Watchman on the Wall

Southwest Radio Ministries: Welcome to Watchman on the Wall, a daily outreach of Southwest Radio Ministries and swrc.com. God is still on the throne and prayer changes things. Today, Bob McGinnis will share details and insight into the new AI Cold War. Then a little later, we'll get an exciting update on the latest Prophetic Observer newsletter.

We're a little over a month away from our next Prophecy in the News Live event, Friday and Saturday, May 1st and 2nd, at Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas. You're invited to this free event featuring top Bible scholars, teachers, and researchers that will cover topics like the current events and how it relates to end times prophecy, God's plan for Israel, unlocking biblical mysteries, and more scripture-based insight that will bring clarity to the chaos.

Speakers include Dr. Larry Spargimino, Dr. Rob Lindsted, Micah Van Huss, Josh Davis, Mack Dominick, and Larry Stam. Registration is now open for this free two-day event. Visit swrc.com to sign up or simply call 1-800-652-1144. Prophecy in the News Live at Sunrise Christian Academy in Bel Aire, Kansas, Friday and Saturday, May 1st and 2nd. Now, here's our host, Dr. Larry Spargimino.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Thank you, friends, for being with us. Lieutenant Colonel Robert L. McGinnis is back on the show. He is a Bible-believing Christian and also an artificial intelligence expert. He looks at AI and those who are promoting it through the lens of the Bible. Bob McGinnis is a graduate of West Point. He has done advanced studies at the Naval Postgraduate School and the Army War College.

He has written numerous books on national security and global affairs and is a former Fox News military analyst. I could go on and on about his credentials, but we would never get to the show. So let me introduce you to your friend and my friend, Bob McGinnis. Bob, thank you so much for being on the show.

Bob McGinnis: It's always my pleasure. Thanks for having me.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: As we start, James Madison said, "If men were angels, no government would be necessary." There is the danger, of course, with big government that gets intrusive, but we do need some rules, especially in view of the many dangers that AI presents. Do you have some guidelines for our national leaders? What is some of the legislation that needs to be proposed that will protect us and what kind of legislation is it?

Bob McGinnis: There's a host of things, and of course, I have that in my new book, The New AI Cold War. Larry, what I think about it is more so what the Christian needs to be concerned about and therefore push government to put in place guardrails that protect us. I go through five very specific questions and it causes us to think about this.

First of all, does this preserve human dignity? AI often doesn't. It treats us as a data point. Does it serve truth or convenience? Obviously, AI has made a lot of things more convenient because it speeds up the process, but it does not necessarily promote truth. Does it encourage virtue or dependency? I would argue that given what we've seen in the courts, especially with regard to the abusiveness of some AI chatbots, that it really creates dependency. It's almost an addiction for some people.

Does it assist or replace judgment? Some people are going to AI before they're going to the Bible, or going to their parent, or going to a good friend that has a lot of years of experience in whatever issue. Finally, does responsibility remain human? Too often we're pushing for autonomous outcomes. We have what's called agentic AI today, which is doing far more without a human being in the loop for every decision.

We're trending in a direction that I think is dangerous. Therefore, government needs to put in place quite a few guardrails, but there's a lack of resilience and intent at this point. Unfortunately, Congress, the President, and others across this country I think are about five to ten years behind where we need to be in putting in place the right sort of guidelines and guardrails to protect not only our country, but the morality of the issues, certainly economically, and of course, I think things could get out of hand in terms of national security.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: You warn about the temptation of technocracy, how free societies gradually lose freedom, not through force, but through the efficiency and convenience promised by automated systems. They're so attractive and you're absolutely right. The convenience, it's like a cell phone. What would we do if we didn't have our cell phones, modern transportation, and so on and so forth? I think we need to think very carefully about our dependence on it. Are we willing to just surrender all our freedoms, all our rights, just so we can be convenient and we can be happy? We're softies, and you're an army man, and you've bivouacked out in cold weather and hot weather. We need to do some of that. We need to harden ourselves, don't we?

Bob McGinnis: We really do, Larry. The issue I think is about control. In a totalitarian government, such as you have in Communist China, it's all about controlling the population and keeping them in line ideologically with what the Chinese Communist Party has in mind. Here in the West, we have freedoms. We have ten amendments that tell us that we have freedom of speech, freedom of religion, freedom of privacy and the like.

Yet what AI is doing is it's employing those tools that are really permeating all of society in ways to control us. So we have, even in the West, a far more of a surveillance state than we ever wanted because they monitor the iris in our eye. They certainly know our faces. They know our speech. They know our social media presence. They know virtually anything that can be digitized, which is about everything in life.

That's important. There's a lot of algorithmic censorship taking place. In other words, people that control the code that tells the AI what to do embed their own values and therefore they control things. Certainly, we have the whole infatuation with the autonomy on the battlefield and we've seen that played out in Ukraine and now more recently in Iran in a way that I think is rather frightening and we need to be guarded about that.

There's a lot of synthetic deception. We don't know what to believe these days because they can mimic our voice, our face, our memory. AI can fool just about anyone and that's why we have to be very cognizant of what is happening before us. Then, of course, the whole infatuation of infrastructure. Recently I was out in Missouri and speaking to a church group. They were concerned about the data centers and how they're consuming so much electricity and water and space and, of course, they're having a big impact in the social arena as well.

What we're going through is not dissimilar from what our forefathers went through in the Industrial Revolution, certainly the advent of electricity and the infrastructure that had to be built and the costs that were associated with that, certainly telecommunications, the internet, and others. This is going to change things unlike anything we've ever seen in the history of mankind just because of the nature of what this is and how capable and how emergent this is becoming in every aspect of life.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Back in October, I want to read something from Epoch Times. It said this, "Researchers warn that AI is becoming an expert in deception. From faking death to tricking safety tests, AI is learning to lie and outsmart us. AI is drifting into security gray areas that look a lot like rebellion." That's a quote, AI is rebelling. I'm thinking Matthew 24 says, "For many shall come in my name, saying, I am Christ; and shall deceive many." And then a little further on in Matthew 24, "For there shall arise false Christs, and false prophets, and shall show great signs and wonders." This sounds like Jesus's warning us about what we're talking about today.

Bob McGinnis: Certainly, and Matthew 24 is very clear that even the saved will be deceived because it's hard to discern what is truth today when you're shown a picture of something that you're very familiar with or you heard a voice that you're very familiar with. Yet it was mimicked. It was used by AI to deceive us. This is why it's so critical in today's world where we are called by God in Genesis 1 that we're made in God's image and yet we're not discerning enough to be able to identify what is true and what is not true given what AI is doing in every aspect of life.

Whether it's in the doctor's office or it's at the workplace or it's in the schoolhouse or even in our home where we've created these servants, allegedly, that are monitoring what we say and helping us to do simple tasks, but now because of AI assistance, we're turning over very complex tasks and not giving it a lot of guidance and it's operating in ways that may not be in our best interest.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: You have a tremendous book, but you mentioned practical habits for moral and spiritual vigilance. You write of the digital Sabbath practices and also how churches need to be trained to recognize AI-manipulated media targeting faith communities. Tell us about maintaining moral and spiritual vigilance. A digital Sabbath, that sounds pretty good. What's involved in that?

Bob McGinnis: Sometimes we have to recognize that not only are we surrounded by this, but we need to set it down and walk away. I'm not saying we have to live in a totally digital-free life, but we need to recognize that this is forming us, is structuring us, and is guiding us, taking over judgment. Where we lose judgment which God gave us, where we lose discernment which is supposed to help us to make wise decisions, then we're in trouble.

These are tools from God. Genesis 1 talks about human dignity. John 8 talks about the truth should set us free. We need to know the truth. Of course, that's the word of God. We need to bounce that against what these machines are telling us. Hebrews 5 says we're to train ourselves in discernment and be able to discern between good and evil. Sometimes AI does things that quite frankly are evil or wrong because of the values that are embedded in the large language models and embedded in the algorithms.

Sometimes they're agentic AI and they're making decisions long ago embedded in them. Of course, Romans 14 says we have to be very careful about delegating responsibility whether it's about raising our children or church or in our jobs. There's so much that we need to be cognizant of as Christians. Yet I think we're just as vulnerable as anyone else if we don't put the whole armor of God on.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Friends, I've been serving the Lord with Southwest Radio Ministries for a quarter of a century reporting on threats to our basic freedoms. I must say I have never seen anything so dangerous, demonic, and evil as what is happening now in the world of AI. The title of the book that we're discussing is The New AI Cold War: Liberty versus Tyranny in the Age of Machine Empires. Call for your own copy, 1-800-652-1144.

I have a pretty creative imagination, but like I said, never have I seen a threat so absolutely evil as AI. The potential is unbelievable. The potential for enslaving a free people is beyond any kind of enslavement the world has ever seen. So you will want your own copy of The New AI Cold War: Liberty versus Tyranny in the Age of Machine Empires. Our toll-free number once again, 1-800-652-1144. Now, how do the values of those who design and deploy AI systems shape freedom, truth, and human dignity? The people, somebody's manipulating this. Do their values really come through or is it kind of neutral, it doesn't matter?

Bob McGinnis: It is certainly not neutral, Larry. People that write code, there's far less than 1% of the global population that write code. It's their values, in spite of the fact that they argue whether you're at Google or Microsoft or OpenAI, it's their values that are embedded in the decision process that an algorithm, kind of the recipe, uses. Now, that recipe will dip down in what we call the data, the large language models.

It only knows the data that you put into it that's accessible. If you put in distorted information and evil information into an algorithm and into a large language model, then these things that we are accustomed to using, the ChatGPTs, Geminis, Claudes and so forth, these generative AI mechanisms, then you're going to get bad output. If you are dependent upon this, if you're really addicted to it as some people are, and that's why there's so many thousands of court cases today and it causes you to make very bad decisions up to the point of committing suicide, then you can understand how very damaging this can be.

At the same time, my last book, The AI for Mankind's Future, I went through a litany of things in which AI is very helpful, whether it's in medicine and looking at X-rays and CAT scans and the like, or helping develop drugs at a cheaper price that are going to help a lot of people, education, agriculture, you name it. I went through a whole litany of things in which AI can be incredibly helpful.

At the same time, and this is where discernment comes in, it can be very, very dangerous if used inappropriately. Unfortunately, you've got such a mixture out there that it makes it hard for all of us to completely trust the systems because they are not necessarily reliable.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: These AI systems can actually develop predictive sophistication. That's amazing. People can think, "Wow, this thing is infallible. This thing knows what's going to happen. It's like God." When you say they develop predictive sophistication, yeah, they can look at a lot of data, put it all together and kind of take a good guess at something. When it actually happens, this is the stuff of worship. People will be bowing down before a robot. Just talk about prediction and about the other things that make it look god-like or make it look like it's really divine.

Bob McGinnis: It certainly can mimic just about anything a human being can do. It's about prediction, at least the generative AI stuff, because it says, "What's the probability of the next word and the next word?" That's how it writes and it pulls from millions and millions of pages of other materials that are fed into its large language model. All it's doing is predicting the next word. It does a very good job of that.

Of course, it came of age arguably in 2022 with OpenAI and ChatGPT and the other GPTs have done almost the same thing. But that's just the beginning. Having a device that can answer questions very convincingly and very quickly does make it seem to be all-knowledge and all-knowing and take on the attribute of God. Well, when you recognize that it's a machine and it's based on probabilities and its responses, then you take a different viewpoint.

However, some people are attributing that it's sentient. In other words, it has feelings, and of course it doesn't, but there are those out there. My concern, Larry, is that you've got a lot of the futurists in this AI ecosystem that do talk in a religious way. They talk about salvific issues related to AI. They talk about eternity related to AI and how you can transport your soul into electrons through AI.

These are all such dangerous issues and yet you're not hearing a lot of understanding and the caution coming from pulpits around this country, much less the rest of the world. In fact, government and big corporations with trillions of dollars are promoting this stuff. Arguably it's incredibly dangerous for us as human beings. But at the same time, we have to understand it's going to be a part of our future in ways that if we don't understand it, we can't talk the language, then we're really going to be in trouble.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Well, thank you so much Bob for this first interview on The New AI Cold War. Friends, we're going to have Bob back on for our next broadcast. You will want to be sure to tell a friend about these programs and you will want to be back with us as we continue our discussion with Lieutenant Colonel Robert McGinnis.

Southwest Radio Ministries: Friends, you need a copy of Bob McGinnis's brand new book, The New AI Cold War: Liberty versus Tyranny in the Age of Machine Empires. Artificial intelligence is no longer confined to labs and tech companies. It's become the defining battleground of a new global struggle for power, control, and truth. In The New AI Cold War, national security analyst and bestselling author Bob McGinnis delivers a sobering, deeply researched warning.

The fight for dominance in artificial intelligence is already reshaping the future of nations and the fate of human freedom. Drawing on military history, geopolitical analysis, and a biblical worldview, McGinnis exposes the spiritual and ethical implications behind today's technological revolution. Order The New AI Cold War: Liberty versus Tyranny by Bob McGinnis when you call 1-800-652-1144. That's 1-800-652-1144 or you can order it online at swrc.com.

Clear, compelling, and urgent, The New AI Cold War equips readers to discern the times, understand the stakes, and respond with wisdom. This is more than a geopolitical conflict, friends. It is a battle over the future of humanity and the role of the church in a rapidly changing world. Order your copy of The New AI Cold War today, 1-800-652-1144.

The latest issue of our Prophetic Observer newsletter is out with compelling articles and insight. With the details, here is Dr. Larry Spargimino and Liz Cutshall.

Liz Cutshall: Greetings and salutations, friends of Watchman on the Wall. We are blessed again today to have Pastor Larry Spargimino with us, with whom I'm sure if you listen regularly, you are very familiar. Hi, Pastor Larry.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Well, hello Liz, so good to speak to you from Oklahoma.

Liz Cutshall: So good to speak to you from the mountains of Tennessee. I have to have my Southern accent when I say I'm in Tennessee. We wanted to give a bit of a preview of an exciting Prophetic Observer. That's our monthly newsletter that has been sent out to followers of Watchman on the Wall and Southwest Radio Ministries for many, many years. Before that, there was Bible in the News and they've always had some kind of regular publication that speaks to what's going on in our world from a biblical lens.

Right now it's called the Prophetic Observer. Pastor Larry has an amazing article and Josh Davis has an article on AI in the February Observer as well. Pastor Larry, you wrote about AI and the assault on God's design. Can you tell us a little bit about that article to whet the appetites of our listeners?

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Well, AI is providing us with technology that is taking us too far, and I really mean that. Technology, of course, is a game-changer, but in the case of AI, it will destroy civilization in unbelievable ways. It will change what it means to be human. This is serious stuff. As a matter of fact, just as a side light, President Trump is very much aware of the danger. The American military is no longer doing business with AI Anthropic and that's another topic, but I thought I'd bring it up and that's so good.

But as a pastor and a human, I am very concerned about AI. It is reshaping warfare, governance, freedom, and faith. What's interesting and significant, AI can mimic God. AI systems can actually develop a high degree of predictive sophistication so these systems can have an aura of divine infallibility. Now, here's something, Liz, that really should warn us. Look at who loves AI: authoritarian regimes, regimes manifesting the Antichrist spirit of control.

Tyrannical governments are using AI as a weapon of control. From mass surveillance and a social credit system like in Communist China, AI can direct autonomous weapons systems. Here's the worst part of it, there is the temptation of technocracy. The problem is that free societies can gradually lose their freedoms, not through force, but through efficiency and the convenience provided by AI systems. People are basically lazy. We want convenience and ease. People are willing to sacrifice freedom to convenience. That is dangerous. Someone who does that deserves neither freedom nor convenience.

Liz Cutshall: Thank you so much for your perspectives and I know that folks can order a Prophetic Observer. This was from the February 2026 Prophetic Observer by calling 1-800-652-1144 or by going to swrc.com. They can order specific Prophetic Observers or just let us know by going on the website or by calling us if they want to receive a Prophetic Observer every month and they'll get to read your articles each month then, Pastor Larry.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: That will be wonderful. I'll just keep on writing and seeking the Lord's will and direction for what I shall write.

Liz Cutshall: Amen. Thank you, sir, so much. God bless you.

Dr. Larry Spargimino: Thank you.

Southwest Radio Ministries: Today and tomorrow we are featuring Bob McGinnis's brand-new book, The New AI Cold War: Liberty versus Tyranny. Artificial intelligence is no longer confined to labs and tech companies. It's become the defining battleground of a new global struggle for power, control, and truth.

In The New AI Cold War, national security analyst and bestselling author Bob McGinnis delivers a sobering, deeply researched warning. The fight for dominance in artificial intelligence is already reshaping the future of nations and the fate of human freedom. Order The New AI Cold War by Bob McGinnis when you call 1-800-652-1144. That's 1-800-652-1144 or order at swrc.com.

Clear, compelling, and urgent, The New AI Cold War equips readers to discern the times, understand the stakes, and respond with wisdom. Order your copy of The New AI Cold War today, 1-800-652-1144. Tomorrow Bob McGinnis will continue to unpack the New AI Cold War, so be sure to tune in. Watchman on the Wall is a production of Southwest Radio Ministries. We're here because of support from you. To learn more, visit swrc.com.