Artificial Intelligence tools like ChatGPT are powerful, but they come with real limitations—especially when it comes to studying the Bible. An AI model doesn’t know right from wrong, truth from falsehood. It only knows what has been written, uploaded, and debated across the internet over the past few decades.
Because of this, the programmers behind AI tried to “cage the animal” when it comes to morality and ethics. That’s why ChatGPT won’t tell you how to commit suicide or build a nuclear bomb—it has been explicitly instructed not to. But here’s the key: no one tells AI which Christian tradition — Protestant, Catholic, Orthodox, or any of the 40,000 sub-denominations/groups — represents the truest interpretation of Scripture.
In practice, that means ChatGPT (or any other language model) leans heavily on what’s most common in the English-speaking world: Protestant and Catholic theology. And since Protestantism is historically a breakaway child of Catholicism, most of the theological content overlaps. As a result, most “Christian answers” you’ll get from AI are filtered through Augustinian-Calvinist traditions that dominate the Western church. That doesn’t necessarily mean they’re true—it just reflects what has been most visible in English-speaking Christianity, shaped by a Greco-Roman worldview rather than the original Jewish one.
So, should you avoid using AI for Bible study altogether? Not necessarily. But you should use it wisely.
AI is best as a research assistant, not a theological authority. Instead of asking big theological questions like “Why did Jesus die?” or “Does the Bible allow tattoos?”, use it to dig up technical, historical, or cultural details. For example: “What is the significance of the ring in the parable of the prodigal son within a first-century Jewish context?” That kind of question will likely bring up solid historical insights, cultural notes, and maybe even one of my own articles (ha!).
In short: don’t expect ChatGPT to tell you what true Christianity is. But do use it as a tool to uncover historical context, language insights, and cultural background that can enrich your own study. Think of it as a helpful research assistant—not your rabbi, pastor, or theologian.
P.S. Even as your research sidekick, you cannot fully trust it. Remember OpenAI’s recommendation/warning, which appeared on the main ChatGPT page: ChatGPT can make mistakes. Check important info.
By the way, have you heard about The Deification of Artificial Intelligence and the Rise of a New Technomancy Religion? If not, you should take a couple of hours to read this short book: God of AI. especially if you are a Christian!
