In this episode of Consult the Counselor, we take a deep dive into the theological foundations of the biblical counseling movement with Jared Poulton, executive director of the Institute for Reformed Biblical Counseling and author of Van Til’s Counseling Movement, and Joe Hussung, director of ministry partnerships and recruitment at Fieldstone Counseling.

Together, we explore how the theology and apologetics of Cornelius Van Til influenced Jay Adams and the development of biblical counseling, and why those foundations still matter for many of the debates happening in the movement today. We discuss the sufficiency of Scripture, general and special revelation, common grace, the antithesis between belief and unbelief, and the growing conversation around clinically informed biblical counseling.

Along the way, we consider where Adams and Van Til agreed, where their thinking may have diverged, and how those differences continue to shape various approaches to counseling.

We also discuss the importance of theological traditions and confessions in shaping counseling methodology, the need for greater clarity and humility in current debates, and how biblical counselors with meaningful differences can engage one another with charity rather than suspicion.

While this conversation goes deeper into theology and philosophy than many of our episodes, these questions get to the heart of what it means to counsel biblically and how we understand the relationship between Scripture, theology, and knowledge from the world around us.

Resource Mentioned

Calling Van Til to the Stand: A Reformed Biblical Counselor’s Appraisal of the Label “Clinically-Informed | By Jared Poulton