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The intent of this lesson is to inform the student on the what, who, why, and how of the task of biblical counseling and the training for biblical counseling. The in-house training option through the Biblical Counseling Track will be covered in detail and this lesson is the first step.
This lesson is meant for those who are curious about biblical counseling and want to know what it is and how it compares or relates to other forms of soul care within and outside of the church. It is also meant for those who are interested in becoming a biblical counselor or who simply want to enhance their skill of the personal ministry of the word as they lead and disciple other believers.
Biblical counseling is a uniquely Christian method of soul care that relies on the word of God as the source of truth and authority in the task of counseling and relies on the work of the Holy Spirit in cooperation with the individual believer’s faithful use of the means of grace to bring change and spiritual growth.
All Christians are giving counsel, whether biblical and helpful or not. Training to be a competent biblical counselor will help Christians minister the word to others and equips them to use theologically sound methods that respect the way God has created us. A training process that allows for specific didactic education, self-paced reading, observation of recorded or live counseling, theological and methodological exams, a co-counseling internship, and supervised counseling will offer the opportunity for an individual to develop into a competent counselor who offers help and hope in Christ to fellow suffering sinners.
I recommend listening to the audio or watching the video along with reviewing the content below. There is more below than what was covered in the audio, but in some cases the audio expounds upon what is in writing below.
From www.crosspointhb.com/counseling
Biblical counseling is the personal ministry of the word of God where we have conversations and reflect upon how God's word can interpret, inform, correct, and guide us as we face the struggles of life. We all face the impacts of sin and suffering in this world. Sometimes this gets so intense that we become stuck in a spiral and we need some help. Biblical counseling is different from secular counseling because we are leaning completely on the Bible for guidance and we are relying on the Spirit of God to enable us to grow and change to be more like Christ. We come under the authority of Scripture and look to the wonderful counselor for help and hope in all our struggles. Our goal is not wholeness or full control over our lives, but a delight in Jesus and dependence upon him as our all in all.
Public ministry of the word = preaching or teaching God’s word to a crowd
Personal ministry of the word = teaching and relating God’s word to specific situations in a one to one or small group setting
Private ministry of the word = my private meeting with the LORD to know him through prayerful meditation and study of his word
Biblical counseling is not professional advice or psychotherapy
It is a Great Commission ministry
18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.” (Matthew 28:18-20, ESV)
God’s word is intended for this purpose
16 All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, 17 that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work. (2 Tim 3:16-17, ESV)
As believers, it is possible and expected that we would develop the character, knowledge, and skill to counsel one another.
14 I myself am satisfied about you, my brothers, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able to instruct one another. (Romans 15:14, ESV)
Through our knowledge of Him, the LORD has powerfully provided all we need to face life and seek godliness.
2 May grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of God and of Jesus our Lord. 3 His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of him who called us to his own glory and excellence. (2 Peter 1:2-3, ESV)
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We must rightly consider and duly value Scripture if we are to bring it to bear upon our lives in the manner that God intended. Paul tells us that Scripture is intended to give us hope, and this by instruction and the subsequent endurance and encouragement it brings (Rom 15:4). Proverbs 2 explains that we must receive and treasure God’s instruction to know the manifold blessings that he intends to bring into the lives of his people. The following characteristics of Scripture, as presented by the authors of Scripture, should impact the way we make use of the Bible in dealing with the issues of life.
The Bible speaks with divine authority. Simply stated, the words of Scripture are the very words of God, thus to disobey Scripture is to disobey God. The NT authors explain that Scripture is breathed out by God, written by human authors whose writing was inspired by the Holy Spirit. It logically follows that the original manuscripts of Scripture are wholly inerrant and completely trustworthy in all that they say. Written Scripture, as it developed over 1400 years and in its final form today, has always spoken with the same authority. Therefore, there can be no higher authority than the Bible until we are face to face with Jesus.
The Bible speaks with clarity. In Scripture, God has communicated in a clear and understandable manner to those who read it earnestly seeking his help and who come with a willingness to obey him. The one who places themselves under the authority of the Bible with trembling reverence and with prayerful dependence upon the Spirit of God to teach them does not need a PhD, nor do they need to read Greek or Hebrew to come away with the message of Scripture, its implications for today, and its significance for their own life. Technical help from scholars and pastors may aid in seeing the nuances, but the plain message of Scripture will not be hidden from this reader.
The Bible is necessary. The specific revelation of God, as recorded in the words of the Bible is necessary information for a saving knowledge of redemption, for living a life that is pleasing to God, and for knowing God’s will. Regular intake of Scripture is necessary to grow in our faith the way food is needed for physical survival and is necessary to have any certain knowledge of the will of God for our lives.
The Bible is sufficient. Written Scripture always contained all the revelation that God intended his people (of each time) to have and it contains everything we need to know for salvation, for trusting him, and for obeying him. Scripture contains the guidance we need in facing the challenges of life. There is nothing outside of Scripture that we must necessarily believe about God or his plan of redemption and nothing is required of us that is not found in Scripture.
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People: This is the anthropological starting point for understanding people in order to have any hope of helping them. We must have a correct ontological understanding of humanity in order to address the reality of our existence. Without this foundational knowledge regarding mankind we are severely handicapped in our ability to help people and will be errant in our counsel.
Problem: The biggest problem facing humanity is sin. Adam’s sin resulted in a corruption that infected all humanity and creation (Rom 5:18-19, 8:19-21). We struggle and suffer in this life because of Adam’s sin, our own sin, and the sin of others. However, God intends suffering and sin to serve his good purpose (Eph 1:11; Rom 8:28, 5:3-5). If we do not understand the human condition as such, we will be off-base or lacking in how we help people face their troubles.
Purpose: Jesus is the standard for humanity (2 Tim 4:1; Rom 2:16; 1 Pet 2:21). After redeeming us, God works by his Spirit to conform us to the likeness of Christ (Rom 8:29). We are called to no longer live for ourselves but for him who died for us and was raised again (2 Cor 5:15). Without understanding the reason for life, we cannot help people live with purpose.
Process: Repentant faith, or the obedience of faith, means trusting God and walking therefore in glad obedience to what he has said. This is the answer to humanity’s problems and the call of NT ministry (Rom 1:5). A system that seeks another solution for mankind may be helpful in a number of ways bit is ultimately applying a bandaid to a fatal wound.
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Scripture presents a metaphor that helps us understand the process of change. Our sanctification is a dance between us and the LORD where we are acting out a miracle he is working on us to be transformed bit by bit into the likeness of Christ. Christ is the model for humanity and we want to be like him in utter surrender to the Father and walking in step with the Holy Spirit.
Timothy Lane and Paul Tripp present this change process using the metaphor given in Jeremiah 17:5-15.
The graphic below attempts so show you the relationship between the heat in our lives and how we respond to it from the inner man and this response can either be a good one or a poor one that shows itself as fruit or as thorns in our behavior, which reaps its own good or bad consequences. The troubles that bring people into counseling are usually symptoms of an inner man condition that needs attention and the gracious work of God to renew our minds.
Keep your heart with all vigilance, for from it flow the springs of life. (Proverbs 4:23, ESV)
And he called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees were offended when they heard this saying?” He answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.” And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” (Matt 15:10-20, ESV)
How People Change, Timothy Lane & Paul Tripp
Jeremiah 17:5-15
5 Thus says the Lord:
“Cursed is the man who trusts in man and makes flesh his strength, whose heart turns away from the Lord.
6 He is like a shrub in the desert, and shall not see any good come. He shall dwell in the parched places of the wilderness, in an uninhabited salt land.
7 “Blessed is the man who trusts in the Lord, whose trust is the Lord.
8 He is like a tree planted by water, that sends out its roots by the stream, and does not fear when heat comes, for its leaves remain green, and is not anxious in the year of drought, for it does not cease to bear fruit.”
9 The heart is deceitful above all things, and desperately sick; who can understand it?
10 “I the Lord search the heart and test the mind, to give every man according to his ways, according to the fruit of his deeds.”
11 Like the partridge that gathers a brood that she did not hatch, so is he who gets riches but not by justice; in the midst of his days they will leave him, and at his end he will be a fool.
12 A glorious throne set on high from the beginning is the place of our sanctuary.
13 O Lord, the hope of Israel, all who forsake you shall be put to shame; those who turn away from you shall be written in the earth, for they have forsaken the Lord, the fountain of living water.
Jeremiah Prays for Deliverance
14 Heal me, O Lord, and I shall be healed; save me, and I shall be saved, for you are my praise.
15 Behold, they say to me, “Where is the word of the Lord? Let it come!” (ESV)
Psalm 1
1 Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits in the seat of scoffers;
2 but his delight is in the law of the Lord, and on his law he meditates day and night.
3 He is like a tree planted by streams of water that yields its fruit in its season, and its leaf does not wither. In all that he does, he prospers.
4 The wicked are not so, but are like chaff that the wind drives away.
5 Therefore the wicked will not stand in the judgment, nor sinners in the congregation of the righteous;
6 for the Lord knows the way of the righteous, but the way of the wicked will perish. (ESV)
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