Today we can truly rejoice and praise God for the fruitfulness that is evident in the church as the result of the Biblical Counseling Movement.1[1] See Jay E. Adams, Competent to Counsel: Introduction to Nouthetic Counseling, The Jay Adams Library (Grand Rapids, MI: Ministry Resources Library, 1986). Yet, due to the rise of the movement and the emergence of secular psychologies as the prevailing “religion” of the West, many have sought to brand themselves as biblical counselors while abandoning the historical biblical commitments of Jay Adams and his successors. Scripture and history tell us the folly of being seduced by the apparent explanatory power of the ever-changing secular psychologies (Proverbs 26:11). We’ve been here before!2[1] Heath Lambert, ed., A Call to Clarity, Critical Issues in Biblical Counseling (Jacksonville, FL: First Baptist Church Jacksonville, 2024), 73.
Lou Priolo’s Presuppositions of Biblical Counseling: What Historical Biblical Counselors Really Believe examines twelve tacit assumptions that biblical counselors historically have held, dedicating a chapter to each one.3[1] Heath Lambert, ed., A Call to Clarity, Critical Issues in Biblical Counseling (Jacksonville, FL: First Baptist Church Jacksonville, 2024), 73. Priolo’s twelve presuppositions are based upon Jay Adams’ twenty-five, originally published in his 1980 Update on Christian Counseling. Priolo’s presuppositions are especially important information for those who are equipping counselors and those seeking to be equipped to counsel in a more loving, competent, and biblically faithful manner.
Counselors, is it possible that your counsel has been unduly influenced by our psychologized culture instead of a biblical approach under church oversight? In the following paragraphs, I will briefly highlight seven of Priolo’s presuppositions that you may use as a helpful rubric to evaluate your own counseling presuppositions and practice. Priolo’s seven presuppositions highlighted below are chosen as the most relevant to the Biblical Counseling Movement regarding the role that secular psychologies play (or shouldn’t play) in biblical counseling.4[1] Ibid., 96. Priolo cites Adams extensively in the breakdown of Matthew 5:18-17 and church discipline more generally (see Ibid., 98-101).
Priolo’s second presupposition states that “Man was created in God’s image as a responsible being.”5[1] Ibid., 98-99. Priolo notes that most alternative theories to Scripture deny individual responsibility for one’s own behavior (including thoughts, motives, and intentions) either by declaration or implication (cf. Romans 14:12; Hebrews 4:13). Does your counsel indicate that man is accountable for his responses that stem from his immaterial heart, or does it attribute his responses to his upbringing, chemical imbalance, nervous system functioning, or other factors? (cf. Mark 7:14-23; Luke 6:45) We are embodied souls until the first death (Genesis 2:7; 1 Corinthians 15; 2 Corinthians 4:16), but bio-deterministic theories essentially negate the notion of human moral responsibility. Do you hold to one’s moral culpability before God even when one has been grievously sinned against (1 Peter 2:23; 3:9)? Peter’s teaching through the Holy Spirit does not preclude seeking justice from God-ordained authorities but warns against sinful responses to sin and suffering (Romans 13:1-6).
Priolo’s fourth presupposition is that “the Bible is the only complete and authoritative textbook written specifically to provide the answers to both man’s behavioral problems and the means for man’s behavioral changes.”[61] For an extended discussion of biblical counseling in the church, see T. Dale Johnson, The Church as a Culture of Care: Finding Hope in Biblical Community (Greensboro, NC: New Growth Press, 2021). Scripture is inerrant, authoritative, and sufficient (Psalm 19:7-11; Isaiah 40:8; Ecclesiastes 12:13; John 3:36; Hebrews 4:12-13; 2 Peter 1:3, 21). Has the preeminence of the Bible been gradually eclipsed by insights from popular psychology or pragmatic considerations (Colossians 2:8)? How do you reconcile any conflicting claims of psychological theories and methods with the truth of the Bible? In other words, does your counsel reflect the teaching of Scripture at every point? If the answer to the latter is “no,” your counseling is not biblical counseling as it has been historically understood. Even wisdom issues—lacking a clear biblical command—must be handled according to biblical principles to the greatest extent possible (Proverbs 2:6-12; 3:6-7).
Priolo’s sixth presupposition is that “every functional behavioral problem that man experiences results from failure to love God or man, or both, as the Bible says he should.”7Ibid., 57. Christ commands man to love God with his total being and to love his neighbor (as a fellow image bearer) as he does himself out of that love for God (Matthew 22:36-40). This is especially hard for us when people sin against us. Their sin does not excuse us from our responsibility to obey Christ. If a suffering counselee is failing to love God or neighbor in the wake of horrible suffering, do you have the courage for loving, gentle, and wise confrontation at the proper time, or do you tend to remain exclusively focused on their suffering? Christians struggle to imitate Christ’s exceptional response to being grievously sinned against (1 Peter 2:23). Thus, in our frailty, we must expect to struggle with our fleshly tendency to return evil for evil and help our counselees who are struggling to do likewise. Other common problems include a lack of thankfulness and hearts of discontentment. Will you lovingly confront them? Failure to do so is not without consequences for even David needed a Nathan to lead him toward repentance (Psalm 32:3-5; Proverbs 28:13).
Priolo’s eighth presupposition declares that “the only behavior changes in man that are pleasing to God and are ultimately beneficial to man are those effected by means of the Holy Spirit applying the Word of God in sanctifying power to the will and mind of the counselee in accordance with biblical methods and directives.”8Ibid., 69. We do not endeavor to counsel people to be “whitewashed tombs” (Matthew 23:27). True sanctification is not (and cannot) be through secular psychologies but by the power of the Holy Spirit as one is changed by the Word and walks in faithful obedience (John 17:17; Colossians 1:28; 1 Thessalonians 5:23; 2 Thessalonians 2:13; 1 Peter 1:2). Does your counsel use the Bible to guide people’s lives or have secular ideas such as wellness, self-care, and other extrabiblical ideologies entered the picture?
Priolo’s ninth presupposition states that “all methodology must grow out of biblical principles and practices (thus, non-Christian content or methods have no place in biblical counseling).”9Ibid., 81. We are not free to adopt the eclectic spirit of the age currently dominating the secular counseling community. Biblical counselor Austin Collins uses Cornelius van Til’s terminology, writing, “All truth-claims of secular theories or practices that lead to a biblical facsimile are warped by the rebellious heart that has an ‘ax to grind’ against God.”10Heath Lambert, ed., A Call to Clarity, Critical Issues in Biblical Counseling (Jacksonville, FL: First Baptist Church Jacksonville, 2024), 73. Thus, as Priolo explains, “The only truth that is 100 percent absolute eternal truth, which will never be changed, altered, or improved on, is the Word of God. To try to ‘blend’ absolute eternal truth with uninspired temporal truth to create a ‘unified whole’ is as futile as trying to homogenize oil and vinegar with a teaspoon—it may appear to work for a while, but in time, it will separate.”11 Priolo, 83, Kindle. Are you seeking to adopt a trauma-informed approach or to incorporate therapeutic practices, such as Eye Movement Desensitization and Reprocessing (EMDR), breathing techniques, or centering prayer, into your counseling? If so, your counseling is not regulated by the Word of God, as historically defined by Adams and his successors, such as Lou Priolo.
Priolo’s eleventh presupposition is that “biblical counseling requires and includes church discipline when it is biblically necessary. Thus, biblical counseling should ultimately be done under the local church.”12Ibid., 96. He points to Matthew 18:15-17 in making the point that “church discipline is inextricably woven into the fabric of biblical counseling.”13Ibid. Priolo cites Adams extensively in the breakdown of Matthew 5:18-17 and church discipline more generally (see Ibid., 98-101). Relational problems start with person-to-person confrontation as depicted in Matthew 18:15 and other New Testament passages (Luke 17:3; Galatians 6:1-2; James 5:19). Yet, Priolo notes that Scripture shows the need for the church to be involved at times (Romans 16:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:14).14Ibid., 98-99. Church discipline’s goal is loving restoration to the glory of God, and so we deprive our brothers and sisters if we do not practice this important church responsibility (Galatians 6:1; 2 Corinthians 2:6-8). Are there ways you can ensure your counselee benefits from the blessing of elder oversight, as referenced in Hebrews 13:17, while also engaging in the ‘one another’ ministry of the local church for accountability and discipleship? Parachurch ministries are sometimes very helpful, but they are not replacements for His church.15For an extended discussion of biblical counseling in the church, see T. Dale Johnson, The Church as a Culture of Care: Finding Hope in Biblical Community (Greensboro, NC: New Growth Press, 2021). For more information on the crucial role of presuppositions in counseling, see David Powlison, “Which Presuppositions: Secular Psychology and the Categories of Biblical Thought: Journal of Psychology & Theology,” Journal of Psychology & Theology 12, no. 4 (1984): 270–78.
Finally, Priolo’s twelfth presupposition states that “God requires and equips all believers to counsel. Additionally, God holds the officers of His church responsible to counsel as a part of their life calling.”16Priolo, 109. Kindle. Therefore, look for pastors who do not cede ground or think that shepherding the flock involves referring them to counselors who incorporate secular ideologies antithetical to biblical anthropology, such as trauma-informed care. Look for those who instead, feed, strengthen, heal, and bring individuals back into the fold through the sufficient Scripture that is preached and taught weekly (Ezekiel 34; Ephesians 4:11-16). In addition, all believers are called to faithfully do one another ministry in their church (Galatians 6:1-2; 1 Thessalonians 5:14). The tool for counseling is the sufficient Scripture (Psalm 119:24; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Again, do you rely on the Word for your counsel, or have secular psychological concepts crept in, thus undermining it? To act otherwise is to repeat Israel’s folly of pursuing empty cisterns rather than embracing the Holy God as the true Refuge (Jeremiah 2:13; 1 Corinthians 10:12).
We all have room to grow, and there is always an ongoing need for us to examine our counseling system and ensure that there’s an unwavering commitment to aligning our beliefs and practices in accordance with God’s Word. May these seven essential presuppositions of biblical counseling serve as a start to evaluate our own counseling practice and whether our thinking and counsel faithfully adhere to Scriptural truths. God is faithful to enable us to do the work of His ministry. If we faithfully abide in Christ and disciple according to the Word of God, we can be confident of His comfort, blessing, and equipping for every good work—including counseling (Psalm 119:105; John 15:1-26; 2 Timothy 3:16-17). Brothers and sisters, let us be good stewards of the treasure that has been passed down to us (2 Timothy 1:13-14; Jude 3).We all have room to grow, and there is always an ongoing need for us to examine our counseling system and ensure that there’s an unwavering commitment to aligning our beliefs and practices in accordance with God’s Word. May these seven essential presuppositions of biblical counseling serve as a start to evaluate our own counseling practice and whether our thinking and counsel faithfully adhere to Scriptural truths. God is faithful to enable us to do the work of His ministry. If we faithfully abide in Christ and disciple according to the Word of God, we can be confident of His comfort, blessing, and equipping for every good work—including counseling (Psalm 119:105; John 15:1-26; 2 Timothy 3:16-17).17For more information on the crucial role of presuppositions in counseling, see David Powlison, “Which Presuppositions: Secular Psychology and the Categories of Biblical Thought: Journal of Psychology & Theology,” Journal of Psychology & Theology 12, no. 4 (1984): 270–78.
