that can be used). I asked for 3,500 words, hoping the shortened versions would end up closer to 3,000 words, but I got 1,833 words this time.
I was a bit surprised to see that the results this time were rather similar to the first results but presented differently.
I wonder what thoughts you have on AI. These are very early days with this technology.
The post Artificial Intelligence and the Christian :: By Ron Ferguson appeared first on Rapture Ready.
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