We have all read books with titles that intrigue us and draw
us in. For example, I just finished an
epic fantasy book entitled The Shadow of What was Lost. As the story progresses, the meaning of the
title is gradually revealed. On the
other hand, there are books where the title carries no intrigue at all. A Theology of Biblical Counseling: The Doctrinal Foundations of Counseling
Ministry by Heath Lambert, is one of those books. This book sat on my shelf for a number of
months and I hesitated to pick it up because, frankly, the title communicated
“dry” to me. I finally picked it up
because the author will be one of the speakers at a counseling conference I
will attend later in July.
I am happy to admit that, although the title is not flashy,
this book is anything but dry. In fact,
about halfway through the year, apart from the Bible, this is the best book I
have read so far this year. Lambert
endeavors to survey a number of aspects of Bible doctrine, specifically
bringing out the reasons why these truths are vitally important in counseling
for both the counselor and the counselee.
Heath Lambert writes well.
He is obviously passionate about his subject. And he does a great job beginning and ending
his chapters with counseling stories that relate to the topic at hand. These stories make each chapter – which is
essentially filled with a mix of systematic theology and counseling theory –
approachable for the reader. Yes, you
heard me right. This book is primarily
theology and theory. If you are looking
for a practical, step by step guide to counsel someone, this is not your
book. But if you want to develop the
theological foundation for your counseling efforts so that you will be offering
people solid biblical truth, this is the book for you.
The first three chapters of the book alone are worth the
price of the book. In chapter 1, Lambert
argues that counseling, at its heart, is a theological discipline. In chapter 2, he explores the topic of
Scripture. So much of the content of our
counseling turns on what we think of Scripture.
Is it authoritative? Clear? Necessary for counseling? Sufficient for the task? How you answer these questions will set the
direction of your counseling. And in
chapter 3, the author unpacks the doctrine of common grace and explores the
pervasive effects of sin in our lives.
Throughout these chapters, he gently but firmly gives reasons why
biblical counseling is a better alternative that other approaches to
counseling, all the while showing the areas where medicine and even at times,
secular psychological observation can be helpful to the biblical counselor.
The table of contents for the rest of the book looks very
similar to any other systematic theology book on my shelf. Lambert, in turn, explores the doctrines of
God, Christ, the Holy Spirit, humanity, sin, suffering, salvation and the church. In each case, he lays out the orthodox
teaching of Scripture, but then makes specific application to how and why these
truths are vital for various counseling situations. He ends with an excellent summary chapter on
the goal of theology. As he puts it,
counseling is taking what we know from theology and applying it to people who
are suffering under the weight of all the kinds of pain this world has to offer,
for the purpose of building their hope and increasing their joy in truly
knowing Christ.
I think this is an excellent resource that belongs on the
shelf of anyone who endeavors to counsel others from the Scripture. We want to give those we counsel our best,
but ultimately our best is only that if it is God’s best, counsel firmly
grounded in God’s very Word.
