God Versus Technology

Q: What is God`s view on advancing technology? Is that biblical? I know that we live in a day and age where we are advancing in technology, but is that getting us further away from God, when we LEAN on technology? How about some advancements in technology? are some evil? Is developing in the advancement of technology a bad thing at all? Or...does God want us to be more rural, and go back to `olden day` methods?????

A: After the Fall of Man, one description God gave about the consequences of sin entering the world is "Cursed is the ground because of you; through painful toil you will eat of it all the days of your life (Genesis 3:17)." Mankind was not originally created to work their lives away trying to make a living. Therefore, we have always looked for ways to ease our burden by maximizing pleasure and minimizing pain. In some ways the pursuit of trying to ease our pain has led to increasing the pain of others through things like slavery and stealing. Their have been those throughout history who have lived off the labor of others so as to make their own lives easier. But, at the same time, the ingenuity of man has led to some great technological advances. Even the greatest of our modern minds are baffled by some of the ancient technology used to build things like the pyramids in Egypt. However, the greatest evil has not been advancements in technology, but the hearts of men.

Before God destroyed mankind with the Flood, in Noah's day, He said His reason for doing so was because "every inclination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil all the time (Genesis 6:5)." Jesus said that "out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false testimony, slander (Matthew 15:19)." So, it isn't technology that is getting us further away from God, but the sinful hearts of men who choose to live their lives apart from faith in God and His Son, Jesus Christ. I was recently told of a story about a family member who dated a man back in the time of silent movies. This gentleman described silent movies as an "abomination of the devil." Now, to most of us we would probably not call motion pictures, in and of themselves, an abomination of the devil. However, some of what has passed for entertainment over the past hundred years or so, since motion pictures were created, could definitely be described as an abomination. Yet, what we see as the finished product on the screen originated in the hearts and minds of those that created it. It is not technology that is evil, but how we use that technology. For example, sticking with motion pictures, we have seen paganism glorified in films like Harry Potter, but we have also seen God glorified in films like The Passion of the Christ. It just depends on the motivation of the filmmaker and what they do with the technology at their disposal. When the people were building the Tower of Babel, in Genesis 11, it talks of how they conspired to build a city and have a tower that "reaches to the heavens." It says "they used brick instead of stone, and tar for mortar." This is a definite description of their advancing technology. But, God dispersed them because the people were acting in unison out of the deceit in their hearts. He was not concerned about the technology they were using.

If you think about it, most of the greatest technological advances in human history have come about in recent times. The invention of the lightbulb, radio, television, automobile, airplane, space travel and computers have all been developed in roughly the last 100 years. Add to that the fact that the last words of the Bible were written in the first century A.D., and you realize that everything written was done so long before our modern standards of technology were developed. Yet, the Bible is as relevant today as it was 2,000 years ago. Why? Because it addresses the one thing that hasn't changed in all that time. And that is the sinful hearts of mankind. The Bible says that "what may be known about God is plain to them, because God has made it plain to them. For since the creation of the world God's invisible qualities—his eternal power and divine nature—have been clearly seen, being understood from what has been made, so that men are without excuse (Romans 1: 19-20)." The advancement in technologies has not drawn away man from God. Actually, much of the technology that has been invented has been shown to only solidify the fact of God. While one may be able to argue that some advancements are evil, as Joseph said in Genesis 50:20, "you meant evil against me, but God meant it for good in order to bring about this present result, to preserve many people alive."

I have heard were most of the internet is being used for pornography. That is enough to say it is evil and should not be used. Many people do that. However, it is that same internet that allows for you and I to have this interchange about God and technology. Thousands of other Christians use it to fellowship, ask questions of each other, and to advance the saving Gospel of Jesus Christ. God, I don't believe, is interested in us going back to the "olden days" as you suggest. As I mentioned earlier, the Bible was written in the "olden days" when the trappings of modern day technology was still centuries away. Besides, their are many people throughout the world today that live a "simpler" life free from most technology and many of them do not have a relationship with God through faith in Jesus Christ. As the Bible clearly states, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God (Romans 3:23). That was true back in Adam and Eve's time, true back in Paul's day, it was true back in the 1200's the 1500's the 1700's, it was true in the 30's, 40's, 50's, 60's, 70's and it's true today in 2008. It will still be true in 2501 despite the advancements in technology. If man colonizes the moon and lives on Mars, if medical science prolongs human life for hundreds of years it will still be true that all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God and mankind will still be in need of the Savior. Man can advance technologically all he wants to and he'll still be a sinner coming short of the glory of God.