I believe biblical interpretation is one of the most difficult problems the church faces today. People no longer rely on the Scriptures as ultimate truth. Most people would say it is a good idea to read it for guidance and wisdom, but at the same time say it cannot be trusted if God is going to kill whole villages – men, women, and child. Truth has become relative, and as a result, the definitive truth of Scripture is null in the life of most people.
However, many people in the world today continue to view pastors and counselors in the church as authoritative, and because people do have a sense of the divine will often turn to leaders, even if they themselves are not in church, for help in times of need. This places us at a unique advantage. Why? It is a time to present the beauty of Scripture – God’s redeeming love throughout history to call a rebellious and sinful people back to Himself through the person and work of Christ.
In Mike Emlet’s book, CrossTalk, he attempts to help students of biblical counseling pair the truth of God’s Word with problems (suffering) in the lives of people to whom they counsel. This is not an easy endeavor, and I believe Dr. Emlet presents the challenges. Scripture was written of a period of thousands of years, and the last part was written over two thousand years ago. How do we bring it to bear on the lives of people now?
Dr. Emlet begins by providing us with words of encouragement. The Bible, written in a time completely unfamiliar to us, calls us to minister and speak truth into the lives of suffering people. It can be a daunting task, but Dr. Emlet says that Jesus Christ is the “key”. “But because the Bible is ‘divine discourse’ that finds its fulfillment in the Word, Jesus Christ, we will find that he is the key for bridging canyons (or ditches for that matter). It’s our Book because it’s his Book, and we are his!” (21)
Chapter two, entitled What the Bible Is Not (Primarily), is such an important section in our day and time. The Bible is often viewed, negatively, as a book of “rules” and not principles for fruitful, godly living. At the core of biblical counseling, we are calling counselees to connect with the truths of Scripture that impact the heart and not just behavioral changes. “Identifying with the characters in Scripture helps us recognize the specific ways God acts and speaks, mercifully and justly, to his suffering and sinful people. In the pages of Scripture, God initiates relationship with real people, not cardboards cutout! It helps struggling people to see struggling people in the pages of Scripture” (35).
Seeing that Scripture can in fact connect to people in more than a “rule” and “obedience” way – a true heart change – Dr. Emlet moves a step further to talk about the “story” of people’s life and how it fits in the larger picture of God’s redemptive work – the metanarrative. Not only do we speak the truth of God’s Word in the lives of people, we also frame it in the larger picture. “Without considering the shaping stories of people’s lives, we’ll provide solution-focused counsel but perhaps miss the roots of the problem… People don’t need compartmentalized solutions for compartmentalized problems. They need the liberating story of redemption that gradually reunites the various aspects of their lives to be in line with the gospel truth” (79).
When interpreting Scripture, there are several factors to consider. First, Scripture was written in a particular time, to a particular person or people group, and by a particular person. In other words, the writings of Scripture have a particular place of history. Our job, as biblical counselors and pastors, is to understand that context so that we might rightly apply the truth to the here and now.
Secondly, as we stated earlier, it is essential to understand the counselee’s story and particular how it fits into the overall plan of God. We cannot know the future and the work of the Spirit, but we can hear clues; we can understand when there has been true heart change.
To balance the application of Scripture, Dr. Emlet offers this nugget of advice: “We should not overly complicate a text by allegorizing, nor should we overly simplify a text by connecting it to Jesus in some generic way” (89). I think this understanding helps us balance not only our own grasp of Scripture but also to help the counselee to see the fullness of the Word.
But where do Scripture and life meet? We call this application, and Dr. Emlet says that this is the “ultimate goal”. To quote it in its entirety, I believe Dr. Emlet summarizes the task of biblical counseling well when he says:
Application happens when people ‘inhabit’ the worldview of the text in such a way that they gain gospel-centered clarity and direction for their situation – and act on it. This is what connecting Scripture and life is all about! The goal of reading Scripture is not merely to produce an accurate, detailed outline of the passage. Nor is it simply to gain an understanding of how a text might have impacted its original audience. Nor is it a whizbang, jaw-dropping, creative connection of the passage to the person and work of Christ. Nor is it to generate a list of action steps to take. Similarly, the goal of reading people does not stop with understanding the particulars of their lives as saints, suffers, and sinners. Those insights alone will not bring change. Rather, the goal of reading Scripture and reading people together is so that we can help others increasingly reflect the character and kingdom priorities of Jesus Christ. The goal of connecting Scripture with life is nothing less than changed lives, a changed community, and a changed world, as people listen to the God who speaks truth and love (90).
Dr. Emlet ends the book by examining Tom and Natalie – two very different people from two different situations. Tom is married and wrestles with pornography. His marriage is in shambles, and he is desperate for help. Natalie, on the other hand, is actively engaged in ministry through her job but disconnected from the local church. She is single and has much time to devote to Kingdom work but feels immense discontentment.
The beauty and wonder of Scripture is that it speaks to both people in very different but exactly the same way – affirming the love of God in Christ and that though they may suffer for the moment, the eternal God of glory has a plan for their lives. God’s covenantal promise to redeem and deliver His people is not a fantasy story of an ancient book; it is the truth of a historical book that was penned by human authors under the guidance and wisdom of none other than God’s own Holy Spirit.
