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A Call to Discernment
A Call to Discernment
139 pages, Paperback
First published August 1, 1987
12 people are currently reading
78 people want to read
About the author
Jay E. Adams
221 books147 followersJay Edward Adams is a Reformed Christian author. He has written over 100 books and these have been published in sixteen languages.
He received a Bachelor of Divinity from Reformed Episcopal Seminary, a Bachelor of Arts in Classics from Johns Hopkins University,a Masters in Sacred Theology from Temple University, and a PhD in Speech from the University of Missouri.
Adams' book Competent to Counsel launched the nouthetic counseling movement, a movement whose aim was to use strictly biblical counseling methods. He is the founder of the Intitute for Nothetic Studies.
He received a Bachelor of Divinity from Reformed Episcopal Seminary, a Bachelor of Arts in Classics from Johns Hopkins University,a Masters in Sacred Theology from Temple University, and a PhD in Speech from the University of Missouri.
Adams' book Competent to Counsel launched the nouthetic counseling movement, a movement whose aim was to use strictly biblical counseling methods. He is the founder of the Intitute for Nothetic Studies.
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Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews
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April 29, 2017Adams (the author of Competent to Counsel and many other books) wrote this book in 1987 which was reprinted in 1998. He defines discernment by first explaining that the world sees things in a “continuum thinking” with black and white being the extremes and most things between being various shades of gray. God sees things by “antithesis,” as truth separated from error. “In the Bible, where antithesis is so important, discernment—the ability to distinguish God’s thoughts and God’s ways from all others—is essential. Indeed, God says that ‘the wise in heart will be called discerning’ (Prov. 16:21).” Adams takes the reader through a progression of steps discovering Biblical discernment and common lack of discernment, and then proposes a plan, much like a journal, for a believer to build discernment in various areas of the Christian life. Adams is a very straightforward writer and pulls no punches about the world, sin, and the Christian in the world. He admits his plan is one of many approaches that may be taken, but he strongly advocates making some plan for Biblical discernment.
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link: See my web site for more book reviews
October 14, 2023
I read this for a class several months ago so I'm a little fuzzy on the details, but, like many, I distinctly remember that I had a hard time with Adams' tone. I found it really unhelpful and off-putting. He seems to find a way to insult the reader at regular intervals and assumes that they're lazy, dumb, spiritually immature or ambivalent - which is kind of ironic because would someone who is any of those things be reading a book about these topics? I doubt it. His assumptions about the people reading his books or seeking counseling in his style are really discouraging and counter-productive.
Adams is very dogmatic about things and suffers from the subjectivity that he bemoans in the book. There was more than one example in this book where he takes a position on something that I think he totally misconstrued (but, of course, people who see it differently are not discerning). As an example, we writes:
"Abortion should not be fought on the basis that killing a human being is wrong because he or she is so valuable, but on the basis that, when a child bearing God's image is slaughtered, it is God who is attacked because that child bears his image...An attack on the image of God is serious, not becomes of man's supposed great worth, but because of the One whose image he reflects. Yet undiscerning Christians, some of whom have good discernment when it comes to other things, seem to fall apart in their thinking at this point."
This is such an unnecessary (and untrue) way to think about abortion. Abortion is wrong (and harmful) for a whole slew of reasons. Of course humans have value (Matthew 10:30-31, Psalm 139:13-14). It is derived from God, but that doesn't mean that we should renounce all mention of human worth. Refusing to validate any reason except that it is an attack on the image of God is just reductionistic and an over-spiritualization of the issue.
Elsewhere he ridicules people who sing certain hymns using as one of his examples, "The Church's One Foundation." The author is aghast at why we would sing about talking with the dead because of the line "mystic sweet communion with those whose rest is won." The hymn is clearly (as the title implies) about our communion with Christ and how that communion exists among believers of all ages.
It's examples like these that demonstrate that "discernment" is not as black and white and the author would like the reader to believe. He's clearly missing the point in some areas and letting his own flawed intellect get in the way. We all do - but he seems to be unaware that it's something he needs to worry about.
Toward the end he gives a system for developing your discernment that involves taking a topic, recording what you know about it (including questions you have about it), testing it against scripture, identifying a biblical alternative (if necessary) and implementing that truth in your own life and with others. For some people, this program could be helpful, although it's very rigid and structured (and he expects you to follow it religiously if you want to see improvements).
I'm not going to disagree what we're experiencing an extreme lack of discernment in our day and age, but belittling everyone about it is not the way to go. This was a short book and there were a few tidbits that were helpful, but there was nothing profound enough to make up for the constant scolding.
Adams is very dogmatic about things and suffers from the subjectivity that he bemoans in the book. There was more than one example in this book where he takes a position on something that I think he totally misconstrued (but, of course, people who see it differently are not discerning). As an example, we writes:
"Abortion should not be fought on the basis that killing a human being is wrong because he or she is so valuable, but on the basis that, when a child bearing God's image is slaughtered, it is God who is attacked because that child bears his image...An attack on the image of God is serious, not becomes of man's supposed great worth, but because of the One whose image he reflects. Yet undiscerning Christians, some of whom have good discernment when it comes to other things, seem to fall apart in their thinking at this point."
This is such an unnecessary (and untrue) way to think about abortion. Abortion is wrong (and harmful) for a whole slew of reasons. Of course humans have value (Matthew 10:30-31, Psalm 139:13-14). It is derived from God, but that doesn't mean that we should renounce all mention of human worth. Refusing to validate any reason except that it is an attack on the image of God is just reductionistic and an over-spiritualization of the issue.
Elsewhere he ridicules people who sing certain hymns using as one of his examples, "The Church's One Foundation." The author is aghast at why we would sing about talking with the dead because of the line "mystic sweet communion with those whose rest is won." The hymn is clearly (as the title implies) about our communion with Christ and how that communion exists among believers of all ages.
It's examples like these that demonstrate that "discernment" is not as black and white and the author would like the reader to believe. He's clearly missing the point in some areas and letting his own flawed intellect get in the way. We all do - but he seems to be unaware that it's something he needs to worry about.
Toward the end he gives a system for developing your discernment that involves taking a topic, recording what you know about it (including questions you have about it), testing it against scripture, identifying a biblical alternative (if necessary) and implementing that truth in your own life and with others. For some people, this program could be helpful, although it's very rigid and structured (and he expects you to follow it religiously if you want to see improvements).
I'm not going to disagree what we're experiencing an extreme lack of discernment in our day and age, but belittling everyone about it is not the way to go. This was a short book and there were a few tidbits that were helpful, but there was nothing profound enough to make up for the constant scolding.
July 14, 2022
Out of print and a little dated, but still relevant to the need for discernment in the Church. This book is full of warnings, explanations, and helpful hints. An easy read.
October 28, 2019
Most books are rated related to their usefulness and contributions to my research.
Overall, a good book for the researcher and enthusiast.
Read for personal research
- found this book's contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.
Overall, a good book for the researcher and enthusiast.
Read for personal research
- found this book's contents helpful and inspiring - number rating relates to the book's contribution to my needs.
Read
October 22, 2010Great book. Valuable step-by-step guide to growing in the art of discernment when it comes to media, culture, bible teaching, etc.
February 25, 2013
while the book is written in 1987 and shows its age, the truths in it are still very needed( I think even more needed) today!
Displaying 1 - 7 of 7 reviews