The Role Of Holy Spirit And Sanctification In Clinical Practice

It is not a question as to whether or not the process of change, sanctification, the role of the Holy Spirit and clinical skills facilitate change but much rather to the degree as to how and the implications of it. The implications are imbedded all throughout scripture and all throughout our daily lives. John 14:16 states, right before Jesus was about to leave this earth, “And I will ask the Father, and he will give you another advocate to help you and be with you forever. ” “The Holy Spirit is the gift given by the Father, Jesus told the disciples in the Upper Room. This gift given in Jesus’ name is called Parakletos, which is translated in various ways: Counselor, Advocate, Helper. It means, literally, “one called alongside of” to aid, exhort, and encourage. He is, remarked the Jesuit priest and poet, Gerard Manley Hopkins, one “who stirs up, urges forward, who calls on … what a trumpet is to a soldier, that a Paraclete is to the soul…”. It is very fitting in light of the topic that one of the translations is “counselor. ”

Paul boldly proclaims in Philippians 2:12-13 “Therefore, my dear friends, as you have always obeyed- not only in my presence, but now much more in my absence- continue to work out your salvation with fear and trembling, for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose. ” It is imperative to make notice that Paul says to “work out” your salvation. It is reiterated all throughout Scripture that our salvation is dependent upon grace through faith in Jesus Christ and, contrary to many beliefs and religions, not our own works or merits. This type of salvation, however, is not a once occurrence when we accept Jesus as our Lord and Savior but rather a continual ongoing work in our lives and hearts until the very day that we are met face to face with Christ Himself. In essence, what Paul is saying by “work out your salvation” is that he is referring to us striving to grow more and more like Christ. This is a relentless daily pursuit. On the other hand, a message and verse such as this can be convoluted. One can take the same exact message and apply the “grace” lens and expect the process to take place through grace and God alone, without doing anything on our part. This belief is where the convoluted Christian cliché “Let go and let God” derives from. Opposite of this, one can take that same exact message and apply the “work” lens and expect the process to take place based off their own merits. This belief is where the other misconstrued Christian cliché “God only helps those who help themselves” comes from. Sanctification is not something that can be obtained through human effort alone.

One of the starting points in the process of sanctification is having our eyes fixed on Jesus. Paul emphasizes this in the book of Hebrews chapter 12:2-3 when he states “Fixing our eyes on Jesus, the pioneer and perfecter of faith. For the joy set before him he endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinners, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart. ” A person who has their eyes fixed on Christ is on a relentless pursuit to know God and to please God in everything that they do from their marriage, to their career, to their friendships, to their every day mundane habits. In order to grow in this, one must focus on God through prayer and reading His Word, which is a revelation of Himself to His readers. Knowing and believing the depth of God’s love is a part of our sanctification process. Love is the sole reason that motivated Jesus to die on a cross for us. Romans 5:5-8 states “And hope does not put us to shame, because God’s love has been poured into our hearts through the Holy Spirit who has been given to us. For while we were still weak, at the right time Christ died for the ungodly. For one will scarcely die for a righteous person — though perhaps for a good person one would dare even to die — but God shows his love for us in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us. ” Jesus died on a cross so that He could send us the Holy Spirit to be work in and through us. Ephesians 3:19 makes mention “And to know the love of Christ which surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled up to all the fullness of God. ” If one knows how much God loved them, it would spur one on in their sanctification process to become more like the One who loves them unconditionally. An article by Scheib mentions “Is love an emotion, a disposition, a character strength, an action, a pattern of practices, a divine gift, or the very nature of God? A simple answer to this question is yes, all of the above”.

During the continual process of sanctification we have a responsibility to stay obedient to God. 1 John 2:4 says “Whoever says "I know him" but does not keep his commandments is a liar, and the truth is not in him. ” The two greatest commandments are to “Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind and with all your strength. ’ The second is this: ‘Love your neighbor as yourself. ’ There is no commandment greater than these. ” There are moments of weakness and doubt, which are both inevitable in this life but what it really is saying is to continue to strive towards this pursuit even after moments of failure. It is not about perfection. Only Jesus was perfect. This is when clinical skills as a clinician are instrumental because it can either spur one on closer to sanctification or do just the opposite. In clinical settings it is imperative that the clinician reminds their client that counseling is an ongoing process, similar to our sanctification. There is always something about ourselves to refine and work on. What brings us closer to who we are intended to become is the discipline that we implement, whether it be specific therapies that we use with the client such as Cognitive Behavioral Therapy, Dialectical Behavioral Therapy, Emotion Focused Therapy and etc. These can be considered disciplines that can be taught and implemented in our client’s life. The clinician challenges the client to examine oneself in respect to the person that God has called them to be.