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A look back leads forward.

But it was also because I was enthralled by the spirit of the time. It was the early 50s, and talk was everywhere about space travel, going to the moon, and even Mars. Sci-fi was appearing on the drugstore magazine racks— Galaxy, Amazing Stories, Astounding Science Fiction, and others, and I began avidly following such pioneers as Robert Heinlein and Isaac Asimov.

I wrote to major observatories and received catalogs of planets, star clusters, faraway galaxies, and comets like Halley’s that swing by Earth every 75 years or so. I collected photos and articles and made a huge space scrapbook that won a blue ribbon at the state fair. And I had my own “space suit” and helmet with “real” plastic oxygen tanks. Robots and sci-fi peopled my thoughts, and the movie War of the Worlds terrified me. I even had my bedroom fitted with outer space wallpaper and a mini-planetarium that shone galaxies on the ceiling with the lights off.

It was the early 1950s; I was ten going on thirteen, and it was the spirit of the age. 

How times have changed! 

Or have they?

*  *  *
Have you seen the amazing robots Boston Dynamics is making? They turn somersaults, carry huge loads, dance, and do almost everything except brush your teeth for you. And maybe even that. [1]

And surely, you’ve watched Ameca the humanoid robot with the disturbingly sweet face,[2] and Sophia, who wants to destroy humans?[3] Oh, and the robot dogs?[4]

But robots aren’t all that’s happening. AI tools such as ChatGPT and MidJourney are rapidly enhancing human effort, taking only seconds to create complex narratives and stunning images and totally revolutionizing the fields of literature and graphic design. Other forms of AI are revolutionizing medical, industrial, and military situations. And already, some folks are fearing an AI takeover. 

This revolution is only just beginning, and it doesn’t stop with AI. AI is only a step toward what many proponents believe is the ultimate goal of transcending human limitation forever: transhumanism.

Transhumanism

Once the exclusive scope of superheroes and sci-fi, the proponents of transhumanism envision overcoming a material world by enhancement devices—a method that, taken to its ultimate, basically becomes self-glorification. On some levels, of course, it’s merely improving the human condition in increments—such as wearing glasses or hearing aids, adding artificial limbs, or enhancing the boundaries of intelligence and communication through computers—but others envision an actual ‘digital god.’ 

According to tech mogul Elon Musk, for some, such as Google co-founder Larry Page, the ultimate goal of the race to build artificial intelligence is to create a “digital god,” a silicon-based lifeform that “would understand everything in the world. . . . and give you back the exact right thing instantly.”[5]

ChatGPT reveals the strong secular, leftist biases of its creators, so it probably won’t be popular among those who already know their God. 

"Digital AI makes a sad god—a god crafted by humans and limited in its abilities by what we can create and program. It won’t save anyone, and it won’t turn this world into a utopia because it cannot solve the biggest problem every human being has—sin!" [6]

But there’s another approach to the problem of human limitation. 

Become “post-human.”

Radically modifying humanity to become “post-human” is the goal of many transhumanists: “Recent tools to pursue this vision include brain-computer interfaces (BCIs), nanotechnologies, and gene-editing tools like CRISPR.”[7] Some proponents are even talking about uploading our minds to the Cloud, where we will dwell forever! (Surely, a secularist’s idea of heaven!) This would involve scanning and mapping a biological brain in all its complexity, which, presently, is still stuff of science fiction. 

But that people are even considering and working toward it shows the intensity of the desire for transcendence and eternal life—a goal impossible to achieve by material, earthly means, but only by the completed work of the Lord Jesus Christ on the Cross.

Do you fear technological advances more than God? 

He is more than up to the current AI / transhumanist revolution. Thousands of years ago, He foresaw the real needs of human beings and sent His only Son, Jesus Christ to overcome both the material and spiritual realms. The real enemy isn’t technology; it’s sin and the devil. 

Do you know Jesus Christ as your Savior and Lord? He has taken care of sin once and for all on the Cross, and as for our bodies, those who follow Him will receive new ones in the world to come. 

Pursuing transhumanist goals for anything except momentary, earthly improvement and comfort is a futile undertaking.

Instead, turn to the Lord Jesus Christ, confess that you are a sinner, and be born again into a new and eternal realm where He has already taken care of the body and soul. Leave the attempts of transhumanists to transcend physical mortality to wither on the vine and follow instead the real Giver of transcendence and victory over death. [8].)

ENDNOTES
[1]           https://youtu.be/fn3KWM1kuAw
[2]           https://youtu.be/LzBUm31Vn3k
[3]           https://fb.watch/kTCgsAhbA/
[4]           https://youtu.be/mf2rvZ7Uv4s - 14 Most Advanced Robots Doing Complicated Actions Humanoid Robots, Robot Dogs And More
[5]          https://answersingenesis.org/technology/google-co-founder-wants-to-build-ai-digital-god/
[6]          Ibid.
[7]          Ibid.
[8]         This is an excellent article. "Thinking Biblically about  Transhumanist technologies." https://answersingenesis.org/human-evolution/thinking-biblically-about-transhumanist-technologies/- January 11, 2023