Every living organism is programmed to survive. That is a very broad statement, but let me tell you what I mean. On this website, we often describe the way God designed creatures with the defense mechanisms necessary to avoid, evade, or defend against predators. However, they are equipped with more than defense mechanisms. In computer terms, a self-preservation subroutine is programmed into their DNA. Even plants that have no brain or desires have this self-preservation quality. I’m sure you have seen this when you try to get rid of weeds in your lawn or garden.
Where does this self-preservation subroutine come from? Living things are programmed to survive by their Creator. In 1969, I was a college student in Cincinnati when the science fiction movie 2001: A Space Odyssey opened in movie theaters. The movie depicted space travel and “picture phone” communications. Space travel today has still not reached the level shown in the film, but today’s mobile phones make the picture phone booth of the movie seem primitive. I still don’t fully understand the movie’s meaning, but HAL, a computer with a self-preservation subroutine, fascinated me.
HAL 9000 was programmed to survive and refused to allow the human astronaut to disable him. That was the scary part of the movie for me. The concept of an evil computer or robot with artificial intelligence and a self-preservation subroutine endangering humans has become the plot of science fiction thrillers. Those human creations could become a modern Frankenstein’s monster. That terrifying scenario is what many fear AI (artificial intelligence) could lead to.
You can take some comfort in the fact that human programmers have been unable to design a computer program with a self-preservation subroutine. Look around you, and you will see a myriad of living things that are programmed to survive. God has programmed survival software into every living organism, demonstrating that He is far more intelligent than any human computer programmer. God’s wisdom and creative genius programmed all life to survive for a purpose.
— Roland Earnst © 2025