Counseling, Biblical or non-Biblical, in today’s society comes in many different forms and through many different people. Counseling could come formally through a pastor or a psychologist or informally through a friend, family member, or co-worker. When a person is deciding who to turn to for counseling for any type of situation in their life, one question they may ask is “Who is qualified to be a Biblical counselor?” This paper will attempt to answer this question and show the Biblical qualifications of a Biblical counselor.
Required Qualifications
Romans 15:14 says, “And I myself also am persuaded of you my brethren, that ye also are full of goodness, filled with all knowledge, able also to admonish one another.” In this verse, Paul clearly indicates three distinct characteristics that an individual must possess to be a Biblical counselor.
The first qualification that Paul indicates as a must for individuals to have is salvation. Paul shows us this with his use of ‘brethren,’ which means brother , in this verse. Paul uses brethren to signify that the people he was writing to in Rome were his brothers. These people were not physically his brothers, but they were saved so they were Paul’s brothers in Christ.
The second qualification that Paul indicates in Romans 15:14 as a must for individuals to have is ‘full of goodness.’ Writers in the New Testament use three different Greek words for goodness. The word that Paul uses is this verse means moral goodness, upright, or virtuous. An individual, in order to be ‘full of goodness,’ needs to grow in Christ and learn to be morally upright. These people are not satisfied with the way that their life is, they have not reached perfection in their life so they must continue growing and learning.
The third qualification that Paul indicates in Romans 15:14 as a must for individuals to have is ‘filled with all knowledge.’