Page 6 - Biblical Counseling I Textbook

Secular beliefs concerning humanity
Secularists, those whose philosophies are not rooted in God’s Word, strongly hold to various beliefs that greatly
influence what advice they may give in dealing with life issues. Here are some basic principles that form the
foundation of their belief system:
1. Humans are simply complex animals (Naturalism).

2. Humans are strictly biological beings without a spirit or soul (Materialism).
Sigmund Freud: “Religion is an illusion and it derives its strength from the fact that
it falls in with our instinctual desires.”

3. People are basically good or at least morally neutral.

4. Human problems result from biological or external circumstances.
Mental illnesses result from genetic or other physical disorders.
Problem behaviors result from poor social conditioning.

5. Humans have free will (i.e. autonomy) and are able to solve their own problems.

6. “Guilt” is a man-made social construct that is destructive to psychological wellbeing.

7. The spirit world controls the material world, including people.

The Biblical Counseling Movement

The Biblical counseling movement is a response to the way many in the church have sought to accommodate
secular thought.

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Since the beginning of the 20 century, secular psychology has dominated higher education, including most
Christian seminaries. Rather than reject the naturalistic, humanistic, and materialistic philosophies that
undergirded psychological research, seminary leaders sought to accommodate these philosophies into the
Christian worldview. This meant that pastors were increasingly being trained to counsel using the philosophies
of modern psychology or even to refer their members to professional psychologists when faced with what was
termed “mental health” issues.

The biblical counseling movement is a response to this integration of secular philosophy into the teachings of
the church and to the “outsourcing” of soul care to professionals. The Bible fundamentally deals with the human
soul; and, when properly understood and applied, it provides the help needed to those who are suffering under
the various difficulties that this world creates. The goal of the movement is to reclaim soul care to the church
and to wrest it away from the clutches of the world.

The Biblical counseling movement holds the following beliefs:

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