The sufficiency of Scripture means “the Bible contains all that we need to know God’s will and live a life pleasing to him.”[1] This is a doctrine that is clearly found in God’s Word (Ps. 119:1; 2 Tim. 3:16-17). More specifically, the doctrine of the sufficiency of Scripture affirms that the amount of special revelation God’s people have at any time in history is all they need at that time (e.g. Col. 2:16-17; Heb. 1:1-4; 8-10); the complete accomplishment of redemption by God leads to the completion of Scripture, so the Bible we now have is all we need (Eph. 2:20; Rev. 22:18-19; 2 Tim. 3:16-217; Heb. 1:1-4); the Bible has within its pages all that is absolutely necessary for its own interpretation (e.g. Mt. 15:1-9; Lk. 24:27; 2 Cor. 1:20; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pt. 1:20-21); and that the Bible contains all we need to know from God about any topic (e.g. John 17:17; Acts 20:32; Rom. 1:16; 16:25; Gal. 1:8-10; Col. 3:16-17; James 1:18).[2] Finally, the closer we get to heart or inner person matters (2 Cor. 4:16), the more the Bible is all we need (Ps. 19:7-10; 2 Tim. 3:16-17; 2 Pt. 1:3-4). So, the Bible should be the source for and the authority in all counseling.
Not every Christian agrees with all that was just affirmed. Many integrationist counselors would deny the final point made, that the Bible contains all we need to know from God about any topic. Most integrationists who believe in the authority, infallibility, and inerrancy of the Bible have concluded that there are many issues dealt with in counseling that do not have sufficient answers in the Bible. For example, Stanton L. Jones and Richard E. Butman argue that depression is an example of something that does not have a fully biblical solution. They compare it to what one believes about thermodynamics.[3] In other words, in the same way that the Bible does not explain thermodynamics and so it is not a source for what a person believes about it and how to interact with this topic, so also the Bible is not a sufficient guide for many topics dealt with by counselors.
Behind this approach are the convictions that all truth (even extra-biblical assertions made by researchers) is God’s truth, so we can apply assertions from other disciplines to help alleviate people’s suffering (which Jones and Butman affirm is their motivation for counseling, page 17); though the Bible is sufficient for the salvation of a person’s soul, it is not sufficient to address personal counseling problems, since many such problems deal with an aspect of humans (their body and soul) that Scripture does not adequately address; and so we need the wisdom from extra-biblical sources, if we are to be competent and helpful counselors.
This integrationist approach is flawed for the following reasons: (1) As noted above, Scripture affirms it is sufficient in all the ways stated; (2) the Bible is crucial in addressing issues that are not explicitly mentioned (e.g. though the word “depression” is not in the Bible, it sufficiently provides the truth needed to deal with it); (3) the integrationist position assumes the Bible lacks help in many counseling areas without doing the homework to see how the Bible is rich in wisdom for all areas of life (Col. 2:3); (4) the ultimate standard for what is true is God’s Word, not research (Mt. 4:1-11; 15:1-9; 2 Tim. 3:16-17); (5) it often starts with the wrong ultimate purpose for counseling (the immediate alleviation of suffering, rather than sanctification for God’s glory, 2 Cor. 7:1; Heb. 2:5-18); (6) it most often holds to a trichotomist view of humans rather than the biblical dichotomist position (2 Cor. 4:16); (7) it leads people astray, i.e. from seeing that even in outer man issues such as physical suffering, there is much essential wisdom to be gained from Christ and his Word (Col. 2:3) and that God calls us ultimately to trust in him, not merely human physicians or agents (2 Chron. 16:12; Ps. 20:7; Prov. 21:31); (8) and finally it denies the very promise that God has made to his people, namely that he has given all that is needed for a life of godliness, flourishing, and spiritual protection (Mt. 5:3-10; Eph. 6:10-20; 2 Pt. 1:3-4).
[1] Heath Lambert, A Theology Of Biblical Counseling, 36.
[2] I am dependent upon Heath Lambert, A Theology Of Biblical Counseling, 44-48, for these four further implications.
[3] Stanton L. Jones, Richard E. Butman, Modern Psychotherapies, 19. I also have been helped by Douglas Bookman, “The Scriptures And Biblical Counseling,” in John F. MacArthur, Jr., Wayne A. Mack, Eds., Introduction To Biblical Counseling, 68-94.
