How should we think biblically about psychiatric medications?

I think it’s important to start with our biblical anthropology—we are body-spirit creatures. We are simultaneously body and soul. There’s never a time that we’re not spiritually engaged as we live before God as his image bearer, and there’s never a time we are not bodily engaged. What this means is that attention to both aspects of our personhood is warranted, particularly in the midst of suffering associated with the disturbances of mood and cognition and behavior associated with mental health issues.

What else do we know from Scripture? Well, through Jesus Christ, God brings redemption in a full-orbed way. He forgives our sins through Jesus’s death on the cross. His righteousness is imputed to us. But in addition, God intends to relieve our suffering through the work of Christ. He comes to make his blessings flow far as the curse is found, as the hymn goes. Relief of suffering is a good and necessary part of God’s kingdom. We see that in Jesus’s ministry, and it will be our experience in the new heavens and earth—the end of all suffering and pain for eternity. And so there is nothing inherently wrong with seeking relief from present suffering, and psychiatric medications may be a means that God uses to bring some measure of relief.

Still, you see a second strand of teaching in the New Testament beside relief of suffering: God is at work, redeeming and transforming the experience of suffering for believers because of their union with Jesus, the Suffering Servant. The apostle Paul calls this “participation in [Jesus’s] sufferings” in Philippians 3:10. By virtue of our being united to Christ, God is at work in the midst of our suffering, conforming us to the image of Christ. The apostle Paul puts it this way in Romans 8:16–17: “The Spirit himself bears witness with our spirit that we are children of God, and if children, then heirs—heirs of God and fellow heirs with Christ, provided we suffer with him in order that we may also be glorified with him.” In other words, we can be confident that God is at work redemptively in the midst of our sufferings, whether they be physical or emotional, by virtue of our being united with the One whose suffering ultimately led to resurrection and glory. That is our destiny as well.

And so while relieving suffering is a kingdom priority, we want to be careful that we are not seeking relief alone, but also looking for and expecting God’s transforming agenda in the midst of suffering. Put that another way, as believers in Christ, we hope not only for symptom reduction but also for tangible Christian growth: perseverance amid suffering, deeper trust in the Father’s love, more settled hope, love for fellow strugglers, gratitude, and more. Improved mood may correlate with these things, but not necessarily.

And this brings me to another biblical perspective: Medications are gifts of God’s common grace and medications can be used idolatrously. What do I mean? I believe it’s right to view the development of psychoactive medications as a good gift from God, an extension of the ruling and stewarding function he gave to humanity at creation. And at its best, scientific discovery explores God’s world in all its complexity and seeks to alleviate some of the misery we experience as fallen creatures in a fallen world. And I think as such, we should receive medications gratefully and humbly, but not forgetting the One through whom the wisdom came to discover such potential remedies. However, we need to remember that psychiatric medications are one component of a full-orbed, God-centered, body-soul treatment approach. The gift should not take the place of the Giver. By definition, that’s idolatry: attributing ultimate power and help to something other than our triune God.

Another biblical perspective relates to motives. Scripture highlights the importance of heart motives underlying our words and actions in passages such as Luke 6:43–45, where Jesus says that what is in the heart comes out in our speech and behavior. Well, let’s apply this to medication use: A person could have wrong motives for wanting to take medication, and a person could have wrong motives for not wanting to take medication. For example, a problematic motive for wanting to take medication might be a demand for immediate relief coupled with a refusal to look at potential issues that might at least partially contribute to the person’s mental struggle. But there are also problematic reasons for not wanting to consider medication, including pride and self-sufficiency—I should be strong enough without medication, or maybe the more spiritualized version of this: I should be able, by trusting God, to improve without medication. Another problematic motive for not considering medication might be fearing disapproval or experiencing judgment by others. Or shame that says, There must be something seriously wrong with me if I have to take this medication. And so motives are an important biblical perspective.

Now when we put all of these perspectives together, what do we see? The use of these medications is a wisdom issue, to be discerned prayerfully and in conversation with other trusted people in your life, including family members, pastors, counselors, and physicians. There is no universal rule that we can apply to all people at all times. There will always be a mixture of pros and cons, costs and benefits to carefully consider. We know that psychiatric medications don’t provide benefit to everyone who takes them, and we know that they may come with significant side effects. And yet, we know that sometimes and for some conditions, medications can be an important part of the total care for a struggling person.

So rather than offer a simple algorithm or formulaic answer, Scripture provides these categories to prayerfully consider regarding the potential use—or nonuse—of psychiatric medications.