Romans 8:7-9 – For the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God, for it does not submit to God’s law; indeed, it cannot. Those who are in the flesh cannot please God. You, however, are not in the flesh but in the Spirit, if in fact the Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does not belong to him.
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As I read these verses, my mind is immediately drawn back to the studies that I am presently doing for my doctorate. One of the major debates among those studying Christian counseling in its various forms is the debate about the usefulness of the field of psychology. There are some groups that believe that the counselor may be Christian, but may rightly choose to not include anything but the practice of psychology in his counseling. There are others who argue that nothing should be brought out of secular psychology into the area of counseling; only the scriptures and the Holy Spirit can change lives. Of course, there are also people spread all across a continuum between those two positions.
Looking at Romans 8:7-9, we learn something about human nature and fallenness that may shine some light on this discussion. What we learn will also help to challenge the way that we think overall, so it is worth presenting here. Paul writes that the mind set on the flesh is hostile to God, does not submit to God’s law, can not submit to God’s law (which is even worse), and can not please God. He then lets us know that someone who has the Spirit of God living within them is not the person whose mind is set on the flesh. So, we learn, in these few verses, that the lost person is the one who does not and can not please God because he or she does not and can not obey God’s commands.
What does all this have to say about the little counseling debate? I’m not totally sure, but I do know that it shines a strong light on the discussion. Lost people in the field of psychology do not have the Spirit of God living within them. Thus, they can do nothing to please God. Neither, I would add, can they do something to help the Christian to please God, since the lost person is hostile to God. If the person is hostile to God, I would conclude that the basic assumptions and methodologies of the lost person would also tend to be in opposition to God. Thus, if not all, the vast majority of motivation, methodology, direction, and action of secular psychology is, though possibly something that will “work,” also something that is opposed to God at its very core.
As believers in Christ, we do not live by a standard of pragmatism. We, instead, live by a standard of righteousness. Not only are we to do the work of our King, we are also to do that work in his way. There may be ways that we can go about things that lead to a desired effect, but if that way is hostile to God, the action is sin regardless of the results. Thus, the text of Romans 8:7-9 would make me be very cautious, and honestly quite hesitant, to include any of the methods of men who are, by their very natures, hostile to God and unable to follow him. That, of course, means that I also would reject a great deal that is taught by the secular psychologist, philosopher, counselor, or guru out of principle that, though their methods may bring about good looking results, their hearts are opposed to my God. Since I desire most of all to glorify him, I turn from the ways that seem right to men, and turn instead to the word and Spirit of the Living God.
Outside of the psychology debate, there is still a great lesson for us to learn here. Lost people are truly lost. If you or someone you know does not know Jesus, you have to recognize that the Bible declares such a person to be unwilling and incapable of seeking God. Such a person, according to the text, is hostile to God. For such a person to do anything to please God, they must first be turned from living by the flesh to living by the Spirit. This can only happen when the Spirit of the Living God dwells in them. That only happens when the person who is lost is born again, brought to Jesus Christ for salvation.
Are you trying to help your lost friends to live a better life? They can not do it. Are you trying to help them to get out of their depression or their problem-filled lives? You will not succeed. You can not succeed with them, because the ultimate thing that they need is Jesus. Stop trying to counsel the lost with tips on living a better life. They do not want tips on how to please God, they are hostile to him. They instead need the Holy Spirit of God to break into their hearts, change them, and bring them to Christ.
Lord, I recognize here and now that no person without the Spirit living within him can ever do anything to please you. That is who I was before I came to know you. All glory for me coming to know you is yours, because I was hostile to you beforehand. I ask that you will help me to always remember that I can never expect a lost person to want you any more than I can trust them to teach methods of helping that will please you. Help me instead to remember that they are hostile to you, blinded by sin, and in need of Christ as their Savior. I also ask that you will help me to never use pragmatic but worldly methods. I want to please you, and I know that I can only do that when I do your work in your way for your glory.
Pastor Travis Peterson 