And when they had prayed, the place where they had gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak the word of God with boldness (Acts 4:31).
As the Christian church enters the third millennium of mission to all the world I am reminded of the words of my childhood hero, Captain James T. Kirk, who proclaimed the mission of the starship Enterprise: “… to boldly go where no one has gone before.” Jesus declared, “Go therefore… even to the end of the age” (Matthew 28:20). I doubt that His apostles ever considered the possibility that the mission of the church would extend into a third millennium. But here we are, and it seems that many Christians don’t know how to negotiate “the undiscovered country” (another Star Trek reference).
Many Christian leaders are suffering from a crisis of confidence. The first Christian theologians were called apologists. In the second century, to offer an apology for the faith meant to give a sound defense for the faith. Some of the Christian apologists of the third millennium have redefined the word. Instead of saying “We believe,” they cry out “I’m sorry.” As we look back on the past two millenia we should confess our sins; but we should also boldly go into the third millennium confessing the ancient Faith.
