October 20, 2026
Oh, look! Another artificial intelligence (AI)-generated church logo, promotional graphic, or meme. It looks clean — sort of. And anyone can type a few words and suddenly become a graphic artist.
Think of how much time and money churches can save by using AI to create all the images they need.
But what initially seemed like another leap forward from Microsoft Publisher and Print Shop Deluxe quickly raised questions about authenticity.
AI-generated images have become increasingly refined, even managing to give people the correct number of fingers most of the time.
Yet trained graphic artists have understood something many churches are only beginning to recognize: Producing an image isn’t the same as communicating authentically.
The deeper issue behind this skepticism isn’t simply whether an image looks real. It’s whether that image feels authentic and communicates genuine care. That question matters for churches seeking to reach young adults who value authenticity.
A lesson from Minecraft
Young adults often respond to something different than polish alone. For much of the digital age, we measured progress by refinement.
Video games, computers, phones, cars, images, and communication all moved toward higher resolution, greater functionality, and experiences that more closely resembled real life. The church was no different.
Churches pursued increasingly refined production experiences, quality images, and smooth videos that looked more like something people might see in a movie.
From the online experience and the parking lot to the stage and the pulpit, churches repeatedly improved these environments in pursuit of something more perfect and polished.
Then Minecraft happened. Its rudimentary blocky images are almost so unrefined you’re not sure what you’re looking at in the game experience, at least to older adults.
Microsoft’s former head of Minecraft reported the average player was 24, and YouGov’s 2026 tracking found 48% of millennials (born 1982-1999) view the game positively, compared with 32% of Generation X (born 1965-1981) and 26% of baby boomers (born 1946-1964).
Minecraft creative director Jens Bergensten says the game’s low-resolution appearance offers something polished graphics may not: space for imagination.
The game doesn’t tell players what to create; it gives them a block-based world where they can imagine, ask questions about what they want to build, and see something of themselves in what they make. Its appeal isn’t merely found in its low-resolution design but in what that design allows players to do.
Churches can learn from that. Minecraft gives people room to build; churches must give people room to ask. That begins with listening to and addressing the question behind the question. This is where the church needs to lean in, just as it has since Jesus established it.
Skeptics aren’t just atheists
It’s too simplistic to say skeptics are primarily atheists. A skeptic of the church may have had several foundational experiences that shaped that mindset.
Maybe they question the church because it hurt them in the past. Maybe they fear what it would mean to accept God is in control and they’re not. Or personal challenges may have left them disappointed in others, and that disappointment feels heightened when they look at the church.
Current research shows skepticism and spiritual questions appear in several ways:
There are many ways you can scare young adults away from your church, but most young adults won’t name these things out loud.
This shows up in small group settings where delivering another mini sermon about the text overtakes the slower work of transformation that comes when we wrestle with honest questions.
Questions are a powerful teaching tool, but space for those questions must be intentional or teaching time will simply be filled with more content.
Churches should be the home for skeptics
AI-generated images that feel generic or artificial can communicate something intangible that many of us miss as we try to reach skeptics.
They may unintentionally suggest a lack of authenticity or care. We may never say we don’t care, but people can often feel when something doesn’t represent the real people or ministry of a church.
In contrast, Minecraft communicates something meaningful through intentionally simple, blocky images. If the church is going to be a home for skeptics, we must understand that our buildings begin communicating before anyone steps into the pulpit.
The church should be a place where people can ask honest questions and form genuine relationships. But skeptics may struggle to see that if we’re not intentional.
Our messaging may need to begin with more questions and fewer answers, and even more silence. We should consider how someone would know where to bring their questions rather than assuming they will speak up in the environments we’ve already created.
The church doesn’t need to fear difficult questions, because we have God’s Word. The challenge in reaching skeptics isn’t a lack of answers. It’s whether we’ve created enough space for their questions to lead them toward those answers.
Being a home for skeptics doesn’t mean allowing doubt to become the destination. It means patiently walking with people as they seek the truth.
Jesus turns skeptics into disciples
Remember, Jesus makes disciples. Scripture is sufficient, and the Holy Spirit is still at work. Throughout His ministry, Jesus welcomed sincere questions and engaged honest confusion. He never treated doubt as the destination, but He never feared questions.
Keep inviting people, including skeptics, to Jesus. Young adults want the local church to be a place where they can ask honest questions without being dismissed. But making room for questions isn’t the destination.
We must open Scripture, depend on the Holy Spirit, build genuine relationships, and patiently point people toward Jesus.
The question for the church isn’t whether we possess the truth through God’s Word. The question is whether the way we listen and respond shows the world that our churches are places where honest questions can lead people to Jesus.
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Dr. PJ Dunn is the Senior Consultant for Revitalization of the Georgia Baptist Mission Board. He can be reached at pdunn@gabaptist.org. This article appeared on Lifeway Research.
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