The subjects of AI, the economy, and war are dominating the airways these days, and there is certainly no shortage of conspiracy theories, predictions, and speculation about what all of it means. People are watching what is happening in the world and trying to make sense of where all of this is taking us. And it isn’t difficult to understand why. Human knowledge and technological capability are advancing faster than many of us know how to process. We can do things today that we could not have imagined a generation ago. But there is something we need to remember: greater knowledge does not automatically produce greater wisdom. Being able to do something does not necessarily mean we know whether we should do it, and being more technologically capable does not mean we are more capable of protecting ourselves from the consequences of what we create.
And I think that is causing people—even people who have never considered themselves particularly religious—to start asking some bigger questions. What is happening to the world? Where is all of this leading? Is there something beyond what we can see? What does the Bible say about the times in which we are living? And ultimately, what does all of this mean for us? Those are legitimate questions. But there is another question that may be even more important.
What does all of this mean for our relationship with Jesus Christ?
It is one thing to become interested in what the Bible says about the world. It is another thing to become interested in Jesus. And even that is not the same thing as following Him.
Jesus did not come simply to give us information about the future, explain every troubling thing happening in the world, or satisfy our curiosity about what is coming next. He came calling people to follow Him. There is a difference between wanting to know what God is doing and wanting to know God Himself. There is a difference between looking to Jesus for answers and allowing Jesus to become Lord of our lives.
And perhaps that is one of the questions this moment in history is putting before us. Are we becoming more interested in God because the world is becoming more uncertain—or are we actually becoming followers of Jesus?
When we look at what Jesus said about difficult and uncertain times, He never told His followers that they would be spared from seeing troubling things happen in the world. In fact, He told them just the opposite. He spoke about wars, persecution, deception, and trouble that would come. But what I find interesting is that Jesus did not tell them these things so that they would become afraid. Matthew 24:6 (NLT): “And you will hear of wars and threats of wars, but don’t panic.” In other words, Jesus wanted them to know what they could expect, but He did not want what they saw and heard to cause them to lose their peace.
That is something I believe we need to pay attention to today. We can know what is happening in the world without allowing ourselves to become consumed by it. Jesus said in John 16:33 (NLT): “Here on earth you will have many trials and sorrows. But take heart, because I have overcome the world.” He did not say that everything around us would always make sense or that we would always know what was coming next. What He gave us was something far greater than that. He gave us Himself. And when His disciples were facing a future they did not understand, He told them in John 14:1 (NLT): “Don’t let your hearts be troubled. Trust in God, and trust also in me.”
I think this is where we have to be careful. There is nothing wrong with wanting to understand the times we are living in or with paying attention to what is happening around us. But if we spend so much time listening to predictions, theories, news reports, and other people’s interpretations that we become fearful about the future, something has gotten out of place. Jesus never told us that we had to understand everything that was going to happen in order to trust Him. He told us not to let our hearts be troubled. He told us to trust God and to trust Him. The world may be uncertain to us, but nothing that is happening in it is uncertain to God.
We don’t have to understand everything happening in the world to know where we stand with Jesus Christ. We don’t have to figure out what every war means, where the economy is headed, what artificial intelligence will become, or which prediction about the future will prove right. Jesus has already told us what matters most. He told us to watch, not be deceived, remain faithful, and follow Him. So perhaps the question isn’t simply, “What does all of this mean?” but “What does all of this mean for my relationship with Jesus Christ?” Our curiosity about what is happening around us should lead us beyond curiosity and toward Christ. The world may become more complicated, human knowledge may continue to increase, and technology may take us places we have never imagined. But none of that changes who Jesus is. We don’t have to know what tomorrow holds to know the One who holds us today. ■
Holy Bible, New Living Translation copyright © 1996, 2004, 2007 by Tyndale House Foundation. Used by permission of Tyndale House Publishers Inc., Carol Stream, Illinois 60188. All rights reserved.
“Being Interested in God Isn’t the Same as Following Jesus”, written by Alex for Springfield Fellowship © 2026. All rights reserved. All praise and honor to God through Jesus Christ, our Lord and Savior.