I absolutely agree that psychology can show us what pit we have fallen into, but only Christ can get us out.
Actually, the Bible can show you the pit you're in. But, unlike modern psychology, it tells us what the fundamental root of our sin is: Self, or the "old man" of whom Paul wrote. If a person doesn't deal with Self, the sin it produces never ceases.
Amen to what you've said about only Christ getting us out of the pits into which we descend. I would say, though, that Christ has already got us out; we just have to know that he has (identification) and by faith live in in accord with this fact (appropriation).
I fail to see where in the Scriptures it says we should not understand ourselves, ours story, our weaknesses, and our strengths?
I think as adults we all have a pretty good understanding of who we are. And the Bible also fleshes out who we are most fundamentally and what God has done in response to our core impulses and motivations. It seems to me the things the Bible reveals to us about ourselves are the most important things to know and deal with, not childhood trauma, or quirks of personality, or whatever.
God has made us to be conformed to the thing upon which focus. This is why we have advertising on t.v., billboards, magazines, websites, etc. It is common knowledge that the more a thing occupies one's mind, the more it influences and shapes one's thinking and behaviour. And so it is that God tells us to fix our mind upon Him, upon Christ. When we begin to navel gaze, looking inward at ourselves, we should not be surprised when we find ourselves, not like
Christ, but just more deeply embedded in who
we are.
Nouthethic counseling means from the Greek 'True Counseling' and uses only the Bible in counseling and discounts disciplined study of the human person which psychology does. I went through 6 months of intense Nouthethic counseling, but to no avail.
I'm familiar with Nouthetic counseling.
I don't see him condemning the search for why certain problems exist in our lives because it may be once we understand the why, we'll stop doing them.
I don't see that an awareness of why we sin is the answer to no longer sinning. That's not what I see in the Bible, anyway. The Bible says that all of our sin ultimately emanates from the "Old Man," from Self, but knowing this doesn't help anyone get free of the "Old Man." For that, one must turn, not to modern psychology, but to God who has, in Christ, made all of His children free from the power of their "Old Man."
Self will, being guilted to do better, reading the Bible, "trying harder", etc. -- unfortunately, these are solutions that haven't worked for me. I believe they could work later, but there is some sort of spiritual (demonic) or psychological barrier.
Self-will, trying harder - these have nothing at all to do with how a Christian comes free of sin. In fact, Scripture indicates that the more I try to contribute my self-effort to the transforming work of God, the more I foul what He is doing. My "job" is to get out of His way, to surrender (
Romans 12:1), yield (
Romans 6:13-19), submit myself (
James 4:7) to His work, to His will and way, and by faith trust Him to do it. I only work out what He has first worked into me. (Philippians 2:13) If I don't get this right, I find myself inevitably in the grip of the principle of like begetting like. A cat can only beget a cat, a dog begets a dog, a duck begets a duck, and you and I can only beget more of ourselves. It is only God who can make us godly, who can beget the character of Christ in us.
I doubt there is a demonic barrier or a psychological one to being free of your sin. I think you just haven't either understood God's way of freedom or haven't taken it truly to heart.
