How Christ Changes Lives - Book by Dr. Robert Kellemen

Just recently, I received a copy of Dr. Bob Kellemen's new book called Gospel-Centered Counseling: How Christ Changes Lives. I was so thankful to receive this book in the mail from Zondervan publishing. I look forward to having this as an ongoing resource for my counseling ministry. I am thankful for Dr. Kellemen's ministry and am pleased to post a few things about Dr. Kellemen and insights from his book over the next few months.

The 'Good' That God Works Out

As I read this blog post about Romans 8:28 and how we, as counselors, use this verse to try and help those who are hurting, it struck me that suffering isn't something that we just tag a verse onto and move on. The old saying, 'take two pills(verses) and call me in the morning' isn't to work in this situation. The sufferer is looking for the pain to go away and to try and make sense of what is going on. So, when God tells us that He is working out all things for our good, what does that mean? What is the 'good' that God is working? Well, Dr. Rick Thomas gives us some insight into this verse and what God is after through our suffering and trials. There are a lot of hurting people today in the church and I pray that God will use His Word to help those in need. If we truly believe what Peter tells us in 2 Peter 1:3-4, "His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence, by which He has granted to us His precious and very great promises, so that through them you may become partakers of the divine nature, having escaped from the corruption that is in the world because of sinful desire.", then we can boldly approach Christ through His Word and know that He has given us the answers to life's difficulties.

Are you willing to search out Scripture for your problems?
Are you willing to trust that God is good and that He knows what you need?
Are you willing to ask someone to help you through your difficulties?


What does “all things work together for good” really mean?

Let's Start 2012 With Vision

As we begin 2012, may we look to our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ for His help, guidance and grace to endure the days to come.  May Christ be glorified in and through our lives.  God bless you all and have a Happy New Year!

O Lord,

I launch my bark on the unknown waters of this year,
with Thee, O Father as my harbour,
Thee, O Son, at my helm,
Thee O Holy Spirit, filling my sails.

Guide me to heaven with my loins girt,
my lamp burning,
my ear open to Thy calls,
my heart full of love,
my soul free.

Give me Thy grace to sanctify me,
Thy comforts to cheer,
Thy wisdom to teach,
Thy right hand to guide,
Thy counsel to instruct,
Thy law to judge,
Thy presence to stabilize.

May Thy fear be my awe,
Thy triumphs my joy.

Length of days does not profit me except the days are passed in Thy presence,
in Thy service,
to Thy glory.

Give me a grace that precedes, follows, guides, sustains, sanctifies, aids every hour,
that I may not be one moment apart from Thee,
but may rely on Thy Spirit
to supply every thought,
speak in every word,
direct every step,
prosper every work,
build up every mote of faith,
and give me a desire to show forth Thy praise;
testify Thy love,
and advance Thy kingdom.

From a collection of Puritan prayers in The Valley of Vision.

Lessons Learned Series

Have you often thought, if only I had some tips for how to counsel from people who have done this longer?!  Well, guess what?  Here ya go.  At the Grace & Truth Blog, the staff with the Biblical Counseling Coalition have had a number of biblical counselors write about what lessons they have learned.  There are posts from five years as a counselor all the way to 40 years experience.  These are treats to read because there is one theme that resonates throughout all of them...the Gospel of Jesus.  It's all about Jesus.  The power of Jesus Christ and His Word changes lives.  I hope you enjoy the following post from Dr. Robert Smith who has over 40 years under his belt as a biblical counselor.  If you want to read all the other parts of this series from BCC, you can click on the link above and access them all.  God bless you!



Note from the BCC Staff: This is the eighth in a series of periodic posts by biblical counselors regarding what they have learned during their years of ministry in biblical counseling. Read Part One: Hayley Satrom: Reflections after Two Years, Part Two: Deepak Reju: Reflections after a Decade, Part Three: Bob Kellemen: Reflections after Thirty Years, Part Four: Howard Eyrich: Reflections after Forty Years, Part Five: Chris Boucher: Reflections after Five Years, Part Six: Jeremy Lelek: Reflections after Eleven Years, and Part Seven: Andy Farmer: Reflections after Eighteen Years. Today Dr. Robert Smith shares what he’s learned after forty years as a biblical counselor.

Still Learning

One of the things I have learned is that I have not really completed learning anything—thus I cannot say that I have really completely learned anything. Whatever I have been learning I am still learning. So this will really be what I am learning through 40 years of ministry.

Prioritizing My Time for God’s Glory

One of the late-in-life lessons I am learning is to carefully evaluate what I am doing. As an “old man,” I do not have many years left statistically. But I want these sunset years to be very productive. As I approached retirement this became my goal for this time of life. I am still learning what is the best way to use my time with the skills God has enabled me to learn.

The Importance of Scripture

One of the most important concepts I have been learning is the importance of Scripture memorization. At His temptation, Jesus defeated Satan by quoting Scripture to him. Since the devil is a roaring lion on the prowl for someone to destroy (1 Pet. 5:8), I need to have the Word of God at readiness at all times. It is called the sword of the Spirit (Eph. 6:17) which I need to have out of the sheath and ready to use at all times. This is only possible through memorization.
Along with this is the superiority of the Bible over any of the benefits of this life—over money (Psalm 119:72), food (Psalm 119:103), sleep (Psalm 119:62,148), and even prosperity (Psalm 4:7).

Dependence Upon the Word as My Guide

Another thing I am continually learning is that I cannot depend on my emotions to guide me in important decisions. It must be the Word of God. My emotions are too affected by my sinful desires so that when I am up, I become overly optimistic about my abilities and over-schedule myself. When I am upset, I sinfully react when I should listen to learn. When I am down, I spend too much time on my feelings and self-pity. So, as I minister, my reliance must be on my relationship with God and His Word. It is a continual struggle to keep these as the authority rather than my feelings.

Careful, Compassionate Listening

Another important counseling concept that I am still working on is carefully listening to the counselee before presenting any biblical solutions. I must know what motivates the actions in order to help the total person. This requires listening and asking questions based on what the counselee tells me.
Of recent years, I am learning the importance of understanding the suffering the counselee experiences. Most of their current sinful actions result from their attempts to reduce the pains of suffering they have experienced. In the process, I must show compassion toward them in that suffering. Since I have not suffered as they have, one of the ways to show compassion is to listen to their story for the purpose of understanding their situation.

Learning from My Counselees

It has been interesting how the Lord brings me counselees that remind me of changes I need to make in my life. Because of this, more than once I have thanked the Lord for the person(s) sitting across from me. Many times I have had to admit that my mouth just said some things my ears need to hear.

I Need God’s Help

God’s help in counseling has been something I continually need and learn. More than once I have prayed a Nehemiah prayer in the middle of a counseling session. This comes from Nehemiah 2:2-5. The king asked Nehemiah what he needed after Nehemiah had told him his sad face was due to his city of origin being completely destroyed and in ruins. The short phrase in v. 4 is my guideline, “So I prayed to the God of heaven.”
There is no indication of Nehemiah kneeling to pray, holding up his hands in prayer, or even telling the king he was going to pray. It seems that the king asked the question, and while Nehemiah is taking a breath to answer, he is praying, for the next statement is his answer. I do that many times in counseling sessions and my prayer frequently is “Help?” And God does.

Focus on the Benefits of What I Can Do

Because this is referring to 40 years of ministry, that brings up the issue of aging. As the body ages it deteriorates due to the curse of sin. Rather than continuing to get stronger as it did in the first two or three decades, it then starts the slow decline of physical strength and ability. When younger, it was easy to think of aging as no big deal. But when age sets in it really is a big deal. The mind wants to do certain things but the body refuses. Life used to run seemingly unlimited—like the “Energizer Bunny”—on a couple of D batteries. Now the energy supply is reduced to one old, used AAA battery.
But what I am learning is that this helps me focus more on the benefits of what I can do than the limitations from what I cannot do. I have years of Bible study and memorization which are now rich resources in my teaching and counseling. They have produced a wisdom that is only based on God’s Word, not my intellectual skill. Not being able to do some physical things keeps my focus on the skills God has blessed me with in the spiritual and mental areas.

Not to Be Threatened by Change: Be Models of Change

Another major learning concept is to not be threatened when things change or when we are being replaced. We do not like to be replaced because it is easy for us to think we are irreplaceable. But young people come along and want to change things. That means our way of doing them is no longer satisfactory. So as we get older, we are in many ways gently moved aside. If we are honest that is good. The younger people are only doing what we did when we were young.
But being moved aside does not mean we are useless if we have been growing in godliness all our lives. With years of biblical change behind us when we reach the senior years, it should not be difficult for us to change. In fact, we can demonstrate the benefits of change to the younger people. We should be models of change.
All this is helped if I see the big picture of life and ministry rather than the everyday details. See change through the big picture.
Let me illustrate. When our church moved from traditional to contemporary music this was a big problem for me. My past training (some of which I should have challenged) made this a spiritual matter. But there was also the spiritual matter of submitting to my leaders and seeing the big picture of this change: this would enhance the outreach ministry of our church to which I was thoroughly committed. So I had to decide which was most important—my music preference or the outreach of our church. Many other factors were present, but seeing the big picture helped me understand and accept the music changes. Even though I haven’t made contemporary music my favorite, I see how it is enhancing our church outreach. Many of the words are actually Bible verses and passages so that is certainly God honoring.
There are many more lessons that I have been learning and I thank the Lord for the opportunities He has given to minister while I am learning them.

Join the Conversation

It has been said that God will use the events of our lives to humble us and that our role is to be responsive to God’s humbling and shaping process in our lives. How are you responding humbly to life’s lessons so that you grow personally and as a biblical counselor?

THEOLOGY - The Series

Good morning!  Here is the second question and answer to my NANC theology exam.  Have you ever wondered what infallibility means?  How does it relate to authority?  In Question 2, I will answer what that relationship is...

BIBLIOLOGY

Question 2: What is the relationship between infallibility and authority?

Infallibility, which is a synonym for inerrant, means to be without error regarding either assertions or denials even in matters of history and science.  Authority means that the Bible has the right to command what I do (and not do) and what I think (and what I should not think.)[1]

Since the Bible is infallible, it is linked to authority because it is true in all of its claims.  Jesus Himself testifies that God’s Word is true in John 17:17, “Sanctify them in the truth; your word is truth.”  Jesus assures us that His Word is true.  Second Timothy 3:16-17 says, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.”  If all Scripture is true and is inspired by God, then it has all authority.  Infallibility and authority go hand in hand, and you cannot have one without the other.  They are both necessary in Scripture and since Scripture explains that it is sufficient for all things pertaining to life and godliness, 2 Peter 1:3, “His divine power has granted to us all things that pertain to life and godliness, through the knowledge of Him who called us to His own glory and excellence,” then I can be confident that the Bible has all authority for all areas of life.  Another way of explaining the Bible’s infallibility is by the fact that: 1) God cannot lie.  Romans 3:3-4 says, “What if some were unfaithful?  Does their faithlessness nullify the faithfulness of God?  By no means!  Let God be true though every one were a liar, as it is written, That you may be justified in your words, and prevail when you are judged.”  God is true and faithful.  2) God is the author and perfector of the Bible. Second Timothy 3:16-17 and 2 Peter 1:20-21.  Therefore, since God cannot lie and he is the author of the Bible, the Bible is infallible.  

Second Peter 1:19-21 states, “And we have something more sure, the prophetic word, to which you will do well to pay attention as to a lamp shining in the dark place, until the day dawns and the morning star rises in your hearts, knowing this first of all that no prophecy of Scripture comes from someone’s own interpretation.  For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”  This passage helps to define the relationship between authority and infallibility because Peter is very clear about the source of Scripture which is God the Father by the Holy Spirit’s direction.  Since the source of Scripture is from God Himself, and God is the source of all truth and that Scripture is truth (John 17:17), it follows that the whole of Scripture is authoritative and is infallible.  If God’s Word were not infallible or authoritative, then we would be a people without hope (Psalm 19:7-11).  The apostle Paul says in 1 Corinthians 15:13-19, “But if there is no resurrection of the dead, then not even Christ has been raised.  And if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is in vain and your faith is in vain.  We are even found to be misrepresenting God, because we testified about God that He raised Christ, whom He did not raise if it is true that the dead are not raised.  For if the dead are not raised, not even Christ has been raised.  And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are still in your sins.  Then those also who have fallen asleep in Christ have perished.  If in this life only we have hoped in Christ, we are of all people most to be pitied.”  The Bible records the resurrection of Jesus Christ, His rising from the dead and His ascension into heaven.  He then sent the Holy Spirit as a deposit guaranteeing the believer’s residence in heaven with Him.  If the Bible is not authoritative or inerrant, then believers are to be pitied most of all people because our hope rests in the truth of the Gospel and in all of Scripture.

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[1] Rob Green, BCTC, Bibliology, Track 5

THEOLOGY - The Series

What makes biblical counseling biblical?  Why can't we just counsel out of our own experience and thoughts?  Theology is the foundation of biblical counseling because without good theology, we cannot counsel biblically.  (A bit redundant, but it makes the point.)  Over the next few weeks, I will be looking at theology.  Why theology?  To be able to counsel biblically, we must first know the Bible.  Having good theology helps us counsel in the way that God intended.  The questions asked were taken from the NANC theology exam for certification in biblical counseling that I took this Spring.  I pray that this series will be a blessing to you and help you in your counseling ministry and in your life.

BIBLIOLOGY

Question 1: The Bible is spoken of as “inspired.”  What does this mean?

I believe that every word of the Bible is God’s Word and has its source in God.  In His sovereignty, God chose to use human authors, by the power and direction of the Holy Spirit to write His Word down. Second Timothy 3:16 tells us that “All scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.”[1]  Breathed out or inspired indicates that the human authors were moved to write, but with their own styles of writing.  In 2 Peter 3:14-17, Peter tells us that the letters the apostle Paul wrote were also Scripture.  At the end of verse 15, Peter states, “…our beloved brother Paul also wrote to you according to the wisdom given him…” and then in verse 16, Peter equates the writings of Paul with the other Scriptures saying, “as he does in all his letters when he speaks in them of these matters.  There are some things in them that are hard to understand, which the ignorant and unstable twist to their own destruction, as they do the other Scriptures.”  Paul wrote according to the wisdom given him, by the power of the Holy Spirit.  In 1 Corinthians 2:4, Paul states, “and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power,” thereby establishing that his writings were not of mere human wisdom or good words, but were in fact a demonstration of the Holy Spirit. Paul says again in verse 13 of 1 Corinthians 2 that he is not imparting his words by human wisdom but by the Spirit’s teaching.  Therefore, God accomplishes His written Word by inspiring or moving the human authors to write by the power and direction of the Holy Spirit.  The whole of God’s Word, in the original manuscripts, is in fact God’s very Word because God is the very source of His Word.  It did not just appear.  God chose to use His imperfect people to write down His perfect Word that is without spot or blemish and without error.  God’s Word is inspired because of the direction of the Holy Spirit in the lives of the human authors.  Paul further states in 1 Thessalonians 2:13,  “¹³And we also thank God constantly for this, that when you received the word of God, which you heard from us, you accepted it not as the word of men but as what it really is, the word of God, which is at work in you believers.” Paul is praising God that when he preaches, it is being received as the Word of God.  Finally, 2 Peter 1:21 says, “For no prophecy was ever produced by the will of man, but men spoke from God as they were carried along by the Holy Spirit.”

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[1] All Scripture references are in English Standard Version

Building a Bridge

I just read about the following church planting organization.  What an encouraging direction that this organization and biblical counseling are moving in.  As Desert Springs Church partners with organizations like Acts 29 to be a church planting church, it is awesome to see a growing partnership between biblical counseling and church planting!  I hope you are as encouraged as I am.  I am excited to see what God does at Redemption Rio Rancho for His glory and praise.  May God bless Redemption RR and future plants to draw numerous others to His Son, Jesus Christ!




Two major Christian movements emerged in the 1970s: the modern church planting movement and the modern biblical counseling movement. The North American Church Planting Foundation (NACPF) is working to build bridges between these two movements.

The NACPF

The NACPF is a non-profit organization that exists to support and promote church planting efforts in North America. Among a handful of other ministry priorities, we emphasize the importance of biblical care and counseling within each church plant. It is our hope that a biblical counseling mindset will become the norm within the world-wide church planting community.
Throughout the landscape of established churches, as well as new church starts, biblical counseling theory and practice is less common than we would like. The churches that are born out of the current church planting movement represent, at least in part, the future of counseling in the local church. We believe an infusion of biblical counseling philosophy and practice into the DNA of new church starts is an essential key to the furtherance of the biblical counseling revolution and the continuance of effective soul care by local churches.

Values

Initiated in 2009 by Open Door Baptist Church in Raleigh, NC, The North American Church Planting Foundation is a network of like-minded churches, church planters, and sponsors that advocate three core values: Gospel, Community, and Mission. The NACPF establishes a culture of soul care among church plants by emphasizing the role of biblical counseling within each core value.

Gospel: Through the NACPF, we are working to fulfill the Great Commission by upholding and celebrating the Gospel of Jesus Christ. Through the NACPF, we are committed to proclaiming the hope of the Gospel and the surpassing riches of God’s grace toward us in Christ. In fact, the grace of God and the power of the gospel are both inextricably linked to our appreciation of biblical counseling. The churches within our church planting network are equipped and motivated to change through an insightful study of the Scriptures, personal ministry to one another, and through a caring culture of biblical community.

Community: By God’s perfect design, all Christians need community. We believe the New Testament model for local churches (plants) is one of cooperating, sharing, and growing together. This “one-another” quality within the Christian faith can only exist in a gospel-centered community. As a result, the NACPF is planting churches that are not merely places where people share burdens and fellowship about life. Rather, they do so with a unique perspective as they intentionally build each other up in Christ. This is the essence of a Gospel community, committed to grow as a community knit together by love through the mutual ministry of the word. Seeing that His divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness, it is our desire to display the sufficiency of the Scriptures through the ministry of every church plant.
Relying on the Bible as our central resource for lasting change and restoration, we have gone to great lengths to shepherd and train future church planters in practical and godly biblical counseling ministry. NACPF church planters progress through an internship process by which they are equipped and mentored to counsel biblically in a local church context. Church planters are asked to complete biblical counseling criteria including, How People Change, Helping Others Change, Instruments in a Redeemer’s Hands, and other practical biblical counseling equipping tools. Even after the church is planted, the planting team has an on-going relationship with their sending church for further training and coaching. In terms of biblical counseling, we owe much to the instruction of Dr. Robert Jones, Director of Biblical Counseling at Open Door Baptist Church.

Mission: No conception of the Gospel is complete without an understanding of its outward momentum. Our God is a missional God. Churches within the NACPF intentionally structure their ministries and services to welcome those who have not heard or embraced the good news.
We believe that Jesus’ Great Commission is not merely intended to make converts, but to so magnify the glory of God that His name is known throughout the world. We take seriously God’s command to make disciples who know, love, and grow in Christ. Here is yet another connection to biblical counseling which must not be overlooked; the mandate to minister the good news to believers and unbelievers alike. In this respect, we seek to plant church-planting churches who will grow to the point that they are ready to plant self-sustained, theologically healthy, gospel-centered communities who also fueled by a sincere commitment to the Great Commission.
The NACPF is grateful to like-minded organizations such as CCEF, NANC, and the Biblical Counseling Coalition for their magnificent efforts to equip pastors and laity for biblical counseling ministry. We hope that together we can plant churches that glorify God and build up the body through the cure of souls. Learn more at www.nacpf.org.