Seeking God in the Age of AI

As we follow the lead of Pastor C. Nadir Powell’s first sermon of 2024 at First Baptist Church of Trenton, New Jersey, I am committed to renewing my mind and preparing for a new outlook. ?I wanted to share my reflections in this season of fasting and prayer and some of the challenges the universal church is experiencing in its relevancy and cultivating Kingdom-consciousness.? The Bible tells us in Isaiah 55:6, “Seek the Lord while He may be found; call upon Him while He is near.” It is my desire in this new year to seek the Lord, incline my ear unto His voice, and obey! ?Although we are sacrificing something in the natural to get closer to the supernatural, obedience is always better than sacrifice. ?What is the Lord saying to you and the church? I believe that every disciple of Christ must put him or herself in the position daily to hear and obey the voice of God.? For many years, I have looked forward to the Daniel Fast every January because it has always served as an impetus for getting grounded in a posture of prayer and humility to hear God’s voice amid all the distractions of the world. The late great theologian, philosopher, and civil rights leader, Dr. Howard Thurman in his renowned book Jesus and the Disinherited said, “They who seek God with their hearts must, however some day on their way meet Jesus.” The goal of every believer is to progressively emerge and mature as a disciple whose ultimate goal is to meet Jesus, the Word that became flesh that dwells among us as often as possible. ?So much so that you began to look, speak, and act like Jesus! ?This does not happen beloved by happenstance, but it permeates from our hunger and thirst for the righteousness of God which manifests when we have authentic faith in Christ Jesus flourishing in our hearts.? It also requires understanding our divine purpose individually and collectively in Christ and having a plan for success. Write down the vision and make it plain! God speaks to us in Jeremiah 29:13 when the Lord says, “You will seek me and find me when you seek me with your whole heart,” yet Jeremiah 17:9 also tells us, “The heart is deceitful above all things and beyond cure. Who can understand it?? This is why my friends, we fast and pray asking God, according to Psalm 51:10, “Create in me a pure heart,?O God, and renew a steadfast spirit within me.” We know that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks, so we should guard it with diligence, for out of it flow the issues of life.

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The heart embodies your true essence, serving as the authentic core of your being where your dreams, desires, and passions reside. It's the sacred space within you where you connect with both God and other people.? We all need to have regular assessments of our physical and spiritual heart health.? Physically, heart disease is the number one cause of death, and spiritually hardened hearts are among the main reasons why so many are leaving the faith, suffer from a lack of trust in God, and are unable to perceive and hear from God. Jesus makes this evident in Mark 13:15, “For the hearts of these people are hardened, and their ears cannot hear, and they have closed their eyes—so their eyes cannot see, and their ears cannot hear, and their hearts cannot understand, and they cannot turn to me and let me heal them.”? I don’t know about you, but I need all the emotional, physical, and spiritual healing the Lord has for me and refuse to let anything separate me from the plans and purpose that God has for me! Can I get a witness?? Many people are looking to technology, social media, and artificial intelligence (AI) to satisfy the desires of their hearts.? These are among the most profound distractions in our world today and threats to expanding the Kingdom of God. ?These distractions can contribute to our inability to develop an authentic faith consciousness in and relationship with Jesus. Do you know the magnitude and impact artificial intelligence has on every aspect of our daily lives and the challenges it presents for believers to live a fruitful life in Christ and be obedient to His voice? Let me give you a very brief overview of AI for your understanding. ??

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Artificial intelligence (AI) refers to the development of computer systems capable of performing tasks that typically require human intelligence, such as learning, problem-solving, decision-making, and natural language processing. AI uses algorithms, which can be defined as the programming that tells the computer how to learn to operate on its own. AI has profoundly influenced our daily lives across various domains, including automation in industries such as manufacturing and transportation. Personalization algorithms efficiently analyze vast amounts of data to give people recommendations for buying products and services based on their preferences and purchase behavior. ?AI affects healthcare by aiding in disease diagnosis, personalized treatment plans, drug discovery, and medical imaging analysis which leads to improved health outcomes.? Every time you go to the doctor, AI is used in some capacity to facilitate information and assessments to help you live healthier lives according to the medical model, not God’s model.? AI is used in communication to power chatbots and virtual assistants and is why you have to talk to a computer before you speak with a human in your customer service interactions. Do you see where this has gone? AI is prominent in finance, where algorithms optimize investment strategies, detect fraudulent activities, and personalized financial services for individuals, managing their preferences and risks. AI is also very prominent in transportation optimizing traffic flow, improving safety, and reducing accidents. In education, AI facilitates personalized learning experiences, adaptive tutoring, and educational content creation that is tailored to individual student needs. ?

Now that you have a brief understanding of the worldwide impact of artificial intelligence, this might explain why many people feel that they do not need God, a relationship with Jesus, or to attend church because of the access they have to technology on their cell phones and computers, which have become their gods. ?I am not bashing technology or AI because I use it regularly, but I am not dependent on it for my life. My life is in God’s hands not the cell phone in my hand! ?Holla, if you hear me!? We are grateful for technology, which can do amazing things like keep us connected to online churches during the pandemic, but it comes at a price. Are you with me? ?We still have many believers who are not obedient to Hebrews 10:25, which states, “Don’t stop meeting together with other believers, which some people have gotten into the habit of doing. Instead, encourage each other, especially as you see the day drawing near.” If we love and trust God then we should have a hunger and desire to come to church physically to fellowship with other believers in church. Convenience should never replace conviction by the Holy Spirit.? The reason we need to fast and pray is to separate ourselves from the desires of self-gratification and focus on our relationship with God through spiritual disciplines found in prayer, studying, and meditating on God’s Word.? Proverbs 19:21 states, “Many are the plans in a man’s heart but it is the Lord’s purpose that will prevail.” ?We need to seek God not only for individual answers to our issues and direction but also for the church’s response to the intrusiveness of artificial intelligence in our world.?

Pastor Powell has spoken prophetically about the church’s responsibility to be engaged in social justice, but we have to be aware of the injustices and systems that perpetuate the hardships and unfairness for the least of them whom we are called to serve (Matthew 25:31-45). ?Seeking God in the age of artificial intelligence is truly a challenge for many believers to serve God’s people effectively and bring all people to the knowledge of the truth of Jesus Christ. ?Why?? As AI systems become more autonomous, ethical dilemmas arise regarding the decision-making process, especially in areas like healthcare, criminal justice, and warfare. AI can lead to job placement and economic inequality because the algorithms can perpetuate biases and discriminatory outcomes, especially in areas of hiring and lending, as we see an all-out assault on diversity, equity, and inclusion programs. AI-driven communication platforms such as social media diminish the quality of interpersonal relationships, human connection, and the need for spiritual formation, which creates challenges for building meaningful communities and fostering empathy.? As believers and disciples of Christ, I believe we are called to seek God in this age of artificial intelligence to engage these challenges by promoting ethical AI development, advocating for policies that prioritize human flourishing and dignity, and discerning how AI technologies align with biblical principles of justice, compassion, and stewardship of creation. Let me leave you with a scripture from the Amplified Bible for your meditation. ?“Everything is permissible for me, but not all things are beneficial. Everything is permissible for me, but I will not be enslaved by anything [and brought under its power, allowing it to control me].” 1 Corinthians 6:12. ?