{"id":2408721,"date":"2025-03-02T17:45:02","date_gmt":"2025-03-02T22:45:02","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pastor-has-one-word-to-describe-sermons-written-with-ai-wicked\/"},"modified":"2025-03-02T17:48:33","modified_gmt":"2025-03-02T22:48:33","slug":"pastor-has-one-word-to-describe-sermons-written-with-ai-wicked","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/pastor-has-one-word-to-describe-sermons-written-with-ai-wicked\/","title":{"rendered":"Pastor Has One Word to Describe Sermons Written with AI: &#8216;Wicked&#8217;"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"float:left\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fpastor-has-one-word-to-describe-sermons-written-with-ai-wicked%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=2408721&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><p>Pastor John Piper expressed strong objections\u2062 to teh use of \u2062artificial intelligence (AI) \u2062chatbots for sermon writing during a\u2064 February 24 episode of his podcast, &#8220;Ask pastor John.&#8221; He responded to a question from\u200c a pastor seeking guidance on leveraging AI for sermon preparation,arguing that human intellect and affections toward God,which\u200c are vital in worship,cannot be replaced by AI.\u2064 Piper emphasized that worship involves not only \u2064right thinking\u2014something computers can mimic\u2014but also right feelings,which AI inherently lacks.<\/p>\n<p>Despite acknowledging that \u2064AI tools like chatgpt can <a href=\"https:\/\/amzn.to\/3YuVZYV\">produce high-quality\u200d written content rapidly<\/a>, he deemed their use for crafting\u200b sermons as\u200d inappropriate and &#8220;wicked.&#8221; Piper pointed out that \u200bthe qualifications for being a pastor include \u2063the ability to \u200bunderstand and convey\u2062 Scripture authentically and to engage in heartfelt reflection and request of biblical truths.<\/p>\n<p>He expressed his concern over the potential for pastors to deliver sermons devoid of \u200dpersonal insight and emotional connection, which he believes undermines the integrity of pastoral \u2064ministry. \u2064Piper stressed that the command to &#8220;feed my sheep,&#8221; given by \u200cjesus,\u2062 cannot be delegated to AI, as genuine pastoral care requires a pastor&#8217;s dedicated labor, sanctification, and emotional\u2062 engagement with their congregation.  <\/p>\n<p class=\"readmore\">\n    <button onclick=\"showReadMore()\" id=\"readmorebtn\">Read more&#8230;<\/button>\n<\/p>\n<hr id=\"line\">\n<span id=\"more\"><\/p>\n<p><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><?xml encoding=\"utf-8\" ?><\/p>\n<section> \t\t\t\t<script>console.log(\"ad slot (AC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC1)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC2)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC3)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (IC4)\")<\/script><script>console.log(\"ad slot (REP_0)\")<\/script><\/p>\n<p>Pastor John Piper had a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/emails-show-cbs-had-desantis-answers-to-questions-before-segment-aired-ignored-warning-from-democrat\/\" title=\"Em...ls Show CBS Had DeSantis\u2019 Answers To Questions Before Segment ...red, Ignored Warning From Democrat\">strong reaction<\/a> to pastors who would consider using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/mass-market-artificial-intelligence-chatgpt-passes-elite-business-school-exam\/\" title=\"Mass Market ... ChatGPT Passes Elite Business School Exam\">artificial intelligence chatbots<\/a> to write their sermons.<\/p>\n<p>In a Feb. 24 episode of &ldquo;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.desiringgod.org\/interviews\/should-i-use-ai-to-help-me-write-sermons\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Ask Pastor John<\/a>,&rdquo; the longtime Minnesota evangelical minister&rsquo;s question-and-answer podcast, Piper fielded a question from an anonymous pastor wondering if he could, in theory, leverage the power of AI to improve his sermon preparation.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Pastor John, do you think it&rsquo;s okay to use AI platforms &mdash; like Gemini or ChatGPT &mdash; to help draft a sermon, youth lesson, or Bible study, as long as I review, adjust, and ensure it aligns with God&rsquo;s word?&rdquo; the pastor asked.<\/p>\n<p>Piper described that human intellect is meant to correspond with affections toward God leading to worship, a reality in which <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/chinese-ai-bombshell-tech-already-american-founder-says\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">AI<\/a> by nature cannot participate.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;Worship is not simply right thinking, which computers can do. Worship is right feeling about God,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;That&rsquo;s really crucial, unless we begin to think that artificial intelligence can take the place of human beings in accomplishing the divine purpose in the universe. It can&rsquo;t.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p> <script type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\tif ( getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"stnvideo\").remove() \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> <\/p>\n<p>He added that human affections &ldquo;are fundamentally of another nature than the logical thinking process of the human mind,&rdquo; which is why many are bothered &ldquo;when a machine attempts to rejoice or delight or be glad or stand in awe or be amazed or feel grief or fear.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Despite the technological achievements of tools like ChatGPT, Piper argued that using the chatbot to write &ldquo;an astonishingly well-written sermon&rdquo; in mere moments is inappropriate.<\/p>\n<p>He even said that by way of testing, he told ChatGPT to &ldquo;please write an eight-hundred-word answer, in the theology and style of theologian John Piper, to the question, What are the dangers of a pastor using AI.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Piper reported that the result was &ldquo;excellent&rdquo; and &ldquo;unbelievable,&rdquo; with the AI assistant producing a perfect response in five seconds.<\/p>\n<p>But he also called that result &ldquo;wicked.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I&rsquo;m using a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/putin-got-what-he-wanted-famed-russia-critic-rips-biden-over-geneva-summit\/\" title=\"\u2018Putin Got What He Wanted\u2019: Famed Russia Critic Rips Biden Over Geneva Summit\">strong word<\/a> because I feel strongly about this,&rdquo; he warned. &ldquo;This goes to the heart of God and the meaning of Christianity and the integrity of the church and her ministers.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Piper also used the word &ldquo;appalled&rdquo; to describe the idea of a pastor using <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ap-former-openai-leader-says-safety-taken-backseat-shiny-products-ai-company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">AI<\/a> to write his sermons, even if he double-checks for theological accuracy after the first draft.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;I know that resources and websites have existed forever to help pastors cut corners: create your outlines, provide illustrations, tell you how to do research, and so on,&rdquo; he noted.<\/p>\n<p>&ldquo;There&rsquo;s nothing new about this, and it&rsquo;s been appalling to me all the way along, for this reason: one of the qualifications for being an elder-pastor-preacher in the Bible is the gift or the ability to teach,&rdquo; he continued.<\/p>\n<p>The Bible indeed says that ministers should, in the words of Piper, &ldquo;have the ability, the gift, to read a passage of Scripture, understand the reality it deals with, feel the emotions it is meant to elicit, be able to explain it to others clearly, illustrate and apply it for their edification.&rdquo;<\/p>\n<p>Piper was right to react strongly in response to this trend.<\/p>\n<p>There are some aspects of human life that simply cannot be replaced with machines.<\/p>\n<p>The duty of the pastor to labor over the Word of God, to himself be sanctified while wrestling with the passage and preparing his sermon, and applying the truths of the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wefs-terrifying-new-mission-calls-ai-write-unifying-new-bible-create-religions-actually-correct\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Bible<\/a> to the flock he knows and loves, cannot and should not be delegated to a soulless algorithm created by an arguably even more soulless <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/big-tech-company-developing-artificial-intelligence-control-traffic-lights\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Silicon Valley<\/a> technology conglomerate.<\/p>\n<p>Both the pastor and the parishioners worship together not only during the songs and prayers in a Sunday service, but also during the sermon, jointly setting their minds on truths about God, feeling right affections for God, and reacting in heartfelt worship toward God.<\/p>\n<p>American evangelical churches have sorrowfully been tempted toward pragmatism and vapid seeker sensitivity in recent decades, meaning that pastors using AI to write their sermons is by no means infeasible.<\/p>\n<p>But Jesus himself told Peter, and by extension all pastors, to feed his sheep.<\/p>\n<p>That command was not given to online <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/ap-reporter-caught-using-ai-create-fake-quotes-articles\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">chatbots<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p>If pastors prove themselves to be hirelings and shirk that command, then their sheep will be left starving, and those pastors will find themselves without excuse before the Good Shepherd.<\/p>\n<div style=\"position: relative;\">\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<div class=\"entry-submit-correction inner-content\">\n<div class=\"correction-form\">\n<form style=\"display: none;\">\n<div class=\"sc-name-field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* Name<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"name\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"sc--field\"> \t\t\t\t\t\t<label>* <\/label> \t\t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"text\" name=\"\" required> \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<label>* Message<\/label> \t\t\t\t\t<br \/> \t\t\t\t\t<textarea name=\"message\" required><\/textarea> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"required-message\" style=\"display: none; padding-bottom: 15px;\">* All fields are required.<\/div>\n<p> \t\t\t\t\t<input type=\"submit\" value=\"Submit\" onclick=\"event.preventDefault(); firefly_sc();\"> \t\t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"firefly-sc-confirm\" style=\"display: none;\">Success!<\/div>\n<\/p><\/form>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p> \t\t<script> \t\t\tfunction firefly_sc() { \t\t\t\tif( typeof window.captchaPublicKey==typeof undefined ){ \t\t\t\t\tconsole.error('window.captchaPublicKey is not defined'); \t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\tgrecaptcha.execute( window.captchaPublicKey, { action: 'submit_correction' } ).then( function( token ) { \t\t\t\t\tvar opts={ \t\t\t\t\t\taction:    'firefly_sc_submit', \t\t\t\t\t\tname:      document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"name\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\t:     document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tmessage:   document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"message\"]' ).value, \t\t\t\t\t\tpost_id:   firefly_post_id, \t\t\t\t\t\tcap_token: token \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tvar inputs=[ 'name', '', 'message' ]; 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( opts[inputs[i]]=document.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction [name=\"' + inputs[i] + '\"]' ).value ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .required-message' ).style.display='block'; \t\t\t\t\t\treturn; \t\t\t\t\t}  \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction input[type=\"submit\"]' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).src=firefly_loading_gif_url; \t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='inline-block';  \t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( 'ma subbing' );  \t\t\t\t\tif( firefly_post_id ) opts['post_id']=firefly_post_id;  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Send the data using post with element id name and name2*\/ \t\t\t\t\tvar posting=jQuery.post( firefly_ajax_url, opts );  \t\t\t\t\t\/* Alerts the results *\/ \t\t\t\t\tposting.done( function( response ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tif( response.success ) { \t\t\t\t\t\t\tconsole.log( response.data ); \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-submitting-img' ).style.display='none'; \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.querySelector( '.entry-submit-correction .firefly-sc-confirm' ).style.display='block';  \t\t\t\t\t\t\tdataLayer.push( { 'event': 'submit-correction' } ); \t\t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t\t}); \t\t\t} \t\t<\/script> \t     \t\t\t\t\t\t     \t\t\t\t\t<\/div>\n<p style=\"border: 1px solid #f5f5f5; padding: 16px;\">Advertise with The Western Journal and reach millions of highly engaged readers, while supporting our work. <a href=\"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/advertise-us\/?wj_source=article\">Advertise Today<\/a>.<\/p>\n<p><script>console.log(\"ad slot (BA1)\")<\/script> \t\t<\/p>\n<div class=\"ff-fancy-header-container\"> \t\t\t \t<\/div>\n<style> \t\t\t \t\t\t.insticator-unit.type-commenting{margin: 0 10px 25px 10px}@media screen and (max-width:1060px){#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{margin: 0 auto 25px auto !important;}}#div-insticator-ad-cmt-1, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-2, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-3, #div-insticator-ad-cmt-4{height: 280px !important; width: 336px !important} \t\t<\/style>\n<div class=\"insticator-unit type-commenting\">\n<div class=\"insticator-ads\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-1\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-2\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<div class=\"insticator-ads additional\"> \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t \t\t\t\t<script data-cfasync=\"false\" type=\"text\/javascript\"> \t\t\t\t\tif ( ! getCookie( \"ff_subbed\" ) ) { \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\"); \t\t\t\t\t\tInsticator.ad.loadAd(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\"); \t\t\t\t\t} else { \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-3\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t\tdocument.getElementById(\"div-insticator-ad-cmt-4\").remove() \t\t\t\t\t} \t\t\t\t<\/script> \t\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/section>\n<p><\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Pastor John Piper expressed strong disapproval of pastors contemplating the use of AI chatbots for sermon writing. In a February 24 episode of his podcast &#8220;Ask Pastor John,&#8221; he addressed an anonymous pastor&#8217;s inquiry about using AI tools like ChatGPT to assist in sermon preparation, provided the content is reviewed for alignment with Scripture. Piper emphasized that human intellect and emotions are essential for true worship, which AI cannot replicate. He argued that while technology can produce well-written sermons quickly, it undermines the pastoral role and integrity of ministry. Piper highlighted that teaching is a biblical qualification for pastors and stressed the importance of personal engagement with Scripture in serving their congregations<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2408722,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-2025-02-28T220612.826.jpg","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[51398,5250,14117,11458,10915],"class_list":["post-2408721","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","tag-ai-sermons","tag-faith","tag-pastor","tag-technology","tag-wicked"],"fifu_image_url":"https:\/\/www.westernjournal.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/02\/Michael-Featured-Image-2025-02-28T220612.826.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408721","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=2408721"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408721\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2408725,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2408721\/revisions\/2408725"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2408722"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=2408721"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=2408721"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=2408721"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}