Discipleship Counseling by Dr. Neil T. Anderson review by Michael Wright

Running head: SOMETHING’ MISSING: DISCIPLESHIP COUNSELING 1

Something’s Missing: A Review of Discipleship Counseling by Dr. Neil T. Anderson

Michael J. Wright

Liberty University

SOMETHING’S MISSING: DISCIPLESHIP COUNSELING2

Abstract

This paper identifies and explores three core ideas expressed in the book Discipleship

Counseling by Dr. Neil T. Anderson. In the field of Christian counseling there is a lack of

consensus on integration of secular psychiatric science and theological teaching. The first point

addressed answers this with the statement that Christians are hurting because of a lack of

understanding of whom they are or their purpose in Christ. In the second point this paper

addresses the organizational structure of discipleship counseling that must be met. Finally

barriers to overcome in restoring the counselee back to God are addressed. Sources include the

Barna Research Group, doctors from the American Medical Association, The Zondervan

Corporation, and others.

Keywords: Christian counseling, psychiatry, theology, discipleship


Something’s Missing: A Review of Discipleship Counseling by Dr. Neil T. Anderson

In Dr. Neil T. Anderson’s work Discipleship Counseling (Anderson, 2003) there are

three important ideas that are expressed; that followers of Jesus Christ are hurting expressly

because they do not understand their place or purpose in Christ, that there is an organizational

structure to discipleship counseling that must be met, and that there are barriers to overcome in

restoring the relationship of the counselee back to God. Discipleship Counseling is an important

topic not only in the church but in the secular world of medicine, psychology and sociology

because as Dr. Anderson states, “Science has helped us understand natural law, alleviate some

suffering and improve our standard of living, but it is simply inadequate to explain matters of

faith.” (P. 28) Dr. Anderson’s book is a fair and balanced look at Christian based counseling and

what it looks like in the field, but as with anything both Christian Counseling and Dr. Anderson’s

views have their quibblers.

Discipleship Counseling is a relatively small reference guide as far as Christian

counseling books go. It is primarily divided into two parts, but first portion can also be broken

into two parts. The first official part is titled “Discipleship Counseling in Theory,” which

discusses the biblical balance of modern psychology and Christian counseling. In the

“introductory” portion Anderson touches on such topics as the inclusion of the spiritual realm in

counseling, the inadequacy of scientific rationalism and how there needs to be balance with

naturalism and Biblical reality. The second “half” of this part, which is the bulk of “Discipleship

Counseling in Theory” dives into defining mental health as it applies to the secular and Biblical

world views, integrating theological ideas with the psychological, roles and responsibilities of all

parties including God, the counselor and counselee, the sanctifying process or understanding

how the Fall of Man and Christ’s Redemption affect the counseling encounter, an introduction


into what Anderson calls “the steps to freedom,” and dealing with spiritual and external

opposition.

In part two titled “Discipleship Counseling in Practice,” Anderson begins to look at the

process of bringing counselees back into right relationship with God. He begins with a

discussion of who to counsel, addressing defenses and prayer partners, and breaking down the

various logistics of the meeting. Next the renouncing of prior guidance contrary to the Word of

God is listed as the first step. Deception in the life of the counselee is now confronted, to be

replaced with the truth of Christ. Once truth is accepted the process of forgiveness can begin,

including others, God and self. Rebellion and control are addressed next, impressing the need for

God to take control of one’s life. Pride is confronted and replaced with humility, and the bondage

of addiction and habitual sin is broken by Paul’s decree that “There is no condemnation for those

who are in Jesus Christ.” (Romans 8:1) Finally ancestral sin is addressed, so that the counselee

might become free of any sin influence that has been passed to them. Anderson closes with

resources on how to start your own ministry based on his “Freedom in Christ Ministries.”

The Counselee in Christ

The first idea explored is that hurting Christians do not know their place or purpose in

Christ. Which should not be surprising, in 2009 the Barna group performed a survey of professed

“Born Again Christians” in the United States and found that when it came to holding an accurate

Biblical world view, “less than one out of every five (19%) had such an outlook on life.” (The

Barna Research Group, 2009) As Anderson states “Western rationalism and naturalism is out of

balance with biblical reality.” (P. 36) The argument presented is that secular psychology fails to

recognize the needs of the holistic person; namely ignoring the spiritual reality taught by such


scriptures as Ephesians 6:12, “For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the

rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual

forces of evil in the heavenly realms.”

In defining mental health, Anderson points out that secular views are incapable of solving

problems because they regard spiritual problems as mental illness. According to the Council of

Christian Colleges & Universities, “Psychological theories are not "proven," and since the

proximate cause of mental-emotional problems is spiritual, one should only rely on biblical

principles for mental-emotional healing.” (Mills, 1999) Mental Health from a Biblical standard

defines two beliefs as essential, the true nature of God as expressed in scripture, and our own

nature as expressed as understanding of who we are as children of God and our relationship with

him. Mental Illness is defined as a distortion of either of these concepts by Satan.

The question often is raised “When is a condition to be regarded as psychological or

spiritual?” Anderson argues that this is antithetical to the holistic treatment of counselees, as

there is no time when our present condition is not affected by physical conditions, nor a time

when God ceases to act as God. Christian Discipleship Counseling revolves around two

principals, the centrality of the Gospel and having an accurate Biblical worldview. The centrality

of the Gospel is roughly equivalent to how the counselor approaches ministering to the

counselee, whether admonishing them with the “law” of the scriptures or encouraging them to

walk by faith according to what God says is true, and then helping them glorify God so that they

may bear fruit. Having an accurate Biblical worldview is critical as without understanding of

who plays what role, where healing power truly comes from and other theological questions we

are simply the blind leading the blind.


A common argument over Christ-centered counseling is the idea of Integration of

theology and psychology. Professor Ann Belford Ulanov of Union Theological Seminary argues

that psychology and theology cannot intermingle because “there is no precise common ground;

their respective points of view shape their methods, attitudes, tasks, materials, and images of

truth differently.” (Ulanov, 1971) Another concern raised states that “Integration is not simply an

intellectual exercise. It is a personal process that orients one's entire life.” (Carter & Narramore,

1979) Anderson states that while he does not agree with secular psychology, he understands

psychology itself to be the study of the soul, much like theology is the study of God, and

therefore an important component in Christian counseling.

The Organizational Structure

The second important idea expressed in Discipleship Counseling is that there is an

organizational structure that must be met. As this is a Christ-centered ministry God is at the top

of the organizational structure. Neither counselor nor counselee can accomplish anything without

His guiding hand. Still the line must be further divided between God’s Sovereignty and Man’s

Responsibility. Man cannot do what only God can do, and God cannot force us to do what He

has asked us to do through scripture.

By the same token there are responsibilities that the counselee needs to follow to help the

counseling resolve successfully. Primarily the counselee has the responsibility to pray for

themselves. As Anderson articulates this is presented in James 5:13 “Is anyone among you

suffering? Then he must pray.” Another reason for this is stated in 1st Timothy 2:5, “For there is

one God and one mediator between God and men, the man Jesus Christ.” As the scripture

illustrates, the counselor is not the replacement for Jesus in the counselee’s life, only Christ can


mediate between the counselee and God. The next responsibility of the counselee is for their own

spiritual well being. What this essentially means is that the counselee must take the first step. If

someone is in need of prayer, how is anyone to know unless that request is presented? The last

responsibility is for the counselee to confess the truth and repent of their sins. Lies and deception

are the bargaining chips the devil uses to hold people in bondage, and as Christ said in John 8:32,

“And then you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.”

The encourager or counselor also has responsibilities. The counselor is to be the Lord’s

bond servant, totally dependent on God. As John 6:44 states, “No one can come to me unless the

Father who sent me draws him.” Another responsibility is that we must not be quarrelsome.

Anderson includes a great quote from John Scott, “You cannot pander to mankind’s intellectual

arrogance, but you must cater to their intellectual integrity.” In other words there are some who

seek out arguments simply for attention, not for resolution and our job is not to follow but have

enough discernment to see through the deception.

Compassion is another responsibility of the counselor. Godly kindness is not only helpful

in drawing out honesty from the counselee, it also helps the counselor stand as an example of

healthy behavior. As stated by the Patient-Physician Covenant, “one that cannot be pursued

effectively without the virtues of humility, honesty, intellectual integrity, compassion, and

effacement of excessive self-interest.” (Crawshaw, et al., 1995) Patience is another

responsibility. A counselee cannot simply unload a lifetime of psychological garbage out in front

of you immediately upon command.

The final responsibility of the counselor is to remember to continue their own walk in

Christ. They are not to be in a rush to help so many people, lest they stumble and injure more


than just themselves. Counselors should continue to pray not only for their counselees but for

themselves, and keep themselves abreast of new techniques. As it states in 1st Timothy 6:11, “But

you, man of God, flee from all this, and pursue righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance

and gentleness. Fight the good fight of the faith. Take hold of the eternal life to which you were

called when you made your good confession in the presence of many witnesses. “

Barriers to Counseling

The third and final point of Discipleship Counseling is that there are barriers to overcome

in restoring the relationship of the counselee back to God. The Apostle Peter, writing to the

Christians of Asia Minor from Rome urged “Be self-controlled and alert. Your enemy the devil

prowls around like a roaring lion looking for someone to devour. Resist him, standing firm in the

faith, because you know that your brothers throughout the world are undergoing the same kind of

sufferings. “ (1st Peter 5:8-9 NIV) It is interesting to note that in the NASB translation the

beginning of verse eight is worded “Be of sober spirit, be on the alert.” The word sober here is

taken from the Greek word “nêphô,” which means to abstain from wine. So knowing from

Ephesians 6:12 that our struggle is not in the flesh but in the spirit and heavenly realms, to be

spiritually sober is to abstain from that which spiritually makes us drunk. So the question is, what

are those things?

At the heart of the matter Anderson describes a key of knowledge that Jesus refers to in

Luke 11:52, and the light that exposes wicked deeds in John 3:19-20. The key of knowledge, or

the truth of Jesus is what sets people free of bondage, while the light exposes the darkness and

convicts people into repentance. These two things are critical in understanding external barriers

in counseling. One external barrier presents in the form of the unrepentant sinner. These would


be those who know full well their measure of sin but run from the church for fear of having it

exposed in the light. Another example would be so called “Pharasees,” those who have hardened

their hearts to the point that they become critical of everything around them that doesn’t conform

to their standards. Even more dangerous are “Pharaseic” leaders in the church who actively stand

in the way of truth. According to the 2009 Barna Year-in-review perspective:

Bible reading has become the religious equivalent of sound-bite journalism. When

people read from the Bible they typically open it, read a brief passage without much

regard for the context, and consider the primary thought or feeling that the passage

provided. If they are comfortable with it, they accept it; otherwise, they deem it

interesting but irrelevant to their life, and move on. There is shockingly little growth

evident in people’s understanding of the fundamental themes of the scriptures and

amazingly little interest in deepening their knowledge and application of biblical

principles. (The Barna Research Group, 2009)

In a similar fashion there are actual spiritual abusers who attempt to discredit the truth by

attacking those who would bear fruit. Numerous websites can be found online of churches or

individuals claiming to be experts with entire archives of sludge reports on respected ministry

leaders, Dr. Anderson included.

When it comes to the counseling experience, counselors will quickly find that often a

broken Biblical worldview is the result of some past hurt in their lives. In some cases these hurts

are so dominant in the lives of the counselee they can’t even understand what it is you’re saying

as you council them. It’s in these cases that an understanding of how the spiritual battle going on

inside the minds of many is critical to freedom. It must be communicated that Satan has all ready


been defeated and that they are children of God, co-heirs to the Kingdom with Christ (Romans

8:17) Once the counselee has been freed, they can begin what Anderson calls the seven steps

towards freedom in Christ.

Step one involves renouncing any current our past involvement in any activity or group

that worked contrary to scripture. Anderson insists that a strong, out loud declaration of

renouncing Satan is at the heart of this step, as false guidance from the enemy has led the

counselee away from God. After this declaration nine follow-up questions are asked, all nine of

which are in some way satanically related. This is to encourage prayer and further renouncing of

sins the counselee may have committed.

Step two involves overcoming deception, from living lies to believing them. Prayer is

largely involved, asking on the Father to reveal any deception involved in the counselee’s life.

After this an affirmation of truth is declared.

Step three is about overcoming bitterness, and learning what stands in the way of

forgiveness. After performing a prayer of revelation the counselee is asked to make a list of those

they have offended and those that have offended them, with the counselor’s assistance if

necessary. Much of this step involves the counselee forgiving themselves and releasing any

bitterness towards God.

The next step is overcoming rebellion, or those who would have control over their own

life instead of God. Learning to trust God, living with and under authority and Biblical

submission are all covered here. Dealing with past abuses is also often dealt with in this step.

Ultimately the goal is for the counselee to learn proper submission.


The fifth step is overcoming pride, which goes well with step four. As Anderson states,

“Pride is the origin of evil.” (P. 294) In this step the counselor helps the counselee overcome

their perceived self-sufficiency by identifying false humility, avenues of pride, prejudice and

bigotry. Since this step is covered in the last, impressing a realistic worldview is conveyed.

The sixth step involves overcoming habitual sin and addictions, which typically is

administered in some form of twelve step program. In this instance Anderson regards this form

of sin as a sort of open or revolving door in which the counselee repeatedly attempts to repent

but does not have the faculties to do so. Prayer is largely the prescription but even Anderson

admits this is a huge challenge and recommends it be administered in two sessions.

The final step involves overcoming Ancestral Sin, or sin that has been passed down the

family line. Here habits that have formed from how the counselee grew up are addressed.

Anderson even suggests that Jeremiah 32:17-18 suggests that certain sins are actually genetically

inherited. After prayer is administered the counselee is assured of 2nd Corinthians 5:17,

“Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come:[a] The old has gone, the new is

here! “

While Anderson’s book Discipleship Counseling offers us three distinct topical points,

that Christians are hurting because they do not know their place in Christ, that there is an

organizational structure to discipleship counseling, and there are barriers to overcome in

restoring the counselee back to God, a great deal more can be learned from his Truth in Christ

Ministries. Anderson has given us several examples of his work in the field not mentioned here.

The field of Christian counseling in general is in need of guidance such as this, and it is ironic

that the American Psychiatric Association, American Psychology Association and the American


Medical Association find this work legitimate while a number of churches do not. The work does

seems to focus primarily on prayer and demonic activity as the cause of issues over traditional

secular ideas, but the accessibility of the material would warrant further investigation before

implementation in a church environment, especially if that church were looking to avoid secular

psychology entirely.


References

Anderson, D. N. (2003). Discipleship Counseling. Ventura, CA, USA: Regal Books.

Carter, J. D., & Narramore, B. (1979). The integration of psychology and theology: an introduction. Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA: The Zondervan Corporation.

Crawshaw, R., Rogers, D. E., Pellegrino, E. D., Bulger, R. G., Lundburg, G. D., Bristow, L. R., et al. (1995). Patient-Physician Covenant. Journal of the American Medical Association , 19.

Mills, L. (1999). Developing a Christian Critique of Psychotherapies for Undergraduates. Retrieved from Council for Christian Colleges & Universities: http://www.cccu.org/professional_development/resource_library/developing_a_christian_critique_of_psychotherapies_for_undergraduates

The Barna Research Group. (2009). Barna Studies the Research, Offers a Year-in-Review Perspective. Ventura, CA, USA.

The Barna Research Group. (2009). Barna Survey Examines Changes in Worldview Among Christians over the Past 13 Years. Ventura, CA, USA: The Barna Group, Ltd.

Ulanov, A. B. (1971). The Feminine in Jungian Psychology and in Christian Theology. Evanston, IL, USA: Northwestern University Press.

Documents

Discipleship Counseling by Dr. Neil T. Anderson review by Michael Wright