Recently I was listening to a podcast, which shall remain nameless, on the subject of counseling and mental disorders. They pretty much denigrated psychology and psychotherapy and repeatedly said, “Scripture is sufficient.” Many people in the realm of “biblical counseling” grab onto the idea of the sufficiency of Scripture in a way that was not intended by the authors of most creeds. The Westminster Shorter Catechism states, “The Scriptures principally teach, what man is to believe concerning God, and what duty God requires of man.” Carl Trueman comments:
“In other words, the Scriptures are sufficient for a specific task: they reveal who God is, who man is in relation to him, and how that relationship is to be articulated in terms of worship. Even with this definition, however, we need to be precise concerning the nature of this sufficiency. In some areas, the Scriptures are sufficient for teaching principles but not for providing specific details.”
Don’t get me wrong, I believe there is a lot in Scripture that is helpful and encouraging for those suffering with depression, anxiety, or other mental illnesses. We should certainly do things like encourage our brothers and sisters in the faith, pray for one another, confess our sins, care for those in need, and so on, just as Scripture says. But Scripture doesn’t have a clear answer for things like:
- Should I take psychiatric medications?
- Should I allow my child to be admitted to the psych ward?
- Who can best help me to work through childhood trauma?
While I believe that the local church should be a place where all the biblical “one another” commands are practiced, I don’t believe that most churches or pastors are equipped to provide in-depth mental health counseling. The average church is 70 people, and there are limits to both our time and our training. Mental illness encapsulates a wide variety of experiences and needs that can escalate very quickly beyond the abilities of a church pastor.
We also need to remember that the Body of Christ is much
larger than our local congregation. There are many well-qualified Christian
counselors working in public and private counseling agencies for either
in-person or online options. The ones I’ve worked with have known Scripture
well and they aren’t afraid to include it when appropriate, but they also know
what questions to ask and what advice to give for specific struggles. They go far
beyond “Here’s a verse and a prayer.” I would say that Christians should always
seek counselors who are also Christian because our worldview is important to
us. But they don’t have to be members of the same church or denomination.
For those in church leadership, I make the following suggestions:
1) Learn the difference between “biblical counseling” and “Christian counseling”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBmyDw7BGfs
2) Know when to refer to counseling professionals, who is available in your area, and what affiliations they may have with credentialing organizations.
3) If there are diagnosable psychiatric conditions as determined by medical professionals, it’s probably best to refer to outside counselors. Although the DSM is not infallible or exhaustive, it does include a lot of very serious information about potential problems.
From my own experience, I can say that finding a counselor you feel comfortable with is one of the biggest factors contributing to health and growth. I’ve met a couple counselors who seemed to have their own agendas and didn’t really listen to me. I quickly stopped going to them, and it took me a long time to risk reaching out to someone new. But I’ve had others (one past and one present) that I’ve enjoyed meeting with regularly, and I’m grateful to count them as brothers in Christ. I thoroughly believe that God has gifted them with the wisdom, training, and interpersonal skills needed to minister to people through ongoing counseling. That is not a skill set that all pastors have, and I suspect that if pastors do have counseling gifts they will probably not be satisfied to be preparing sermons instead.
“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many, are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another. Having gifts that differ according to the grace given to us, let us use them…” (Rom. 12:4-6).
“Not that we are sufficient in ourselves to claim anything as coming from us, but our sufficiency is from God, who has made us sufficient to be ministers of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit. For the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life” (2 Cor. 3:5-6).
© 2025 Dawn Rutan. Unless otherwise indicated, all Scripture are ESV and all images copyright free from pixabay.com. The opinions stated do not necessarily reflect the views of my church or employer.
