Historical – The Encyclopedia of Biblical Counseling

Idols of the Heart (Publication)

Posted on May 20, 2020May 20, 2020 by Greg E. Gifford

Idols of the Heart: Publication

By. Marianne Castillo

I. Overview

Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone is a Christian book written by Elyse Fitzpatrick. On the back of the book Elyse Fitzpatrick says that she writes Idols of the Heart for the many people who “desired to live godly lives but feel trapped in habitual sin. This book reveals that at the heart of every besetting sin lies idolatry”. [1] The chapters focus on revealing what the reader loves and worships. [2] Idols of the heart helps readers identify the false gods in their hearts, thoughts, and affections. [3] Each chapter ends with hope, that “God changes hearts”. [4] Idols of the Heart teaches the reader God is the answer to being free from false Idols.

On the back of the book two authors and one pastor have expressed their recommendations/opinions of the book Idols of the Heart:

Martha Peace says “With great clarity and intriguing biblical illustrations, Fitzpatrick explains how idols in our hearts compete without affection for God. In a gentle way, she tells how by God’s grace to turn from your idols to whole-hearted love for God”. [5]

David Powlison, “ Demonstrates how ‘false gods’ generate the garden- variety sins of irritability, self- pity, escapism, and anxiety, as well as anger, despair, addictions, and panic. Fitzpatrick shows how Jesus Christ retakes our lives from these idols, setting up his reign over our attention, loyalty, and affection”. [6]

Dr. Ed Bulkley says, “If you are struggling with desires, addictions, and harmful behaviors that seem too strong to overcome, perhaps you are worshipping an idol of the heart. Fitzpatrick explains what those idols might be and how to deal with them in a biblical way. Idols of the Heart I not just another self-help manual”. [7]

Idols of the Heart begins with a dedication to Elyse Fitzpatrick’s husband that reads “To Phil his steadfast love and patience: It’s because you laid down you life day after day that I was able you do this”. [8] Then follows the table of contents that show where to find the: List of illustrations, acknowledgements, introductions, chapters 1-12, appendix A-C, notes, and an index of scripture. [9] Each chapter has a consistent structure of a title, a verse that corresponds to the content of the chapter, a monologue that relates to the chapter, as well as 1-7 “further thought questions” at the end of the Chapter. The further thought questions encourage the readers to open up their bibles, read a passage of scripture, self examine ones heart, and spend time in prayer asking the Lord to help them grow in what they have read.

The Notes and Index of Scripture are resources that Idols of the Heart contain in the back of the book. The notes section clearly list the resources in each chapter that Elyse Fitzpatrick uses. [10] The Index of Scripture are all the verses that Elyse Fitzpatrick refers to in Idols of the Heart. [11] These two resources are useful to the reader who would like to do further reading.

II. History & Impact

Idols of the Heart was published 2001 in Phillipsburg and New Jersey by P&R Publishing. [12] Idols of the heart is Elyse Fitzpatrick’s second book written in 2001 and her fifth book out of twenty-three. Elyse Fitzpatrick acknowledges many people for helping her and inspiring her to write Idols of the Heart. George Scipione for training her; Dave Powlison who took the time to guide her thinking about idolatry; Pastor Dave Eby for his sermon note that Elyse Fitzpatrick used throughout Idols of the Heart. The Evangelical Bible Book store employees who suggested her books for resources, close friends that supported her; as well as her mother who not only supported her but did some grammatical editing. Elyse Fitzpatrick last thank you went out to “Barbara Lerch at P&R, who believed that it is time for reformed woman to be heard on this topic”. [13]

Idols of the Heart is impactful to women and men all over. Goodreads have three full pages of positive reviews from men and women.

Amanda gave four stars on October 27, 2014 leaving a comment that reads “This is a really good book, convicting me about the idols in my life and helping to change my thinking and therefore actions to worship God better”. [14]

Ian with four stars on February 6, 2016 says “I highly recommend his book. Each chapter ends with ‘Further Thought Questions’ which help you digest the content and apply it to yourself”. [15]

Melanie Gurnette left a five star review on February 4, 2014 saying “I have learned a lot about how I have been worshipping my heavenly father, and how quite frankly it has been lacking. I am thankful to writes like Fitzpatrick who bring understanding and action to the scripture I have read my whole life’. [16]

Greg Froster, a writer for one of the articles in CrossWay, believes that books are primary. He explains that books allow readers to view someone else’s perspective/ experience on the world. Grey Froster says “This is what gives books their profound and mysterious power”. [17] John Piper believes that Christian writers are influential. He expresses that a way loving people is by influencing them. Idols of the Heart is an impactful Christian book. John Piper says, “You should be writing in such a way as to make God look better than anything else in the world, to make the path of sin look worse than anything else in the world, and to make the path of righteousness look beautiful in spite of all the difficulties that the path of obedience might bring.” [18] In Idols of the Heart Elyse Fitzpatrick makes the sin of idolatry look evil and encourages her readers to know that the Lord will “develop whole hearted love and devotion in you- all for His glory and praise!” [19]

III. Works/Publications

Elyse Fitzpatrick: Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone: https://www.amazon.com/Idols-Heart-Learning-Revised-Updated/dp/1629952109
Timothy J Keller: Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters: https://www.amazon.com/Counterfeit-Gods-Empty-Promises-Matters/dp/1594485496
Herbert Schlossberg: Idols of Destruction: Christian Faith and Its Confrontation with American Society: https://www.amazon.com/Idols-Destruction-Christian-Confrontation-American/dp/0840758324
Kyle Idleman: Gods at War: Defeating the Idols that Battle for Your Heart: https://www.amazon.com/Gods-War-Defeating-Idols-Battle/dp/0310353343

IV. Bibliography

Fitzpatrick, Elyse. Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone, New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2001.

Froster, Gregg. The Importance of Books in Christian History. Article. USA: Crossway, 2019. https://www.crossway.org/articles/the-importance-of-books-in-christian-history/

“Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick.” Goodreads, Goodreads, 1 Jan. 2002, www.goodreads.com/book/show/90474.Idols_of_the_Heart.

Piper, John. How Important is a Christian Writer’s Influence? Interview. Desiring God, 2013. https://www.desiringgod.org/interviews/how-important-is-a-christian-writers-influence

[1] Elyse Fitzpatrick. Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone (New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2001), 241

[2] Ibid, 16

[3 Ibid

[4] Ibid, 17

[5] Ibid, 241

[6] Ibid

[7] Ibid

[8] Ibid, 5

[9] Ibid, 7

[10] Ibid 217

[11] Ibid, 233

[12] Ibid, 4

[13] Ibid, 11

[14] “Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone by Elyse M. Fitzpatrick.” (Goodreads, 1 Jan. 2002)

[15] Ibid

[16] Ibid

[17] Gregg Froster. The Importance of Books in Christian History (Article. USA: Crossway, 2019)

[18] John Piper. How Important is a Christian Writer’s Influence? (Interview. Desiring God, 2013)

[19] Elyse Fitzpatrick. Idols of the Heart: Learning to Long for God Alone (New Jersey: P&R Publishing, 2001), 18

Competent to Counsel (Publication)

Posted on May 20, 2020 by Greg E. Gifford

Competent to Counsel (Publication)

By Lauren York

I. Overview

Dr. Jay Adams is widely respected as the Father of the Biblical Counseling Movement. Beginning his work as pastor, professor, and church planter, he has experience behind the pulpit as well as the desk. After studying counseling thoroughly both individually as well as under the supervision of a highly respected psychologist of the 20^th century, Adams felt led to write about his findings. In the seventies when this book was written, counseling for the Christian looked too much like counseling for the non-Christian. Did God’s Word have a role in the specific lives of troubled believers? Or were they doomed to temporary solutions and stick-on bandages for soul-deep wounds? In his finest work, Competent to Counsel: Introduction to Nouthetic Counseling, Jay Adams explores the sufficiency of Scripture for all areas of life. He reevaluates traditional, secular approaches and instead teaches believers how they can become qualified to help others in the counseling setting through effectively wielding the Scriptures.

II. History

In the preface of Competent to Counsel, Adams discusses his background in ministry. Despite being prepared to lead in the church, he had a feeling of inadequacy when it came to the bigger problems of life—the areas psychologists were supposed to deal with. One day after and evening service, a man from his church approached him, burdened by some struggle. He grasped for words, but finally sent the man home with a still heavy heart. Less than a month later, the man died. Adams felt like a failure. After this tragedy, he saw a deficiency in his qualifications and devoted himself to the study of counseling. However, as he borrowed from secular textbooks and listened to recommendations from Christian counselors, he eventually found his way to one of the most influential psychologists of the 20^th century: O. Hobart Mowrer.

A noted research psychologist, Mowrer was honored with the Presidency of the American Psychological Association for his radical perspective on learning theory. He challenged mainstream beliefs, questioned institutionalized psychiatry, and even ventured to declare current psychiatric dogmas to be false. By the late 1950s, Mowrer had abandoned psychology as a theory as well as practice. Instead of adopting and accepting the common Medical Model for understanding human behavior, he proposed the Moral Model. In Mowrer’s Moral Model, he showed how the assumption of personal responsibility usurped any ideas claiming mental illness as the culprit for deviant behavior. Having worked closely with the OSS, community groups, students, the severely troubled in mental institutions and many other control groups, Mowrer was exposed to the most “diseased” of society. He supposedly was plagued by severe mental illness as well. Yet, he held to his convictions that people are not sick in the head—they are behaviorally immoral.

In the summer of 1965, Jay Adams was privileged to work alongside of Mowrer in a sort of internship setup. Adams refers to this time as “an unforgettable experience.” Adams was pricked by Mowrer’s theory of personal responsibility in the face of guilt or clinical insanity. He began to feel challenged by this viewpoint which claimed the problem stems from within the man, not outside. Adams explains that it was this radical belief system which drove him to ask, “What do the Scriptures say about such people and the solution to their problems?” As a Christian minister, he stood in stark contrast to Mowrer. While their deep distaste for psychology was a connection, Adams’ adherence to Scripture as the ultimate source of truth set him apart from his superior. He was so stirred by his time studying under Mowrer that he launched his own counseling and education center the following year, and in 1970—within just five years of his “unforgettable experience”—Adams had written and published his first edition of Competent to Counsel.

III. Impact

The publication of this book was the subject of heated debate and broad controversy among churches. Since “widespread conservative and religious distrust of psychology persisted even into the 1960s,”[1] Adams’ theories were not quickly adopted by the church. However, Adams’ early exposure to a Mowrer “go against the grain” type of approach stuck with him and made an impact on the Christian community as a whole. Whereas he largely lost interprofessional acceptance, he gained followers among pastors and their parishioners overtime. Psychology had previously taken a transcendent role in the job of soul care, but now, the task was redelivered to the hands of ministers of the soul. The Father of the Biblical Counseling Movement essentially replaced the Father of American Psychology. In an interview with Tabletalk Magazine, Jay Adams quotes, “I never say that Christians are competent. I say that they ought to become competent. That’s why I have taught counseling both in writing and in classes for so many years.”[2] No longer is the realm of counseling set aside for trained psychiatrists; it is set aside for those who have answers for the soul. Through the comprehensive usage of Scripture to effect lasting change, he shows in this book just how intimate the counselor’s understanding of the Word must be in order to directly apply it to the counselee’s life.

After his revelatory experience working under Mowrer, Jay Adams’ sole goal was to take the truths he had gleaned about man’s need for responsibility and pair that with the Word of God. Thus, Competent to Counsel became a text dedicated to helping people learn how to be qualified for the task of instructing. In the book, Adams writes that he is not only fully aware of the problem of “old eclecticism with a Christian coating,” but that he attempts to reject it. This statement directly addresses the controversy about the medical versus the biblical that arose as a result of his publication. People were wary of Adams’ approach to the Scriptures and his claims about becoming “competent” to counsel. The role of the Pastor and Christian is to talk about religion, not mind or life problems, the culture claims. But his early exposure to Mowrer’s sharply contrasted belief system with that of the day prepared Adams for the unwavering stance of the Biblical Counselor. He credits his former teacher with driving him to the conclusion that the “mentally ill” can be helped with the Word of God.

Psychology is so engrained in the mind of the culture that it is hard to escape, but he thoroughly combats the assumption that sin issues are strictly mental issues. The very idea of integrationism in counseling is appalling to him. The denouncement of these forms of instruction such as Christian Counseling helped to form a clear distinction between the truly biblical and unbiblical. His method of counseling focused on instruction, which is why he gave it the title of nouthetic counseling (nouthetic means to “admonish, correct, or instruct”).[3] As believers began to grasp the relevance of the Bible for life and the need for it in the counseling setting, the line was being drawn. There is no mistake now about the focus as well as the effects of Biblical Counseling which elevate it from any other type of “soul-care.” Adam’s derives his methodologies and instruction directly from the Word of God, and this is certain to have a deep impact.

IV. Works/Publications

Aside from Competent to Counsel, Jay Adams has authored over 100 books. Some of his most prominent works are as follows[4]:

The Christian Counselor’s Manual
Theology You Can Really Understand
Marriage, Divorce, and Remarriage in the Bible
Shepherding God’s Flock: A Handbook on Pastor Ministry, Counseling, and Leadership

V. Bibliography

Adams, Jay Edward. Competent to Counsel: Introduction to Nouthetic Counseling. Grand Rapids: Zondervan Publ. House, 2002.

“Adams, Jay E. 1929.” [WorldCat Identities], Last modified January 1, 1970. http://orlabs.oclc.org/identities/lccn-n50-36855/.

Bob. “Competent to Counsel?” RPM Ministries, Last modified December 9, 2009. https://rpmministries.org/2009/06/competent-to-counsel/.

“Competent to Counsel: An Interview with Jay Adams by Jay Adams.” Ligonier Ministries. Accessed May 5, 2020. https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/competent-counsel-interview-jay-adams/.

Gifford, Greg E. “Jay E. Adams.” The Encyclopedia of Biblical Counseling, Last modified July 11, 2019. https://encyclopediabc.com/2018/12/11/jay-e-adams/.

“Jay Adams’ Heritage: How Jay Adams Is Connected to the Father of American Psychology.” Biblical Counseling Coalition, Last modified May 3, 2019. https://www.biblicalcounselingcoalition.org/2019/05/03/jay-adams-heritage-how-jay-adams-is-connected-to-the-father-of-american-psychology/.

Powlison, David Arthur, “Competent to Counsel? The history of a conservative Protestant anti-psychiatry movement” (1996). Dissertations available from ProQuest. AAI9712988.
https://repository.upenn.edu/dissertations/AAI9712988

Page, C. (2017). Preserving guilt in the “age of psychology”: The curious career of O. Hobart Mowrer. History of Psychology, 20(1), 1–27. https://doi.org/10.1037/hop0000045.

[1] History of Psychology, Preserving guilt in the “age of psychology.” 1-27.

[2] “Competent to Counsel: An Interview with Jay Adams by Jay Adams.” Ligonier Ministries.

[3] Powlison, David Arthur, “Competent to Counsel?”

[4] “Adams, Jay E. 1929.” [WorldCat Identities].

David Powlison

Posted on July 10, 2019July 10, 2019 by Greg E. Gifford

By Thomas Watson

CCEF’s Former Executive Director, Senior Editor of the Journal of Biblical Counseling

I. Biography

Early life
Birth
When: December 14, 1949
Where: Honolulu Hawaii, United States
Parents: Peter A. and Dora M. Powlison
Spouse: Nancy H. Gardner
Children: Peter Powlison, Hannah Powlison, Gwenyth Powlison
Death: June 7, 2019

David Powlison was a Presbyterian author and biblical counselor; he is the executive director to CCEF, the senior editor of the Journal of Biblical Counseling and is a member of the counsel of the Gospel Coalition. He has been practicing counseling for over 30 years. His work is credited for bridging the gap between the secular psychiatric philosophy and biblical schools of counseling. He has written many books and articles on subjects such as sexual sin, anxiety, and grief.

David Powlison was born on December 14, 1949 to Peter and Dora Powlison on the island of Honolulu of Hawaii in the United States. He and his wife, Nancy H. Gardner, had 3 children, Peter, Hannah, and Gwyneth Powlison (TGC, PTLGOS).

At the age of 25, Powlison was working at McLean Psychiatric Hospital in the mental health department, in Belmont Massachusetts, when Christ convicted him of sin and brought him to repentance (CW, HGSD). After his conversion, while working in the Psychiatric Hospital as a mental health worker, Powlison started observing the constant suffering of the patients, that had little to no hope for change or healing. Powlison became “disillusioned with secular psychologies.” He found one individual quite interesting while working there, a man who was a mental health worker with no aspirations for high education. This man was building relationships with the patients, holding them accountable to their choices, and not blaming their behavior primarily on mental disorders. This induced the patients to react differently and ask for this particular man when they were in distress. The difference between what this man and the rest of the faculty practiced help lead Powlison to believe that the theories were fundamentally at odds and went to study theology at Westminster Theological Seminary (WTS; WSTIC).

Powlison started his education at Harvard University, with a Bachelor of Arts in 1971 then pursued a MDiv from Westminster Theological Seminary 1980. In 1986 he received his Master of Arts from the University of Pennsylvania. Then went on to get a PhD from the University of Pennsylvania in 1996 his subject of study—history of science and medicine, with an emphasis on the history of psychiatry (PB, DAP).

II. Education

AB, Harvard University, 1971
MDiv from Westminster Theological Seminary 1980
MA University of Pennsylvania, 1986
PhD from University of Pennsylvania, 1996
1. History of science and medicine, primarily history of psychiatry.

III. Significant life events that impacted person

Pancreatic Cancer – https://www.ccef.org/a-special-note-from-david-powlison/
David Powlison came to Christ while working at McLean Psychiatric Hospital in the mental health department, in Belmont Massachusetts, 1973 to 1976.
He is a teacher at the Christian Counseling and Educational foundation.
Editor of The Journal of Biblical Counseling.
He has been a Biblical counselor for over 30 years.
How God Saved David Powlison From Destroying Himself

IV. Theological Views

Presbyterian

V. Works/Publications

Books

Anger: Escaping the Maze – 2000

The Biblical Counseling Movement: history and Context – 2010

Breaking the Addictive Cycle: Deadly Obsessions or Simple Pleasures? – 2010

God’s Grace in Your Suffering – 2018

Good and angry: Redeeming Anger, irritation, Complaining, and Bitterness – 2016

How does Sanctification Work? – 2017

Jax’s Tail Twitches: When you are Angry – 2018

Making All Things New: restoring Joy to the Sexually Broken – 2017

Pornography: Slaying the Dragon – 1999

Power Encounters: Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare – 1994

Seeing with new eyes” Counseling and the Human Condition through the Lens of Scripture – 2005

Speaking Truth in love: Counsel in Community – 2005

Zoe’s Hiding Place: when you are Anxious – 2018

Power Encounter: Reclaiming Spiritual Warfare – 1994

Controlling Anger Responding Constructively when life Goes Wrong – 2008

I’m Exhausted: What to do When You’re Always Tired – 2010

Pleasure – 2005

Competent to Counsel? The History of a Conservative Protestant Biblical Counseling Movement – 2008

2. Pamphlets

Anger: Understanding anger – ?

Coming Clean: Breaking Pornography’s Hold on You – 2012

Controlling Anger: Responding Constructively When Life Goes Wrong – 2012

Domestic Abuse: How to Help – 2001

Facing Death with Hope: Living for what Lasts – 2008

God as Father: When Your Own Father Failed – 2005

God’s Love: better Than Unconditional – 2001

Grieving a Suicide: Help for the Aftershock – 2010

Healing After Abortion: God’s Mercy Is for You – 2008

I Just Want to Die: Replacing Suicidal Thoughts with Hope – 2008

I’m Exhausted: What to Do When You’re Always Tired – 2010

Innocence Lost: Rebuilding after Victimization – 2012

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 28-1 – 2014

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 28-2 – 2014

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 28-3 – 2015

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 29-1 – 2015

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 30-1 – 2016

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 30-2 – 2016

Journal of Biblical Counseling, 30-3 – 2016

Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads on Anger – 2013

Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads On Redeeming Psychology – 2013

The Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads: On Apologetics –

The Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads: On Counseling in the Church –

The Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads: on Methodology –

The Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads: on Model –

The Journal of Biblical Counseling Must Reads: on Sexuality –

Journal of biblical Counseling, Volume, 26 #3 – 2012

Journal of Biblical Counseling, Volume 27 #1 – 2013

Journal of Biblical Counseling, Volume 27 #3 – 2014

Journal of Biblical Counseling 18-1 – 1999

Journal of Biblical Counseling 18-2 – 2000

Life Beyond Your Parent’s Mistakes: The Transforming Power of God’s Love – 2010

Overcoming Anxiety: Relief for Worried People – 2012

Pre-Engagement: Five Questions to Ask Yourselves – 2000

Real Love: Better Than Unconditional? – 2012

Recovering from Child Abuse: Healing and Hope for Victims – 2008

Renewing marital Intimacy: Closing the Gap Between You and Your Spouse – 2008

Sexual Addiction: Freedom from Compulsive Behavior – 2010

Sexual assault: healing steps for Victims – 2010

Stress: Peace amid Pressure – 2004

Stressed Out: becoming Peaceful on the Inside – 2012

When Cancer Interrupts – 2015

When You Are Worried: Finding Reasons for Peace – 2012

Why Me?: Comfort for the Victimized

Worry: Pursuing a Better Path to Peace – 2004

You Make Me So Mad! Managing Your Anger – 2012

3. Articles

An Open Letter to the Suffering Christian – 2018

An Open Letter to Those Nonchalant about Their Sexual sin – 2017

An Open Letter to those Debilitated by their Sexual Sin – 2017

An Open letter to those apathetic about their sanctification – 2017

An open letter to those frustrated by their progress in sanctification – 2017

A Conversation Between David Powlison and Winston Smith

Why do we Pray?

Emmanuel shall come to you

Helping those who are angry with God

Thankfulness

God is changing us – but how?

Sanctification is a Direction

What is the Ultimate Goal of Sexual Renewal?

Is Sexual Renewal a Simple or Complex Process?

5 Sources of True Change

The Many Ways God Changes Us

4. Interviews

The root of sinful anger

Ten Ways Not to Waste Your Cancer

Making All Things New: Restoring Pure Joy to the Sexually Broken

God, Psychology, and Christian Care of the Soul – Panel Discussion

God, Psychology, and Christian Care of the Soul, Part 1 – David Powlison

God, Psychology, and Christian Care of the Soul, Part 2 – David Powlison

God, Psychology, and Christian Care of the Soul, Part 3 – David Powlison

Gospel Coalition’s David Powlison battling stage 4 pancreatic cancer

VI. Influence on Biblical Counseling

Bridging the gap between sin and psychopathology, Powlison believed that “sin is the core of psychopathology.” Sin skewed your goals and perception of God and the world. Powlison looked at Ecclesiastics 9:3 and saw that there is “madness in our hearts while we live.” His point is that whatever the physiological or environmental influences may be, such as genetic predispositions and cultural values, all factors must be held together. This idea is in contrast to the idea of blaming environment or only one factor. That the root of all sin and mental illness comes directly from the persons heart (CCEF, RBSP).

VII. Bibliography

David Powlison – “Why I Chose Seminary for Training in Counseling” http://online.wts.edu/wp-content/uploads/2017/07/Powlison-on-Seminary-for-Counseling-2.pdf , (WTS WSTIC) August 2017

David Powlison – “on the relationship between sin and psychopathology”

https://www.ccef.org/video/david-powlison-relationship-between-sin-and-psychopathology/ , (ccef, RBSP) April 2016

PraBook Biography: :David A. Powlison” World Biographical Encyclopedia, Inc

https://prabook.com/web/david_a.powlison/358932?profileId=358932 ,(PB, DAP) Accessed May 2019

Dr. David Powlison, “How God saved David Powlison From Destroying Himself”

https://www.crossway.org/articles/how-god-saved-david-powlison-from-destroying-himself/ , (CW, HGSD) May 2017

External Links

https://www.goodreads.com/author/show/432227.David_A_Powlison

https://www.ccef.org/people/david-powlison/

https://www.desiringgod.org/authors/david-powlison

https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/profile/david-powlison/

https://prabook.com/web/david_a.powlison/358932?profileId=358932

https://www.amazon.com/David-Powlison/e/B001JOTTKS

https://www.rightnowmedia.org/Content/Speaker/1000325

https://www.crossway.org/authors/david-powlison/

Wayne Mack

Posted on July 10, 2019 by Greg E. Gifford

By Oksana Zherebnenko

I. Known For

Wayne Mack has been identified as a seminal contributor to the Biblical Counseling movement. He studied and taught biblical counseling and Christian living in numerous universities. Mack has served on the board of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC) and on the board of the Fellowship of Independent Reformed Evangelicals (FIRE). Mack has spoken at various counseling seminars and has also helped establish biblical counseling programs in the United States and in South Africa.

II. Biography

Wayne Mack was born on June 7, 1935. His hometown is Carlisle, Pennsylvania but he lives in Pretoria, South Africa for the majority of the year with his wife, Carol (@WayneMack, Facebook, April 30, 2019). Wayne married Carol in 1957 and they have four adult children and thirteen grandchildren [1].

Wayne Mack received a bachelor’s degree from Wheaton College. He then received a Master’s of Divinity (MDiv) from Philadelphia Seminary and a Doctorate of Ministry (D.Min) from Westminster Theological Seminary. He has studied psychology at LaSalle University. He also studied counseling, theology and the church at Eastern Baptist Seminary, and theology at Wheaton graduate school and Trinity Theological Seminary [1].

III. Theological views

Wayne Mack is a promoter of nouthetic counseling. Within nouthetic counseling there are three main ideas: 1) Scripture is necessary when confronting a counselee about their problems 2) Counseling is always done to the benefit of the counselee and 3) The counselee is striving to change in order to be more like Christ, who is the standard [2]. Wayne Mack is marked by a dedication to the Word of God and all of his work is immersed in Scripture [3]. Mack does not write as a philosopher who explains theological epistemology, but instead he teaches as a pastor would, explaining how to help people according to a biblical framework [4].

IV. Works/Publications

Wayne Mack has written 27 books on biblical counseling and Christian living. His books include Strengthening Your Marriage, Homework Manual for Biblical Living, Anger and Stress Management God’s Way, and Humility: A Forgotten Virtue. His article entries have been published in Reformation Today, The Journal of Pastoral Counseling, The Journal of Biblical Counseling, and The Master’s Journal. He has a number of audio and video messages on counseling and Christian living distributed by Nouthetic Media [5].

V. Influence on Biblical Counseling

Wayne Mack has taught college and graduate school courses in biblical counseling at various bible colleges and seminaries. He has conducted biblical counseling seminars and conferences all over the world. Wayne and his wife moved to Pretoria, South Africa to teach biblical counseling to pastors. Wayne Mack supervised the development of the Master of Arts Biblical Counseling program at The Master’s University in Santa Clarita, CA. He is a charter member of ACBC and he helped found ACBC Africa. He served on the board of FIRE and is on the Board of Directors of Publicaciones Faro de Gracia. He works with Strengthening Ministries Training Institute to distribute books, audio and video tapes on counseling to churches and Christians all around the world [1].

VI. Bibliography

“About Dr. Wayne Mack,” Strengthening Ministries International, accessed April 28,

2019, http://www.mackministries.org/docs/about.shtml.

“About Wayne Mack,” Nouthetic Media, accessed April 28, 2019,

https://noutheticmedia.com/about-wayne-mack/.

Adams, Jay E. “What is ‘Nouthetic’ Counseling,” Institute for Nouthetic Studies,

accessed April 28, 2019,

http://www.nouthetic.org/about-ins/what-is-nouthetic-counseling.

Lambert, Heath. 2011. The Biblical Counseling Movement After Adams (Foreword by

David Powlison). Wheaton, IL: Crossway.

http://search.ebscohost.com/login.aspx?direct=true&AuthType=shib&db=nlebk&

AN=1140468&site=ehost-live&scope=site.

“What others have to say about Strengthening Ministries,” Strengthening Ministries

International, accessed April 28, 2019,

http://www.mackministries.org/docs/endorsements.shtml.

Strengthening Ministries International, “About Dr. Wayne Mack”
Institute for Nouthetic Counseling, “What is ‘Nouthetic’ Counseling”
Strengthening Ministries International, “What other have to say about Strengthening Ministries”
Lambert, The Biblical Counseling Movement After Adams, Ch. 4.
Nouthetic Media, “About Wayne Mack”

Biblical Counseling

Posted on December 11, 2018December 11, 2018 by Greg E. Gifford

By Jill Freeman

I. Overview

Biblical counseling is defined by its commitment not only to the inerrancy but also the sufficiency of Scripture to counsel people through life. While the psychological counselor would say that the Bible does not address many modern-day problems^[1], Biblical Counseling boldly proclaims that “His divine power has given us everything we need for life and godliness through our knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and goodness.”^[2]

However, this stands in contrast not only with secular psychology but with integrationist “Christian psychology”.[3] MacArthur notes, “In recent years…there has been a strong and very influential movement within the church attempting to replace biblical counseling in the church body with ‘Christina psychology’—techniques and wisdom gleaned from secular therapies and dispensed primarily by paid professionals. That is, they quote Scripture and often blend theological ideas with the teachings of Freud, Rogers, Jung, or whatever school of secular psychology they follow.”[4] These integrationists would claim that biblical counseling believes “God has allowed human beings to discover truth in almost every filed of human study except psychology.”[5] However, our ultimate source of truth must always be the Bible. Paul is pretty clear when he says, “See to it that no one takes you captive through hollow and deceptive philosophy, which depends on human tradition and the basic principles of this world rather than on Christ.”[6] Bulkley asks, “Am I misreading Paul? Is he in error to suggest that we can find all wisdom in Christ?”[7]

MacArthur gives a list of ideas that “many Christians are zealously attempting to synthesize with biblical truth”[8]:

Human nature is basically good.

People have the answers to their problems inside them.

The key to understanding and correcting a person’s attitudes and actions lies somewhere in that person’s past.

Individuals’ problems are the result of what someone else has done to them.

Human problems can be purely psychological in nature, unrelated to any spiritual or physical condition.

Deep-seated problems can be solved only by professional counselors using therapy.

Scripture, prayer, and the Holy Spirit are inadequate and simplistic resources for solving certain types of problems.[9]

In contrast, the truly biblical counselor would not affirm these anti-biblical truths. But, are we then throwing away the whole of psychology? MacArthur answers this by saying that “Certainly it is reasonable for people to seek medical help for medical problems…It is also sensible for someone who is alcoholic, drug addicted, learning disabled, traumatized by rape, incest, or severe battering, to seek help in trying to cope with their trauma…In extreme situations medication might be needed to stabilize an otherwise dangerous person.”[10] However, he points out that these are not the norm and should not be the norm for dealing with spiritual problems.[11]

If biblical counseling is not these things, what is it? MacArthur defines the common commitments of Biblical Counseling below:

God is at the center of counseling.
Commitment to God has epistemological consequences.
Sin, in all its dimensions
The gospel of Jesus Christ is the answer.
The biblical change process which counseling must aim at is progressive sanctification.
The situational difficulties people face are not the random cause of problems of living.
Counseling is fundamentally a pastoral activity and must be church-based.[12]

Macarthur notes that “These seven commitments have unified the biblical counseling movement … but there are numerous other issues that demand clear biblical thinking and firm commitment…”[13]

II. History & Impact

The Biblical Counseling movement sprang up in the 1970’s; “that rediscovery is linked primarily to the life and efforts of one man: Jay E. Adams.”[14] Adams became a believer in high school and in college earned a Bachelor of Arts in classics and a Bachelor of Divinity. In 1952, Adams was ordained and pastored for the next thirteen years; yet he was troubled by his inability to help people solve their problems.[15] Then, in 1965, Adams began a fellowship program with O. Hobart Mowrer, who influenced Adams greatly as he observed Mowrer dealing with people’s problems as moral issues. Although Mowrer did not follow a biblical approach,[16] through working with him, Adams was persuaded to begin much study on the conscience, guilt, anthropology, and change.[17] In 1970, after much study, “Adams’ personal rediscovery of biblical counseling initiated a widespread rediscovery for the entire church.”[18] Powlison notes that, “The publication of Competent to Counsel (CtC) in 1970 marked the inception of a discernible nouthetic counseling movement and triggered lively controversy in the evangelical community.”[19]

In the time leading up to the Biblical counseling movement, several factors stood as a backdrop to the movement. First, revivalism had sprung up, in which the primary goal was to draw a crowd and convert them to Christ.[20] Neither of these are bad things, yet revivalism tends to focus on the masses, conversion, and instant change, while Biblical counseling focuses on individuals, conversion and discipleship, and the change process.[21] Another factor which had major significance in relation to Biblical Counseling was modernism: “In this controversy higher criticism and Darwinism worked to undercut the confidence that many ministers and ordinary Christians had in the authority of the biblical text. The Bible’s teaching on the origins of the world, its understanding of the problems of people, and even the words of Scripture itself all came under fire.”[22] Modernism obviously played a major role in undermining the belief that Scripture is sufficient in counseling. In addition to this, the psychological revolution, including Wilhelm Wundt and Sigmund Freud propelled the culture into a greater need for truly Biblical Counseling. Lambert notes that Freud actually “argued for a class of ‘secular pastoral workers’ with the goal of secularizing the counseling task.”[23] Wundt’s belief that all psychological problems stemmed from physiological problems had great impact on the church, which began to follow Wundt’s persuasion that psychology was merely a scientific (and not theological) field.[24] Lambert notes, “The absence of theology in counseling was the order of the day when, in 1970, Jay Adams published Competent to Counsel. In that book and many others in the 1970s Adams sought to alert Christians to their failures in the area of counseling and began pointing the way to the resources laid out in Scripture for helping people.”[25]

In 1966, Adams started a counseling center with Gardner McBride, called the Christian Counseling and Educational Center (CCEC). Then in 1968, the ministry was expanded and the Christian Counseling and Educational Foundation (CCEF) was formed, which became a source not only of counseling, but also of training and published resources. CCEF continued to grow, hiring its first full-time employee in 1974, and expanding its sites across the country. Soon, “the need for a professional association became evident. Concerns for the growing group of practitioners included certification for biblical counselors, accountability for standards of biblical commitment and ethics, fellowship and interaction among biblical counselors, ongoing in-service training, and protection from lawsuits. To meet these and other needs, Adams joined with several men to found the National Association of Nouthetic Counselors (NANC) in 1976.”[26]

Since the founding of NANC (now known as the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors: ACBC), several other biblical counseling resources, ministries, and educational programs have sprung up. These include The Journal of Biblical Counseling (originally known as The Journal of Pastoral Practice), Faith Baptist Counseling Ministries (FBCM), and The Master’s University and Seminary. Meanwhile, several Christian organizations have continued down the path of secular psychology and integration, hiring psychologists and teaching psychology in their colleges and seminaries.

Powlison explains that, “The nouthetic counseling movement entered the 1980s full of optimism. Jay Adams’s ‘counseling revolution’ had enjoyed a rapid and clamorous expansion.” However, “Nouthetic counseling’s popularity plateaued by 1980. During the decade that followed, momentum stalled, while the evangelical psychotherapists enjoyed spectacular success in capturing the mind, the respect, and the institutions of conservative Protestantism.”[27] Yet, “around 1990, even as the therapeutic movement among evangelicals came into full flower, nouthetic counseling institutions began to grow, and doubts about psychotherapy became increasingly evident among conservative Protestants.”[28]

III. Works/Publications

Jay Adams: Competent to Counsel: https://www.amazon.com/Competent-Counsel-Jay-Adams/dp/0310511402/ref=sr_1_1?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1543649861&sr=1-1&keywords=competent+to+counsel
Jay Adams: The Christian Counselor’s Manual: https://www.amazon.com/Christian-Counselors-Manual-Nouthetic-Counseling/dp/031051150X
Jay Adams: How to Help People Change: https://www.amazon.com/How-Help-People-Change-Adams/dp/031051181X/ref=sr_1_3?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1543649937&sr=1-3&keywords=how+to+help+people+change+jay+adams
John Macarthur: Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically: https://www.amazon.com/Counseling-Counsel-Biblically-John-MacArthur/dp/1418500054/ref=pd_lpo_sbs_14_img_2?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1&refRID=MYN2DHE7GN3XCVKQE2A8
Paul David Tripp: Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands: People in Need of Change Helping People in Need of Change: https://www.amazon.com/Instruments-Redeemers-Hands-Resources-Changing/dp/0875526071/ref=sr_1_2?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1543649801&sr=1-2&keywords=instruments+in+the+redeemer%27s+hands+paul+tripp

Bibliography

Bulkley, Ed, Why Christians Can’t Trust Psychology. Eugene: Harvest House Publishers, 1993.

Lambert, Heath. The Biblical Counseling Movement After Adams (Forward by David Powlison). E-book. Wheaton: Crossway, 2011. http://web.b.ebscohost.com/ehost/ebookviewer/ebook/bmxlYmtfXzExNDA0NjhfX0FO0?sid=d98e0c80-83a7-4f47-8a46-926e1f54fd78@sessionmgr101&vid=0&format=EK&rid=1

Macarthur, John. Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically., Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc., 2005.

Powlison, David. The Biblical Counseling Movement., Greensboro: New Growth Press, 2010.

[1] Ed Bulkley, Ph. D. Why Christians Can’t Trust Psychology (Eugene: Harvest House Publishers, 1993), 258

[2] Ibid. 258, quoting 2 Peter 1:3 NIV

[3] As defended throughout Ibid.

[4] John MacArthur, Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically (Nashville: Thomas Nelson, Inc.), 3

[5] Bulkley, Why Christians Can’t Trust Psychology, 26: quoting Gary R. Collins, Can You Trust Psychology? (Downers Grove: InterVarsity Press, 1988), 94

[6] Ibid. 25 quoting Col. 2:8 NIV

[7] Ibid. 25

[8] MacArthur, Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically, 7

[9] List from Ibid. 7

[10] Ibid. 8

[11] Ibid. 8-9

[12] Ibid. 27-29

[13] Ibid. 29

[14] Ibid. 23

[15] Ibid. 21-22

[16] Ibid. 22. Also supported in: Powlison, The Biblical Counseling Movement (Greensboro: New Growth Press, 2010), chapter 2

[17] MacArthur, Counseling: How to Counsel Biblically, 22

[18] Ibid. 23

[19] Powlison, The Biblical Counseling Movement, 51

[20] Heath Lambert. The Biblical Counseling Movement After Adams (Forward by David Powlison)., E-book, (Wheaton: Crossway, 2011) chapter 1

[21]Ibid. http://web.a.ebscohost.com/ehost/ebookviewer/ebook/bmxlYmtfXzExNDA0NjhfX0FO0?sid=77ea82de-9491-46fb-bc3e-05099ad1f38a@sdc-v-sessmgr05&vid=0&format=EK&rid=1

[22] Ibid.

[23] Ibid.

[24] Ibid.

[25] Ibid.

[26] Ibid. 24

[27] David Powlison, The Biblical Counseling Movement, 201-202

[28] Ibid. 219

Jay E. Adams

Posted on December 11, 2018July 11, 2019 by Greg E. Gifford

By Ethan Berthiaume

I. Known For

Jay E. Adams is a reformed American Christian author who is best known for influential writings that helped found modern Biblical Counseling. He has written over 100 books, the most famous of which being Competent to Counsel. Jay Adams introduced the method of “nouthetic” counseling, which centers around conforming to scriptural principles for the purpose of spiritual growth. This method eventually became a movement which we know today as Biblical Counseling. Adams has been called a “father of Biblical Counseling” for his foundational influence on the methods and movements that shaped it (Powlison, 44).

II. Biography

Jay Adams was born to Joseph Edward and Anita Louise Adams in Baltimore, Maryland on January 30, 1929. He was married to Betty Jane Whitlock on June 23, 1952. They had four children: Holly, Todd, Clay, and Heather (“Jay E. Adams – Exodus Books”).

Jay became came to know Christ at the age of 15 after being gifted a copy of the New Testament by a friend. Adams became fascinated with God’s word, and he majored in Greek solely for the purpose of having an understanding what God’s word teaches (Adams, Ligonier Ministries).

Adams went on to study and receive formal theological and seminary training at several different schools. These include the Reformed Episcopal Seminary, John Hopkins University, Pittsburgh-Xenia Seminary, Temple University School of Theology, and the University of Missouri. He then went on to pastor at several churches alongside the East Coast in Pennsylvania and New Jersey. Adams began working as a professor at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, and eventually became the director of the Doctoral program at Westminster Theological Seminary in California. Following this, he went on to plant churches in South Carolina, where he pastored until 1999 (“Jay E Adams, Ph. D.”).

Jay Adams first became interested in counseling early in his pastoral ministry after experiencing a difficult situation with the death of a man he failed to comfort in a difficult circumstance. After this, Adams asked the Lord to help him become effective in counseling ministry. While studying at the Temple University School of Theology, Adams took a course on psychological counseling. Here, he was discouraged by how foundationally speculative the methods were. Adams became more interested in the Biblical view of psychology while studying under Psychologist, O. Hobart Mowrer (1907-1982). Mowrer taught counseling techniques that integrated sin as an influence on mental health. While Adams did not entirely agree with all of Mowrer’s views, he became more fascinated with applying the Bible to the techniques of soul care. Adams continued to study and develop a model founded on Biblical principles known as “nouthetic counseling”. In 1970, he published his most famous work, Competent to Counsel, which argued that that all Christians can become fully equipped for the work and ministry of soul care if their methods were centered around biblical principles and views of man (Powlison, 35-45).

The publication of this book caused much controversy in the Christian community, as more and more pastors began to adopt Adam’s method of “nouthetic counseling” into their ministry. This movement eventually grew into what we now know today as Biblical Counseling (Powlison, 44).

Adams was honored at the first International Congress on Christian Counseling in 1988 in Atlanta as one of the three fathers of Christian Counseling, for his essential influence on the movement (Powlison, 43).

Jay Adams Retired in 1999 from pastoral ministry but has continued to write and lecture on Biblical Counseling. He founded the Institute for Nouthetic Studies (INS) in the year 2001. At the time of this publication, he currently resides in South Carolina and is still involved in teaching at INS (“Jay E Adams, Ph. D.”)

Jay Adams was revolutionary for his time, as psychology had taken a preeminent role in the art of soul care. Adams challenged the skeptical theories of psychology and developed a model that helped push the church towards scripture-based methods of helping people.

III. Important Theological Views

Nouthetic Counseling

Jay Adam’s most prominent, and certainly most well-known accomplishment is his method of nouthetic counseling. The word nouthetic comes from the Greek word noutheteō, which means to “instruct” or “admonish.” Adams himself states that this method is based upon three scriptural principles: concern, confrontation, and change. Adam’s most famous work, Competent to Counsel, goes in-depth with this method, describing the role of a counselor to encourage believers towards the repentance of sin. This method also includes the factor of the Holy Spirit, whom Adams believes is the sole source of true Biblical change in a believer’s life (Adams, Ligonier Ministries).

An important distinction of Jay Adams models is their rejection of psychological theories and models that contradict the Bible. This mainly has to do with the issue of sin as it relates to a believer’s behavior, a factor that is most often excluded from modern psychological models. Adams’ method of nouthetic counseling is distinct in that it holds to the Bible as the sufficient and authoritative tool for equipping believers for all things needed for life and godliness (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

IV. Works/Publications

Jay Adams has written over 100 books that relate to pastoral ministry and counseling. These have been translated into 16 different languages. The most famous and influential of published works are: Competent to Counsel (1970), The Christian Counselors Manuel (1973), A Theology of Christian Counseling (1979), Shepherding God’s Flock: A Handbook on Pastoral Ministry, Counseling, and Leadership (1974) (“Adams, Jay E. 1929- [Worldcat Identities]”.)

Bibliography

“Jay E. Adams – Exodus Books”. Exodusbooks.Com, https://www.exodusbooks.com/jay-e-

adams/2716/. Accessed 30 Nov 2018.

Adams, Jay. “Competent To Counsel: An Interview With Jay Adams By Jay Adams”. Ligonier Ministries. 2014. Accessed 30 November 2018

“Jay E Adams, Ph. D.”. Nouthetic.Org, http://www.nouthetic.org/about-ins/our-faculty/8-about-ins/6-jay-adams-biography. Accessed 29 Nov 2018.

“Adams, Jay E. 1929- [Worldcat Identities]”. Orlabs.Oclc.Org,

http://orlabs.oclc.org/identities/lccn-n50-36855/. Accessed 30 Nov 2018.

Collins, Gary R; Johnson, Eric L; Jones, Stanton L (2000). Psychology & Christianity. Downers

Grove, IL, USA: InterVarsity Press. pp. 36–37. ISBN 0-8308-2263-1.

Powlison, David. The Biblical Counseling Movement. New Growth Press, 2010, pp. p. 35-44.

Ligonier Ministries, 2014, https://www.ligonier.org/learn/articles/competent-counsel-interview-jay-adams/. Accessed 1 Dec 2018.