Pastors Debate AI’s Role in Sermons as Technology Advances

Milton Quintanilla

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By Milton Quintanilla, Crosswalk.com

Pastors and theologians at a recent South Korean preaching conference made the case that artificial intelligence (AI) can never replace the human aspect of preaching despite crafting well-polished sermons.

“If AI is used as a supplementary tool — such as for image generation or infographic production — it can become a helpful ally,” The Rev. Kim Da-wi, senior pastor of Good Shepherd Church, said in his message at the “Pathway Preaching Conference,” held Feb. 26 at Good Shepherd Church in Seongnam, south of Seoul which centered around the theme “In the Age of AI, How Can Preaching Survive? (Is AI a Friend or a Foe?).”

“But when it attempts to replace the spiritual encounter, embodiment, and resonance that lie at the heart of preaching, it becomes a threat.”

Stressing the importance of what he called “incarnational preaching,” Da-wi noted that AI-generated sermons lack lived experience, The Christian Post reported.

“Unless it contains real suffering, wounds, and tears, it has an inherent limitation,” he said.

Meanwhile, the Rev. Lee Jung-gyu of Sigwang Church looked at the communal aspect of the preacher, which can never be replicated or replaced by AI.

“If we define the preacher as one who leads the story at the center of the community, there is clearly a realm AI cannot replace,” Lee said in his message. “AI can generate a message, but it cannot say it has actually experienced that message.”

“AI can provide information,” he said, “but it cannot share with the community an experience it has lived.”

Other speakers at the conference who addressed AI’s use in preaching include Professor Shin Sung-wook of Asia United Theological University, who approached the issue from a homiletical perspective, and The Rev. Choi Byung-rak of Gangnam Central Baptist Church, who spoke on the power of testimony and human stories grounded in personal experience.

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Milton Quintanilla is a freelance writer and content creator. He is a contributing writer for CrosswalkHeadlines and the host of the For Your Soul Podcast, a podcast devoted to sound doctrine and biblical truth. He holds a Masters of Divinity from Alliance Theological Seminary.