The Glory of God in Counseling
By Michael Shipman
When one thinks of counseling, he or she most likely does not chiefly think of the Glory of God. One of the main reasons for this is due to our current psychologized context. Pop- Psychology and psychiatry have at their core the counselee, behavior modification, and coping- skills as their main object and focus. However, in biblical counseling, there must be only one focal point…The glory of God in the soul of man. Many will ask “But what does this mean?” The macro meaning (or the big picture) is that biblical counseling is a mission, a work, an endeavor, a labor to see the glorious radiance of the Creator restored to the one who is created in the image of God. To say it another way, biblical counseling is seeking to have the image of Christ shine forth in the mind, heart, and actions of a believer to such a degree that when we encounter them, we cannot but help to express that we have encountered something of Christ. For this to become a reality, I am going to use a very old blueprint to map a (big picture) path in which we can all endeavor to see Christ’s glory restored to those that belong to Him by faith. This “blueprint” is from Martin Luther, the 16 th Century Augustinian monk who God mightily used to launch the Protestant Reformation. These “Five Solas” are applicable to every area of ministry; especially preaching and counseling. Therefore, let us consider how these five guiding principles can assist us in the restoration of the Glory of God upon the soul of man.
Sola Scriptura (God’s Word Alone)
Plainly stated, the Word of the Living and Eternal God must be the foundation and standard of all biblical counseling. It is only by His voice (which is effectual) that we discover our sin, discover His grace, and discover His standard of living by the power of His Spirit. We are told in Matthew 4:4 “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that comes from the mouth of God.” Therefore, the mandate in biblical counseling is not to give “good advice,” but rather, to give the living Word of God. This is what transforms, this is what nourishes, this is what sustains.
Sola Fide (Faith Alone)
Once we have been graciously given the voice of God (Vox Dei) in written form (or orally passed down) we must then apprehend it by faith. That is, we must apprehend it’s message by faith. We must apprehend what it says about our sin, God, Christ, redemption, creation, hell / judgement, heaven, how to live in honor and obedience to God; all that it says, all of it must be embraced as from the mouth of God. But Ephesians 2:8 plainly states that faith is a gift from God. In other words, faith does not originate with you or me. Pressing this reality home even further, Romans 10:17 states that faith comes to us through the word concerning Christ. Therefore, the faith that saves is alien to the fallen sinful heart. It must be granted as a gift through the proclamation of the gospel by the Word of God. So, in counseling, most of the issues we face are directly related to faith, faith in God’s goodness, His Person, His power, His provision, His promises. We must then understand that as we are conveying God’s Word to another, we are laboring; praying that God will grant them the faith that is needed to apprehend Christ for their satisfaction and His glory.
Sola Gratia (Grace Alone)
All of what we are and what we have is by His grace alone. We are all undeserving of His grace, even at the atomic atom size. As one prominent theologian put it, “Grace is not a thing, it is a Person, and that Person is Jesus Christ.” The word “Grace” in our English Bibles shows up 126 times. It shows up 81 of those times in the writings of the Apostle Paul; for a good saturation on what grace is, take a Saturday afternoon and read through several of Paul’s epistles (grace is everywhere). In Biblical counseling, grace is a two-sided sword. First it reveals our need: Grace can only come from Him. Second, grace is the reality of all that is needed will be supplied. Therefore, we must be a community that is communicating both sides: “You have a need (His grace), and He is the only one that can fulfill that need (by His grace). The need of His grace will drive us to our knees, and the reception of grace will have us raising our hands in praise!
Solus Christus (Christ Alone)
Justification, Sanctification, and Glorification are all of Christ alone! Some may quip with this and say that I am leaving out the other Members of the Trinity but consider for a moment: The Father sent the Son, the Son purchased the Bride, the Holy Spirit applied His atoning work, and the Son will call us home. The crux of our salvation is Christ and Christ alone. He is the pinnacle. He is the grand and majestic centerpiece. All facets of the redemption diadem reveal Him and Him alone. Therefore, in biblical counseling, we are to reveal Him, and no other. We must seek every opportunity to somehow point them to the Person and work of Christ Jesus found only in Holy Scripture.
Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone Be Glory)
Our grand objective and aim. To see the soul of every man, woman, and child conformed to the image of Christ by the Word of God through the grace of God, for the glory of God. We really must ask ourselves, if God’s glory is not the main and ultimate purpose of counseling, then what is? Anything but His glory is an insufficient answer. Sure, we absolutely want the person to be helped with their current struggle. But the individual that is being helped through their sin-struggle because of an encounter with the Living God through the Word of God is what brings glory to God! We must guard ourselves from creating false dichotomies, I.E. If you are focusing on the glory of God, then you must be forgetting about the good of the person you are counseling. Our good, and joy is only found in His glory, therefore, it must be our aim in counseling.