For many year the Bible has been treated like a deck of cards. Denominations behave like players in some doctrinal "card game" where each church holds only a few cards in its hand as it competes with other churches for new members. Every church has its own "doctrinal distinctives" or emphases which may even be reflected in the church's name (e.g. Baptist, Methodist, Presbyterian, etc.) In addition, churches are grouped into larger camps, based on over-arching values (e.g. Reformed, Charismatic & Evangelical). Such divisions rob every church of its heritage in the whole counsel of God.

Generally speaking, Reformed churches hold tightly to the cards (i.e. the passages of Scripture) that pertain to  "the doctrines of grace." They also emphasize the need to guard sound doctrine from error. Charismatic churches hold the cards that relate to the Holy Spirit and His gifts. They emphasize supernatural manifestations of the Holy Spirit. Evangelicals hold on dearly to the cards that teach the Great Commission, personal evangelism and world missions. They emphasize winning the lost to Christ.

Our analogy breaks down of course, because no true church is void of all interest in the doctrines championed by the others. But over time, these three camps have drifted farther and farther apart. Today they seem mutually exclusive of one another. What is worse, as each has over-emphasized and over-reacted to each doctrine errors have occurred on all sides. As each church pushes its favorite truth to an erroneous extreme, the other churches attempt to distance themselves from those errors and all but abandon some key doctrines. "We don't emphasize election here."  Or, "We are not 'seeker sensitive.'" Or, "We won't stand for Holy Spirit wildfire." In this way major passages of God's Word are being abandoned to other churches who, in their zeal, distort them and make them the primary basis of their church's identity. By being taught without the balance that comes from knowing and believing the other doctrines, every church loses out.