I may not make any friends with this one but, if you use the transpose button, there's someone out there that won't.
Your argument brings up a bigger issue. These are the skills that are called for in church music. So many people these days simply learn a few chords off the internet and think that's all there is to it. Musical excellence, not to sound cliche, should be a journey not a destination. Musicians, especially in the realm of church music should forever be looking for improvements, new techniques, and the like. Just because you can play amazing grace and get the amen corner to hollerin' doesn't mean you're ready to run a service.
Call me a purist, but I think good keyboard study should start with the basics (chords, scales, transposing) so that when you're in a position to play for a church, you're prepared for whatever comes your way.
You say we should take advantage of new technologies we've been blessed with....keyboards, pianos, even pipe organs can be equipped with midi essentially making musicians obsolete. Why not do that? Because people still want the human there who can adapt to changing situations. If we're so willing to embrace technology, the transpose button can just as easily be replaced with a 'play song from computer' button.
