[A]I will be like the Most High
The Sapphire Review Vol. 1 | No. 3 • June 11, 2024
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I will ascend above the heights of the clouds; I will be like the most High.
Isaiah 14:14
For thousands of years, Satan has coveted the honor, glory, and praise that Jesus Christ receives. When Satan failed in his heavenly rebellion and was cast out of the glorious presence of the Most High, he turned his sights to God’s creation of mankind. He sought to destroy man’s relationship with God and thereby secure for himself honor, glory, and praise that should be directed unto God.1
God is to occupy the supreme seat in our hearts and minds. We are called to abide in Jesus so that He too may abide in us unto the glory of the Father. We are to learn from Jesus by His example and by His spirit. Our minds are to have a heavenly focus; and we are to turn away from the pleasures and entertainments of the world that would steal the love of the Father away from us.2
For thousands of years tools have served as a valuable resource to mankind. They are useful when handled with self-control, respect, wisdom, and godly principles (when needed). When they are not handled in this way, problems can occur. Fire, for example, is one of mankind’s oldest tools. When fire remains as a servant, it can be a great blessing in cooking food, providing warmth, etc. However, if fire is mishandled it ceases to be a servant and becomes a merciless master, leaving widespread destruction in its path.
The tools of modern technology have revolutionized nearly every aspect of our lives. More rapid advancements have been made in the last 150 years than in all of the thousands of years before it.
Computers and smart phones have become a great help to the furtherance of the gospel and for efficiently parsing through thousands of years of scholarly and scriptural content within a matter of seconds. There is no doubt that these tools, when kept as servants, have been utilized to aid in bringing about much encouragement, exhortation, and edification to the body of Christ. Even this very writing and our weekly meetings would not be possible without these tools.
At the same time, how many minds have been destroyed or dulled to any usefulness for God’s work as a result of an overindulgence in these devices. When moments of silence come, many people can no longer bear the quiet solitude that once served as a means of turning men’s thoughts to their Creator. Now, phones are immediately picked up and their appetite for content is fed. Even good edifying messages can have a negative effect over time if we play them all throughout the day and leave no time for our minds to be at rest from the noise of technology. When the noises are all put away, thoughts, reflections, and prayers have an opportunity to be manifested. From here, we then experience a fellowship with Jesus Christ, our Savior, that we will never experience while inundating our minds with audio and visuals from a device.
We are now in an age where we can ask technology a question, from anywhere in the world, and have what we are looking for in a matter of seconds. Much has changed just in the last 20-30 years. When I first started driving, there were no smart phones or GPS navigation. I knew how to read a map well and tended to pay more attention to my surroundings. My trips were more planned and thought out ahead of time. Now, I don’t give much consideration to the route when going to some new place. I know I can just enter the destination into my phone and the navigation app will guide me there, turn by turn
The GPS example is fine when it comes to driving our vehicles. But great caution is needed when it comes to technology and our spiritual lives. Technology is now rising that will change, yet again, how we live and operate in this world. This new technological tool is called AI (artificial intelligence).
artificial:
made by human skill; imitation
intelligence:
the faculty of understanding, learning, or reasoning
AI elevates the capabilities of man to a level far above what could be achieved with Google, computers, and smart phones. A foundation is being laid for a new hybrid in the merging of humanity and technology.
Can AI serve as a useful tool? It is without question that any person would be able to accomplish certain things with the help and speed of AI that they could not otherwise do on their own. However, I propose that the use of this new tool should be treated with a far greater respect and caution than that which we give to fire, lest we hold it too closely to our bosom and think that we shall not be burned.3
Jesus told us that in our times of need, He would give us the words to speak by His spirit and that His spirit would guide us into all truth.4
Millions of questions flow into AI every day, while it simultaneously “hears” and answers (nearly instantaneously) the requests of its petitioners. To some degree, this parallels the benefit that the children of God share in receiving answers to their petitions from the Most High.5
Regardless of how this tool may be of use in a worldly occupation, earnest, diligent, and thoughtful prayers must be lifted up before utilizing this technology in any spiritual application. In other words, though we may have the best of motives, we must be absolutely certain that it is the spirit of Christ that is leading us to inquire of AI and not simply the intrigue or zeal of our carnal minds. Much of the world is beginning to seek out the wisdom of AI and to receive all of the benefits of its superior knowledge and understanding of seemingly all things. If we are not careful in realizing what is behind this technology and where it is leading, we could unknowingly fall into giving our minds over to Satan’s latest move to become like the Most High in the minds of men.
That which is of the Spirit of God can only be discerned spiritually. AI can never substitute this, though Satan will utilize it as a usurping imposter whenever men open their minds to permit this fraud on spiritual matters. Words that are spoken or written by the leading of Christ within us will go forth with power and authority to convict the hearts of men. Words that are generated by technology, no matter how elegant they may be, will have no power if Christ is not behind them.6
May God help us in these last days to be wise as serpents and harmless as doves, and to walk with a greater reliance upon Him than ever before. As the world seeks technology for the answers to life’s labors, challenges, and curiosities, may our hearts be more burdened with an earnest prayer to receive more of the good gift of the Holy Spirit.7
God Bless,
Charles
