The Transhumanist Push ~ The Emerging Subtle Deception
Pastor Leslie Chua
“For God knows that when you eat from it your eyes will be opened, and you will be like God, knowing good and evil.”
In November 2018, the world crossed a threshold it can never uncross. A Chinese scientist announced the successful use of CRISPR to edit the DNA of two human embryos. Though met with temporary outrage and a prison sentence for the scientist, the door was blown wide open. Fast-forward to today, and the line between healing humanity and upgrading it is rapidly blurring.
We are witnessing the rise of transhumanism – a movement heavily backed by Silicon Valley billionaires and visionary engineers. Its stated goal is not merely to extend human life but to conquer death entirely through technology. Prominent figures at major tech corporations openly discuss achieving "digital immortality" within our generation. Billion-dollar labs are pouring unprecedented resources into defeating ageing and disease. Yet beneath this noble-sounding pursuit lies a profound theological shift: the belief that humans can engineer their own divinity.
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From a Christian perspective, this technological revolution may reflect something far older than Silicon Valley. Behind the modern dream of transcending human limitations lies an ancient temptation, first heard in Eden: “You will be like God.”
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As you can see, humanity is entering an age in which technology is no longer merely changing the world around us. Increasingly, it is enabling us to change ourselves. Gene editing, artificial intelligence, brain-computer interfaces and longevity research promise remarkable benefits. Yet they also raise a profound question: When does healing humanity cross the line into an attempt to redesign it?
From a Christian perspective, this technological revolution may reflect something far older than Silicon Valley. Behind the modern dream of transcending human limitations lies an ancient temptation, first heard in Eden: “You will be like God.”
Technology is Redefining Humanity
Technology is rapidly changing what it means to be human.
The technological advances of the past few decades are extraordinary. Scientists have progressed from discovering the structure of DNA to mapping the human genome, to editing genes with CRISPR, and now to implanting neural interfaces into the human brain.
Here is the development in broad strokes over the past 7 decades.
1953 — Scientists describe the double helix, offering humanity its first glimpse of life's blueprint.
2003 — The Human Genome Project is completed. After 13 years and $3 billion, we can finally read the full genetic code.
2012 — CRISPR-Cas9 is developed — a molecular tool that can cut DNA at a precise location and rewrite it. The discovery earns a Nobel Prize in 2020. We can now edit the genetic code, not just read it.
2018 — A line is crossed: the first edits to human embryos are made, changes that will be passed down to every future generation.
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Humanity is moving from understanding the human biological system to altering it. How humanity will transform is now a hot topic of discussion.
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2023 — Gene editing becomes a therapy. Doctors treat sickle cell disease by editing a patient's own cells. They begin developing personalised treatments for individual infants. Dozens of trials are underway, targeting cancer, heart disease, and blindness.
Today — Implanted neural interfaces are moving from experimental devices towards real-world production. These devices are beginning to enable paralysed patients to control computers with their thoughts.
Humanity is moving from understanding the human biological system to altering it. How humanity will transform is now a hot topic of discussion.
What are the implications from both the ethical and the biblical standpoints?
The Key Distinction: Healing Humanity Versus Upgrading Humanity
Technology itself is not evil. Jesus healed the sick, restored sight, and enabled the lame to walk. Therefore, technologies that restore impaired human functions fit naturally within a Christian understanding of healing and compassion.
But a significant ethical boundary is crossed when technology moves from restoration to enhancement.
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The essential question is: Is technology restoring what God created, or attempting to redesign it?
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Correcting eyesight is different from engineering superior eyesight. Treating genetic diseases differs from selecting a child's intelligence, appearance, or athletic ability. Restoring movement with a brain implant is different from implanting technology into a healthy brain to create superhuman capabilities.
The essential question is: Is technology restoring what God created, or attempting to redesign it?
Cultural Conditioning
This technological push is not happening in a vacuum. Entertainment is aggressively pre-selling it to the public. For over a decade, Hollywood has saturated our culture with superhero narratives and science-fiction epics that share the same underlying mythos. From serums that create super-soldiers to individuals uploading their consciousness to become omnipresent, the message remains consistent: humanity is a limitation to be overcome.
This constant barrage serves as a mental rehearsal, conditioning society to welcome the day when we are offered the chance to become "gods".
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These stories may reflect human imagination, yet they also reveal a cultural longing: humanity seeks to transcend its natural limitations.
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Popular culture is preparing society for “more-than-human” beings. Modern entertainment repeatedly celebrates humans becoming more than human, with superhuman abilities.
Increasingly, becoming superhuman is portrayed not as frightening but as desirable.
These stories may reflect human imagination, yet they also reveal a cultural longing: humanity seeks to transcend its natural limitations.
Transhumanism: The Modern Expression of An Ancient Temptation
Transhumanism is the modern expression of an ancient temptation dating back to the Garden of Eden.
Transhumanism seeks to overcome human biological limitations using science and technology.
Its ambitions include radical longevity, enhanced intelligence, genetic optimisation and the integration of humans and machines. Some futurists even speak openly of eventually overcoming biological death.
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Transhumanism seeks to overcome human biological limitations using science and technology.
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Modern spirituality sometimes reaches a similar destination via another route: discovering the supposed divinity within oneself.
Whether through technology or spirituality, the message is strikingly similar: humanity must evolve beyond its present state to become godlike.
The Bible presents this ambition as ancient, not new. Genesis 3 provides the theological framework. In Genesis 3:5, the serpent offered Eve the promise that humanity could become “like God”.
The temptation was not merely to eat the forbidden fruit. It was to attain autonomy, wisdom and exaltation independently of God.
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The Bible presents this ambition as ancient, not new. Genesis 3 provides the theological framework. In Genesis 3:5, the serpent offered Eve the promise that humanity could become “like God”.
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Technology changes, but the temptation remains. Human beings continually seek knowledge, power and immortality without dependence on or submission to their Creator.
The Fear of Death And Transhumanism
The deep underlying motivation for transhumanism is fear of death. Behind many ambitions for human enhancement lies humanity’s oldest enemy: death.
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Christianity makes a radically different claim and offers a distinct solution. Humanity’s ultimate problem could not be solved in a laboratory but at an empty tomb. Jesus Christ entered death and overcame it through His resurrection.
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Billions are being invested in longevity science, regenerative medicine, artificial organs, genetic therapies and methods to delay ageing.
Christianity makes a radically different claim and offers a distinct solution. Humanity’s ultimate problem could not be solved in a laboratory but at an empty tomb. Jesus Christ entered death and overcame it through His resurrection.
Paul calls Jesus “the firstfruits” of those who will be raised. The Christian hope therefore rests not on indefinite biological survival but on resurrection.
Those who believe in Jesus receive eternal life through His death and resurrection. Humanity can attain everlasting life only by accepting God’s gift of His Son, not by their own ingenuity or scientific endeavour.
The Modern Tower of Babel
The Tower of Babel was the first transhumanist project.
Genesis 11 describes humanity gathering to build a city and a tower reaching towards heaven to “make a name” for itself.
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Ancient Babel was built of bricks. In contrast, modern Babel is increasingly built of code, silicon and engineered cells. The technology differs, but the human impulse remains the same: we will overcome our limitations ourselves, without God.
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Babel represents organised human civilisation attempting greatness independently of God.
Ancient Babel was built of bricks. In contrast, modern Babel is increasingly built of code, silicon and engineered cells. The technology differs, but the human impulse remains the same: we will overcome our limitations ourselves, without God.
Because the secular world has rejected the reality of Jesus Christ – the only man ever to defeat death – it is left with a profound existential problem. It must become its own saviour. Thus, we are living through the most expensive scientific project in human history, all aimed at solving the problem that Jesus had already solved 2,000 years ago at the empty tomb.
The Moral Dilemma
Herein lies the moral dilemma. The same technology can heal or enhance. This is precisely what makes the ethical problem difficult to resolve.
It is crucial to emphasise that technology itself is not evil. It is a tool. Glasses, pacemakers, and laser eye surgery are wonderful advances that restore people to their natural, healthy state.
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The moral dividing line that Christians must discern is the distinction between healing and upgrading.
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Christians have historically used technology, from the printing press to the internet, to spread the Gospel.
The moral dividing line that Christians must discern is the distinction between healing and upgrading.
Using CRISPR to cure sickle cell anaemia is a profound medical achievement. But using it to engineer a child's IQ or physical attributes is an attempt to play God.
A brain implant that restores mobility is healing. But using it to enhance a healthy brain to achieve superhuman cognitive abilities is ethically and biblically questionable.
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The moral question lies not merely in what technology can do but in what humanity believes it should do.
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As these technologies become mainstream, believers will need great wisdom to navigate the pressure to "evolve".
The moral question lies not merely in what technology can do but in what humanity believes it should do.
The Temptation to be “Like God”
The temptation to upgrade ourselves technologically and biotechnologically cannot be overstated. Imagine the possibilities: stronger bodies, enhanced intelligence, resistance to disease, and radically extended life. The appeal would be enormous.
These promises, expressed in the language of science, medicine, and progress, sound remarkably similar to the serpent’s temptation in Eden: You need not accept your created limitations. You can become something more.
How would you respond?
The Danger of Technological and Genetic Modification
The danger of succumbing to this temptation is grave. Radical genetic or technological modifications could alter humanity so profoundly that people cease to be fully human. When that happens, the consequence is dire: these people cannot be saved, and believers will lose their salvation.
Genesis 6 provides the theological basis. God destroyed the human race in a global flood, except for Noah and his family. A conventional reading of the passage blames humanity’s sin and wickedness. But that ignores the first 4 verses – the “sons of God” marrying the “daughters of man”, resulting in the angel-human hybrid Nephilim.
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The danger of succumbing to this temptation is grave. Radical genetic or technological modifications could alter humanity so profoundly that people cease to be fully human. When that happens, the consequence is dire: these people cannot be
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This is a case of genetic corruption, an abomination to God. The ensuing divine judgement was brutal yet necessary to preserve the purity of humanity’s gene pool.
I will expand on this idea by linking it to the 666 mark of the beast in my next article.
5 Practical Lessons
I will conclude this reflection with 5 practical lessons for Christians.
First, Christians should not be anti-technology.
Fear is not the appropriate Christian response.
Technology has repeatedly served good purposes. The printing press spread Scripture. Radio and television carried preaching worldwide. The internet enables teaching and evangelism across continents.
Technology is a tool. The question is who controls it, how it is used, and what vision of humanity guides it.
Second, Christians need discernment about enhancement.
Christians will increasingly need to distinguish between technologies that restore human flourishing and those that seek to redefine humanity itself.
Not every innovation should be rejected. Nor should every innovation be embraced simply because it is labelled progress. Wisdom must ask whether something honours human beings as creatures made in God's image.
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Christians will increasingly need to distinguish between technologies that restore human flourishing and those that seek to redefine humanity itself.
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Third, death cannot ultimately be defeated technologically.
No matter how advanced technology becomes, Scripture declares that human beings will ultimately face death and judgment: “It is appointed for man to die once, and after that comes judgment” (Hebrews 9:27 – ESV).
Technology may lengthen life, but it cannot provide salvation.
Christian hope therefore rests in Christ Jesus, who entered death and emerged victorious from the grave.
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Technology may lengthen life, but it cannot provide salvation.
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Fourth, Christianity offers resurrection, not an “upgrade.”
Transhumanism says: upgrade yourself, but the gospel says: Christ will redeem you.
Transhumanism seeks immortality through technological augmentation and genetic manipulation. Christianity promises resurrection through Jesus Christ.
The Christian future is not humanity becoming gods but redeemed human beings dwelling eternally with God.
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Technology may lengthen life, but it cannot provide salvation.
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Fifth, the strongest protection against deception is love for Christ and for biblical truth.
Those whose hope is deeply rooted in Christ will be less susceptible to counterfeit promises of immortality, power, and godlike transformation.
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The serpent's offer remains unchanged: become like God without God. But the gospel offers something far better: not technological immortality, not engineered godhood, but forgiveness, resurrection, and eternal life through Jesus Christ.
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The crucial question is: Who do I trust for life, identity, and eternity?
The serpent's offer remains unchanged: become like God without God. But the gospel offers something far better: not technological immortality, not engineered godhood, but forgiveness, resurrection, and eternal life through Jesus Christ.
Humanity does not need to become more than human. Humanity needs to be redeemed.