What is lost when pastors deliver shortcuts

This post is from the defunct blog “Dying Church”

David Hansen's book The Art of Pastoring has a chapter on temptations, based on the temptations of Jesus in the wilderness. There's some really good stuff in there.

This paragraph nails it:

The soul of the church is being lost to a pandering pastorate. The church needs pastors who lead the church in repentance with love. The church needs pastoral leadership that refuses to take the shortcuts and has the courage to allow the church to suffer so that the whole church can be a parable of Jesus. That is what is lost when pastors deliver shortcuts. When the pastor takes the church off the Way of the Cross, the church stops being the parable of Jesus, the body of Christ.

More quotes here.