Have we lost confidence in the Bible?

Google’s Ngram Viewer is a fun way to waste time online. You can search Google’s book database and discover how common a word’s usage has been over time.

If, for example, you searched for the word ‘depression’, you will see two peaks, one in 1934 and another in 2011. ‘Shell shock’ peaks in 1919. Type in the word ‘trauma’, and you will see its usage rise on a continual uphill graph from almost nothing in 1900; similar happens to the word ‘triggering’. The term PTSD rose from nothing in the 1970s to a sharp peak today.

There are endless words and phrases you can play with to see if they are on the increase in our literature. Pick a word about emotions; they are nearly all on the rise. This tool is not comprehensive. It doesn’t monitor everyday speech, for example. It doesn’t provide context, either. However, it does give a flavour of what is being written about and, therefore, what people are interested in.

It shows an explosion of terms from the field of psychology. The human emotional state and all our difficulties are the subject of more and more study. Psychology is now the second most popular A-level subject, and depending on the data source, Psychology comes in as the third most popular degree. Many psychological theories were introduced in the 20th century, and the 21st century has embraced them, developed them and become obsessed with them.

The language of psychology is everywhere. I trained as a psychiatric nurse back in the 1980s when things such as PTSD were beginning to be recognised. Now, the vocabulary of trauma has been incorporated into the everyday and ordinary stresses of life. We have come a long way from the horrors of WWI and shell shock. Young parents worry about bonding with their babies and fear traumatising them if they leave them to cry for too long. Anxiety is on the rise. Abigail Shrier, in her book Bad Therapy: Why the Kids Aren’t Growing Up describes the dangers of this vocabulary in everyday life. For the church, there are other dangers.

I am not saying there is never a place for professional mental health care; far from it. Indeed, I spent several years working in the mental health field myself. There is, of course, a place for medicine and treatment for both physical and mental illnesses. However, the rise of psychology coincides with the rejection of Christianity. The study of self is much more popular than the study of the Bible. Psychological theories offer various potential solutions to everyday concerns; some are proven, some are repackaged ancient wisdom, but many are dubious and based on little evidence. However, the demand for psychological support and counselling continues to rise. Psychologists claim to understand human nature, which can leave pastors feeling undermined and de-skilled. In the face of this, it is tempting for a pastor to feel that his ministry of reconciliation is of less worth. Pastoral care becomes concerned about any number of things other than helping someone discover the joy of the gospel, the hope of eternity, and the daily call to follow Christ.

I met someone recently who was struggling with guilt. She had been in a church for many years, but no one had ever opened the Bible with her. She had never been shown the glorious grace of Romans 8 – there is no condemnation for those in Christ Jesus. Are we afraid to open the Bible with each other? Do we fear it is somehow a bit trite, a little simplistic, like whacking out a verse to magic problems away?

I think we have lost confidence in the Bible. It is seen when someone in ministry asks: ‘Does anyone know a book on … ?’ You can put in any number of words here, such as anxiety, shame, stress, burnout, bereavement, developing confidence, etc. Do we think we need to do a course or read a book before we are qualified to help a fellow believer?

Do we doubt that God’s word, handled correctly, is the means the Spirit uses to transform us? When a pastor is meeting with someone battling with shame, they do not need a book that helps them understand the neurobiological roots of shame. They do not need to understand psychological theories about negative thought patterns or even the background that has caused the shame. They need to hold out the word of truth.

That person needs a pastor who patiently listens, gently instructs, and prays with them. God’s word really does transform lives. It makes us wise for salvation and thoroughly equips us for every good work. It isn’t therapy, but it is the cure of souls. There will be difficulties and hardships and struggles we will never resolve. As Ecclesiastes 1:15 says: ‘We cannot make the crooked straight and what is lacking cannot be counted’. But we can hold out the word of life to people dying without it. We have good news. We must not get sidetracked by the trends of our day.