This morning the word that was primary in my head was simply "listen."
Each morning my phone is filled with thoughts, insights and opportunities. Of late, more than I can process and still fulfill previous commitments, even family responsibilities.
Yet, there is an awareness in this aging Boomer, fed by thoughts fostered decades ago in my spiritual and academic journey, the word Singularity now comes to mind (read further).
Yes, I prefer both spirtuality and academics, given my sense that we would not have such superior mental abilities, if God had not intended us to think.
As well, my sense that thinking alone, or narrow, hyper-religious pursuits alone would soon destroy our species. Some of that seems to me behind the intense tension sewn into my fellow evangelical, Pentecostal believers.
I seem torn between a "last days" mentality and a "there's got to be a better way" given this Being whose will it is that none should perish! Crusades, wars and institutionalized religion have certainly not helped!
But then there is a mental and spiritual alignment that fosters ideation, which always seems to flow freely and timely as we pray, sufficient that the human race continues.
Covid was proof of that to me! Such ideation leads discovery and then invention which I believe flows from the Father, though not necessarily through only those committed to Christ. Thank God for the benefit of science and medicine, which seems now to carry us moreso than the miraculous once boasted of by the Body of Christ.
What's up with that?
My answer, the limitations of our theology. The Bible certainly attests to that if one applies thought to the why behind such conflict in doctrine and dogma through the ages.
From Moses to Paul, even Jesus' words as heard by John the Revelator, though inspired by God seem limited in the truth as captured.
Moses, though his very words in Genesis offered explanation of our plight and a Messiah that would come to deliver (even by way of a tree, long before crucifixion was a tool of punishment), he likely had no idea of the how that would happen.
By his death, he had firmly positioned a priesthood to enforce laws, even with the sword, though later Paul would describe all that as simply a schoolmaster meant to frustrate us to grace. In the interim, the Messiah would be rejected by priesthood, crucified because of the threat to the Laws of Moses.
I can only imagine what was going on in Moses head as he stood on the Mt. of Transfiguration with the Christ, and as well, Elijah, the both of them knowing so much more that Peter, James and John. Those three still expecting an overthrow of Rome to be on the cusp!
In fact, when it seemed to be falling apart, Peter would curse as a means of denial that he had any part in such a possibility.
Back again to the Mount, not sure what all was said that day, but it was enough for these guys to want to set up camp and forget all the others, just so they could spend more time in with these three. True spirituality tends to do that!
Though how such things come about seem always just beyond our grasp.
Perhaps Jesus was trying to tell us something that day by way of a foretaste of what men and women would soon witness at his "ascension"!
My use of quotes are meant to denote the possibility of something more that happened in that moment, than him simply riding a cloud back into the heavens?
Was God (yes, we Christians believe that Jesus was God become flesh) simply through with a fleshly body, having adequately demonstrated the stark difference in a law based religion and the true nature of God, as witnessed in the Christ. Did God actually ascend or was his physical body fully de-atomized in cloud like fashion?
The next wow moment for these Sons of Thunder was in the Upper Room where that same Spirit would occupy their own bodies. The true baptism for which John the Baptist lost his head while defending!
My thumb can hardly move as fast as these thoughts flow, but I was simply told to listen...and now record. Pardon my listing theology.
Yet, if our theology (which for some of my readers, I have just taxed) limits our understanding of the Word of God, as is plainly captured and significantly demonstrated in the text of scripture, one of necessity called the "Old", what might that same "Word" be saying in this moment.
My guess is, "How's that working for you?" given the political divisiveness among those professing to know the truth!
Some of this content began early this a.m. while sharing thoughts with a young man whom I determine to be most devoted as a Christ follower, and as well, quite skilled in his field as a digital coder (obviously far above my pay grade to even language what he does).
His thoughts were an attempt to communicate with this Boomer, the next breakthrough in cognitive AI, AGI.
Artificial General Intelligence moves beyond a mere statistical data base that enhances our thought processes.
"This tech is based off of foundational human intelligence with the goal of developing 4-year-old capabilities of real time incremental autonomous learning." My young friend's thoughts being that "We don't need a super intelligent or comprehensive model of the world to achieve AGI or singularity*, we actually need childlike learning capabilities and expansion capacity within that technology.
He goes on to posit that AGI should be a tool user and tool developer, with the capacity to grow and understanding over time. All we need is that initial spark!"
I find this intriguing especially when I consider the words of Isaiah:
“The wolf also shall dwell with the lamb,
The leopard shall lie down with the young goat,
The calf and the young lion and the fatling together;
And a little child shall lead them." (11:6).
Thy Kingdom come, thy will be done, on earth as it is in heaven!"
I'm obviously open to where this might be taking us as image bearers! Why shouldn't we lead the pack!
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