A reader of blogs penned by this old preacher may have noted that seldom have I written about my own ministry except when it impinged on the valuable work of others. Rather my focus has been on the ways by which I have been blessed by others. Therefore, you may find it strange that I broach the subject of commenting on my new, short monograph The Sufficiency of The Bible in Counseling, published by Northeastern Baptist Press in Bennington, Vermont. This volume designed to be read by the general public in about two hours of devoted attention is available now.
The teaching ministry of the church has been a primary concern of my own labors, focusing essentially on the teaching role of pulpit ministry. However, this congregational impact of teaching must be buttressed by individual instruction in what is traditionally termed “counseling.” And here I fear the church has sold its soul for a bowl of red Freudian pottage! Consequently, this brief treatise is a plea for the church to exert the courage to recover biblical counseling. Christian counseling is too often nothing more than recycled Freudian pottage doctored with a shake or two of spiritual lingo. As such the rich guidance of the Scripture is jettisoned for the sake of conformity to popular culture and the inevitable bankruptcy of life.
The sufficiency of The Bible in Counseling revisits the function of biblical guidance in producing harmony and joy amid the sorrows of life. After assessing why the Christian community needs to tread cautiously on the shaky bridge of modern psychology, the text advocates the superior instruction of the LORD provided in His Word for the living of a productive and exciting life.
Finally, the essay provides succinct chapters about unique biblical approaches to adversity, to general wellness, to cell phone addiction, to deviations in sexuality. An annotated bibliography of recent works in psychology is included. This is not a diatribe against psychobabble. Rather, it is a call to Christians judicially to analyze claimants to spiritual truth and accept the high calling of God to share biblical truth.
And did I mention the publisher? Northeastern Baptist Press is a new press operation based in New England, in a day when evangelical Christians desperately need a “non-woke” publisher with a commitment to the theology, values, and evangelism of B.H. Carroll, Lottie Moon, Billy Graham, and Adrian Rogers. Thanks to Dr. Mark Ballard and Northeastern Baptist College, we now have it! And while you are ordering The Sufficiency of The Bible in Counseling, order a copy of Does the Rapture Still Matter? penned by Dr. Ballard and Dr. Tim Christian. What a cogent book written for this critical moment in history. Here is a press that understands the nature of the hour in which we are living. Support and pray for Northeastern Baptist Press and for your Baptist brethren in New England.
