This is the Biblical Counseling Foundation’s 50th Anniversary Year! And we wanted to use this blog to pause for a moment and thank the Lord for His great faithfulness and for the many servant-hearted people in the local church with whom we have been privileged to minister. Our focus from the beginning has been to support the local church, which was God’s design to carry the gospel to the world and to build up the body of Christ (Ephesians 4:12). To be reminded of the story of BCF’s founding (with four men in the Pentagon, moved by God’s Spirit to begin a discipleship/counseling training ministry), you can watch a brief history from Robert “Uncle Bob” Schneider at:
https://youtu.be/xy3tYNeRMt8?si=csN_TvVa18cRRGzl
One of the things you will see in that video is a description of the significant need soldiers in the United States military had for spiritual hope and encouragement as the Vietnam War was winding down and they were returning home. But it was also a time when individuals and families in general were struggling with problems and looking for answers in many places other than the Scriptures. Even churches and seminaries were turning more often to secular counseling methods rather than bringing people back to the powerful, practical principles of the Word of God.
Expository Teaching in the Local Church
BCF serves many churches who teach through the Word of God book by book, chapter by chapter, verse by verse – expository teaching. The systematic study of the Word of God, along with the Holy Spirit’s conviction and help in understanding (John 14:26), is life-changing. There is also a place for overviews of the Bible and topical studies as well. We see all these in the Scriptures.
For example, overviews of the Scriptures can be important to help people see how God’s plan fits together. A great example is Luke 24 where, after the resurrection, we read that two of Jesus’ followers were traveling to the village of Emmaus talking about all of the things which had taken place when an unknown traveler came alongside them. In verses 15 and 16, when Cleopas remarked about how unaware this traveler was of “the things which have happened here,” Jesus humorously replies “What things?,” His followers went to great lengths to explain, to which Jesus replied “O foolish men and slow of heart to believe in all that the prophets have spoken! Was it not necessary for the Christ to suffer these things and to enter into His glory?” Then verse 27 and following describe what must have been one of the greatest Bible studies in history: “Then beginning with Moses and with all the prophets, He explained to them the things concerning Himself in all the Scriptures.”
Other notable expository sermons in the New Testament include:
1) Stephen’s defense before his accusers - in Acts 7 Stephen walked them through the history of Israel’s salvation from Abraham to Jesus the Messiah (and where verse 58 describes a young Saul as being present for the stoning);
2) Acts 8:35 records the encounter between Philip and the Ethiopian eunuch - “Philip opened his mouth, and beginning from this Scripture (Isaiah 53:7) he preached Jesus to him;” and
3) Acts 2 - Peter was preaching about salvation through the Messiah from the Old Testament Scriptures on the Day of Pentecost.
Topical, Life-Application Teaching in the Local Church
Jesus and the apostles taught topically as well. In the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus taught on a wide range of topics on daily living, to include: what to do in the face of persecution (Matthew 5:11-12), that we are to be the salt of the earth (5:13) and light of the world (5:14), anger (5:22), forgiveness and reconciliation (5:23-24), adultery and lust (5:27-29), divorce (5:31-32), keeping one’s word (5:33-34), temptations to revenge (5:38-42), loving even our enemies (5:44), humility (6:1), prayer (6:7-15), anxiety (6:25-34), and about not being judgmental/hypocritical (7:1-5). The writers of the epistles addressed many topics on godly living, personal problem-solving, and the functioning of the local church.
The Self-Confrontation course was always designed as a topical Bible study to address the specific challenges of daily life, much like Jesus trained the disciples, starting with the fundamentals of the faith in Lessons 1-3. Then Lesson 4 is designed to show the stark contrast between God’s way and man’s way of dealing with the problems we tend to be faced with in life.
What Jesus taught while He was on earth was often the polar opposite of the worldly wisdom of that day. There are so many examples of this in the Scriptures: “bless those who curse you “(Luke 6:27); “first take the log out of your own eye and then you will see clearly to take the speck out of your brother’s eye” (Matthew 7:5); “the Son of man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life a ransom for many” (Matthew 20:28); “you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind … and your neighbor as yourself” (Matthew 22:37-39). Note that “loving yourself” is not a third commandment – we already do that naturally.
When BCF was founded in 1974, these truths were so opposite to where secular psychology was going that it made sense to use this as a theme for a Bible study that would be an immediate contrast to the deceptive “me-focused” philosophies of the world – hence the title “Self-Confrontation.” There have been many suggestions over the years to soften the title. And perhaps the title could give some people pause about taking the class. But that is a good thing, because it also gives the students an appreciation that this is going to be a different sort of class – one that will shake up some of the prevailing human wisdom with which we are constantly bombarded. The term “confrontation” is a battle term – because there is a war raging inside of us, between the flesh and the spirit (Galatians 5:17). And it is only as we live in the Lord that we live in the victory He has given us (I Corinthians 15:57; John 5:4).
Jesus reminded us that by focusing on our own fulfillment we can lose the very fulfillment in life that we seek. Luke 9:24 - “For whoever wishes to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake, he is the one who will save it.” Living this way in the power of the Holy Spirit enables us to experience true fulfillment, while also being more prepared to lovingly help our brothers and sisters in need.
These truths are deeply rooted in the context of what Jesus taught in His several years of ministry on earth and are still transforming lives today. They are transformational not only for us as individuals but also for the vibrant functioning of the local church that BCF has always been committed to serving. We are deeply grateful for the 50 years of ministry God has given to us and for all the saints in the local church worldwide with whom we have been privileged to serve.
God bless you as you continue to live for our Savior,
Steve Smith