Biblical Counseling and the Church: God's Care Through God's People

by Robert W. Kellemen, Kevin Carson (Editor)

As people face addictions, deal with loss and grief, and seek help in restoring broken relationships, where can they turn for counsel and assistance? The local church has been uniquely blessed with the gift of the gospel and is able to offer hope and counsel that no other institution on earth can. In Biblical Counseling and the Church , Bob Kellemen and Kevin Carson have assembled over twenty respected ministry leaders who examine the relationship between counseling and the church. This comprehensive resource, part of the Biblical Counseling Coalition series, helps leaders and counselors develop a vision that goes beyond being a church with a biblical counseling ministry to becoming a church of biblical counseling—a church culture that is saturated by “one-another” ministry. Divided into five parts, Biblical Counseling and the Church will help church

Genres: Counselling, Theology, Ecclesiology, Unfinished, Christian

496 pages, Hardcover

First published November 3, 2015

About the author

My passion is to write, speak, and consult on Christ-centered comprehensive, compassioante, culturally-informed biblical counseling and spiritual formation that changes lives with Christ's changeless truth

My web site is: www.rpmministries.org

I have authored:

Beyond the Suffering: Embracing the Legacy of African American Soul Care and Spiritual Direciton

Soul Physicians: A Theology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction

Spiritual Friends: A Methodology of Soul Care and Spiritual Direction

Sacred Friendships: Celebrating the Legacy of Women Heroes of the Faith

My wife, Shirley, and I have been married for 28 years. We have a married son, Josh (to Andi), and a young adult daughter, Marie, who is a college Senior.

Reviews

[Caroline Jack · Rating 5 out of 5]

really loved this book! Very passionate about this topic as well so that helps a ton. Makes me love my church & God’s Word even more!

[Sharayah Lee · Rating 5 out of 5]

“The only way a Christian will get serious about growing and maturing as a follower of Christ is by being honest and speaking the truth. We need to tell people when we are knocked down, when we fall apart, when sin captures our heart. And the most natural place in the entire world for this to occur is at the church. Imagine the power unleashed if fellow sufferers lock arms and go to the throne of grace together. Our focus is on our perfect Savior, not the painted false perfection we show to others. God’s grace, experienced alongside others, enables us to be authentic about our hurts.” (pg. 26)

I especially appreciated the first part of this book. The vision for small groups of believers encouraging one another with biblical instruction would be a beautiful thing to see applied.

[Harold Cameron · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biblical Counseling And The Church is a Biblical Christ-Centered “how to” manual concerning how to equip the church (local church assemblies no matter how small or large in number) – that is each and every member of the local church – to “one another” one another. That is, to counsel, encourage, admonish, teach, correct and even rebuke people Biblically who need it to live a more holy sanctified life. This well written and easy to understand book about Biblical Counseling will inform and equip the seasoned pastor just as much as it will the young pastor, church lay leader, Bible College or Seminary student preparing for pastoral ministry, or member of the local assembly to help others Biblically address their hurts, habits and hang ups.

Biblical Counseling looks at Biblical/Christian Counseling through the lens of the Scriptures and not man’s faulty secular, humanistic, integrationist perspective (which is the mixing of the Word of God with worldly counsel and practices) to help people who struggle with emotional issues. Author Kellemen’s book is solidly Biblical and most helpful for those who are in some way involved or want to be involved in counseling others from the Scriptures. The 22 chapters of the book are written by different trained Christian leaders with proven experience in various areas and aspects of Biblical Counseling.

In the book, Biblical Counseling, the authors look at such issues as getting or having “A Vision For the Entire Church” regarding Biblical counseling and more – getting everyone in local church assemblies on board to disciple or “one another” each other effectively. The authors evaluate the dynamic of Biblical Counseling from the perspective of small group ministries within the local assembly. Several authors examine the issue of just how to properly equip biblical counselors for the work of the ministry – to the edification and building up of the saints. The book teaches that everyone in a local church assembly in some way or another should be involved in the ministry of counseling or encouraging one another to the end that the members of the church know how to live godly in this present evil age, overcoming sin, resolving conflict and dealing Biblically with emotional issues that are troublesome for many believers today. Many different personal illustrations and examples are shared by the authors throughout the book enabling us as the reader to see up close and personal how Biblical counseling is done and what the good outcome of it can be in the lives of the people who both provide the counseling as well as receive it.

If you want to learn how to be an effective Biblical counselor in your local assembly and community I highly recommend this book for you to read.

I received the book from Cross Focused Reviews and Zondervan Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255: “Guides Concerning the Use of Endorsements and Testimonials in Advertising.”

[Jason · Rating 4 out of 5]

Biblical Counseling and the Church is a very good collection of applied theology devoted to how leaders and members of a congregation can work together to confront problems, and achieve real change based on a model of redeemed lives in Christ. This is designed for many evangelical churches that have embraced small group ministry, while sustaining outreach programs that comfort and gently confront real personal and societal issues.

Each of the 23 chapters is authored by a different pastor or scholar or counselor with expertise in their particular field. And the book is divided into six sections: for the entire church, small group ministry, conflict resolution, equipping counselors, outreach and a historical perspective. Each of the chapters uses a variety of methods, from Biblical exegesis, to case studies. The theological background is generally neo - Reformed. It generally utilizes what counselor Larry Crabb would call a "spoiling the Egyptians" stand point, where the Bible is understood to stand in authority over tradition, general wisdom, psychology, sociology, etc, but making use of those tools.

This book would make a solid reference tool for many pastors, small group leaders, and others who wish for more Biblical insight into difficulties that Christians comfort and confront.

[Blake · Rating 4 out of 5]

Biblical Counseling and the Church, edited by Bob Kellemen and Kevin Carson, focuses on the Eph 4:11-16 calling for personal ministry of the Word, saying that counseling, the “grand cause,” the church, is the center and sender of Gospel-centered counseling, focusing on the shepherd’s quality, care of sheep, lessons of soul care, necessity of community in counseling, Biblical counseling in all church sizes, missions, cross-cultural settings , in evangelism, discipleship, and relationship between church and para-church.

Strengths: Exaltation of Christ and His Word; importance of body life for counseling; gracious to opposition; wisdom in ethics and legal issues; practical input for counseling in church ministry; Confessional and Doctrinal Statements.

Weaknesses: promotes Celebrate Recovery ; quotes Mark Driscoll; speaks favorably of Harvest Bible Chapel ; speaks of people signing contracts for training; explanation of para-church in Scripture; Welch/William’s problematic points regarding depression.

Use in Biblical Counseling: very useful for training in Biblical Counseling; warns against professionalism in Biblical Counseling; points regarding church restoration and conflict resolution; urges humility, love, and strong community.

As a whole, this was a very good read and very informative.

[Bryce Beale · Rating 4 out of 5]

Here more than twenty of the most important minds in the biblical counseling movement gather to discuss the relationship of biblical counseling and the local church. They wrote in 2015, so the upheaval of the last two years are unaddressed, but I found myself taking mental notes in most chapters for real-life application. These are practical chapters about how we help people grow in the church.

There are six parts: biblical counseling as a vision for the whole church; small groups; conflict resolution; equipping counselors; outreach; and the history of biblical counseling. Although this book was published under the guidance of the BCC (Biblical Counseling Coalition), it is quite unpartisan (ACBC is mentioned often, for example).

Personally, I found the chapter on launching a counseling ministry in a mid-size church (chap. 13) the most engaging, since that's where I am; and because I'm also reading Lambert's book The Biblical Counseling Movement after Adams, the final chapter on the movement's history was also of interest (written by someone who was there to witness the movement's very beginning).

I will certainly be making use of this material as I try to counsel faithfully among God's people.

[Gregory Kirk]

Biblical Counseling and the church is a compilation of essays written by several authors. The focus is on how biblical counseling should work in our churches today. The book is divided into six parts. The twenty-two chapters are written by trained Christian leaders who have established proficiency in the different aspects of Biblical counseling. With each piece having a distinct emphasis on biblical counseling and how it interacts with the church. Reading through this book will take a novice biblical counselor from why he should have a counseling ministry in his church and then how to make it successful. Most of the sections are co-written by two biblical counselors or pastors; this way, the reader gets a different viewpoint on the same subject.

[Caleb Santos · Rating 4 out of 5]

It presents real life scenarios on how biblical counseling can impact the Church. It does not matter the size of the congregation there is an important and vital role for biblical counseling to be part of the core foundation of what the Church is called to do, as in fulfills the great commission to go and make disciples.

The book touches on important issues to confront using Scriptures to call the Church to realize its role in caring for souls using Ephesians 4 frequently as a guidance for its role.

[Daniel · Rating 5 out of 5]

For those involved in local church discipling/soul-care leadership, this is definitely worth reading. Almost all of the chapter authors are highly recommended and nationally recognized in the field of biblical counseling. As with anything extra-biblical, one must be discerning. This text clarifies some foundations of the Biblical Counseling Coalition. While this is a trusted organization, it experiences growing pains along the edges. The sufficiency of Scripture in the context of the local church remains the core for the caring of souls.

[Lisa Horne · Rating 5 out of 5]

A Comprehensive Starting Point

This book offers a comprehensive collection of many viewpoints for biblical counselors. It provides a great starting point for many topics including pre-counseling, evangelism, outreach, small-group ministry, and others that pastor-counselors and biblical counselors need to consider.

[JT Goodart · Rating 3 out of 5]

There were some really great and helpful chapters in here - especially the ones on integrating biblical counseling trainings into small group ministry and leadership - but there were also definitely some chapters that just felt like personal ads for their particular ministry service or what their church does. So overall, kind of a mixed bag.

[Kyle McQuinn · Rating 5 out of 5]

Incredibly insightful book! It is most certainly not an overnight read, which is why it is more probably around the 4.5 star range. Dr. Kellemen, and those that collaborated with him, bring to the forefront the importance of biblical counseling and a glimpse into how it looks. Recommended for any pastor that is or will be doing pastoral counseling.

[Peggy Johnson · Rating 5 out of 5]

A great read for thinking through how biblical counseling should permeate the philosophy and ministry of the church, especially small groups.

[Dwain Minor · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a good resource for applying Biblical Counseling to the local church setting. Each chapter is written by a different author, or pair of authors and they did a good job with it.

[Nick Wills · Rating 4 out of 5]

Extremely helpful guide of how ecclesiology and biblical counseling fit together and where the current state of biblical counseling is at.


*read parts 1-5 only*

[Elizabeth Aucoin · Rating 4 out of 5]

Very thorough, practical, and a helpful resource for the church.

[Dana]

soul care in the church - how hard, how wonderful.
thankful for this compilation of wisdom from many
who have sought to do this wisely, faithfully, lovingly

[Tess McDonald · Rating 5 out of 5]

Helpful resource. Only read excerpts for a CCEF class.

[Levi Friesen · Rating 4 out of 5]

Helpful, practical.

[Bret James Stewart · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book is a collection of essays by various authors with the overriding goal of arguing for a church of small group ministry rather than a church with small groups. The distinction is that the former presents a church culture of counselling. At some point(s) in their lives, all church members could benefit from godly biblical counselling and care, and this book promotes this ideal as a scripturally-accurate view of the church God intends.

The book is attractive and sturdy. The text is easy to read and error-free, as far as I could tell. The book is divided into parts and chapters with sub-headings and other markers to keep the reader on track and to aid in comprehension. Front matter includes acknowledgements, a foreword, and an introduction, which promotes the idea that a biblical counselling ministry is a viable project for the individual church due to the sufficiency of Christ and His commands to believers to support one another.

Part One: More Than Counseling: A Vision for the Entire Church includes four essays explaining the core premises of biblical counselling and why such a curriculum or practice is needed in the contemporary church. The pastor’s goal is to shepherd the flock, and biblical counselling is an important aspect of this charge, though the role is certainly not limited to the pastor.
Part Two: Biblical Counseling and Small Group Ministry gets more into the nuts and bolts of the process. Strategies and tools are provided for those wanting to start small group counselling, and some examples of these and sub-groups are explained. The concept that counselling is an important part of the biblical vision of community is also addressed.

Part Three: Biblical Counseling and Conflict Resolution amps up the stakes. Regular counselling may not contain any real conflict, but some of it does. This section deals with those times when emotions are charged and full-blown conflict is present. Strategies for such times are provided as are some outside resources for those instances when extra help is needed. The difficult topic of church discipline is included here.

Part Four: Equipping Biblical Counselors provides ideas and strategies for the implementation of biblical counselling in churches of various sizes. This section also provides information about how to start such a ministry from scratch as well as some of the legal and ethical issues that such a ministry is going to encounter along its ministerial journey. This is a more nuanced approach than Part Two.

Part Five: Biblical Counseling and Outreach explores the connexions between counseling and evangelism, general community outreach, dealing with para-church organizations, and colleges. Using counselling as an outreach is a great way to demonstrate Christian concern in a “helping” way that is attractive to non-believers and others.

Part Six: Biblical Counseling in Historical Perspective provides information about both the history and the probable future of such counselling. Unfortunately, the only bad part of the book appears here in the closing chapter wherein the author uses a pro-Union example from the War Between the States. This is definitely a fault as it is insulting to Southerners, who probably represent a large portion of the intended audience. I have no idea if the editors did not care about this or did not consider it, but it is a blemish on a fine book, especially coming at the end to tarnish one’s view of the book as a whole. I highly recommend the publishers/editors remove this. It is very easy to select a military campaign that is more (or completely) neutral to audiences.

Back matter includes appendices of confessional and doctrinal statements of the Biblical Counseling Coalition, a bibliography, a section about the individual contributors, a notes section, and indices for scripture and subject references.

Except for the poor choice of the martial example, for which I deduct one star, I like this book. Much of the information herein I did not know, so it was a learning experience for me. In particular, I had never considered biblical counselling as something God commands, which results in a much broader view and application of the subject than the sparse ground it covers in the churches I have attended.

[Emma Schramm · Rating 3 out of 5]

I read large portions of this book for a class with CCEF. What portions I read were helpful and balanced.

[Jalynn Patterson · Rating 5 out of 5]

About the Book:
As people face addictions, deal with loss and grief, and seek help in restoring broken relationships, where can they turn for counsel and assistance? The local church has been uniquely blessed with the gift of the gospel and is able to offer hope and counsel that no other institution on earth can.


In Biblical Counseling and the Church, Bob Kellemen and Kevin Carson have assembled over twenty respected ministry leaders who examine the relationship between counseling and the church. This comprehensive resource, part of the Biblical Counseling Coalition series, helps leaders and counselors develop a vision that goes beyond being a church with a biblical counseling ministry to becoming a church of biblical counseling—a church culture that is saturated by “one-another” ministry.


Divided into five parts, Biblical Counseling and the Church will help church leaders:



Unite the pulpit ministry of preaching the Word with the personal ministry of the Word in counseling
Offer practical and theological training to equip counselors
Launch and lead a counseling ministry, regardless of the size of your church
Bring together the relational focus of small group ministry with the ministry of care and counseling
Better understand the relationship between biblical counseling, church discipline, and conflict resolution
Learn how to use counseling in outreach through “missional” biblical counseling—moving biblical counseling beyond the doors of the church and into the world.

My Review:
As a Christian especially if you belong to a church, it can be real hard to seek counseling in your own church. You don't want to be judged and sometimes you will do without any sort of counseling and this can lead to disastrous results for you and your family. In my opinion there is a shortage of pastors willing to have counseling sessions and I think that because of this there a lot of people suffering for no good reason. If only these ministers had an effective way to minister to these families one on one maybe we would see a lot of relationships restored which is ultimately what God wants.

This book is a virtual guidebook for leaders in ministry. It includes many, many things to get you started on this journey. It also has tips for growing your church and small groups. It also shows you how to implement counseling into your ministry or start a new one all together. The author shares a lot of great advice and effectively leads you into starting a counseling ministry in your church and community. It is well researched and provides thorough information for a long lasting ministry of counseling.

**Disclosure** This book was sent to me free of charge for an honest review from the author.

[Steven · Rating 5 out of 5]

Biblical Counseling and the Church edited by Bob Kellemen and Kevin Carson is a valuable resource for anyone seeking to implement biblical counseling into the life of the local church.

This first section of this book is directed more towards those who bear the responsibility of pastoral ministry in the local church. The various authors seek to demonstrate the vital importance of biblical counseling to areas such as preaching of the word, private ministry, and other areas dealing with pastoral oversight. The second section addresses incorporating biblical counseling into various small group settings. The third section demonstrates the interconnectedness of biblical counseling and church disciple and conflict resolution. The fourth section deals with equipping and implementing biblical counseling in various contexts and the details involved. The fifth section deal with biblical counseling issues beyond the walls of the church in outreach, parachurch, and the academy. The final section addresses the biblical counseling movements overall future.

This book is an expansive resource with material that would be beneficial for any level of leadership in any size church. I think the chapter on counseling in a “smaller church” is especially helpful. I myself have been challenged by my need to continue to grow in my counseling skills. I would recommend this book to any pastor or leader in the local church.

Disclosure: I received this book free from from the publisher for providing this review. The opinions I have expressed are my own, and I was not required to write a positive review. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255 http://www.access.gpo.gov/nara/cfr/wa...

[Yonasan Aryeh · Rating 4 out of 5]

This work features a variety of authors that contribute to the work of helping share HaShem’s care through His people. Paul Tripp, a notable author and theologian, is only one of many that have contributed to this work. This work is divided into five main parts: (i) a counseling vision for the church, (ii) biblical counseling and small group ministries, (iii) biblical counseling and conflict resolution, (iv) equipping biblical counselors, and (v) biblical counseling in regard to outreach. In all, the book recognizes the role the church plays, or needs to play, in effective biblical counseling at every level of organization and seeks to equip leaders with the tools they need for success, as well as the knowledge of how to best apply biblical counseling in every scenario. Included are two appendices, which are a confessional statement and a doctrinal statement, to help churches best integrate biblical counseling while retaining the “biblical” part of the counseling.

As is usual with works that are penned by many authors, it is difficult to comment on the voice of the book and how readers will engage with the authors. What can be said, however, is that this book clearly outlines itself as a work best suited for lay leaders or ministry professionals and to train them as well as give them a necessary toolset for their role in biblical counseling. In a world that is increasingly needing love and counseling to learn what love really is every day, this book finds itself as a great companion to help effectively answer questions and introduce change for the better.

Disclosure: I have received a reviewer copy and/or payment in exchange for an honest review of the product mentioned in this post.

[Jimmy Reagan · Rating 5 out of 5]

This attractive book is likely all you will ever need on the subject of counseling and the Church. Notice I didn’t say on counseling, as this volume zeros in on how churches might carry out counseling ministry. It will not replace volumes on how to actually do counseling itself, though it evens offers many insights in that area too.

Part 1 was my personal favorite, and outstanding in every way. Chapter one looked at how churches, pastor and people, should see counseling as part of what we do. The superb chapter 2 called on pastors to see that their role to shepherd required that they counsel in addition to preaching. Drawing that conclusion from passages like I Peter 5:1-4, Ezekiel 34, and John 10 made that conclusion unanswerable. The next chapter tied in culture’s impact. We had a chapter on uniting the public and private aspects of giving the Word among others. The section on church discipline was well done too.

The balance of the book talked about how to implement counseling into the ministry of the church. Though I finished some chapters thinking that wouldn’t work in our church, the book strove to speak to churches of all sizes. It think it did a fine job in that regard.

The book was well written, had a high view of Scripture, was passionate about its subject, and clear in its suggestions. I recommend it.

I received this book free from the publisher. I was not required to write a positive review. The opinions I have expressed are my own. I am disclosing this in accordance with the Federal Trade Commission’s 16 CFR, Part 255.