Contrasting Biblical and Secular Counseling

In the Christian church today there is a great debate raging over the issue of counseling. Some are saying that while the Bible may be able to lead a person to saving faith in Jesus, it does not have the answers to people’s real problems. People dealing with depression or outbursts of anger need more than a Bible verse if they are going to change. They need professionals from the fields of psychology and psychiatry who are trained to understand the complexities of human beings and prescribe a cure or method to heal them.

A growing number of biblical counselors are not convinced of what they call the integrationist position.[1] They see it as unbiblical, counterproductive, and even dangerous to dip into the wells of psychological theory when trying to help people. True and lasting transformation is only found in the Word of God applied through the power of the Holy Spirit, they would say. Is this too simplistic? The integrationist would say so. Are the Bible and the Holy Spirit sufficient to meet people’s deepest needs? The biblical counselor would say, “Yes!”

Sometimes the best way to see if two things are compatible is to line them up side by side and see how they match up. That is what this study intends to do. Aspects of psychological theory (secular counseling) and biblical counseling will be portrayed side by side to see if there truly is any compatibility between them. A conclusion must be drawn on this issue if the church of Jesus Christ is going to remain strong, adequately helping people glorify God and enabling them to live a meaningful life.

The first area of comparison will be the origin and history of secular and biblical counseling. Wilhelm Wundt (Aug. 16, 1832 to Aug. 31, 1920) is called the Father of Psychology. Though others before him speculated on psychological ideas commonly studied even today, Wundt established the first laboratory for psychological studies at Leipzig University in Germany in 1879. He wrote one of the first textbooks on psychology entitled Principles of Physiological Psychology. Wundt studied various fields such as neurology and physiology in addition to psychology. Though the level of how much his research influences modern psychological theory is debated, there is no doubt that Wundt’s theorizing was instrumental in sparking a wave of interest in studying the psychological fields in the following generations. Thus, later studies that developed into modern secular counseling ultimately have their roots in the initial work of Wilhelm Wundt.

In contrast to the origin of secular counseling, biblical counseling has its origin in the Son of God! According to the scriptures, one of the names of the eternal Son of God is “Wonderful Counselor, Mighty God” (Isaiah 9:6). Jesus Himself is the promised Messiah referred to in that wonderful verse. It tells the one who reads the prophecy that one thing Jesus intended to be to those who would accept Him is their Wonderful Counselor.
As the Wonderful Counselor and Head of His church, Jesus established a church with biblical counseling engrained into its very fabric and foundation. Rather than have a professional few who were called to be expert counselors to meet the needs of people, Jesus decided that all of His people would be equipped through the knowledge of His Word to counsel one another. A picture of this is seen in the Apostle Paul’s exhortation to the Colossian Church. He wrote, “Let the word of Christ dwell in you richly teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs” (Col. 3:16; emphasis added). The whole church is called to admonish (counsel) each other as the word of Christ dwells in them.
Another verse that shows biblical counseling to have its origin in God Himself is 2 Timothy 3:16-17: “All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for discipline in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, thoroughly equipped for every good work.” God gave the inspired scriptures to be applied to a person’s life with the goal of making him or her “complete.” That is a clear picture of what could be called biblical counseling today. The Lord Jesus, God Himself, intended His people to counsel and be counseled. That is His idea as the Wonderful Counselor. He intends His word to be the basis and content of the counsel they receive. The origin of biblical counseling is God Himself.

There are well known people both in the secular and biblical counseling fields. At this point, it may be helpful in discerning whether or not these two counseling approaches are compatible, to list some of the proponents of each perspective side by side. From the secular counseling perspective few men have been as influential as Sigismund Schlomo Freud (May 6, 1856 to Sep. 23, 1939). Freud, as he is called, is considered the father of Psychoanalysis. He popularized what he called the study of the unconscious mind. He believed that the problems people faced were always linked to something going on in their subconscious. Such a theory greatly lent to modern psychological practices of encouraging people to look within their emotions and feelings to find the solution to their problems.

Carl Gustav Jung (July 26, 1875 to June 6, 1961) is another well known contributor to the fields of secular counseling. Jung is known as the father of Analytical Psychology. Similar to Freud, Jung saw the study of the unconscious mind as the way to personal healing and individual development. He believed in searching the subconscious thoughts and dreams of people for keys to figuring out behavior and emotional characteristics. Areas of study for Jung included astrology, alchemy, eastern and western mythology, and psychology. It is no wonder that many of his ideas and conclusions sound more like Occult or New Age teachings than they do science.
Abraham Harold Maslow is well known as the father of Humanistic Psychology. He believed he was offering a better alternative to the psychology of Freud and others because he considered his studies based on empirical data. He wanted to offer more concrete understanding of behavior patterns and methods for healthy change than many of his predecessors. He came up with the well known Maslow’s Hierarchy of Human Needs.

From the biblical counseling perspective one prominent figure is Dr. Jay E. Adams. He is founder of the Institute for Nouthetic Counseling. He is a committed Christian, lecturer, author, and conference speaker on issues of counseling. He is considered by many to be a modern-day prophet calling the Church of Jesus Christ back to the purity of the powerful word of God in counseling. He is a strong voice against integrationist philosophy.
Dr. Wayne Mack is another well known biblical counselor. He was a pastor for nearly twenty years. He taught graduate level biblical counseling courses at The Master’s College in Southern California. He has degrees in both psychology and theology which gives him an understanding of both sides of the debate. He is also one of the leading voices in America calling the church and Christian pastors to return to the Lord and His Word alone for counsel. He lecturers and writes widely on issues surrounding counseling.
David Powlison is a biblical counselor employed with the Christian Counseling Education Foundation. He is also the editor of the Journal of Biblical Counseling and an author and speaker on various aspects of counseling. He has worked in connection with Pastor’s like John Piper, D.A. Carson, and Justin Taylor to make biblically-based counseling on sexual intimacy and sanctification available to the body of Christ.

When a person is going to decide which counseling approach they are going to subscribe to, it may be helpful to consider the six representatives that stand here in contrast of each side. For the fathers of secular counseling, you have three men that have relied purely on their own theorizing mixed with various religious and spiritual ideas as the basis of their study and conclusions. On the other hand, you have three other very educated men who rely on the presuppositions revealed in God’s Word as the basis for their study and conclusions regarding counseling. Their approaches are anything but compatible when contrasted.

Another area that should be contrasted to understand whether or not secular and biblical counseling are compatible is the basic philosophy behind both of them. Secular counseling generally has behavior modification as its core goal. The secular counselor generally seems concerned with figuring out how their patient is unhappy, dissatisfied, or depressed etc., and trying to find a practical way of reversing those areas. Things like an increased sense of well-being and stress management are focused on. Discomfort reduction and freedom from guilt are also common areas of emphasis in secular counseling. It seems that, in short, you could say that secular counseling is primarily concerned with helping people experience a happy, guiltless, stress-free life with a high view of self.

In contrast, the philosophy of biblical counseling is quite different. Biblical counseling isn’t simply focused on how to help a person experience a more desirable existence. Biblical counseling seeks to help a person understand what God’s Word says about their situation circumstances, relationships, and behavior and help them conform to its precepts. Biblical counseling even recognizes that difficult circumstances are actually sometimes designed by God as a means to help His people grow. James 1:2-4 says, “My brethren, count it all joy when you fall into various trials, knowing that the testing of your faith produces patience. But let patience have its perfect work, that you may be perfect and complete, lacking nothing.” Commenting on this verse biblical counselor Bob Hoekstra wrote, “Those seeking counsel and those giving counsel need to know this. The general tendency of a person in a trial is to seek relief. The typical counsel given to the one who is in a trial is aimed only at getting out of that plight. God can certainly give relief and bring deliverance. However, we do not want to overlook any bigger work of transformation that He may desire to do.”[2]

Those who engage in biblical counseling also recognize that suffering and discomfort can be the direct affliction of God -- even on His children, but that He causes it out of love for their own good. In reflecting on that principle as taught in the book of Hebrews, Pastor John Piper wrote, “Hebrews 12 tells us that God disciplines his children through suffering. His aim is deeper faith and deeper holiness. ‘He disciplines us for our good, that we may share His holiness.’”[3] The philosophies of biblical and secular counseling in general, and specifically on suffering in the life of a person, are drastically incompatible.

The last area that should be contrasted in determining the level of compatibility between secular and biblical counseling is the area of practical methodology. In counseling method, the secular counselor begins and ends with the study of human beings. They try to go inside the mind and emotions of the counselee and figure out what they are feeling and thinking. They then try to go backward into the counselee’s past or into their subconscious to determine what may have caused them to experience the present undesired circumstance they are in. Once the secular counselor has determined what they think caused the problem from within the person or their past they look for pragmatic ways to bring about the desired solution. If they feel guilty, the counselor tries to help them leave their guilt behind, usually through focusing on self-forgiveness. If the person is depressed, the counselor would typically encourage the person to love themselves and try to build their self-image. And so goes secular counseling. It is very man centered.

The biblical counselor once again does just about the opposite. After discerning what the counselee is going through, the biblical counselor first determines whether or not the person seeking counsel has experienced salvation through faith in Jesus Christ. Expressing that sentiment, S. Lance Quinn said, “Then what can biblical counseling offer to the unregenerate person? We can communicate the truth that no one can change to any significant degree without embracing Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord. That is where true change must begin. Biblical counseling can offer the gospel, the answer to the most profound human need. This is the goal and basis of any counseling with nonbelievers. If the person refuses to acknowledge a need for Christ’s saving work, there is really no other way to help that person.”[4]

After determining that the counselee is saved, the biblical counselor next should inquire as to the level of commitment to the discipleship process the one seeking counsel is engaged in. If the person is not actively pursuing a meaningful relationship with Jesus through prayer, Bible study, and fellowship, the source of the problem has probably been found. If the counselee is saved and pursuing discipleship than the biblical counselor next seeks to apply God’s Word appropriately. Application of the truth of the Bible is always paramount in biblical counseling. That was God’s plan as expressed earlier in this study. After this the counselor should pray with the counselee to seek the empowering of the Holy Spirit to obey the precepts of God’s Word applicable to their situation. The person seeking counsel should then be encouraged to meditate on Scripture pertinent to their situation and to rely upon the Holy Spirit to change them through persistent prayer until the biblical goal is realized. After all, as Ed Bulkley wrote, “The Holy Spirit is the One who actually applies the truths of God’s Word to the believer’s life.”[5]

So, even in pursuing practical change in a person’s life, biblical and secular/psychological counseling are totality incompatible and based on mutually exclusive perspectives. The differences between the two approaches to counseling could be boiled down to a simple contrast. Secular psychological counseling is human-focused; biblical counseling is God-focused. Secular counseling sees undesirable conditions and behaviors in people, and studies people to find out how to fix them. Biblical counseling observes the same problems, but instead of studying people they ask the God who made people to tell them what is wrong with man, what man was intended for, and what needs to happen to get him back on track. God designed man and He knows how man is supposed to function and for what purpose. If someone invents a new piece of technology, it is logical to ask its designer to explain the purpose and function of his creation. In the same way, God “invented” mankind. The answers as to the purpose and correct function of mankind are found in God, man’s Creator.

[1] A term used to describe someone who supports the integration of psychological theory into biblical counseling.
[2] Hoekstra, Bob: How to Counsel God’s Way, pg. 143
[3] Piper, John: Suffering and the Sovereignty of God, pg. 91
[4] Quinn, S. Lance: The John MacArthur Pastor’s Library, Counseling, How to Counsel Biblically pg. 259
[5] Bulkley, Ed: Why Christians can’t trust Psychology, pg. 267