One of the essential values of acknowledging and embracing God's word is that it is of great personal benefit. Plumber also says that "God's word is not the agent, but only the instrument in the renewal of the soul. Knight says: "The sense of the passage is that scripture is given to enable everyone.
Doctrinal Stability
The goal of this chapter is to demonstrate that counseling works best when it is locally church-based, Christ-centered, and maintains a scriptural approach to change. Living in a culture that is predominantly self-oriented, it is probably not difficult to understand why the centrality of the local church is not popular. Faith is a solo pursuit.”2 It is important to remember that the church was designed to combat a self-centered approach to life by living in community and considering others more important than yourself (Phil 2:3-4).
Jesus declares: "I will build my Church, and the gates of hell will not prevail against it" (Matthew 16:18). Therefore, the local church must be embraced as the environment where counseling/discipleship will have the greatest potential. Wayne Mack explains, "If the pillar of the building is removed, as Samson proved in his last act in the Philistine temple (Judges), the building will fall and the people inside will be injured or killed."3 The value of the church and the truth that supports it is most important for the lives of believers.
Paul understood this when he counseled Timothy to instruct others not to teach another doctrine or indulge in any other doctrine than the gospel of Jesus Christ (1 Tim 1:3). The apostle Paul had seen people "cast away their faith" when they did not live according to the teachings of Jesus.
Local Church Membership
The charge against the whole church was that they neglected to protect the members of the local church. By not addressing this person, the testimony of the gospel was at stake as well as the purity of the church. The important element regarding local church membership and biblical counseling is that a church cannot help restore an individual to a community of which the person was never a member.
Emphasizing membership in the local church helps the counselor determine whose flock the individual belongs to and whose church has the primary responsibility for assisting in the restoration process. The importance of membership does not limit the ministry in helping those who are not members, but it is an opportunity; an opportunity for one congregation to train or strengthen another local church or connect someone to a local church. The main responsibility of the local church pastor is to shepherd the flock that God has called to oversee.
An emphasis on local church membership allows a congregation to know who is responsible for providing care and accountability. It is for these reasons that an emphasis on local church membership is an important element of a biblical counseling service.
Preventative Care
Jay Adams states, "It is thus the duty of every pastor to become qualified to become a counselor, even if he is not trained enough and even if he is not now fit for the job."7 Pastoral care within the local church is one of them. way God has given the local church a person who is appointed to watch over their soul (Heb 13:17). The church is also designed with a community support system that encourages Christian growth and activity (Matt 18:15-18; Eph 4; Acts 2:42-47). Local church counseling enables the ministry to function under the authority of God's ordained church.
A place where pastors and leaders in the church can cherish not only the public service of the Word, but also the private service of the Word. Bigney and Viars state, "Churches that are biblical counseling centers are constantly seeking ways to comfort those who suffer and to confront and correct those who sin."9 Because of the preventive measures God has designed for the church's structure, it is advantageous for an advisory ministry to hear under. Local pastors are given to the church to help equip the members for service to one another.
Pastors should know that we are not looking for bystanders, people to fill the pew.”10 Preventive care in the local church is God's sovereign support system. A system where both individual and local support is built into the layout of the local church.
Protective Care
And yet, without a restoration of functional ecclesiastical discipline—firmly grounded in the principles revealed in the Bible—the church will continue to slide into moral dissolution and relativism. 15 Ernie Baker and Jonathan Holmes, "The Power of the Redeemer," in Kellemen and Carson, Biblical Counseling and the Church, 27. Sanctification is both a work of Christ and the responsibility of every Christian to grow in the grace and knowledge of the Lord (2 Peter 3:18).
The title of the curriculum designed for the project was Discipleship DNA: The Anatomy of a Church. Also, when asked to respond to the statement "secular psychological approaches often address problems with greater precision than the Bible," the responses varied.1 Therefore, the first part of the survey led me to teach about the difference between Biblical and secular counseling during the teaching component to those in the class. One of the questions on the survey asked if the individuals believed they were an effective biblical counselor.
The project's preliminary survey helped focus the information topics taught to BCA members at Palmetto Baptist Church. The survey results revealed a desire to instruct on the difference between biblical and secular counseling. The synthesis of Scripture with secular theories is dangerous.8 The biblical approach is superior in that it is Scripture-centered, Christ-centered, and Christ-centered.
John MacArthur argues, “The infusion of psychology into Church teaching has blurred the line between behavior change and sanctification.”9 When Christians confuse the difference between these two opposing worldviews, they will also confuse the biblical focus of how the heart/ motive results from a person's behavior.
The Heart—The Target and Focus of Worship
Since all motives and behaviors will be exposed before God when we give an account for this life, it is most important for Christians to understand the heart behind the behavior. Unfortunately, Christians often place more importance on the outside than the heart from which these actions come. In order to love God with all our heart, it is important to understand how the Bible speaks about the heart.
The heart and other synonyms, such as mind, soul, strength, are used to describe both the inner and outer human components.11 Psalm 73:25-26 and 1 Samuel 16:7 show the importance of this holistic reality. The components of the heart are shown in scripture in a three-dimensional way.12 Realization, devotion, and will help the disciple/counselor effectively counsel the heart and not behavior. Focusing on the heart is the only way to produce disciples who seek to please God with all their heart.
Understanding the heart as the target of discipleship/counseling helps us focus on caring about what God cares about. The lesson concluded with a reflection on the importance of worship as expressed in Revelation 4:11, which says, “You are worthy, O our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things and existed and were created by your will.” Focusing on the heart is critical because it is the control center for worship that honors God.
The Goal of Discipleship and the Process of Change
The lesson concluded with a reflection on the importance of worship expressed in Revelation 4:11, which says: "You are worthy, our Lord and God, to receive glory and honor and power, for you created all things and through you wants to exist and was created.” Directing the heart is critical because it is the control center for God-honoring worship. Worship always has cognitive, love and volitional components; therefore worship must be examined on each of these levels to see if it is pure before the Lord.
The goal of discipleship/counseling is Christlikeness effectively applied to the motives of the saint, sufferer, and sinner. 16. Biblical change involves a four-dimensional approach of (1) recognition, (2) repentance, (3) refocusing, and (4) replacement.17 Seeking to walk toward Christlikeness may not be easy, but it brings glory to God.
Understanding and Applying Biblical Forgiveness
Due to the lack of data, my supervisor encouraged me to revisit and teach the project to BCA members at Palmetto Baptist Church, where I currently serve. The focus and intent of the project to help BCA members at Palmetto Baptist Church gain a greater awareness of biblical counseling has been a benefit to BCA and the church. The project for BCA included three objectives as a measure of project success.
The first objective was to assess the current level of understanding of biblical counseling within the membership of the BCA at Palmetto Baptist Church. This goal was deemed met when BCA members of the adult class at Palmetto Baptist Church completed the pre-survey. The second goal of this project was to develop an introductory biblical counseling curriculum for members of the BCA at Palmetto Baptist Church.
A third strength of the project was the increase in awareness of biblical counseling among BCA members at the Palmetto Baptist Church. A fourth benefit generated by the project at Palmetto Baptist Church was the implementation of further training of the elders for more effective pastoral care in the church.
Would Do Differently
General Questions
Counseling Knowledge and Practice
The Godly Focus of Biblical Counseling.” In Introduction to Biblical Counseling, edited by John MacArthur and Wayne Mack, 51-63. Biblical counseling and the local church.” In Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically, edited by John MacArthur and Wayne Mack, 222-30. Powlison, David, "Affirmations and Denials: A Proposed Definition of Biblical Counseling." Journal of Biblical Counseling 19, no.
This DMin project sought to promote the value of biblical counseling through training members of Palmetto Baptist Church, Easley, South Carolina.
