In 1984, U.S. Surgeon General C. Everett Koop spoke at a Christian Life Resources national convention. He talked about rapid technology changes and the ethical challenges they bring. He gave this scenario:

A mother births twins prematurely. Both require advanced technology to get them through the preemie stage of life. One twin, however, is born with numerous physical and cognitive problems and will require a lifetime of expensive special care. The mother embraces the technology that preserves the premature life of her otherwise healthy twin and resents the technology that preserves the life of the twin facing a lifetime of challenges.

His point was clear: the value of technology is often measured by what we want out of it.

The publicized focus of the research on artificial wombs is that this new technology could save the lives of children who might otherwise have been born too soon to survive outside of the womb. For that purpose, how can we not love technology?

Now, look at the bigger picture. As a society, bearing children has become less intimate, more scientific, and commodified. Children can be conceived and nurtured in a Petri dish through artificial reproduction technology. The developing life can be studied and compared with other developing embryos to determine ideal characteristics. We can even engineer the genetic direction of that developing embryo. And, when we have it just right, we can hire another woman with a healthy uterus to serve as a pregnancy surrogate. Bearing children is becoming a big business.

God told the Israelites:

“See now that I myself am he! There is no god besides me. I put to death and I bring to life, I have wounded and I will heal, and no one can deliver out of my hand. (Deuteronomy 32:39)

Psalm 139 reminds us of God’s authorship of life. He creates, and we care for it as stewards. But soon we want more. We demand authority and dominion over God’s domain.

Repeatedly, we embrace technology for how it can help us care for life. Soon, however, it becomes a contemporary Tower of Babel, showcasing our perceived greatness without any thought given to the fact that we may have gone too far.

Technology will always be a blessing and curse in a world of sin. Love God and others ahead of ourselves is a blessing in our work. It becomes a curse when we presume the authority God has reserved for himself. We celebrate advancements made to protect endangered human life. However, we do well to learn God’s Word and remember his dominion over procreation, lest we step too far, and history reveals that we will do that eventually.