Dreaming a Dozen Dreams
Part 9: Dream Number Eight
Biblical Counseling Will Be Holistic in Theory
Welcome to a multi-part Blog on The Future of Biblical Counseling. We need clarity on the issue of what makes biblical counseling biblical. I invite you to join the conversation.
In the past, at times some models of biblical counseling have focused on one primary aspect of human nature—our volitionality—our ability to act, will, choose, behave. Such a focus is incomplete. It does not offer a fully biblical “personality theory.” Without a biblical personality theory we have no way of accurately assessing whether the model provides a scriptural perspective on people, problems, and solutions.
The Imago Dei
Biblical counseling will focus on the full range of human nature created in the image of God (imago Dei). A holistic biblical understanding of the imago Dei includes seeing human beings as relational beings who desire (our spiritual, social, and self-aware capacities), rational beings who think, volitional beings who choose, emotional beings who experience, and physical beings who act. Biblical counseling models of change will focus on each of these areas, seeing the human personality as holistically united.
Biblical counseling will not deny the interplay or the complexity of our mind/brain and body/soul connection. Such biblical counseling will take seriously the role of the brain (in a fallen world in an unglorified body) and its impact on healthy human functioning.
The Complexity of Human Functioning
One way to assess whether any model is truly biblical or not is to ask whether that model provides a thorough assessment of who we are in our Creation, Fall, and Redemption.
Biblical counseling models provide theologically sound and practically relevant description of God’s original design for us as relational (spiritual, social, self-aware) beings, rational, volitional, emotional, and physical beings.
Biblical counseling models then provide theologically sound and practically relevant diagnoses of how our fall into depravity distorted God’s original design for us as relational (spiritual, social, self-aware) beings, rational, volitional, emotional, and physical beings.
Biblical counseling models then provide theologically sound and practically relevant models of how our redemption in Christ returns us through our salvation and progressive sanctification to God’s original design for us as relational (spiritual, social, self-aware) beings, rational, volitional, emotional, and physical beings.
