Artificial Intelligence Surprise

If deception has a strategy - and we’ve already seen that it does - then there is a question we need to ask: what would that strategy look like today? Not in extreme or obvious ways, but in the real world, where influence is subtle and often goes unnoticed. Because if the enemy is still operating with the same pattern we saw in Eden, then he would not come in ways that are easy to detect. He would come quietly, effectively, and in ways that feel normal. So, the question becomes, if I were the devil, what would I actually do? Instead of musing about the answer, I did something else and posed the question to artificial intelligence (AI) and the answer it provided was pretty creepy. And accurate. It was if I was getting Satan’s modus operandi in a Screwtape’s kind of way. I wouldn’t push the envelope and converse with AI as the devil, but the tactics given fit exactly with the psyops of the CIA or KGB.

A Subtle Approach

AI delivered in a first person manner:

I wouldn’t begin with obvious lies. I would twist truth just enough that people don’t notice. A full lie is easy to reject, but a half-truth is believable. That’s exactly what happened in the Garden. The serpent didn’t deny God’s words—he adjusted them. Today, that would look like ideas such as “your truth matters more than the truth,” or “truth is personal,” or “what’s right for you might not be right for someone else.” In that environment, truth is no longer fixed—it becomes preference. And once truth becomes negotiable, everything else begins to shift with it.

I wouldn’t need people to hate God. I would just keep them busy. Too busy to pray, too distracted to read the Word, and too exhausted to think clearly. I would fill their schedules, overload their minds, and keep them constantly entertained but rarely still. Because if people never slow down, they never discern. If they never pause long enough to evaluate what is entering their mind, they will continue to absorb influence without realizing it.

A Family Affair

God created the family model and a healthy family model in the physical is the best way for children to see Him expressed in the flesh. So, if the devil can mess that up, he will:

I wouldn’t destroy families through obvious chaos, because that would be too visible. I would do it quietly—through distraction, resentment, and apathy. I would replace conversation with screens, connection with convenience, and presence with noise. Unresolved issues would remain buried, and over time distance would grow. Because if the family weakens, everything built on it begins to weaken as well.

Sin Ain’t So Bad

Satan certainly doesn’t want anyone to see sin the way God sees it so he muddies the waters:

I wouldn’t make sin look evil. I would make it look normal. And I wouldn’t attack holiness directly; I would make it look extreme—outdated, judgmental, unnecessary. Through entertainment, social pressure, and cultural messaging, compromise would begin to feel reasonable, while righteousness would feel excessive. And once perception changes, behavior follows.

Divide The Church

The Bible tells us that God blesses unity so the accuser of the brethren is busy keeping God’s Body at war with each other:

I wouldn’t need to destroy the Church from the outside. I would divide it from the inside. Over doctrine, politics, preferences, and personalities—anything that keeps people arguing instead of moving forward. Because if believers are focused on conflict with each other, they are no longer focused on truth, unity, or impact.

When he can’t have them at each other’s throats he will make sure they aren’t functioning the way Jesus wants them to function:

I wouldn’t remove church entirely. I would redefine it. I would make it a place where conviction is replaced with comfort, where truth is softened to avoid offense, and where worship becomes more about experience than transformation. People would leave feeling encouraged, but unchanged. And without transformation, there is no real growth.

Who Needs Jesus Anyway?

Making Jesus the enemy is way too direct and would make his plans too easy to detect so he takes a different approach:

I wouldn’t attack Jesus directly. I would simply remove the need for Him. I would convince people they are basically good, that they don’t need to repent, and that there is nothing to be saved from. Because if there is no sense of guilt, there is no need for grace. And if there is no need for grace, the cross loses its meaning.

Spirituality without a Savior works too:

I wouldn’t eliminate spirituality. I would redirect it. People would still seek something beyond themselves, but not in a way that leads to truth. Ideas like energy, manifestation, and self-discovery would keep people searching, but never arriving. As long as Christ is removed, the search continues without resolution.

A Dark, Distracted Road

Satan is too clever to come as a demonic entity that we see portrayed in Hollywood:

I wouldn’t force people into darkness. I would distract them. Through entertainment, outrage, comfort, and constant noise, I would keep them engaged but unaware. Because if people are always occupied, they won’t notice what is happening beneath the surface. Distraction becomes one of the most effective tools, because it doesn’t feel dangerous - it feels normal.

He would then distract people from seeing themselves the way God sees them:

I would also attack identity, because identity determines direction. If I can get someone to forget who they are in Christ, then I can redefine who they believe themselves to be. When identity becomes unstable, everything else becomes unstable. Decisions, beliefs, and actions all begin to shift.

Getting Them Early

Jesus warned us that anyone who messes with a child would be thrown into the sea with a heavy stone tied to them which sounds an awful lot like a mob move, but the point is made. The devil of course sees thing differently and targets them when they’re still impressionable:

I wouldn’t wait to begin this process. I would target the next generation early, shaping how they think before truth has a chance to take root. Through screens, culture, and constant messaging, influence would be established before guidance is fully formed. Because if I shape how they think early, I shape how they live later.

False Moves Of God

Rather than slowing down or hindering a move of God, Satan just counterfeits it:

I wouldn’t stop revival. I would counterfeit it. Emotional experiences without real transformation. Moments that feel powerful but don’t lead to change. People would feel something, but never truly surrender. Because without surrender, there is no lasting movement toward truth.

Discernment is needed to root out this ploy, but people are not easily given to such a powerful tool. Instead, some throw the baby out with the bathwater while others embrace the excitement as something it isn’t.

Shrouded In Emotion

The devil wants to make his strategies seem normal:

None of this would feel obvious. That’s what makes it effective. Deception does not announce itself. It blends in, it feels normal, and it often feels right. And when something feels right, it is rarely questioned. But once you begin to recognize the pattern, you start to see it everywhere—in culture, in conversations, and even in your own thoughts.

So now the question becomes personal. Where is this showing up in your life? Where has truth been softened? Where has distraction replaced focus? Where have you agreed with something without truly examining it? Because every thought is an invitation - an invitation to agree or to reject. And the direction of your life will follow the direction of your agreement. The war for your mind is not something that is coming - it is already here. It is being fought quietly, shaping what people believe, how they think, and how they live. But now that you can see it, you have a choice. You can continue to agree with what feels right, or you can stand on what is true. Because truth has not changed, even if everything around it has. And when truth is anchored, deception begins to lose its power. That is where clarity returns. That is where freedom from his deception begins. If I were the devil, I’d want this lesson to die in obscurity. But we’re not going to let that happen are we?