Journal: Interdisciplinary Journal on Biblical Authority
Volume: IJOBA 01:1 (Spring 2020)
Article: Book Reviews
Author: Anonymous

IJOBA 1:1 (Spring 2020) p. 111

Book Reviews

By The Faculty And Students Of Calvary University

Clark, James. Biblical Counseling: A Guide for the Church and Community. Larkspur, CO: Grace Acres Press. 2020. Pp. 228, paper $21.95.

Pastors and lay leaders desiring to help those in distress may consider biblical counseling for their church. James Clark has written a guide useful for anyone interested in being a part of a biblical counseling ministry in a local church setting. His practical advice covers many topics; however, this book is not an exhaustive tome on the subject. Dr. Clark never intended for it to be. His new book gives enough information for someone new to the field a great start. Experienced biblical counselors can learn from his longtime experience.

Unlike other authors (Kellemen & Carson, 2015; Adams, 1986), Clark wrote a four-part book that covers essential topics to begin a counseling ministry in the church. In about 200 pages, he covers development, training, structure, and application. The book includes many useful accounts from his personal experience and the Scripture that provided a foundation for the principles he used. He declared that counseling is a ministry opportunity that also creates a learning environment for the counselor. The book is a guide, not a comprehensive manual.

Part I details Clark’s thoughts on the importance and significance of biblical counseling in the local church. His first chapter details his case for the sufficiency of Scripture as a worldview. He provides the strong argument that the Bible is sufficient as a basis for life’s decisions. Clark asserts examples using Scripture to support his argument that the biblical worldview is superior to a secular worldview in counseling.

Clark provided insight into a counseling experience that gives new counselors immediate insight into a communication system useful in many interpersonal situations (32). He described the church as having an opportunity to intervene but that, “The ministry of hospitality seems to be a neglected vehicle in ministry today” (35). He

IJOBA 1:1 (Spring 2020) p. 112

found that the church can be a “microcosm” (34) that meets needs for people physically and spiritually through intervention of God’s people who assert themselves in this special ministry.

Much of the work details the steps needed to create a counseling ministry in a local church. Clark points out that, “Jesus had the opportunity to call men of stature when he chose his disciples” (48) when talking about the broken and other people who seemed ungifted but were used in the church. The roles of the pastor, church leaders, and lay persons interested in the ministry are clearly...