Artificial Intelligence.
Maybe it’s just me, but the name itself—Artificial Intelligence—strikes me as a bit odd. There is something paradoxical about pairing what is synthetic with what is uniquely cognitive. But that’s a thought for another time.
To say that AI is dominating the news cycle today is to state the obvious. It dominates boardrooms, headlines, social feeds and casual conversations around the dinner table. To borrow from Shakespeare’s Prince Hamlet, it seems the entire world is wrestling with a modernized dilemma: To AI, or not to AI?
But as we obsess over adoption and speed, is that really the question?
The responses from experts and the public alike run the full gamut. On one side, many warn that leaning in too quickly carries immense risk to our workforce, privacy, and long-term safety. Others argue that failing to lean in carries an equally perilous risk—leaving us economically and technologically far behind. We’re told to move fast and break things, yet cautioned that breaking the wrong thing could prove catastrophic.
Debates and warnings aside, what intrigued me recently was an interview with Gary Marcus, professor emeritus at New York University, author of Taming Silicon Valley, and writer of the Substack Marcus on AI. When asked whether self-regulation by tech executives and corporate leaders would be enough to avert potential disaster, he responded plainly: “…we can’t rely on self-regulation and [that’s] why we need outside regulation…”
Pausing to reflect on human history, Marcus’s point becomes undeniable. Examples of this truth surround us in every corner of daily life. We don’t rely on the honor system at busy intersections; we put up traffic lights. We don’t rely on goodwill alone to keep government power in check; we draft a Constitution with checks and balances. Experience has shown that self-regulation rarely holds up when self-interest enters the frame.
This human vulnerability brings to mind William Golding’s classic novel, Lord of the Flies. Stranded on a deserted island without adult supervision, a group of well-educated schoolboys quickly abandon civilization, structure and rules. Soon, they descend into fear, tribalism and savagery before a naval officer arrives to rescue them. The underlying takeaway of the narrative is stark: left entirely to our own devices, self-regulation fails. Without an overarching, external authority to bind us, the descent into moral chaos is inevitable.
It’s fascinating that while we generally understand that regulation is necessary—and even welcome it for our collective safety—there remains a deep-seated human tendency to resist authority, rallying instinctively around the flag of “Don’t Tread on Me.” We want the protection of law, but we balk at the restriction of our personal freedom.
Yet beyond our social constructs and psychological paradoxes, Scripture reveals a deeper truth: objective, immutable standards are essential because human nature is fundamentally flawed. From the Garden of Eden to the thunder of Mount Sinai to the warnings of the Old Testament prophets, God made it abundantly clear that humanity’s attempts at self-governance are doomed to fall short.
And, before we claim to be an exception, or boast that our generation possesses a purer heart and wiser motives than those before us, Scripture reminds us of a humbling reality: “The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately wicked” (Jeremiah 17:9).
That is precisely why God declared through the prophets that human self-regulation would ultimately be replaced by His divine governance. He promised a coming time when something far more enduring, transformative and perfect than any computer algorithm or legislative code would be written directly upon human hearts (Ezekiel 36:26).
Indeed, whether in tech boardrooms, ancient islands or our own daily lives, Gary Marcus is right—though perhaps in a far deeper way than he realized. Left entirely to ourselves, self-regulation will never be enough.
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Pastor Mark
Mark, the eighth of nine children born to Reuben and Henrietta Meeks—dedicated church planters with nearly 30 congregations established across California’s Central Valley—is a preacher's kid who grew up immersed in faith and service. With over forty years of experience teaching, discipling, and ministering to communities, including the hospitalized and incarcerated, Mark responded to God's call to pastoral ministry. He holds degrees in civil engineering and public administration, as well as a Master’s in Theology from Fuller Seminary, equipping him to serve with both practical insight and spiritual depth.
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