Thought for Today
2 Kings 10:13 Jehu met relatives of King Ahaziah of Judah and said, "Who are you?" They answered, "We are kin of Ahaziah; we have come down to visit the royal princes and the sons of the queen mother."
Luke 7:18 The disciples of John reported all these things to him. So John summoned two of his disciples 19 and sent them to the Lord to ask, "Are you the one who is to come, or are we to wait for another?"
John 3:2 He came to Jesus by night and said to him, "Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher who has come from God; for no one can do these signs that you do apart from the presence of God."
What makes us who we are? What defines each of us individually? Is the totality of who I am captured in my name, in my point of origin, in my lineage? Am I defined by my profession? Who am I?
AI is much in the news daily. We are in the birth pangs of the AI revolution. Any day soon, I expect to see the advertising industry touting every imaginable product somehow tying it to AI . . . imagine AI toothpaste!
It is abundantly clear as we listen to all of the authoritative prognostications, that few of the pontificators understand exactly what AI even is. The news stories oscillate between dire warnings of the approach of the Matrix and suggestions that AI will somehow improve everything in existence.
My focus this morning on identity, definition and determination were spurred by a segment Greta watched yesterday morning on the NBC Today Show. Thankfully, I missed the whole thing. As I heard her explanation and as I searched on the internet this morning, it seems to concern a new app touting to allow us to ‘speak to Jesus directly.’ While I can imagine how you could ask the app a question and it could then search out and present everything Jesus said on the subject, I find the whole idea disturbing on many different levels.
First, the entire smartphone, internet, social media phenomenon concerns me. I see a loss in the language skills of many today. Some days it seems to me that only grandparents text in complete sentences using punctuation and capitalization. I will admit to using emojis and even some abbreviations (LOL, FWIW, etc.) Countless English teachers drilled sentence structure, punctuation, and other rules of grammar into my brain. I have been out of school for more than 10 years, but dangling participles still make me uncomfortable.
I worry about ‘talking to Jesus’ via smartphone. Will users stop reading the Bible? Why go to the trouble of reading when one can ‘ask Jesus’ directly and hear his answer? Will the app allow us to change the settings on Jesus’ voice? Can I change my settings to make Jesus sound like James Earl Jones? Maybe add a Texas accent and twang?
Admittedly, as a minister, I spend more time engaging scriptures than do most. I am not opposed to using technology to do so. Those verses above were copied from my own Bible software. I use that software almost every day as an aid to preparing my sermons, these Thoughts, to help me understand more fully the text of a passage. The software I use allows me to see each verse in the most authoritative version in the original language. I have formatted that software to present the verse in Greek and/or Hebrew and to show 7 different English language translations.
I even have a less powerful Bible app on my own iPad and smartphone. Even when I am traveling or away from home, I can easily search for and read a passage of the Bible without having to carry my printed and bound Bible.
For me, however, all of the apps in the world, with or without AI, can never replace the joy of reading scriptures directly from one of the many Bibles I own. Some of the apps do include commentaries; and, some of the apps even allow me to highlight and/or bookmark passages. For me, nothing can replace using a yellow highlighter and a pencil and straightedge to underline things I deem important. Nothing can replace my ability to write notes in the margins.
I know Jesus not from some artificially generated ‘voice’ on a device. I know Jesus from the countless hours I have spent reading my Bible and the equally countless hours I have spent in prayer with Jesus and with God. I know Jesus from all the hymns I have joyfully sung in worship. For those who are old enough to remember, I am like that spotted dog sitting next to the victrola, listening to his Master’s voice. I hear that voice in my mind and in my heart, not on my smartphone!
Stay safe, listen to the Master’s voice, trust God,
Pastor Ray