PACO 501 - Discussion Thread - The Holy Spirit and Common Grace
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501
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Philosophy
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Feb 20, 2024
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docx
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Uploaded by ldoneal84
PACO 501: Discussion Thread: The Holy Spirit and Common Grace
After the initial goal and purpose of the article, Daalen walks the reader through an understanding of common grace and its biblical interpretations. The discussion of special grace is
invited and its partnership with common grace. Both common and special grace are meant to point to and glorify God Himself. The author describes both in greater detail, specifically how without the two extremes may occur, neither producing the most fruitful outcome. "In the worst case, this means that the blessings of common grace are not used specifically to help Christians grow closer to God, restrain unbelievers in their sin, or lead them in faith in Christ (Daalen, 2012). The remainder of the article highlights the character of the Holy Spirit both in the realm of psychotherapy and theologically. Not only is there information exhorting the importance of using common grace as a platform for the work of the Holy Spirit but there is also concern explained about how Christians should oppose this ideology. Daalen concludes the article by remaining on the foundational notion that incorporating the Holy Spirit through secular psychotherapy techniques to, "bless people in general, to restrain sin in this world, to prepare people for salvation, or to aid in the progressive sanctification of believers (Daalen, 2012, p. 237). The author seems to make the basis of theology general. "It should be noted, however, that the level of involvement, with secular psychology, depends on the individual calling of Christian scholars and counselors" (Daalen, 2012, p.234). It could be questioned concerning the theological stance, even though published through a Baptist Theological Seminary, in terms of denomination considering the emphasis of the Holy Spirit's part in the trinity compared to God the Father or Jesus Himself.
The proposed idea of the article would be considered a strength. It is a difficult topic to address and attempt the bridge between two different realities. The author did well to unfold how
the Holy Spirit could be used for greater results and the application factor. The author could have
spent time exploring more exegetical research on the results of incorporating the two. Instead of simply quoting a scripture index with thoughts by the author, it could have been more helpful to dive deeper into the context of the scripture, deciphering its hermeneutic. This article, as insightful as it was, seemed to at times contradict Lambert's viewpoint of counseling. "Counseling is a theological discipline" (Lambert, 2016), It is understood that scripture has the answers to everything that a person could face on earth today. Scripture was inspired by God and
written to prepare and inform people of how to walk through any sort of suffering.
In conclusion, Daalen proposed the idea that secular psychology is an important foundational tool to use through common grace to reveal the workings of the Holy Spirit. The author insightfully shares her opinion regarding the topic of immersing the work of the Holy Spirit and psychotherapy through real-life examples and scriptural references. It could be possible that her research plays some part in the field of pastoral counseling, yet not for the field in its entirety.
References
Daalen, L. K. (2012). The Holy Spirit, Common Grace, and Secular Psychotherapy.
Journal of Psychology and Theology, 40
(3), 229-239. https://go.openathens.net/redirector/liberty.edu?url=https://www.proquest.com/scholarly-
journals/holy-spirit-common-grace-secular-psychotherapy/docview/1152080064/se-2
Lambert, H. (2016). A theology of biblical counseling: The doctrinal foundations of counseling ministry
. Zondervan Academic.
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