Should AI be used in a church service?

TL;DR:

AI is a useful tool for research, administration, and other tasks. But AI should never be used in situations where only the Holy Spirit should guide us, including sermons and worship.

Core elements of a church service include Bible teaching, congregational singing, prayer, and the sacraments of communion and baptism (Acts 2:42; Colossians 3:16-17). The emphasis is on proclaiming the gospel, encouraging spiritual growth, and equipping believers for mission and service (Ephesians 4:12). The church is not a performance stage but a gathering of God's image-bearers to foster shared community with a Christ-centered focus (Genesis 1:26-27).

Since a church service is primarily a spiritual discipline, the role for artificial intelligence (AI) is very limited (John 4:24). Believers are indwelt by the Holy Spirit who guides us in all truth (John 16:13), including sermons, worship, praise, and prayer. Believers are told throughout Scripture to meditate on God's Word, which is diminished or removed when we allow AI to generate answers for us rather than praying for wisdom, reading the Bible, and meditating on God's word (Deuteronomy 6:6-7; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:2). AI cannot replace the Spirit in any of these endeavors. Church services that use AI are computer-led, not Spirit-led.

Besides the impact on the service itself, when a pastor, Bible teacher, Christian counselor, Christian musician, etc., uses AI to create content, they are losing the opportunity to rejoice in the Lord in the creation of those materials. Scripture tells believers to "rejoice in the Lord always" (Philippians 4:4), and Jesus told us that abiding in Him will bring us joy (John 15:6, 15:11). Believers in those roles who use AI-generated content rather than Spirit-led content are missing the opportunity "rejoice in the Lord" while creating that content and in doing so, diminish the opportunity for spiritual growth (Ephesians 4:12; Hebrews 5:12-14; 1 Peter 2:2; 2 Peter 3:18).

from the old testament

Genesis 1:26-27 tells us that humans are created in the image of God, meaning we reflect God's likeness (attributes). AI, no matter how advanced, cannot replicate the soul or divine image in humanity.
God tells believers throughout Scripture to meditate on His word (Deuteronomy 6:6-7; Joshua 1:8; Psalm 1:2). Using AI to generate Christian content is taking away opportunities to meditate on Scripture.

from the new testament

A biblical worship service should be done in spirit and in truth (John 4:24), something AI cannot do.
A church service should help equip the saints for the work of ministry and lead to spiritual maturity in Christ (Ephesians 4:12). When a pastor, Bible teacher, or other believer uses AI to generate content rather than creating it themselves, they are losing an occasion for spiritual growth, going backwards when they should be moving forward spiritually (Hebrews 5:12-14; 1 Peter 2:2).
We are to "rejoice in the Lord always" (Philippians 4:4) and abide in Jesus (John 15:6). How can we do that if we're outsourcing the Christian content that we would previously have created ourselves?
Believers are called to continually grow in grace and knowledge through their relationship with Christ (2 Peter 3:18). An AI algorithm is not relational.

implications for today

Challenges lead to change. When we skirt challenges, we lose the opportunity for growth. AI is a useful tool, but believers should never outsource our spiritual growth to it by allowing it to write sermons, create Bible lesson plans, compose lyrics to worship songs, etc. When we do, we diminish an opportunity to love God with our mind (Matthew 22:37) and to be led by the Spirit (Romans 8:14).

Besides missing an opportunity for spiritual growth, we're also deceiving our audience by passing off AI-generated as a Spirit-led creation. Ask yourself this question when you're tempted to use AI instead of creating the content on your own: Would you be willing to tell those who will interact with that content that it is AI-generated? The answer is likely "no." That's because we all know people want to interact with people, not an LLM (large language model).

The best way to use AI is as a more sophisticated search engine. Trying to think of a verse that you've forgotten the Scripture reference to? AI can help. Wondering how many times "love" is used in Paul's epistles? AI can help. But even when you do these, we must double-check the results as AI-generated content can still be unreliable.

If believers use AI, they should use it as a tool, not as a substitute for endeavors that should be Spirit-led.

understand

AI can assist in research, administration and other tasks, but it cannot replace the Spirit-led human aspects of a church service.
Preaching the Word, praying, and singing worship songs in church should be Spirit-led, and not driven by technology.
We lose the opportunity for spiritual growth and rejoicing in the Lord when we allow AI to generate content that should be Spirit-led.

reflect

How do you discern the difference between using AI as a helpful tool and relying on it in areas where only the Spirit should guide you?
How would you feel if you learned that your pastor or other church leader was using AI to generate content for a church service?
How might creating or leading content yourself, rather than outsourcing to AI, shape your spiritual growth and connection to God?

engage

Should AI be used to support church functions—why or in what ways?
What standards should we have in the way we wisely use helpful technology like AI especially for spiritual matters?
What challenges or benefits have you observed when technology is used in ministry, and how should those shape our approach?