Powlison Crucial Issues DB_PACO507_Denlinger .docx
Most Crucial Issue in Contemporary Biblical
Counseling
Powlison (2015) shares six crucial issues related to Christian counseling. The first issue
involves faith and counseling practices. The counselor-counselee relationship intertwines
faith and practical applications. The second issue is change motivation. Biblical change
begins in man’s heart, and everything flows from it (New International Version (NIV), 2011,
Proverbs 4:23). This inner change can be endorsed and encouraged by a counselor. The
counselor-counselee situation is the third issue and embodies suffering and responsibility. A
suffering person failing to take responsibility operates as a victim. A victim perspective
leaves little room for the need of Christ and therefore, little opportunity to heal and be cured.
In the trusted counselor-counselee relationship, the counselee is accepted, encouraged, and
educated to take responsibility for their response to sufferings and move towards spiritual
maturity. Expanding the audience of Christian counseling, the fifth issue, implies the Great
Commission and Jesus’ directive to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all
creation”(NIV, 2011 Matthew 28:18-19a & Mark 16:15). Many people can ease their
suffering through a Christian faith and perspective. The ability to hear and accept a new
perspective requires an honest, trusted guide - a Christian counselor. The integration of
Biblical and secular counseling requires the recognition, appreciation, and utilization of the
“best” each system offers is the final issue discussed. Secular counseling offers theories and
methods derived from observing human behavior which references God’s Works (Truth). The
common thread throughout these issues is the counselor-counselee relationship.
Originally, Christ is the Counselor and humankind is the counselee. Christ demonstrated love
through His relationships. Christians should exemplify Christ as compassionate,
righteousness, and responsible counselors seeking the well-being of the counselee within the
“fence of love” (Powlison, 2015). A counselor encourages, exhorts, and enlightens the
counselee towards spiritual growth and maturity (Crabb, 1981). The art of counseling others
involves speaking the truth in a loving manner (NIV, 2011, Ephesians 4:15). This
conversational style encourages the counselee to hear and apply God’s Truths. This life-
altering love and healing where Christ is made visible through the counselor-counselee
relationship accomplishes therapeutic change leading to spiritual maturity (Rennebohm, &
Thoburn, 2021). Therapeutic change is curing the soul. Truth, love, skill, and institutional
structure are necessary for the curing of souls (Powlison, 2015). The process of healing souls
has been directed primarily by the secularists initiating the knowledge and skills of
interviewing, probing, and corrective conversation. These tools are helpful in a Christian
counselor-counselee relationship. “Wise counseling” integrates evangelical faith with modern
psychological theories, methods, and roles (Narramore as cited in Powlison, 2015). Christ
exemplified in a Christian counselor-counselee relationship addresses all Powlison’s crucial
issues. Therefore, I chose the issue of counselor-counselee relationship as the most urgent.
References
Crabb, L. (1981).Effective biblical counseling: A model for helping caring Christians
become capable counselors. Zondervan.
New International Version (NIV)Bible. (2011). Zondervan.
Powlison, D. (2010).The Biblical Counseling Movement: History and context. New Growth
Press.
Rennebohm, S. B., & Thoburn, J. (2021). Incarnational psychotherapy: Christ as the ground
of being for integrating psychology and theology.Pastoral Psychology,70(2), 179–
190.https://doi.org/10.1007/s11089-021-00940-x.
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