Have you ever been deceived?
Benjamin Cardin, a Maryland senator from 2007 to 2025, wasn’t expecting a farce when he logged into the video call with Dmytro Kuleba, the former Ukrainian Minister of Foreign Affairs, in the fall of 2024. Cardin had met Kuleba at a previous meeting and was happy to chat again.
The person on the screen looked and sounded like Kuleba, but it wasn’t long until Cardin realized something was off. The caller quickly fired off questions designed to push Cardin into commenting on the upcoming U.S. presidential election and nominees. Cardin ended the call, and the Department of State confirmed his reservations—the person on the other end of the line had not been Kuleba!
Cardin had been speaking to a deepfake: a highly convincing, AI-generated forgery designed to manipulate him.
How can we know what is real in a world where even our senses can betray us?
A Double-Edged Sword
Artificial intelligence is reshaping every aspect of life.
On the one hand, there are frightening stories of deception, like the finance employee who sent $25 million to a scammerusing AI technology to pose as the company’s chief financial officer. Scammers use the same tactics to pilfer billions of dollars from America’s senior citizens every year.
But AI is also being used for good purposes. It enables medical doctors to give their patients more personalized care. Educators use it to provide students with individualized tutoring. Workers in many sectors are using it to be more productive. Scientists are using it to improve disaster response.
In a world in which the same tools can be used for both deception and blessing, Jesus’ warning rings louder than ever: “Take heed that no one deceives you” (Mark 13:5). So, how should Christians relate to AI? And is it a fulfillment of Bible prophecy?
God Is Greater Than AI
First and foremost, we can take comfort in the fact that our God is still sovereign. He is bigger than AI, and its development did not surprise Him. “For I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like Me, declaring the end from the beginning, and from ancient times things that are not yet done, saying, ‘My counsel shall stand, and I will do all My pleasure’” (Isaiah 46:9, 10).
Use AI for God’s Glory
Second, we need to recognize that AI is simply a technological tool. Like television, radio, and the internet, it can be used for God’s glory or Satan’s schemes. The technology itself is not evil.
Here at Amazing Facts, we are exploring ways to use AI to help us more efficiently share God’s truth with the world. We used AI during our recent Prophecy Odyssey series to help create stunning on-screen graphics and translate Pastor Doug’s presentations into 16 languages.
We have also begun using AI technology to translate our regular evangelistic media productions into multiple languages. While we will still need God-fearing translators to review the translations, AI greatly speeds up the process and allows us to share Bible truth with millions more.
What About AI and Prophecy?
The Bible doesn’t name AI directly, but Jesus clearly foresaw a time when lies would be so powerful that even “the elect” might be fooled (Matthew 24:24). Four times in Matthew 24, He warns us to beware of deception in the last days. (See vv. 4, 5, 11, 24.)
In 2 Thessalonians 2:3–12, the apostle Paul repeats the warning.
The context of these passages makes it clear that Jesus and Paul were anticipating something much more sinister than a computer-generated deepfake. They were concerned about the Antichrist appearing with “great signs and wonders” (Matthew 24:24).
Comfortable With Falsehood
Entertainment has changed our collective psyche over the last century. Novels, television, movies, computer gaming, and AI have blurred the line between fact and fiction. Many have grown comfortable living in a world in which truth feels optional.
No wonder Jesus warned us to beware deception in the last days! He knew the devil would make falsehood feel so real that truth would seem irrelevant.
It’s the perfect setup for the final end-time delusions of the Antichrist, who will come with “all power, signs, and lying wonders, and with all unrighteous deception among those who perish” (2 Thessalonians 2:9, 10).
Saved by the Love of the Truth
Thankfully, we need not be deceived by AI or any of Satan’s end-time schemes. Paul tells us the Antichrist will deceive people “because they did not receive the love of the truth, that they might be saved” (2 Thessalonians 2:10).
Do you want to avoid deception? Then you must accept God’s gift, “love of the truth,” and relentlessly pursue integrity in every aspect of life. We cannot expect to love truth and have spiritual discernment while enjoying falsehood in part of our lives.
God has given us three truth tools to use in our battle with deception:
1. The Word of Truth: The Bible is God’s truth in written form (John 17:17). It is the standard against which all other things must be measured (Isaiah 8:20).
2. The Spirit of Truth: When we study the Word with a humble, prayerful attitude, we can be assured that the “Spirit of Truth” will “guide us into all truth” (John 16:13).
3. Discernment: God expects us to prayerfully use the intelligence and discernment He has given us to “test all things [and] hold fast what is good” (1 Thessalonians 5:21).
As followers of “the way, the truth, and the life” (John 14:6), we need not fear AI or the devil’s delusions. God’s truthfulness is our security. He will help us to “test the spirits, whether they are of God” (1 John 4:1).
Nor do we need to run from new technology. Instead, we can learn to use it wisely to help us bring truth to the world. Will you ask God to help you become a truth-seeker and truth-spreader in a world of deception?
Learn more about how to discern the truth in Pastor Doug’s sermon on Pilate’s question: “What Is Truth?”