How to live tech-wise today as a family?

AI, End Times, and the Call to Live Wisely

Staying rooted in Christ in a world of rapid technological change

Technology is advancing at breakneck speed. From the printing press to the smartphone, every generation faces new breakthroughs that reshape daily life. Now we stand at the edge of another massive shift—Artificial Intelligence (AI). AI itself is already powerful, but researchers talk about Artificial General Intelligence—machines that can think and make decisions like humans. We’re not there yet (and hopefully never will be), but the rise of AI is a major milestone for society and the church. Like every great technological leap, it brings tremendous blessings—and serious dangers.

“Technology is a blessing and a gift. But with every great, powerful tool and breakthrough technology, there are great dangers and great vices.”

The Double-Edged Sword of Technology

Technology is a tool, but it can also be a trap. We’ve seen how smartphones, social media, and now AI can:

• Isolate and dehumanize. Walk through an airport or sit in a waiting room—everyone’s eyes are on their screens. We’re connected online but disconnected in person.
• Amplify sin. Human nature is already fallen. Technology can magnify pride, anger, lust, and greed, spreading harmful content with lightning speed.
• Desensitize hearts. Graphic images, violent games, and shocking headlines can numb us to evil. What once shocked us now barely registers.

The tragic online response to public deaths, with people mocking or celebrating loss, reveals how technology can strip away empathy and humanity.

Specific Dangers of AI

AI brings unique temptations:

• Replacing real relationships. Chatbots and “AI companions” offer quick conversation or even romantic interactions, tempting us to substitute screens for true friendship and marriage.
• Amusing ourselves to death. Algorithms learn our preferences and feed endless streams of entertainment, keeping us scrolling and wasting precious time.
• False spiritual maturity. AI can generate polished Bible answers, but no chatbot can replace a heart formed by prayer, Scripture, and the Holy Spirit.
• Deepfakes and deception. Fake videos, fabricated news, and AI-generated images blur the line between truth and lies.
• Escaping reality. Online gaming and virtual worlds can become more appealing than real life, leading to a loss of grounding and purpose.
• Sexual distortion. AI-generated explicit content fuels addiction and twists God’s design for sexuality.

These dangers are not distant possibilities—they’re already here and growing.

A Call to Awareness and Action

How should the church respond? Awareness is the first step. We must name the dangers and talk about them openly. But awareness isn’t enough. We need:

1. Deeper prayer. Only the power of the Holy Spirit can keep our hearts pure and focused on Christ.
2. Strong, intentional families. Parents must set wise boundaries and model healthy tech habits.
3. Genuine relationships. We need face-to-face friendships and church community to stay rooted in reality.

Technology is like a powerful table saw—it can build or destroy. Approach it with “fear and trembling” and use it as a servant, never a master.

Ten Tech-Wise Commitments

Author Andy Crouch, in The Tech-Wise Family, offers practical steps for guarding our homes. Here are the ten commitments shared in the sermon (adapted for our context):

1. Develop wisdom and courage together. Teach children to discern good from evil and to have the courage to live differently from the world.
2. Create more than you consume. Make the center of your home a place of genuine interaction—conversation, prayer, singing, and creativity—not screens.
3. Practice rhythms of work and rest.
   • One hour a day screen-free
   • One day a week unplugged
   • One week a year technology-free vacation
4. Wake up before devices and put them to bed early.
5. Delay screens for children. Aim for no personal devices before double digits—or even later.
6. Use screens for a purpose and use them together. Avoid aimless scrolling.
7. Make car time conversation time.
8. Maintain full access and accountability. Spouses share passwords; parents have access to children’s devices. This is a purity necessity.
9. Learn to sing together. God sings over His people (Zephaniah 3:17); our homes should echo with our own voices, not just Spotify.
10. Show up in person. Be physically present for life’s most important moments.

“The Lord your God is in your midst, a mighty one who will save; He will rejoice over you with gladness; He will quiet you by His love; He will exult over you with loud singing.” — Zephaniah 3:17

Living with Eternal Perspective

Technology itself isn’t evil. But it tests the genuineness of our faith.

“…so that the tested genuineness of your faith—more precious than gold that perishes though it is tested by fire—may be found to result in praise and glory and honor at the revelation of Jesus Christ.” — 1 Peter 1:6-7

Whatever clogs your relationship with God—repent and let it burn away. Christ is coming again, and only what is eternal will remain.

Let’s use technology as a servant for the Kingdom, not a master that enslaves. Let’s build homes where prayer, love, and truth thrive—where God Himself sings over His people.

Live by faith - Tanner Trephan