Page 9 - Biblical Counseling II

As I stated earlier, my training comes from the study of psychology. As a result, Biblical Counseling II will
have a different feel to it compared to Biblical Counseling I. We will build on what you learned in that course
by adding an understanding from a psychology background. Let’s take a look at the definition of psychology
first.

Psychology is the science (or study) of the mind and behavior (APA, 2020). Psychology is also defined as the
science of behavior and mental processes. If we take this definition apart, we see there are two parts:

Behavior is considered anything an organism does, any action we can observe and record. What are some
examples of this? Yelling, smiling, talking, blinking, sneezing, etc.

Mental processes are the internal, subjective (can’t measure) experiences we infer from behavior. Some
examples would be thoughts, dreams, beliefs, feelings, sensations, perceptions, or opinions (Myers, 2009).

There are many different schools of thought within the field of psychology. We won’t learn about these
during this course. Instead, our focus will be on understanding select areas of psychology that help explain
our behaviors and our mental processes. This deeper understanding of yourself and others will allow you to
become more effective in counseling Biblically when you work with your congregations and communities.

Psychology Through the Eyes of Faith

What is the relationship between Christian faith and science? If psychology is a field of
science, what about the relationship between Christian faith and psychology? In class,
I would have given you chapters from the book, Psychology through the Eyes of Faith,
by professors David G. Myers and Malcom A. Jeeves. Instead, during this course, I will
include excerpts in your text. Below, Jeeves and Myers (2003) explain how science
and faith aren’t always in conflict:
(Photo 1: humanityworldorder.wordpress.com/2015/02/08/the-bible-science-fiction-version)

“Contrary to this popular view that religion and science are antagonistic, many intellectual historians argue
that the seventeenth-century development of modern science was supported by Christian ideas. If, as had
often been supposed, nature is sacred, then we ought not tamper or experiment with it. If, however, nature
is not an aspect of God, but rather is God’s intelligible creation – a work to be enjoyed and managed – then
by all means let us explore this handiwork. If we wish to discover its order, let us observe and experiment,
believing that whatever God found worth creating we can find worth studying. Moreover, let us do so freely,
knowing that our ultimate allegiance is not to any human authority or doctrine, but to God alone” (p. 2-3).”

Professors Meyers and Jeeves continue by explaining how
several founders of modern science, like Blaise Pascal, Francis
Bacon, Isaac Newton, and even Galileo, were motivated by this
belief in our ultimate allegiance being to God alone. “Whether
searching for truth in the book of God’s word or the book of
God’s creative works, these scientific pioneers viewed
themselves in God’s service. Believing that humans, too, were
finite creatures of God, not extensions of God, they did not
depend solely on intuition and reason but also on observation.
They assumed that we cannot find the whole truth merely by searching our minds, for there is not enough
there, or merely by guessing or making up stories . . . Instead, these first scientists would study, understand,
and adapt their concepts to what their observations and experiments revealed (p. 3). For example, “when
scientists’ data told them that the earth was not stationary, then they must abandon the notion that

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