Scripture: Acts 2:14-41 & Ephesians

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Scripture: John 16:25-33

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Scripture: John 16:16-24

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Scripture: Colossians 1:24-29

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The following are presuppositions that drive us to be purposeful and intentional in counseling that is thoroughly biblical in both doctrine and practice at Maranatha Bible Church.  It is these assumptions that compel us to action in our counseling efforts.

God is the Creator, Sustainer, and Revealer

Everything that exists was created by God and is sustained by God (Gen 1:1, Col 1:16, 17, Rev 4:11).  As part of His creation, man was created to be live, move and have his identity in Him.  His plans and purposes for man are not hidden but revealed in special revelation that is recorded in the Bible as God’s counsel.

God’s Counsel Defines the Nature and Purposes of Man

God created us, and He is the only being that can correctly define us – how we were made, why we were made, and how we relate to the world around us.  These questions get at man’s nature and purpose in life.  Scripture declares that man was created by God in His own image (Gen 1:26, 27, 2:7), for His own glory (Isa 43:7, Eph 1:11-12), and that man functions as overseers of His creation – we are to subdue the earth and rule over every living creature (Gen 1:28).  Essentially, we were created to be God centered – to “do all to the glory of God” (1 Cor 10:31) and to enjoy God by delighting in Him and our relationship to Him (John 10:10, Ps 27:4, Ps 73:25-26).

The Fall Introduced a Counterfeit Counsel

With the Fall, a counterfeit counsel was introduced in direct competition to God’s counsel about the nature of God and the meaning of life and the world (Col 2:8).  This counsel is characterized by selfishness, worldly thinking, and fleshly lusts which dominate the heart of sinful man.  This counsel fails to understand and take into consideration the nature, power, and deceitfulness of indwelling sin in the heart of fallen man (Jer 17:9).  It is promulgated by those who are “lovers of self” and “lovers of pleasure rather than lovers of God” (2 Tim 3:2).  This counsel is offered by those who are “without understanding” (Rom 1:31) and “always learning [but] never able to come to the knowledge of the truth” (2 Tim 3:7).  Such counsel is worldly advice and those who choose to follow it fail to recognize that “whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God” (James 4:4).  Much of the modern counseling movement is rooted, not in God’s wise counsel, but worldly advice that springs the heart of fallen man.  Thus, it is imperative that believers be discerning both in the counsel they give and receive in dealing with issues of the heart.  The introduction of a counterfeit counsel requires that believers sort through the dizzying array of counsel being offered by the world and seek to heed God’s clear counsel in His Word.

Godly Counsel is Based on Scripture Alone

Counsel can either be godly – intended to sanctify, or ungodly – not intended to sanctify (Ps 1:2).  While both types of counsel can produce change, only godly counsel can produce sanctification – decreasing patterns of sin and increasing patterns of holiness.  Godly counsel is the theological foundation of biblical counseling.  Its formation is based on absolute truth found only in the inspired and inerrant Word of God (2 Pet 1:2-3, 2 Tim 3:16-17).  Its lineage consists of 5 levels starting with the (1) canonical Scriptures that are (2) properly interpreted (through the grammatico-historical method of exegesis) and formulated into a (3) Biblical Theology (propositional doctrinal statements) that are then correlated topically into a (4) Systematic Theology that then is used to develop a (5) Practical Theology (practical theological conclusions about life).  Godly counsel exists at each of the 5 levels and each level is unmixed with ungodly counsel.  This is the counsel that leads to sanctification – both the salvation of the lost and the progressive sanctification of believers.  It is to be studied and used in teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness (2 Tim 3:15-17).  Godly counsel is the basis for realizing the aim of Jesus’ prayer recorded in John 17, “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.” (John 17:17).  The formulation of godly counsel contrasts sharply with the formation of ungodly counsel which either does not consider Scripture, or uses Scripture to develop a practical theology (level 5) without using levels 1-4 to derive their practical theology.  This is where discernment is crucial so that believers are not tossed about by every wind of doctrine that purports to be Christian (Eph 4:14), and may even result in changed behavior, but is not godly counsel that leads to sanctification (1 Thes 2:13).

Biblical Counseling is the Application of Godly Counsel

Biblical Counseling is a system of doctrines and practices that uses Scripture (godly counsel), unmixed with unbiblical psychological systems, as the comprehensively sufficient final authority for the proper interpretation and remedies for man’s problems in living.  It believes:

• God has spoken truly to every basic issue of human nature
• God’s Word establishes the goal of counseling, how people can change, the role of the counselor, and the counseling methods
• Sin, whether remnant sin in believers or reigning sin in unbelievers, is the primary problem counselors must deal with
• Forgiveness for sin and power to change into Christ’s image are the greatest needs of mankind
• Progressive sanctification, decreasing patterns of sin and increasing patterns of holiness, is the aim
• Biblical counseling operates within the confines of the local church as an integral part of building the body towards Christ-likeness, working synergistically with, and not separated from, other aspects of church life – teaching, preaching, prayer, church discipline, use of gifts, missions, and worship

Our Philosophy

The following principles explain the necessary and vital components of our philosophy of Biblical counseling.  These principles have a direct impact on the kind of strategy we will employ in building a Christ-like body of believers through the principles of biblical counseling. These principles are particularly important for our age as the church needs to recover what has effectively been lost in the area of church-based counseling – the knowledge of how to use Scripture in the diagnoses of, and the remedy for, the ills of the soul and, the confidence in the comprehensiveness of Scripture to provide the remedy for all of life’s problems.

The Gospel is Central for Both Believer and Unbeliever

For the person without Christ, only the Gospel will change their heart and bring life where there is only spiritual death.  For the believer, it is the Gospel that continues to point them to Christ and their need to walk with Him intimately and appropriate the rich resources He supplies for living the Christian life.  Thus, in biblical counseling, we aim to show both believer and unbeliever the glory of Christ and the power of the Gospel in their life.

Progressive Sanctification is the Aim of Every Believer

Sanctification – being set apart from sin and set apart unto God – is both an event and a lifelong process.  Believers have been and are constantly being separated from sin and conformed to Christ’s likeness (1 Cor 6:11, Eph 2:10, Phil 1:6, 2:13, 1 Thes 5:23, 24).  In fact, believers are predestined to be conformed to the image of God’s Son (Rom 8:29)…it is not optional.  So, biblical counseling aims to promote the sanctification of the believer and to cause genuine change rather than change that is simply superficial or behavioral.

Progressive Sanctification is Active not Passive

Progressive sanctification happens when the believer actively eliminates old sinful habits and actively replaces them with new godly habits (Col 3:5-6, Rom 8:13-14, Rom 12:1-2, Eph 4:22-32, Col 3:1-17).  Such sanctification requires developing a daily pattern of Christian disciplines in the life of each believer.  It occurs when individual believers cultivate a daily pattern of Scripture study, prayer and confession of sins (Josh 1:8, Ps 19, Ps 119, Col 3:16, 2 Tim 2:15, Col 4:2, 1 Thess 5:17, 1 John 1:9).  Therefore, when we counsel someone biblically, we endeavor to get them actively involved in the sanctification process.

The Local Church is Central in God’s Plan to Mature Believers

Progressive sanctification was designed by God to operate within the local church through interaction between believers.  This is the message of Ephesians 4 in describing the operation of the church.  Scripture is used by pastors and teachers to move individual believers towards Christ likeness, maturing believers begin fulfilling their proper function and role in the body, better functioning of individual parts strengthens the body, and a strengthened body helps protect the individual parts from false teaching (Eph 4:11-16).  The role the church body plays in progressive sanctification is also seen in the many ‘one another’ commands found throughout Scripture.  Believers are instructed to admonish, encourage, comfort, pray, bear the weakness and bear the burdens of fellow believers (Rom. 15:14, Heb. 3:13, 1 Thes. 4:18, 5:11, James 5:16, Rom 15:1, and Gal 6:1-2).  Although the ‘one-another’ commands apply universally to all believers everywhere, the primary place to fulfill these commands on a regular basis occurs within the sphere of the local church.  Thus, biblical counseling must take place within the confines of the church.  Although the norm today is for churches to refer “clients” to an outside agency or to the “professional counselor,” we believe that those best equipped to deal with spiritual issues of the heart are those men and women within the body of Christ who are able to bring the Word of God to bear upon the souls of God’s people.  For this reason, we are convinced that biblical counseling is best done within the confines of the local church by godly believers who know and love the Word of God and His people.

God’s Word is the Only Truth That Sanctifies

No clearer or more definitive statement is found in Scripture as to what powers sanctification than John 17:17: “Sanctify them by Your truth. Your word is truth.”  Scripture is God-breathed and makes one wise for salvation, complete for every good work, and is profitable for doctrine, reproof, correction and instruction in righteous (2 Tim 3:16-17).  The authority and sufficiency of the Word of God extends to issues which our society and many in the contemporary church would deny that it extends to.  Although some of these issues may have a medical component which may play a part, our conviction is that many of these issues have a spiritual component which is the underlying cause of the problem.  In these cases, it is the heart that needs to be addressed and only the Word of God is capable of adequately exposing and dealing with issues of the heart.

There Must be a Recovery of Biblical Counseling in the Church

The view of biblical counseling’s effectiveness to address the problems of life has greatly diminished over the past century.  The counsel that the church offers is viewed as simplistic and rarely sought out today, as people seek out paid counseling professionals – whether Christian or secular.  This means the current generation of believers has come to believe that Scripture is not sufficient for the more ‘complex’ problems of life.  Therefore, one of the church’s greatest tasks is to recover, as a sound doctrine of the church, the truth of Scripture as the exclusive counseling authority over care of the soul.

We Must Have an Unwavering Confidence in Biblical Counseling

Biblical counselors understand that, as counselors, they are just saved sinners who know they have no answers in themselves (Jer 17:9).  Instead, their unwavering confidence in the effectiveness of biblical counseling lies in the discipline’s theological underpinnings – the Scriptures, which are both authoritative and comprehensive in addressing all the issues of life. No matter how ‘complex’ life gets, there is nothing new under the sun that the living Word does not address.  Their desire is to be workmen who have studied the Word of God in order to be skilled in both discerning and then applying godly counsel to life’s problems, and then ministering this saving and sanctifying counsel to others.  Thus, biblical counselors can in full confidence say that there are answers to all of life’s problems and ills of the soul, and that biblical counseling can help the counselee find and apply these answers.

OUR PLAN

The following strategy represents our attempt at Maranatha Bible Church to be purposeful in recovering the proper role of biblical counseling in the life of the local church.  This is the “nuts and bolts” and the practical “how-to” for equipping Maranatha Bible Church to counsel biblically.  While we may not employ this entire strategy at any given time, it gives us something to shoot for over time.

For the Elders

• Understand and champion Maranatha’s Biblical Counseling Philosophy of Ministry in both your personal ministry and in the corporate body.
• Oversee plans to recover the practice of Biblical Counseling
• Embed biblical counseling objectives into the operating plans and structure of the church
• Oversee the budget and physical space resource needs for biblical counseling and ensure that they are sufficient to meet the objectives established
• Discern and defend counsel that is biblical from counsel that is not but purports to be
• Embed the daily practice of godly disciplines in the church operating structure

For the Strategy Development and Implementation Team

• Develop both short and long-range plans for embedding biblical counseling into the ministries of Maranatha Bible Church under the oversight of the MBC elders
• Develop a long range plan for establishing a biblical counseling center that provides community based evangelism and believer counseling, as well as offering biblical counseling training to the Christian community
• Develop Counselor’s Training Path and Support Material:
  • Develop training path(s) – in-house, online learning, off-site – that lead to NANC certification
  • Develop or acquire content for all levels of in-house counseling training covering both (1) instruction (basic, advanced, specialized), and (2) practice (practical methods, observations, casework)
  • Develop biblical counseling tools – checklists, worksheets, consent forms, etc.
  • Develop counselor qualifications for elder review

• Develop Member Training Content:
  • Develop or acquire content for a basic in-house biblical counseling overview covering both instruction and practice suitable for all members
  • Develop tools and implementation plan that will help all members practice daily godly disciplines

For the Counselors

• Meet the counselor qualifications established by the elders
• Be able to discern and defend counsel that is biblical from counsel that is not but purports to be
• Be actively involved in the study of biblical counseling disciplines

For the Members

• Develop confidence in discerning godly counsel
• Develop confidence in applying godly counsel to life’s situation
• Encourage one another in the practice of the godly disciplines of personal daily bible study, prayer and confession of sin
• Understand the basic concepts of biblical counseling and its importance to progressive sanctification

Scripture: Luke 24:45-49

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Athanasius devoted his life to defending the deity of Christ.  The great enemy was the Arian heresy.  Arianism stated that if Christ was truly the Son of God then He had to have a beginning.  Therefore there was a time when Christ did not exist.  This controversy divided the Roman Empire under Constantine.  Constantine called the Council at Nicea.  What came out of this council is what today is known as the Nicene Creed.  This creed settled the issue by stating that Christ was one being with the Father.  Athanasius lived from 298-373 A.D.

John Owen’s focus was battling Christ belittling errors of the mind and heart. John Owen believed that the deeper you grew in your understanding of Christ the deeper your fellowship with Him.  Owen was born in 1616 in England and died in 1683.  He was a contemporary of John Bunyan who wrote the “Pilgrims Progress”.  Owen’s all encompassing aim was:  Holiness – his own and others.  He wrote a book titled “Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers”.  The cost of public faithfulness for the cause of Christ was criticism.  Owen grew in knowledge by obeying what he knew and passionately pursued a personal relationship with God.

J. Gresham Machen lived from 1881-Jan. 1, 1937.  Machen spent his life standing for the Truth of the Gospel against the forces of liberalism, which, according to Piper, he saw as another religion.  Machen also emphasize that the facts of history are relevant to our times.

I really enjoyed this little book.  It makes you aware of the people and thoughts that have shaped Christianity in our day.

Recently the elders of MBC have been wrestling with the issue of whether or not members of Maranatha should be baptized by immersion in order to be received as members. Prior to this, baptism has not been a requirement for church membership at Maranatha. However, as the elders wrestled with this issue, we came to the conclusion that this should be necessary for becoming a member at MBC. As we have discussed this issue, we have concluded that believer’s baptism and church membership should not be separated as if they were two unrelated events, rather, they are intimately connected with believer’s baptism serving as a necessary prerequisite for church membership. The following is a defense of this position.

Rationale

Christ was Baptized and We Are to Follow His Example

• Although John’s baptism was a baptism of repentance and thus different from believer’s baptism, Christ did set an example for us in the waters of baptism (Mark 1:9)
• Christ had no need to be baptized as he had no sin to repent of, yet His baptism was done in order to “fulfill all righteousness” (Matt 3:15) and thereby prefigured the significance of believer’s baptism
• Thus, we desire to follow the example set by Jesus in being baptized by immersion

Baptism is Commanded for All Believers

• Baptism is not an optional command which was given by the Lord to His people; it is  something that He expects all believers to be obedient to
• In fact, baptism is one of the first commands given to a new believer and one of the first steps of obedience a new believer takes
• Jesus commanded the disciples in Matthew 28:19-20, “Go therefore and make disciples of all the nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and the Son and the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I commanded you; and lo, I am with you always, even to the end of the age.”
• Acts 2:38 indicates that baptism is an ordinance commanded by the Lord in conjunction with a person’s salvation
• Also, Acts 2:41 implies that obedience to the command to be baptized was a necessary component of being included in the Jerusalem church
• The pattern in the book of Acts demonstrates that believers were baptized soon after conversion in obedience to the command to be baptized (see Acts 8:12; 8:36; 10:47-48; 16:14-15; 16:31-33)
• Thus, because Christ commanded that believers be baptized, we want to uphold the importance of that command and urge believers to obey it

Baptism is a Public Profession of Salvation

• Baptism and salvation are closely associated in the New Testament (Acts 8:12; 22:16)
• The reason for this is because baptism demonstrates that someone is a believer – going under the water symbolizes the washing away of sin and coming up out of the water symbolizes the new life that is in Christ
• So closely are salvation and baptism connected that all of those who believed on Pentecost were baptized (Acts 2:41)
• Likewise, Acts 18:8 expresses the fact that believers in the early church demonstrated the reality of their salvation by being baptized
• Therefore, we want to encourage believers to publicly profess their salvation in Jesus Christ in the waters of baptism

Baptism is a Required Component in the Discipleship Process

• Matthew 28:19-20 indicates that baptism is part of bringing someone to Christ and discipling them so that they obey Christ’s teaching
• Because becoming a member of a church is part of the discipleship process, we want to be faithful to Christ’s instructions to baptize those who have become a disciple of Christ
• Thus, we desire to upholds Christ’s requirements for discipling believers of which baptism is a necessary requirement

Baptism is Consistent with Identification with Christ

• Water baptism is intended to convey the spiritual realities that occur when someone comes to Christ
• Romans 6:3-5 and Colossians 2:12 express the fact that when someone is saved they are instantly identified with Christ in His death and resurrection
• They are “baptized” into Christ’s death and are raised up with Him through faith
• This “baptism” which occurs at the moment of salvation is not water baptism, but a spiritual baptism when the believer is united with Christ’s work on the cross and in His resurrection
• However, water baptism is intended to be a vivid portrayal of these spiritual realities
• Thus, water baptism is an important ordinance given to the church to demonstrate the glorious realities of salvation in Christ

Believer’s Baptism is the “Door” into Local Church Membership

• When a person is regenerated, converted, and justified, they are instantly “baptized” into the body of Christ, the universal church, as a result of their union with Christ and their identification with Him (1 Cor 12:13)
• Thus, membership in the universal church is a genuine reality for all true believers as a result of their spiritual baptism in Christ
• However, it is our conviction at MBC that water baptism (and a clear testimony of salvation through Christ) is the requirement for entrance into local church membership
• For those who wish to become members of a local church, they should be willing to enter through the door of water baptism since it parallels the entrance into the universal church by  of spiritual baptism
• A believer who is willing to identify with a local body of believers, the body of Christ, in membership, should also be willing to identify with Christ Himself in the waters of baptism
• We view it as inconsistent for a believer to want to identify with the body of Christ in membership but not want to identify with the person of Christ in the waters of baptism in accordance with Christ’s command
• Thus, we see water baptism as an important prerequisite for entrance into local church membership as it parallels spiritual baptism as a requirement for entrance into the universal church
• It is important to note that water baptism only needs to be performed once following a believer’s conversion – in other words, a believer needs not to be baptized again each time he desires to become a member of a local church

Failing to Require Baptism for Membership Creates Problems

Such as:

• Promoting the idea that believer’s baptism is optional
• Creating a division within that local church between “baptized members” and “unbaptized members”
• Complicating the situation when an unbaptized person is considered for a position of leadership in the church such as elder or deacon

Issues to Address

What About Current Members not Baptized by Immersion?

• We understand that in making this change at MBC, there are some who have become members previously without having been baptized by immersion and, for various reasons, have not been baptized since then
• Thus, there are some “unbaptized members” of Maranatha Bible Church
• Because those individuals became members when this requirement was not in place, it would be wrong and unkind to now “revoke” that individual’s membership now that baptism is required for membership
• For that reason, we will not be removing membership from individuals who fall into this category
• However, we will encourage those individuals to consider this change carefully, to understand what the Bible teaches about believer’s baptism, and to become obedient to Christ’s instructions to be baptized

What About Those Who Were Sprinkled as Infants?

• In some cases, there may be some believers who apply for membership at MBC who have been sprinkled as an infant or young child
• While we understand that some denominations consider this method “baptism,” it is our conviction at MBC that infant sprinkling is inconsistent with believer’s baptism as outlined in the Bible and this paper
• In other words, infant sprinkling is not the same as believer’s baptism and would, therefore, not fulfill the requirement of baptism for membership at MBC
• Thus, we would encourage that person to become obedient to Christ’s command to be baptized in accordance with believer’s baptism

What About Children or Young People?

• Young people who desire to becomes members of MBC must meet the same requirements for membership as adults (i.e. clear testimony of salvation and baptism by immersion)
• The danger to avoid with children, however, is rushing them into baptism when their testimony may be still unclear (or at least unproven) and their understanding of baptism may still be fuzzy
• Too often young people are rushed into baptism after any profession of faith they give which may in fact not be a genuine conversion
• This can create confusion for the child as they grow older since they had a “conversion experience” (i.e. raising the hand, walking an aisle, signing a card, saying a prayer, etc.) and they were baptized, but may not be genuinely saved
• Also, too often children are rushed into baptism without fully comprehending the spiritual implications of baptism
• They might want to get baptized because their parents encourage them to or because their friends are doing it, but they may not fully understand their identification with Christ in the waters of baptism
• For these reasons, it is important to wait for children to clearly understand the Gospel, have a clear conversion testimony, and understand what believer’s baptism really means before they are baptized
• Thus, in order for young people to become members of MBC, they would need to work through these issues prior to membership

Scripture: Mark 9:14-29

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Scripture: Psalm 1

Description: 1) The Godly Person Accepts Advice; 2) The Godly Person Avoids Ungodly Behavior; 3) The Godly Person Avoids Ungodly Companions.  Meditating on the truths of Scripture is critical to obedience, Ps 1:2, Josh 1:8, Lk 11:28.

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