In this second lesson, Pastor Dave Capoccia discusses how the Bible is totally sufficient for the Christian life, including for counseling people about their problems. Pastor Dave presents the Bible’s sufficiency in three points:
1. The Bible Claims Sufficiency
2. The Bible Illustrates Sufficiency
3. The Bible Demonstrates Sufficiency
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all right good morning good morning it’s nine o’clock so i want to get started welcome thank you for being here right at nine welcome to the biblical counseling 101 sunday school class let’s ask the lord’s blessing on our time today heavenly father thank you so much for your sufficient word lord knowing you and knowing your word indeed equips us for all life and godliness i pray that that would be the truth that your people grab hold on today lord help me to be able to explain it well in jesus name amen all right as you find your way to your seats just a few announcements before we get going i’m i’m learning that the setting of sunday school is a little different than what i’m used to we have the filters now we have this big glass thing we have you know other things i wasn’t used to so i’m making some adjustments as we go along you see i’m in the center today i feel like that’s a better way for me to actually reach all of you also it was really hard for me to actually hear what you were saying last week so i’m going to ask most the time in sunday school unless i tell you otherwise please raise your hand when you’re answering a question because otherwise i might not hear you or everybody’s speaking at the same time and i might not be able to notice you so we’re going to do raising hands i’m also going to discuss new homework at the beginning of class rather than at the end of class so that way we can transition nicely right into questions at the end of class and somebody told me that i never actually gave a definition of biblical counseling last week i kind of described it in a number of ways so i’ll summarize a few of those things in a definition right now what is biblical counseling that was what our main topic was last time biblical counseling is using the bible to reveal and transform a person’s heart to help him become more like jesus christ to the glory of god so we talked about that last time i think it’s a useful definition for you to remember even to write down biblical counseling is using the bible to reveal and transform a person’s heart to help him become more like christ to the glory of god now somebody asked me a question last week that i i do want to clarify or after last week can you use biblical counseling on an unbeliever is biblical counseling for unbelievers too and the answer is kind of not really because we are using the bible with unbelievers but we just call out evangelism it’s not quite the same thing as biblical counseling biblical counseling is focused on sanctification and can an unbeliever be truly sanctified no not until what until they’re saved as dr street would say all counseling is pre-counseling or evangelism until that person comes to christ now it’s true that oftentimes in counseling in biblical counseling you may find that the person you’re counseling claims to be a believer but they aren’t actually and that’s why they’re they’re struggling with their with their particular problem or you might have to treat a believer like a non-believer because he’s not taking his sins seriously and it’s just a part of church discipline but biblical counseling is really for believers they’re the ones who actually can change because they have the spirit of god inside them so you won’t you won’t be wasting your efforts as much but when you’re just trying to biblical counsel and unbeliever they can only go so far you just say well you know this is the wisdom of god but you can’t do it until you actually come to know christ so that’s just one clarification let’s talk about last week’s homework yeah i hope that i hope you were able to do the homework i asked you to do the bible reading and prayer again doesn’t matter how much you do but just take some focused time to read the bible focus time to pray also i gave you some extra credit i don’t know if any of you did that but i’ll ask you first corinthians 8 1-11-1 what is that what is the topic of those chapters does anybody can anybody tell me what’s the main topic raise your hand yeah tina not offending your brother kind of specifically about what issue food sacrifice to idols very good that’s actually the main topic of chapters 8 to the beginning of chapter 11 and in the middle of that we have a little discussion in chapter 10 related to israel’s experience with idols israel was getting too chummy with idols and it led them being judged by god but he clarifies in that section you can’t get too chummy with idols though god is able to make you stand under any temptation first corinthians 10 13. and of course that was the verse that was jay adams topic of meditation in this booklet that i assigned you to read now who’s jay adams i don’t know if you know him but he actually just passed away last year he’s with the lord now but he was a pastor christian writer and lecturer he is the one if not one of the ones who spearheaded the biblical counseling movement in the early 70s it had become customary in the church to if somebody had a a difficult problem in their lives so just refer them to a psychologist or refer them to a psychiatrist that was what a pastor was trained to do hey light problems you can handle but heavy problems just send it to a professional a medical professional but he said wait a second doesn’t the bible show us that we pastors are sufficient for this that we christians are sufficient for this so in 1970 he published a book called competent to counsel and it was what really started a resurgence of biblical counseling in the church it’s not that biblical counseling is new even though we may use that term biblical counseling for the first time around the 1970s but it’s really what the church has always practiced pastors people in the church but it had become kind of lost or set aside because of certain modern ideas but anyways that’s who jay adams is he founded the nanc um uh i forgot exactly what that means nuthetic something counselors but it transformed into acbc which is the association of certified biblical counselors which is what i was certified in and the booklet that i had to read was published in 1971 so very soon after he published competent counsel and you’ll notice maybe some of those same ideas in there so what were some things that you noticed i asked you to write down some observations or some questions what was the things you noticed reading this booklet uh yeah craig yeah god is faithful that was one of the uh one of the highlighted points that’s why you’re able to stand because god is faithful you can trust his word what else yeah mark right the i can’t attitude is not a valid posture for the christian you can in the lord but when you believe you can’t guess what you can’t it’s kind of a little bit of a self-fulfilling prophecy yes now that’s an interesting point right j adams asserts many people who suffer with mental illness are not actually mentally ill it’s a spiritual problem and what’s really sad is that when people treat it as if it’s something they can’t talk about or handle they leave those people without help and they often are they continue to afflict themselves or be afflicted he mentions that that story of a man who goes to a mental institution because nobody’s willing to confront him about his guilt about the the sin that he practiced with his job and it actually is amazing a lot of people who are mentally ill you you get to know them you get to know their problems and you realize there’s a spiritual there’s a spiritual root to it yeah yeah uh glenda the bible is sufficient we’ll talk more about that today but we christians can’t help each other that’s one of his main points right because we have this efficient word magda right right right and that’s such an important point no problem is truly unique even your set of circumstances you say well surely no one else has has handled this before well maybe not in all the particular details but at the core of it the root of it we all have the same problems we all have the same issues the same struggles the same temptations but that’s both encouraging and sobering because it’s sobering it means you can’t claim like oh this was just too much but it’s encouraging because you say well if other people overcame it with the power of christ i can too and that’s exactly the case that’s good i see a number of you are read that or you had things you noticed about that that’s good i hope you the reason i gave you this booklet is because i want you to have it as a resource not only for your own life for your own encouragement and instruction but especially when you are trying to help others you can say hey i see that you’re going through a really tough time let me let me share this booklet with you i found it really helpful i found it really instructive i think you’ll find it really helpful too i told you that this is something that i often i assign the people that i counsel to read because it generates a good source of discussion and it’s valuable instructions that’s why i gave it to you please don’t just discard it i think you’ll find it useful for yourself and others let’s talk about the new homework i ask you to continue to read the bible and pray the day that’s going to be a homework assignment every week that’s for your benefit but i’m also asking you to read this article this article is entitled the discussion among clergy pastoral counseling talks with secular psychology this is by ed welsh he’s a biblical counselor and lecturer with the ccef that is the christian counseling and education foundation if you think about kind of big counseling organizations today it’s usually acbc and ccef though there are some other prominent ones as well they’re actually pretty similar um one kind of general difference is that ccef is a little bit more sympathetic to uh psychology doesn’t necessarily see it as hostile to the faith just not necessary um not not it can only has limited benefit typically people who are part of acbc see psychology and some other kind of modern ideas is actually being a hindrance to the faith actually as being hostile to the gospel so that’s not true for every single person in those organizations but there there is that kind of general difference between the two but they’re both really great the people in both organizations are pretty great ed welsh has published a number of valuable books and articles and this one is very interesting because it is a a transcript of a lecture he gave to graduate psychology students at a university now that means certain things that means it’s going to be a little bit more academic than the last one that you read he’s going to reference a number of psychologists and psychological terms and you might say to yourself i have no idea what he’s talking about that’s okay don’t get caught up in the details i want you to note the argument he makes to these secular psychology students as to what they’re doing is really a lot of what past world or biblical counselors are trying to do but he also argues well i’ll let you read his argument he’s making a comparison and also making some points based on that so don’t be don’t be discouraged by a little bit more elevated language and some some academic uh terms but i’d like you to read through this and again write down five observations or questions don’t get caught up in the details just look at the big picture oh i should note that he’s a little bit more sympathetic to psychology than i would be and that might just be because of his stance as a person or because he’s looking to be evangelistic and apologetic in this speech so you’ll notice the way he ends it’s kind of like um uh it definitely shows some sympathy um to his audience so that’s probably more credit to psychology than i would give i just want you to just want you to know that but i want you to read this and then as extra credit i would like you to if you’re able to listen to a sermon i preached a couple years ago called beware philosophy which i preached on colossians 2 6-8 this isn’t to promote me as like hey i’m the great preacher go listen to all my sermons but i think this was really valuable and has a lot to do with what we’re talking about in this class okay any questions about the homework of course you can find that sermon on our website i put the link there okay great all right well let’s get to the main portion of our class now what are we what are we doing in today’s class what we’re going to talk about the sufficiency of the bible first brainstorm a little bit about the challenges to the bible sufficiency then we’ll look at a case for the bible sufficiency and then lord willing we’ll have time for questions at the end now hopefully you all got the handout and the homework assignment if you didn’t see the greeters in the back let’s start first by talking about challenges to the bible sufficiency many people say many people contend even in the church that the bible is not enough to understand the world or to treat the world’s or the people’s problems or people’s problems the bible needs to be added to needs to be supplemented it needs to be complemented even reinterpreted by man’s ideas and discoveries if we really want to be prepared to live well even to do proper christian ministry we need something more than the bible now where do we see this what are some examples where somebody says the bible’s not enough you need man’s ideas yeah caleb all right the catholic church many sects of christianity even colts they say we have extra revelation or you need our tradition that’s a good point where else yes herb okay schools and over what issues in particular what do you need to learn in school that’s going to help you face a problem we certainly do need to know the biblical fundamentals but you’re not going to get that in most schools in fact you’re probably going to get some education that they insist you need that the bible doesn’t provide and maybe we can brainstorm what kind of education that might be where else do they say the bible’s not enough what problems or what situations yeah magda okay when it comes to science origins how did the earth come about how did life come about they say yeah the bible says certain things but you’re really going to understand it you need what man has discovered you need man’s ideas oh and you need to reinterpret the bible based on those ideas because we know science is totally reliable but the bible is suspect that’s another example where else yeah mark um yeah that’s a great point mark when it comes to relationships or what comes to marriage people will insist that you need the techniques and discoveries of modern scientists and sociologists and psychologists because things are just so different from bible times that the bible is not really enough or especially when it comes to parenting right we look at what the bible prescribes we say wow that is so antiquated and barbaric we know now the true way to raise children in a way that’s going to be good for them and resulting them becoming well behaved and helpful in society actually there are attacks against the bible sufficiency all over the place you’ve mentioned some good ones i’ll mention a few others origins societal order how are we going to get rid of racism in our society bible’s not enough you need what we these experts have discovered or um uh different economic theorists or political theorists no no no the bible’s not enough to bring about utopian or harmonious society we need the ideas of socialism or we need the ideas of american democracy it’s like almost inspired what they wrote in the constitution we need to bring that in addition to the bible counseling and christian living we’ll say a lot more about that bible interpretation modern scholarship is very suspicious of the bible and says oh no no these authors didn’t actually write these books solomon didn’t write ecclesiastes the gospel writers didn’t write the gospels we know that based on our modern scientific analyses and techniques really going to understand the bible you’ve got to use modern science apologetics you can’t convince somebody to believe with just the bible you need to use archaeological evidence or you need to use these these philosophical logical arguments how can you expect this skeptic to believe if he says he doesn’t believe the bible you have to use something else bible’s not enough evangelism hey it’s just not working just not working when you try and use the gospel the straight-up gospel with somebody you need to use something more spectacular like speaking in tongues or getting them to have a vision or a prophecy that’s how they’re really going to come to believe or hey when it talks about god’s wrath or god’s counting the cost of becoming disciple that’s just going to keep people away what we’ve discovered based on our analysis is that just talking about god’s love that’s the thing that really draws people love love love love love if you want people to be converted just talk about god’s love we’ve discovered it the church if you really want an effective church you can’t listen what the bible says about having the what you should do for the church service or how you should run it in its government we need modern business techniques we need surveys we need um we need to understand what are people’s felt needs and we need to bring those into the church if we’re really going to get uh serve people and of course these are these are just some of the examples the sad thing about this is that with all these assertions that the bible is not enough they come from people oftentimes who say that if we add man’s wisdom we will help the cause of christ we’ll see more people saved we’ll see the church benefit we’ll see society made more harmonious but if you just look at church history what has been the result of people adding man’s ideas to what the bible says yes good sorry i couldn’t hear the last part can you say that again yes certainly the bible’s where you get the instruction you don’t get anywhere with man’s theories in fact historically you get the opposite of what is promised the church is not strengthened when you synthesize or integrate man’s ideas with the bible actually the church is weakened and many times it’s ruined you look at what modern scholarship just what it’s done to bible interpretation and then what indirectly has happened to the church it’s destroyed it all the places that embrace the modern ideas the bible interpretation the church is destroyed then you see the the results of that in europe and in other instances too the church has not helped the people who are one with your man-centered man complemented gospel they are weak believers or they’re not even real believers and they easily fall away and society all these things you promise about oh if we just adopt this it’s going to bring this about society it doesn’t happen society is never going to reach the utopia that you that that your ideas promise because ecclesiastes says you can’t fix what god has made crooked this is a broken world this is a world that has been tainted by sin and though the gospel does have a sanctifying influence and a beautiful aroma to it we’re not going to see the world transformed until christ comes back no actually man’s wisdom when when added to when said this is necessary to be to complete what the bible says it often has a destructive effect but is the bible enough on its own you say okay you’re saying we can’t add man’s ideas but is the bible really enough is the bible sufficient on its own for believers for the church and specifically does it give all that we need for christian life and ministry and what about for counseling does the bible sufficiently equip us to deal with those diagnosed as bipolar does the bible enable us to help those who have addictions to alcohol pornography or drugs is the bible enough to deal with adhd anxiety depression even schizophrenia is the bible enough if the answer is yes then that’s both encouraging and sobering encouraging because it means that we can really help each other without having to get a phd in some secular field we just have the bible but it’s also sobering because it means we must we must help each other we have the ability we must do it well i’m here to tell you that the answer is yes the bible is sufficient for all christian ministry even for all life and godliness and it is sufficient for counseling in fact it is it is your exclusive resource if you really want to help somebody it’s going to come via the bible there are some other things that indirectly are related to the bible just related to the body that can also help somebody but ultimately it comes from the scriptures and i want to present to you today why the bible is sufficient for christian life and ministry and i want to do that via three points you see them on your handout three blanks for you to fill in we’re going to look at those before i do that let me actually define sufficiency when it comes to the bible sufficiency that word normally means the condition or quality of being enough of being adequate or being sufficient but when we talk about the sufficiency of the bible what we mean is i’m borrowing this definition from ligonier.org sufficiency of the bible is the christian doctrine stating that the bible contains all that we need for determining what we must believe and how we are to live before god the bible tells us everything we need to believe and how to live before god in this world and this of course includes issues of christian living and biblical counseling now this doctrine of sufficiency of the bible it arises out of and is consistent with other realities about the bible that it is inspired or god breathed it is the very word of god it is inerrant it is free from error in its original documents it is a totally trustworthy word it is authoritative it is the final and binding word on everything it discusses and it is perspicuous that is it is clear it’s understandable it’s written in a purposeful way to communicate these are all true and they support this idea that the bible is sufficient now i don’t have time to discuss those other qualities of the bible we do have sunday school lessons related to that so i can point you to those if you want more information i’m just going to assume those for today’s discussion as we talk about sufficiency but is the bible really sufficient does it even claim to be sufficient well most certainly does and that’s why i want to go first in the case for the bible sufficiency let’s first look at number one the bible claims sufficiency it claims to be all you need for what to believe and how to live i want to show three particular scriptures that emphasize this point there are many scriptures we could go to but i’m gonna go to three of the clearest and the first is second peter one versus two to four and please take your bibles and go there because we’re gonna spend some time on this text second peter one two to four you know pastor bobby recently preached this book but i want to re-examine some of the introductory words of ii peter but let’s remember the historical context so test how much you remember what is this local context of this book what’s happening or about to happen yeah mark all right so that the church is still under persecution what else yeah glenda false teachers are a huge issue that’s actually the greater danger presented in this book first peter is more about suffering and persecution second peter is more about false teachers there’s one other very important facet of this book what else is about to happen when this book is written someone’s about to die peter peter right he says in the first chapter i know that my departure is at hand but i want you to i want you to be reminded so that whether even after i’m gone that you can stand firm so peter’s about to die suffering and persecution still affect the church but the great danger is false teaching and we might summarize the message of the first chapter that peter calls on his audience to grow in holiness as you hold fast the sure word of god grow in holiness as you hold fast that sure and trustworthy word of god but is this word really worth holding on to look what peter says right at the beginning of his letter starting in verse 2.
he says grace and peace be multiplied to you in the knowledge of god and of jesus our lord now experiences of grace and peace are quite welcome are they not who doesn’t want to experience grace and peace do you want grace and peace in your life i hope so peter expresses his prayer and his wish that grace and peace might be multiplied to his readers how nice but notice how does peter say it will come he says in the knowledge of god and of jesus our lord you want grace and peace it comes this way wait a second where do you find the knowledge of god in jesus christ our lord where does it come from comes from the scriptures right the words of the apostles recorded for us in the scriptures so you want grace and peace peter says it comes about comes about this way knowing jesus from his word multiplied grace and peace you get it from his word verse 3 peter elaborates further on this idea how the knowledge of jesus brings about this supernatural multiplication look at verse 3. seeing that his divine power has granted to us everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true true knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence well what peter says is the believer’s state god’s divine power notice has granted to his people everything pertaining to life and godliness now notice how inclusive that statement is everything that sure covers a lot right everything pertaining to life that’s pretty much everything that we experience right what’s outside of everything pertaining to life and more specifically everything pertaining to godliness not only is god’s power bestowed on us everything we need to live life but also everything we need to live godly everything that would be necessary to walk with god please god live holy be content have joy persevere through trials he says you already have it he’s granted it to you but how is this just some mysterious mystical energy that just fills us and we just kind of have to wait for it to happen notice peter says our great grant by god’s power it comes by the true knowledge of him who called us by his own glory and excellence that’s just like what verse 2 says isn’t it how do you gain multiplied grace and peace the knowledge of god in jesus christ how do you gain everything pertaining to life and godliness through the true knowledge of the one who called us namely jesus where is this knowledge to be found in the saving relationship established by the perfect revelation of jesus christ it’s not merely knowledge it is a knowledge that brings about our relationship but that knowledge is written down for us it was spoken by god’s appointed representatives the apostles and prophets and it was written down for us which is what we have in the scriptures so again consider how wonderful how amazing this is peter says we have everything we need for life and godliness in christ from the bible but maybe someone will say this comprehensive provision it only has to do with our salvation not our actual walk with god maybe this actually won’t result in our changed behavior you know it just gets you to heaven well look at verse 4 for by these he is granted to us as precious and magnificent promises so that by them you may become partakers of the divine nature having escaped the corruption that is in the world by lust notice it says there at the beginning for by these more literally through which through what well the antecedent’s a little hard to determine the last thing mentioned was god’s glory and excellence so maybe by those or perhaps we should reach back further and take his divine power as the reference it was by these or through which through his divine power we have this because verse 3 divine power grants and in verse 4 we see more granting he has granted us his precious magnificent promises either way what further has god granted to his people by his glory by his excellence by his power verse 4 says precious and magnificent promises precious and magnificent promises wow where do we find these in the word of god in the revelation given to the apostles and prophets written down for us in the word we have these magnificent and precious promises and what do they enable us to do notice at the end of the verse become partakers of the divine nature which is the result of having escaped the world’s corrupting lust you can escape the world’s corrupting lust and partake in the divine nature in other words you can truly become like christ and live a holy life because we have this sufficient knowledge and these bolstering promises what should we do what does verse 5 and following tell us glenda all diligence and pursue what right so add add to your faith um i just lost my spot here uh yeah applying all diligence supplying moral excellence and knowledge and self-control this is the outworking of a holy life he says go at it with diligence because look at what you have look at this knowledge and promises and this relationship you have of jesus christ you can live a holy life and against whom because you have these knowledge and promises against whom should you guard carefully second peter chapter two false teachers you can pursue that holy life but you must guard against false teachers and you can do that because you have this knowledge you have these promises so here’s one powerful claim from the scriptures that the knowledge of god in christ from his word is more than adequate equipment it is totally sufficient for a life of godliness not just for what to believe not just for you to find your way to heaven someday but also for how to live now overcoming the corrupting lust of the world and pleasing god with a holy life god has already provided that to you even though the passage never uses the term scripture because it refers to the knowledge of god which only comes via the scripture it is talking about the scripture and that’s what the rest of chapter one goes on to talk about right go to the end of chapter one it’s all about the scripture we have a scripture that claims to be sufficient now if you’re still doubtful if you say hey never actually use the word scripture let’s look at another passage that is quite explicit that is the scripture that is sufficient for us look at second timothy 3 verses 16 and 17.
second timothy 3 verses 16 and 17.
these verses are well known well loved in our church let’s read them i should turn there myself ii timothy 3 so this is the apostle paul writing to timothy he says all scripture is inspired by god and profitable for teaching for reproof for correction for training in righteousness so that the men of god may be adequate equipped for every good work let’s consider the context of these words what’s the historical context of paul’s writing to timothy what’s going on tell me anything mark that’s right difficult times that include what false teaching false teaching is a problem in this letter as well what else someone else is about to die this time it’s paul says i know the time of my departure is at hand and christians are still facing difficulty and persecution that’s actually one of the reasons why paul writes this letter because timothy is showing some timidity some hesitancy to go about the work it says timothy don’t be afraid don’t be afraid to suffer with me be a faithful workman of god and what’s one of his encouragements towards that end because of the word that you have from god you notice a lot of similarities to second peter right similar situation similar message he says keep preaching the word timothy and he reminds him of what kind of sufficient and powerful equipment the word of god is for every believer but especially for christian leaders notice verse 16 what paul says the scriptures are and can do they are inspired they are literally god-breathed they have they are profitable they are useful and for what for teaching what is right for exposing what is wrong for bringing what is wrong back into what is right and for establishing the right as a habit or lifestyle for a person to really train them in it this is what the simple ministry of god’s divine word does it teaches you how to think and act rightly and verse 17 is explicit about the result so that the man of god may be adequate equipped for every good work now who’s the man of god this phrase is often used in the old testament for prophets a man of god is a representative of god who belongs to god and speaks god’s word which is certainly true of christian leaders but in a way is true of all christians is it not it ought to be and whatever sufficient for a leader in the church is going to be sufficient for the others in the church so paul’s description of the man of god here really applies to all of us he says something about this man of god he says the man of god if i’m at verse again man of god may be adequate greek term for adequate could also be translated complete capable proficient the ideas of someone well fitted for some particular function for what function does the word of god completely equip men and women of god every good work this is what jesus saved us for right ephesians 2 10 paul says this is what god’s word his divine word enables you to do it makes you proficient it equips you it completes you for every good work and what good works are included in every good work is loving your spouse included yes is forgiving those who sin against you included yes is remaining content in the lord amid great troubles included in every good work yes so what good part of the christian walk is not included in this provision none so we could summarize paul’s words in this way the god-breathed sufficient word is able to make every man and every woman of god sufficiently equipped for life including counseling and this is important because what challenge will christians face that paul brings up in chapter three and in chapter four of this book false teachers who will say no no no you don’t have it yet you don’t have enough let me fill in what you’re missing you gotta listen to me you don’t have enough yet paul and peter both teach us the same thing beware the false teachers who say no you need my revelation you need additional revelation you don’t you don’t need to buy into what they’re selling you already have it you already have it in christ and in his word one more scripture to drive the point home let’s look at colossians colossians 1 28.
we looked at this verse last time but let’s look at it again colossians 1 28 paul again writing he says we proclaim him admonishing every man in teaching every man with all wisdom so that we may present every man complete in christ sounds a lot like second timothy 3 verses 16-17 doesn’t it consider the context of this verse what is the colossian church facing when paul writes this letter you see it in chapter 2 especially false teachers there’s some weird teaching scholars can’t even fully identify it seems some kind of weird jewish gentile mix of extra revelation and keeping of the law and circumcision and food laws there’s some teachers going around in the church proclaiming this they’re even saying you need to worship angels because of their new divine revelation is it any surprise then that in this letter to paul talks about the sufficient wisdom christians already have this is like exactly what you do you’ve got false teachers you got false teaching around remind people that their word is complete and sufficient that’s what paul does here and we can see his mindset in the verse that we read he says we proclaim christ and admonish and teach every man remember that word admonishes the greek nutha teo which has the idea of giving advice or counsel especially a warning against a wrong way so that you can return to the right way paul says he does this preaching this teaching this counseling with all wisdom again notice that inclusive term all wisdom are you saying paul’s as wise as god is no no one’s as wise as god yet the wisdom of god given to paul and given to all christians is sufficient and that paul has everything he needs to instruct every person with the wisdom they need with complete wisdom notice here the phrase that paul uses three times every man the sense of every person it doesn’t matter who it is paul as an apostle and we as christians in the church we are able to apply full wisdom to the life of every person it child or parent man or woman pastor or layman older young new christian long time christian we have the wisdom and the counsel to teach them all and not just teach but to bring about a certain result notice what he says at the end of the verse so we may present every man complete in christ you mean perfectly holy like god is no we won’t reach perfect holiness in this life but we will reach we should reach we can reach characteristic holiness a life trained in righteousness and equipped for every good work complete in that sense what a momentous work how is it possible where do we get this deficient wisdom he says in christ in this saving relationship with and in the perfect revelation of jesus christ all the wisdom we need all the wisdom that anyone needs for life is found in christ his word teaches it his love motivates it his spirit empowers it you don’t need anything else in fact what else compares to it you’re gonna set man’s ideas on par with the wisdom of god consider how paul goes on to emphasize this in colossians look at chapter 2 colossians 2 verses 2 to 3. this is paul’s desire and prayer for the colossian church and listen to what he says verse 2 that their hearts may be encouraged having been knit together in love and attaining to all the wealth that comes from the full assurance of understanding resulting in a true knowledge of god’s mystery that is christ himself in whom are hidden all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge if you’ve got christ if you know christ if you have his word what more do you need all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are right there look at verse 10 colossians 2 10 and in him you have been made complete and he is the head over all rule and authority christ is supreme it only makes sense therefore that his wisdom is both sufficient and supreme also why would you reach for other wisdom especially competing wisdom contradictory wisdom when you have christ and paul is aware that there is competing wisdom and he gives specific cautions about that in the same text look at colossians 2 4 right after he says you have all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge in christ verse 4 i say this so that no one will delude you with persuasive argument people are going to tell you it’s not enough they’ve got something better don’t be deluded or colossians 2 8 see to it that no one takes you captive through philosophy and empty deception according to the tradition of men according to the elementary principles of the world rather than according to christ they think they’ve got some advanced knowledge they haven’t progressed beyond the basics but they will try to take you captive with it they’ll say oh look at this whoa you want to be wise you’re going to be intelligent you want to be equipped you got to add this he says don’t fall for it don’t fall for it church so just from these three texts we can see brothers and sisters that god is not shy about declaring his word supreme and sufficient for all life and godliness so when it comes to counseling we can and must rely on the word of god to see people change god’s word is sufficient wisdom for whatever issues of life we face or others face either teaching us directly how to act or giving us the fundamental principles but to this someone may say but that can’t be right because look at all the important topics the bible never addresses oh really let’s go to point number two the bible not only claims sufficiency but the bible number two illustrates sufficiency the bible illustrates sufficiently sufficiency the bible repeatedly addresses the topics that truly matter for our lives thus showing or illustrating its sufficiency someone might say but let’s just look at a few examples the bible never talks about the psyche right you know how important the psyche is we need a whole field of science we need psychology to supplement this thing the bible never addresses are you kidding where does the term psyche even come from does anyone know raise your hand it’s a greek word it’s a greek word that means what is it or glenda well it is used in also as a root in the word psychiatry but biblically speaking the word psyche is all over the place it’s the greek word for soul or suke is the bible ever talk about the soul does it have anything to say about the soul or the inner person uh maybe all over the place psalm 19 7 8 the law of the lord is perfect restoring the soul you’re worried about your inner man that part that nobody can see what you call the psyche the bible tells you how to it can be restored first peter 2 11 beloved i urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly what lusts which wage war against your soul that was a lot to say about the psyche oh but the bible never talks about mental health that’s why we need today’s scientific theories the bible doesn’t talk about mental health it’s so important well the bible may not use the exact phrase mental health but if you actually break down what those words refer to the soundness or the right ordering or condition of one’s mind does the bible speak to that again all over the place deuteronomy 6 5 you shall love the lord your god with all your heart that’s just another term for the mind and with all your soul with all your might that’s your calling that’s what you need to do as a believer or romans 8 5-6 for those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh but those who are according to the spirit the things of the spirit for the mind set on the flesh is death but the mind set on the spirit is life and peace the bible is constantly talking about the mind and yet today’s modern experts say no no no we will tell you about the mind we’ll tell you how to make it healthy bible already the bible’s already claimed that territory oh but the bible never talks about depression think about depression the bible doesn’t really address that that’s why we need the experts who can help us with this modern problem well actually the new american standard translates two words as depressed in the bible second samuel 3 14 when amnon’s friend notice how despondent amnon is because he cannot have his sister tamar in 2nd corinthians 7 6 paul mentions how god comforts the depressed and then illustrates that by how the news of the corinthian repentance brought such comfort to paul and his companions but again let’s not focus on the term depression itself but let’s just translate it into the language the bible actually uses the problem with the term depression as people use it today is that it describes a variety of sad experiences from slight sadness to suicidal despair but biblically speaking think the words that align best with what the term depression means is something like sad hopelessness or sad dissatisfaction that’s what depression is it’s sad hopelessness or sad dissatisfaction does the bible ever describe or speak to people who feel sad hopelessness or sadness satisfaction of course it does again all over the place first kings 21 4 first kings 21 4 so ahab came into his house sullen and vexed because of the word which naboth the jesuit had spoken to him for he said i will not give you the inheritance of my father’s and he lay down on his bed and turned away his face and ate no food he’s despondent he’s depressed it’s because he couldn’t get what he wanted or psalm 42 5 psalm 42 5 why are you in despair o my soul and why have you become disturbed within me hope in god for i shall again praise him for the help of his presence the bible talks about depression really if you look at all the great issues of our day and especially of the inner person whether it’s anxiety or depression or bipolar disorder or sex addiction or addiction or racism or abuse you will find that if you’re willing to translate the modern terminology just a little bit the bible not only speaks to these issues but it speaks to them authoritatively and sufficiently the bible not only claims sufficiency but it illustrates efficiency and all that it describes and discusses and finally the bible demonstrates sufficiency consider one massive implication of the assertion that some form of modern wisdom whether scientific or psychosocial or medical is necessary to understand the bible or to live a happy and holy christian life if that’s really true then how did christians get by for nearly 1900 years was the church really without answers and doomed to a dismal sinful life until sigmund freud established the field of psychology in the late 1800s were christians really unable to overcome anxiety and depression until the development of antidepressants were parents all over the world absolutely unable to raise well-behaved children until we understood modern wisdom we abandoned corporeal punishment and we adopted parenting advice and medications of the 20th century is the church really so lost did god really leave the church so derelict that sounds ridiculous isn’t it oh we can just ask another question has the bible ever proven itself sufficient for the problems of life has it ever happened for somebody why you just look in the bible was someone ever able to overcome extreme abuse and injustice without becoming bitter but instead become a forgiving just and gracious person many today would say oh that kind of trauma’s too great that person will probably never be able to forgive oh yeah look at joseph look at the way he responded to his brothers oh look at david with saul a look at stephen with the people who were stoning him to death you’re going to tell me the bible’s never proven sufficient or how about in leaving behind lifestyles of immorality homosexuality drunkenness and greed the bible ever been able to accomplish that again just look in the scriptures look at the prostitutes and the tax collectors who repented and came to jesus look at the converts in the corinthian church in 1st corinthians 6 he says this is the way you used to live but not anymore such were some of you but you were washed you were cleansed you were sanctified in the lord jesus christ i look at the believers to whom peter writes his first letter in first peter 4 he says you don’t walk the way you used to walk and that’s why they malign you i could go on overcoming prejudice with another people group overcoming depression and despair having contentment and confidence in god in every life situation has that ever happened for the people of god yes it’s all over the scriptures it’s throughout christian history and it’s happening today as we can even testify in this church as many biblical counselors can testify how does it happen how did they do it they knew the lord jesus christ and they had his word let’s never sell short god’s power christ and his word have transformed and are transforming people in a way that no worldly wisdom or pill could ever do now some people refuse to accept the counsel the perfect wisdom of god that’s why i say counseling doesn’t always work it’s not counseling’s fault it’s not the word’s fault it’s not christ’s fault it’s like god says to jerusalem o jerusalem jerusalem how i’ve longed to gather you like a hen gathers her chicks but you weren’t willing therefore your house has left you desolate you’re going to experience the consequences of your way until you repent until you say blessed is he who comes in the name of the lord counselors we christians are saying the same thing to our unrepentant brethren and to the people who have never come to christ why would you not turn from your stubborn way and experience rescue that’s not the fault that doesn’t prove the bible’s insufficiency rather so many people prove the bible is sufficient to change your life because they yield to it the bible demonstrates efficiency so then what is the conclusion for our lives we can rely on the lord in his word to bring about heart and life change but we must be aware of worldly wisdom’s claim to complete what the bible lacks we’ve had that attack we’re going to have it again we can rely on the lord’s word but we have to beware of those who say no you need something more you need something else okay i left about two minutes for questions anybody have a question based on what you heard today yeah mark um that’s a good question mark uh is there a particular resource i can point you to where scriptures are lined up with some of the issues that we see today i can think of one the christian’s guide to psychological terms i forget the author’s name but it’s exactly that and it just takes kind of modern problems or modern diagnoses and says okay here’s how you look at it scripturally here’s how the bible talks about it yes that’s one and i can point out others as we go along it’s a good question mark another question and maybe one question in your mind through all this is you say well dave you’re talking about how much the bible is sufficient but are you saying that we shouldn’t use medicine at all that that the medical profession medical science has nothing to offer the christian well no i’m not saying that in fact our ministry even as counselors should care about the bodily component of it what is the difference between biological or bodily problems and spiritual problems and what’s the connection between them talk about that next time right don’t forget your homework but that’s it for today’s class it’s close in prayer well thank you for your sufficient word it is awesome and it truly equips us for life not only for our own lives lord but to help one another it would make us skilled in this help us to actually trust and believe your word so you can glorify yourself in transforming hearts and lives of people to become more like yourself to your glory lord thank you for giving us a part in that work we are not sufficient in ourselves but you are glorify yourself from the rest of this church service amen i thank everyone