Once again, if you are coming late to this discussion, you may need context. You can find it by reading the previous essays, here and here
The greatest tragedy of the current trajectory of many denominations and churches is what their choice of direction does to the person in the pew—the church member or attender. The shepherds not only fail to protect the sheep (the people entrusted to their care), but they harm them directly. How? They fail to equip them sufficiently. They fail to equip them with the tools to make sense of their existence through the lens that God provides them (aka the Bible). That’s part of the harm of “we are about the gospel?”
There used to be an advertisement whose punchline was, “A mind is a terrible thing to waste.” An uneducated mind never reaches its potential. An untrained soul may never reach the right eternal destination. Or its children might miss (as well as succeeding generations).
The newfound love of a winsome, minimalist Christianity (devoid of the details of the faith) foists a crippling level of spiritual ignorance upon its people.
Regrettably, things gradually (think of the proverbial frog in the kettle) go from order to chaos. From fact to feeling. The emphasis of “the gospel only (red letters only in disguise)” neglects the whole counsel of God’s word. A congregation goes from newborn Christians to lukewarm Christians to unbelief over a series of decades and generations.
That’s the story of the United Methodist Church. That’s the story of most denominations. And too many churches. I saw this meme the other day which shows the mindset that results from this mushy Christianity that is open to everything but biblical relevance.