A Better A.I.

The big news these days in computer science is Artificial Intelligence, or A.I. All the big tech companies are pursuing it; apparently Google is offering to hire some “whiz kid” for a billion dollars to make their A.I. the best in class: (I am seriously considering ending my retirement to do that!) One chip maker (not Lay’s or Doritos) saw its value surge to $3.58 trillion, up  $3.2 trillion in the two years since it introduced its open A.I. program called ChatGPT.

Besides the tech news, pundits are speculating and debating what impact the growth of A.I. will have on society. Some say it will put everyone out of work. Others say it will create new jobs. Some say it will usher in a leisure lifestyle for everyone; others say it will destroy meaningful work and social interaction when robots become our companions. No one knows for sure. Some even fear the computers will take over and exterminate humans like the fictional SkyNet in the Terminator movies.

Computers endowed with A.I. can do amazing things. For example, last year I had ChatGPT write a sermon for Christ the King Sunday. It took it about a second and the points of the sermon were quite good! (Note: I didn’t use it.) They can research vast troves of information very quickly. They can produce very real images and videos of people doing and saying things they never did or said. They can learn how to do thing by watching people perform actions, so someone writing complex code won’t be necessary for machine learning.

Unfortunately, A.I. is not perfect. And by that, I don’t mean it needs to become more intelligent. It has learned from humans too well. It has invented fake news reports that look real. One A.I. platform called Grok had to be taken down and “fixed” because it had adopted antisemitic views. Some A.I. platforms have used images of famous people and made pornographic content with those animated images.  And then there is the phenomenon of “hallucinations.” For some reason, when asked for information, A.I. often makes up things and presents them as true – in other words, it lies. When creating legal briefs for some lawyers, A.I. made up bogus cases with footnotes and citations. But when the attorneys checked its work, they found those cases didn’t exist. (“Objection, your Honor!”)

So, even though massive amounts of money are going in to making better and better A.I., I offer you my advice, free of charge, on something that is better than artificial intelligence. I offer A.I., that is, Almighty Intelligence!

1. Almighty Intelligence refers to the best Intelligence in the universe: the intelligence of God, our Creator. Look at all he has created: all matter and energy, the earth, the planets, sun, moon. and stars, all life: plants,  animals, angels, and humans. The One who created intelligent beings is even more intelligent than they, or any intelligence they could create.

2. Almighty Intelligence means God does not “hallucinate” nor lie: “God is not man, that he should lie, or a son of man, that he should change his mind” (Numbers 23:19).

3. Almighty Intelligence shows God’s intelligence in all things. Even earthly A.I. recognizes God’s Intelligence as superior to it! I asked ChatGPT about God’s intelligence, and this is what it replied:

I. God’s knowledge is infinite

• • • • Psalm 147:5
        “Great is our Lord, and abundant in power; his understanding is beyond measure.”  This verse emphasizes the limitless scope of God’s understanding—beyond human comprehension.

      • Isaiah 40:28
        “Do you not know? Have you not heard? The Lord is the everlasting God… his understanding no one can fathom.” Again, God’s understanding is portrayed as unfathomable.

II. God’s Wisdom Directs All Things

• • • • Romans 11:33
        “Oh, the depth of the riches and wisdom and knowledge of God! How unsearchable are his judgments and how inscrutable his ways!” God’s wisdom and knowledge are so profound that human beings can’t fully grasp His decisions or plans.

      • Proverbs 3:19
        “By wisdom the Lord laid the earth’s foundations, by understanding he set the heavens in place.” Creation itself is evidence of God’s incredible intelligence and wisdom.

III. God Knows Everything (Omniscience)

• • • • 1 John 3:20
        “For whenever our heart condemns us, God is greater than our heart, and he knows everything.” This is a direct statement of God’s omniscience.

      • Hebrews 4:13
        “Nothing in all creation is hidden from God’s sight. Everything is uncovered and laid bare before the eyes of him…” God’s intelligence includes complete awareness of all things.

IV. God’s Intelligence Surpasses Human Wisdom

• • • • Isaiah 55:8-9
        “‘For my thoughts are not your thoughts, neither are your ways my ways,’ declares the Lord. ‘As the heavens are higher than the earth, so are my ways higher than your ways and my thoughts than your thoughts.’” A clear contrast between divine and human thinking.

      • 1 Corinthians 1:25
        “For the foolishness of God is wiser than human wisdom…” Even what might seem foolish by human standards is still greater than our greatest intellect.

4. Almighty Intelligence is divine intelligence, and as such it is combined with true wisdom. God’s word tells us that “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom; all those who practice it have a good understanding. His praise endures forever!” (Psalm 111:10) and “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of knowledge;” (Proverbs 1:7). There are many people who are known for their intelligence, yet they lack wisdom as to how to use their smarts. The scientist who rejects belief in God as “unscientific” is a prime example. God tells us that “The foolishness of God is wiser than men, and the weakness of God is stronger than men”  (1 Corinthians 1:25).

God, whose intelligence is beyond measure, is the source of our intelligence. He has given us the ability to think, to reason, and to remember. The Bible even says that the Holy Spirit has given special measures of intelligence to certain people to do skillful things (Exodus 35:30-32). So anything we can do is a gift from God. We should not get “puffed up” with pride at our abilities,  but seek wisdom as to how we can use our intelligence in service to our Lord.

As we can see, Almighty Intelligence is far better than Artificial Intelligence; after all, why settle for the artificial when we can have the real thing?

Finally, God has warned us that in the last days, there will be an increase in knowledge before the world comes to an end. Daniel 12:4 warns, “But you, Daniel, shut up the words and seal the book, until the time of the end. Many shall run to and fro, and knowledge shall increase.” So, maybe the rush to artificial intelligence is not the beginning of a new era, but a sign of the end of one?

May the Lord bless you and keep you, the Lord make his face to shine upon you and be gracious to you, the Lord lift up his countenance upon you and give you peace. Amen.

Read: Exodus 31:3, Psalm 8, Proverbs 15:32.