10 of those

Christian thinking on AI

Artificial intelligence (AI) will have a profound impact on our society in future years. Stephen Driscoll thinks through the possible implications from a Christian perspective. All technologies are gifts from God, but all can be abused by human sin. AI is a good gift from God, but humans are more than capable of misusing it. Driscoll argues that AI will precipitate a crisis in human identity. Since evolution became the dominant explanation of human origins, humans have been seeking to justify our supremacy by our higher abilities and creativity than animals. But what happens when something when something more able and creative comes along? Humanity is dethroned to just being meat-based algorithms. This provides an opportunity for the gospel. A Christian’s true identity does not come from our ability but from being made in the image of God and adopted as his son. As with all other technologies, AI will be abused. Authoritarian regimes will use it to increase the surveillance of their populations. Large language models like ChatGPT have learned from the worst of humanity and replicated it, or it will tell us what we want to hear, offering no correction to our sinful desires. These threats will have to be navigated by the church and individual Christians. Conversely a moral AI could be even more dangerous. It would see the sinfulness of mankind, but there would be no grace. Would it work to wipe out humanity to achieve a “higher” goal? Or would it become a false God? But it would never be able to match God’s mercy in Christ in taking on human flesh and dying for us. AI has great potential to be further foster human idolatry as well as remaking our society with all the unpredictable effects. This book will help its readers develop a Christian mind on the subject. It is strong on the threats and the Gospel answer for these. The question remains on how we can use it for good beyond being a productivity tool, as it is not going away.

Stephen

A timely read

Driscoll provides a fascinating historical perspective on the impact of technology on society - it is a fresh, interesting and non-cliched way of assessing our culture today. Using the biblical framework of creation, fall,  redemption and new creation, he helps us think through the role and impact of A.I. Each of those chapters addresses A.I. its inevitability, its potential for good, and its potential for harm but all the while helping us to think theologically about this subject. He points us clearly to Christ and our need for Him. A.I. will change our society for good and evil, but this book helps us prepare. Driscoll warns us that human relationships may become more compromised as people turn to A.I. for unchallenging and affirming friendships - for some, this is already here. It will be hard to protect the next generation from the further destruction of the social world. We are created to worship the Lord and love one another - the church must continue to display this. As I read this, I wondered if somebody could use this book to present the goodness of the gospel to a sympathetic reader who is not a Christian. It shows our need for the Lord when considering the potential harm of A.I .The second half of the chapter on the cross pulls no punches - humanity is corrupt, and if we create a perfectly moral A.I., will it be able to show mercy to people? Grace and righteousness are only found at the cross. This is a timely book which not only provides insight into technological change but reinforces our glorious hope found in Christ alone.

Karen