Christ-Centered Biblical Counseling
This past Friday, I was so pleased to receive my long-awaited copy of Christ-Centered Biblical Counseling—the combined work of 40 friends from the Biblical Counseling Coalition. Christ-Centered Biblical Counseling is sure to become a standard text for those interested in understanding the theology and practice of biblical counseling.
David Powlison writes in the Foreword:
“This book affirms that a good counselor is many things simultaneously: tender and firm, responsive yet purposeful, candid and tactful, patient yet urgent, attentive and instructive, profound yet practical, prayerful and hard-working, comforting yet challenging, empathetic and objective, flexible yet committed, faithful to Jesus Christ and relevant to any person facing any trouble…along with many other good and desirable qualities. While the ingredients of deft conversation are hard to capture on paper, the tone and content of what you read will give you a feel for how godly wisdom carries on a compassionate and constructive conversation.”
In this book, Powlison says, we will hear the following core commitments, which we continually promote and affirm on this blog.
- Reality is God-centered and all human beings are worshipers, whether or not they are conscious of this reality and its implications.
- God our Father, Christ our Savior, and the Holy Spirit our Life-giver is purposefully on-scene and actively working in people’s lives.
- Scripture is comprehensively relevant to the things that concern, preoccupy, and trouble humankind.
- Counseling is an integral aspect of ministry and of church life.
CONTENTS
Part 1: A Practical Theology of Biblical Counseling
Chapter 1: The Glory of God: The Goal of Biblical Counseling—John Piper and Jack Delk
Chapter 2: The Power of the Redeemer—Ernie Baker and Jonathan Holmes
Chapter 3: The Ministry of the Holy Spirit—Justin Holcomb and Mike Wilkerson
Chapter 4: The Unity of the Trinity—Kevin Carson and Jeff Forrey
Chapter 5: The Grand Narrative of the Bible—John Henderson
Chapter 6: The Sufficiency of Scripture—Steve Viars and Rob Green
Chapter 7: The Spiritual Anatomy of the Soul—Bob Kellemen and Sam Williams
Chapter 8: The Influences on the Human Heart—Jeff Forrey and Jim Newheiser
Chapter 9: The Problem of Sin—Robert Jones and Brad Hambrick
Chapter 10: The Centrality of the Gospel—Robert Cheong
Chapter 11: The Gospel in Balance—Stuart Scott
Chapter 12: The Pursuit of Holiness—Lee Lewis and Michael Snetzer
Chapter 13: The Weapons of Our Warfare—Bob Kellemen and Dwayne Bond
Chapter 14: The Hope of Eternity—Nicolas Ellen and Jeremy Lelek
Part 2: A Practical Methodology of Biblical Counseling
Chapter 15: The Biblical Counseling Ministry of the Local Church—Steve Viars and Rob Green
Chapter 16: The Health of the Church and Biblical Counseling—Deepak Reju and Mark Dever
Chapter 17: The Personal, Private, and Pulpit Ministry of the Word—Kevin Carson
Chapter 18: The Transformational Tie Between Small Group Ministry and Biblical Counseling—Brad Bigney and Ken Long
Chapter 19: The Goal and Focus of Spiritual Formation—Robert Cheong and Heath Lambert
Chapter 20: The Importance of Multiculturalism in Biblical Counseling—Rod Mays and Charles Ware
Chapter 21: The Nature of the Biblical Counseling Relationship—Jeremy Pierre and Mark Shaw
Chapter 22: The Key Elements of the Biblical Counseling Process—Randy Patten and Mark Dutton
Chapter 23: The Diagnosis and Treatment of Idols of the Heart—Howard Eyrich and Elyse Fitzpatrick
Chapter 24: The Power of Confession and Repentance—James MacDonald and Garrett Higbee
Chapter 25: The Power of Forgiveness—James MacDonald and Garrett Higbee
Chapter 26: The Ministry of Soul Care for People Who Suffer—Bob Kellemen and Greg Cook
Chapter 27: The Biblical Understanding and Treatment of Emotions—Jeff Forrey
Chapter 28: The Complex Mind/Body Connection—Laura Hendrickson
Conclusion: Unity in Truth and Love—James MacDonald, Bob Kellemen, and Steve Viars
Appendix A: The Mission, Vision, and Passion Statement of the Biblical Counseling Coalition
Appendix B: The Confessional Statement of the Biblical Counseling Coalition
Appendix C: The Doctrinal Statement of the Biblical Counseling Coalition
— Learn more about the 40 authors, and how to get your copy of Christ-Centered Biblical Counseling, here.
