Discussion Questions

The host frames the whole morning with Matthew 6:33 (“Seek first the kingdom of God and His righteousness”); how does that specific call to “seek first” change the way a Christian should evaluate something like AI—especially when it is marketed as inevitable, efficient, and necessary? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If Christians are called to “seek first” God’s kingdom (Matthew 6:33), how should that shape the way we judge AI when people say it’s unavoidable and necessary?

The host prays that “principalities and powers…are conspiring together…to ruin this world” and asks that we would be “wise as serpents and harmless as doves”; where did you feel that spiritual warfare framework clarified the AI conversation, and where did it risk making “technology” the villain instead of exposing deeper human sin? JumpstartAnother way to ask: How did the “spiritual warfare” view help you understand the AI issue, and where might it wrongly make technology the main enemy instead of human sin?

Ben argues that AI is not fundamentally new—he traces fascination with “something…not alive, but…alive” from Talos in Greek myth through ENIAC and early neural nets; what does that long history suggest about enduring human desires (or temptations) that modern AI is simply repackaging? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Since people have long wanted something “not alive” to act alive, what does that history say about the human desires or temptations that AI is bringing back?

Ben describes AI as “simulated intelligence” that mainly does “training” and then “inference,” and says it’s basically “guesswork” that can contradict itself when you click “regenerate”; how does that definition challenge the way people talk about AI with near-religious confidence, and what does it reveal about why God values truthfulness and reality? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If AI is mostly trained to make good guesses and can contradict itself, how does that challenge the way people talk about AI like it’s always right, and why does God care so much about truth?

Ben says AGI (sentient “Terminator”-style intelligence) is not here, and that “we’re at least a generation away”; what fears does that statement confront in you, and what different (more realistic) dangers did his talk highlight that may be easier to ignore because they’re less cinematic? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If true human-like AGI isn’t here yet, what fears in you does that calm, and what more realistic AI dangers did Ben point out that are easier to ignore?

Ben claims ChatGPT is essentially a “very fancy, powerful autocorrect system” predicting the next word; how does that reframe what it means to call an AI response “wisdom,” and how might early Christians—who assumed wisdom comes from fearing God and obeying Christ—push back on our culture’s trust in fluent words? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If ChatGPT is mainly predicting the next word, what makes it wrong to call its answers “wisdom,” and how might early Christians push back on trusting smooth-sounding words over fearing God?

Ben explains how CAPTCHAs (“click all the buses”) quietly enlist users to label data for companies like Amazon; what does that reveal about the economy and power dynamics behind AI, and how should Christians think about unknowingly “discipling” a machine with our time and attention? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If CAPTCHAs use our clicks to train AI for big companies, what does that show about who has power and makes money from AI, and how should Christians think about training machines with our time without knowing it?

Ben warns that AI tempts students to “outsource tasks that would be character building,” saying this can produce “weak minds” rather than “a sound mind”; where do you see the same outsourcing temptation in adult Christian life (Bible reading, prayer, thinking carefully, repentance, learning skills), not just in school? JumpstartAnother way to ask: Where do you see adults “outsourcing” things that should build Christian character—like prayer, Bible reading, careful thinking, repentance, or learning skills—like students do with AI?

Ben notes “ontological challenges” where it’s “difficult to tell what is real and what is false,” to the point that “pictures or it didn’t happen” no longer works; how should the church adjust its instincts about evidence, testimony, gossip, and accusation in an era where images and stories can be manufactured convincingly? JumpstartAnother way to ask: If fake images and stories can look real, how should the church change how it handles evidence, personal stories, gossip, and accusations?

Ben calls it a temptation for pastors to use ChatGPT rather than “praying desperately,” and warns, “you never know exactly where the foundation models are coming from”; what would it look like, in practice, for a church to treat sermon preparation and teaching as spiritual labor that must not be outsourced—even if the outsourced version sounds “clinical” and competent? JumpstartAnother way to ask: What would it look like for a church to treat preaching and teaching as spiritual work that shouldn’t be handed off to ChatGPT, even if the AI version sounds polished and professional?