Customer Reviews

Competent to Counsel

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This book by Dr. Adams is remarkable because it opened the debate among Christians about the practice of counseling. Adams goes after some easy targets, namely Freud and Rogers. He invites the Christian to examine the sufficiency of Scripture for providing counsel in times when wisdom is needed. He identifies important passages in Scripture that certainly encourage us to counsel one another in love and truth.

However, there are several notable shortcomings. First, Adams adopts a simplistic approach to mental illness - one that has potential to do considerable harm if misapplied. While he rightly differentiates between faux non-organic "illnesses" and bona fide chemical brain disorders, he neglects a significant in-between region that consists of deeply troubled individuals whose cognitive make-ups or personality organizations make responding positively to simplistic and direct confrontation unlikely. The nuances of relationship-building that are an important component of therapy and discipleship appear to be lacking.

Second, to say this is a reformed perspective on counseling appears to misapply the meaning of "reformed." Reformed theology acknowledges the Lordship of Christ in all things, including psychology and psychotherapy. To exclude some theories, practices, and methods simply because they are extra-biblical (not anti-biblical, just not in the Bible) denies the Christian's ability, even the command via the Cultural Mandate, to examine the truth in God's world and apply it in faith and wisdom. It is best embodied by Kuyper's insistence that there is not a square-inch of creation over which Christ does not say "mine!" Unfortunately, Dr. Adams seems to miss this wider application of reformed theology in favor of a vehement rejection of theories that are becoming historical relics and an application of Biblical behaviorism. Adams is unable to maintain a sense of consistency in his own model: he rejects some secularists but praises the reality therapy of Glasser and Mouwer.

Whether Adams intended for this to occur or not, his book has become a rallying point around which to bash psychology and psychotherapy. There is without question some truly unbiblical stuff in historical psychology and some truly hideous stuff in contemporary pop psychology. However, the study of the workings of the human mind, human thought processes, emotions, and behaviors, is as important an endeavor as studying any other aspect of creation. We cannot simply toss the whole discipline out because those who pioneered its study rebelled against God and sought to suppress His truth in unrighteousness. This is the classic ad hominum argument. As Christians, we should do better.

I am grateful that Dr. Adams has given us a starting place to recognize the dangers of the likes of Freud and Rogers (he should have come down hard on Jung - he's both dangerous and looney), the high value of Scripture in providing counsel for wisdom, comfort, and therapy as needed, and the importance of examining psychology closely to separate truth from error. However, it is time to move on. Let's elevate the dialogue and stop knocking down the straw man. He's about out of straw.

Anyone that wants to grasp what nouthetic counseling is should read this book. Adams does a nice job of laying out the book so his readers can comprehend his position. He dedicates the entire 4th chapter to defining, "What is Nouthetic Counseling?" He states, "Nouthetic counseling in its fullest sense, then, is simply an application of the means of sanctification p.73" (I.e. helping others grow in Christ). People often accuse Adams of equating everything to sin, but he clearly makes a distinction between biochemical problems and non-biochemical. If you are an integrationist, Adams work will help you understand the "other side" of the debate. If you are completely a non-integrationist this may be your "pillar text" concerning counseling. Either way, if you are a person trying to help hurting people, this book will help equip you, even if you do not fully agree with Adams approach.

My review has very little to do with the author, but more to do with the material offered. I am studying to become a counselor and this book has helped me to understand the current principles introduced by Freud and others and why they DO NOT HELP the counselee.

The book clearly offers both sides of the picture so that the reader can be informed of current psychiatry and biblical counseling. I believe God's word is sufficient to help ANYONE in ANY form of health. C2C helps us to understand how to apply it and the role that the Holy Spirit plays in counseling.

A must read for pastors and Christian Counselors alike!

What if you suddenly found yourself counseling a friend on a problem they are facing? What would be the basis or foundation for your advice? Would you quickly do a "google search" to find the latest self-help book on the subject? Would you go to the library and consult a Psychology journal for the latest theories on behavior modification?

If you are a Christian, your answer should be "No! The word of God!" The Bible is the Christian's basis for wisdom in living. The Bible addresses the most fundamental issues of mankind. The Bible has the answers for life's most perplexing problems. Therefore, Christian counseling must be BIBLICAL counseling. In this book, Jay Adams provides a general introduction to this topic of Biblical counseling. I found this book to be a helpful introduction to the subject with many "golden nuggets" of practical advice.

Sadly, many pastors and other leaders have ceded ground to Psychology and Psychiatry. Under the guise of "mental illness," these theories attempt to shift responsibility from the counselee and blame outside influences (pg 1-19) (By this assessment, I am NOT including legitimate "organic" problems, such as brain or chemical damage). Freud's principles are based on the belief that religion is invented to fulfill man's needs. Furthermore, his views "encouraged irresponsible people to persist in and expand their irresponsibility...and made it respectable." (pg 17). Christians, on the other hand, understand that the basic problem in man is SIN (Romans 3). Only the Bible provides the solution to the problem of sin - the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The Bible's message is that all people are utterly sinful and deserve judgment and hell. However, sinful men can find salvation and reconciliation to God through faith in Jesus Christ through His atoning death on the cross. Thus, Biblical counseling is Gospel-saturated counseling.

Adams uses the term "nouthetic counseling" to describe Biblical counseling. The term "nouthetic" is derived from the New Testament term for "admonish" or "warn" in such passages as Colossians 3:16 and Romans 15:14 ("...I [Paul] also am convinced that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge and able also to ADMONISH one another"). The basic idea in the New Testament is that Christians must CONFRONT each other. The term includes the following elements: 1.) Concern for the benefit of the counselee, 2.) something is wrong that must be confronted, 3.) thinking and behavior must change, 4.) Verbal instruction must be used, 5.) the goal of this instruction is for the counselee to confirm to biblical standards, and 6.) Scripture is sufficient for this advice (2 Tim 3:16... "All Scripture is God-breathed and is USEFUL or PROFITABLE for teaching, reproving, correction, and training in righteousness") (pg 44-50).

The book does an especially good job of modeling biblical counseling. As I read the book, I made note of the following helpful tips for the biblical counselor:
- Watch for the counselee's harboring resentment as the source of physical and mental problems (Prov 26:23-26) (pg 26-34). Psalms 51, 38, and 32 show that there can be physical effects of unrepentant sin (pg 115-122)
- Don't feed the counselee's avoidance patterns. Instead "speak the truth in love" and call a spade a space. "It is not merciful to be nonjudgmental"(pg 33-34) Don't minimize their sin with compliments (Prov 25:20) (Pg 140).
- Be careful of becoming so sympathetic that you fail to hold them responsible (pg 58) and fail to think straight about their problem (pg 59). To say that "Your problem seems basically to be the result of sin" will not discourage the counselor, but rather will give him hope (pg 139). Sometimes the direct question may be in order, "Where has the present sinful behavior (or attitude) gotten you?" (pg 210)
- Don't act as "neutral" in the counseling environment. Instead, be intensely concerned (2 Cor 2:4, 11:29, 3 Jn 4). (pg 53-54)
- Stress to the counselee the need to stop running and hiding, but, rather repenting (pg 55).
- Remember the goal of counseling is conformity to the likeness to Christ (Eph 4:13). "By His power the Spirit then enables the client to begin to put off the old man with its old patters of life, and to put on the new man with its new biblical patters." (pg 74). [side note - I do not like the term "client"...it sounds too professional and uninvolved]
- Spend less time finding out how people feel. Instead, look for behavior. Ultimately behavior determines feelings. (pg 93) (c.f. Genesis 4:3-7)
- Use the book of Proverbs to exhort the counselee to wise living! (pg 99-100)
- Don't be afraid to provide loving rebuke of sinful attitudes and actions (pg 101-102)
- Look for "I can't" kind of speech. Remind them of the faithful God of 1 Cor 10:13. Set this tone early in counseling (pg 132, 135) Once they see progress, also remind them of 1 Cor 10:12 - "Let him who thinks he stands take heed lest he fall."
- After you model Biblical problem solving, send them home to discover a solution to a particular problem and report what they find. (pg 193-195)
- Assign "homework" based on bible study, prayer and introspection. The Problem-Solution worksheet on pg 197 might be helpful: "What Happened, What I Did, What I Should have Done, What I Now Must Do"
- Use the "Iceberg" method to discover the underlying issues. "Whatever is protruding above the surface...is material for counseling. As the counselor chips away at the topic, more and more of the iceberg rises, until eventually the bulk of it is in sight." (pg 203)
- Point the counselee to Scripture to understand Godly communication and anger resolution(Ephesians 4) (pg 217-224)

As complements to this book, I also highly recommend "Instruments in the Redeemer's Hands" by Paul David Tripp and "How People Change" by Timothy Lane and Paul David Tripp.

This groundbreaking volume, now more than 30 years in print, remains the quintessential thesis on the fundamentals of nouthetic counseling. Jay Adams may justly be described as the single most influential author, teacher and speaker in this arena. This book is the first in a "trilogy" of key nouthetic counseling resources. The other two books, "The Christian Counselor's Manual" and "A Theology of Christian Counseling", are equally indispensable to the nouthetic counselor, but this one lays the foundation of this unique, Scripture-based approach to Christian counseling.

Adams spends the early portion of the book distinguishing nouthetic counseling from other prevalent models in secular psychology and psychiatry, and challenges the unbiblical and rankly humanistic assumptions of each. He discusses Mowrer, who was particularly influential in laying out a model of counseling based on personal responsibility. However, Mowrer's approach was limited to man's relationship to other men, divorced from man's accountability to God, and thus was fundamentally flawed. Adams also properly critiques the Freudian model, with its refusal to acknowledge any responsibility of the counselee for his own actions, and the Rogerian approach, with its blatantly unbiblical assertion that man is basically good and able to solve his own problems. All of these fallacious methods are juxtaposed against the nouthetic model, which involves loving, directive confrontation of a sinning person with the Scriptures for the purpose of affecting long term, God-honoring change in that person's thinking and behavior. The goal is not just to solve the immediate "presentation problem", but to disciple the counselee so that he can be conformed over time to the image of Christ and become well equipped to tackle life's problems in the future.

The balance of the book goes on to elaborate on the underpinnings of the nouthetic model, including fundamental assumptions about the authority of Scripture, the nature of man, rules of communication, and counseling methodology, to name a few of the major themes. As one who has trained as a nouthetic counselor, including under the direct teaching of Jay Adams, and as one who has also sat as a counselee, I can attest that the nouthetic model WORKS in a way that man's cheap, paltry substitutes never have and never can. Likewise, the misguided attempts of many so-called "Christian" counselors to blend secular and biblical models are doomed to inefficacy.

"The word of God is living and powerful, and sharper than any two-edged sword, piercing even to the division of soul and spirit, and of joints and marrow, and is a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart. And there is no creature hidden from His sight, but all things are naked and open to the eyes of Him to whom we must give account." Only the nouthetic counseling model can lay claim to this kind of effectiveness, because only the nouthetic model is based entirely on the authority and power of the Scriptures. For those who are serious about learning true Christian counseling, but have fallen into the trap of relying on humanistic theories and methods, this book is the place to start.

This book uniquely removes the counselor from the counseling. It centers it's context on what the scriptures say, as opposed to what the counselor thinks.

With the nouthetic approach, the counselor has the unique ability to remain apart from the solution, not a part of the solution. This dynamic is critical to effective counseling.

I believe that in the counseling arena there is to much human intervention, opening the door to a high subjective point perstective. Although there is often good intention in the human perspective, we must know that the road to hell is paved with good intentions.

Bible centered counseling is the state of the arc in counseling. When you get your anwser, it's god that is giving it not man.

I would applaud mr. Adams for a work well done.

Adams lends a whole new look at biblical counseling, in a world full of speculation on the subject, this is a gem. You will be able to gleen alot of useful things from this book to aide in equiping you to help bind up the broken. I wish my pastor had read this book a long time ago!

I had already order this book before. But there are so many other people who wanted to find a way to give guidance to family, friends; etc. So when they came to me I offered them the book that helps my when I disciple others. Will I probably order more in the near future? Probably!

It is a great book. Fair recognition of a perspective that represents a non-psychological approach to counseling is much needed. We are all in need of Him. He is our satisfaction.

This book was ordered to complement Christian Counselor's Manual ordered along with it. This book will also serve as a companion resource in my counseling library. It was received promptly and in brand new condition as ordered.