When I was in Elementary School, one of the happiest times in the school year was choosing which paperback books to buy from Scholastic.

One of my favorite books was The Runaway Robot by Lester del Rey. I read it over and over as a boy.

This science fiction book shaped my ideas about how artificial intelligences (AIs) such as robots—should behave.

Many people believe AIs need to pass the Turing Test—a machine’s ability to display human-like intelligence. If a conversation with the machine, including a conversation with a robot—cannot be differentiated from a conversation with a human, the artificial intelligence is considered to have human-like intelligence.

But as artificial intelligences are becoming more and more able to take actions based on their thinking, worries are growing that artificial intelligences, including robots, need to meet a higher standard for their thoughts and and their behaviors.

After all, the Nazis were very intelligent, but acted in terrifying, inhuman ways.

Therefore, I believe that artificial intelligences, including robots, need to pass a much higher standard than sounding like a human in a conversation—a standard that I call the Jesus Test.

The robot in The Runaway Robot passed this Jesus Test—this test of being like Jesus and living in the Way of Jesus—being a best friend who welcomes sinners, weeping with those who weep, washing our feet, blessing children, and laughing.

The Runaway Robot is the best friend of a boy who grew up at a human settlement on Ganymede (a satellite of Jupiter).

When Paul turns 16 years old, his family returns to Earth. They want to leave the robot on Ganymede. But Rex and Paul have different ideas. They want to stay together—best friends forever. After a series of adventures, they reach Earth.

To save Paul by taking the blame for running away, the robot decides to pretend he went mad. Robots who go mad are always killed!

And so the robot passed the ultimate Jesus Test, he was willing to die to save humans!

As Jesus said: “Greater love has no one than this: to lay down one’s life for one’s friends.” (John 15:13).

Rex became human by showing he was willing to lay down his life for Paul. Furthermore, like Jesus, Rex bore Paul’s sin of running away.

Fortunately, Jesus did not remain dead, but rose on Easter Morning. And a discerning human realized that the Runaway Robot was human in the way that mattered most—by acting the Way of Jesus—willing to sacrifice his own life to save others.

So Rex was spared. And became the first robot to be fully human: to be a best friend and to give his life to save his friend.

THINGS TO THINK ABOUT

What are the ways that each of us passes the Jesus Test?

What are the ways that a civilization passes the Jesus Test?

What are the ways that artificial intelligences, including robots, pass the Jesus Test?

What are the ways that an artificial intelligence, including a robot, can be tested to see if it will pass the Jesus Test?

READ MORE

For related thoughts , please read my blogs “Tech Made for Humans, Not Humans Made for Tech” and “Jesus and Darmok”.