The 3rd Millennium Church

I’m just gonna get outta the way

Here’s Leonard Sweet

from earlier today —-

For the past three days I have been attending and speaking at the Jerusalem Council II summit in Athens, Greece. After a pilgrimage to Mars Hill this afternoon, we will conclude with a session where I will talk about Millennium III as the Age of the Spirit. This is the closing of my remarks, and the Call Forward for the Council, in the form of 3M covenant for the Third Millennium Church., organized along the format of the Apostles Creed.

The Third Millennium Church will not be defined by what buildings we occupy, but by what bridges we build. Not by the programs we run, but by the presence we bring. Not by the content we create, but by the Christ we incarnate.

We are called to be translators—not just of ancient texts, but of eternal truths. To speak the gospel in languages both human and digital. To build communities both physical and virtual. To love neighbors both near and networked.

A Third Millennium Creed for the Church:
Let us conclude by covenant—a creed not just to recite, but to live. A confession not just of what we believe, but of who we are becoming.

We believe in one God—
Creator of atoms and algorithms,
Father of flesh and fiber optics,
the Alpha and Omega of all intelligence, artificial and authentic.

We believe in Jesus Christ—
the Word made flesh, not code,
the Image of the invisible God, not avatar,
the Truth that no algorithm can compute,
the Life that no program can replicate,
the Way that every pathway must ultimately follow.

We believe in the Holy Spirit—
the divine fire that no artificial flame can match,
the Counselor who speaks all languages, ancient and digital,
the Presence that fills every space, physical and virtual,
the Power that connects all hearts across every network.

We believe in the Church—
not as institution but as incarnation,
not as organization but as organism,
not as system but as body,
scattered across continents and concentrated in community,
gathered in sanctuaries and dispersed through screens,
one church in many locations, many expressions of one Lord.
We believe in sacred imagination— the God-breathed creativity that sees possibility in every pixel, hope in every hyperlink,
and Christ in every connection.

We believe our calling is to embody the gospel—
in every age and on every stage,
with every tool and through every technology,
loving God with heart, soul, mind, and bandwidth,
and loving our neighbors as ourselves, whether next door or networked globally.

We believe in the resurrection of the body—
that matter matters to God,
that flesh is sacred,
that physical presence is irreplaceable,
and that digital connection serves but never substitutes for incarnational community.

We believe in life everlasting—
a future where every tear is wiped away,
every algorithm serves love,
every network connects to the divine,
and every heart beats in rhythm with the heart of God.

Therefore, we covenant to create with care,
to innovate with integrity,
to connect with compassion,
and to burn with the fire of divine love
in the Third Millennium and beyond.

In the name of the Father who imagined us,
the Son who redeemed us,
and the Holy Spirit who empowers us,
we say: Amen.

May the God of all imagination set our hearts ablaze with love, our minds afire with wisdom, and our spirits burning bright with hope. May we be the church the world needs—ancient in faith, contemporary in expression, and eternal in purpose.
Come, Holy Spirit. Kindle us anew.
Amen.

—- What say you?