Counseling in the Local Church

Course Description

Biblical counseling—is it just for the pastors and elders? Or for trained professionals? What does it look like to restore counseling to the local church? The purpose of this course is to:

• to broaden students’ understanding of counseling to include all relationships
• to build a thoroughly biblical understanding of the local church as a ministering community where everyone plays a part
• to help students find their place of ministry within the context of the local church and to help others do the same
• to see the importance of both public and private ministry of the Word and how they interrelate
• to examine present ministry opportunities

Topics covered include a biblical foundation for private ministry of the Word; the role of community and relationships in the process of sanctification; developing a practical ecclesiology; and developing an eye for ministry opportunities such as conflict resolution, evangelism, and church discipline.