Look at this photo for just a minute. This man’s life looks hard. You certainly get the impression of a struggling fisherman who works hard every day to feed his family. The lighting and angle of the camera tell the story of struggle, hardship, and life in the fishing village. So much detail to take in. But I must tell you that it is not “real.’ Yes. The image is real, but it is not a photograph of a real person. This man never lived. He doesn’t exist and never did. This “photograph” was generated completely by Artificial Intelligence.
The news is filled with the rise of AI (Artificial Intelligence) tools in our society. AI brings some amazing capabilities and some daunting challenges. New tools to help diagnose diseases and manage complex systems will no doubt improve some aspects of our lives. But with these benefits comes great challenges. As an artist and photographer I personally was very interested in the new graphics capabilities of these tools and by simply typing words into my computer I was able to “create” this man out of nothing. The capabilities are incredible, but in the wrong hands, for the wrong motives, this power can be abused.
While the ability to create “fake” images has been available for a long, long time, these new tools are going to make it harder and harder to tell the “real” from the “fake.” It won’t be long before it will be commonplace to see images of celebrities, politicians, or anyone else for that matter, doing things they never did or appearing with people they never met. We see news stories and posts on social media every day, but we need to learn to ask ourselves – is it true? There is little doubt that our world is already filled with false information and even outright lies. So what are we to trust? What source of TRUTH do we have left to anchor our lives to?
Praise be to God that He has given us one source that we can always use to tell the truth from the lie. Scripture is TRUTH (John 17:17). We don’t have to trust someone else’s opinions or points of view. When it comes to God, what is right and wrong, what we need to live a life pleasing to our Father, we can read it for ourselves. In a world filled with fake news, false premises, and misinformation, the Bible stands as a beacon to light our way. “Your word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).
As God’s people, we need to get back to the Book! Do we really trust that “All Scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16)? As the Lord’s church we are to be the “pillar and support of the truth” found in God’s word (1 Timothy 3:15). It is not our opinions and thoughts on a matter that are “profitable for teaching” us! It is not some group consensus or common agreement that will train us in the righteousness of God! Only Scripture can do that! We can be deceived. We can be misguided. Scripture is TRUTH and we need it now more than ever! In it we find the Eternal Intelligence of the all powerful, all knowing, ever present God of Heaven! In it we find TRUTH we can trust to lead us through.
Michael Hite