by Mary Paas, Chaplain, ACBC & FBC Certified Biblical Counselor
"I didn’t look up," my Christian friend Sara said in reflection as I walked her through the pain of past events that many people would consider a crisis. She had grown up in a family void of the knowledge of God. Her statement was referring to looking to Christ and was coming from her conviction that He was now seated on the throne of her heart as her suffering Servant, Savior, and resurrected conquering King.
"I feel like God is punishing me," Melanie shared, navigating through her concerns and fears for her husband. He had recently been admitted into an in-patient treatment facility for first responders. Her biggest concern was that the therapies he’d receive would not have a Christian worldview nor the foundation of care and counsel from the sufficiency of Scripture.
Over tea one day with Elena, she said, "There were many things I didn’t know about God at that time in my life. I wish someone had helped me process that horrible event when I was young. Although I was raised in a church, and it was very helpful to know about God, I didn’t know how to apply what I was being taught."
As a biblical counselor, I hear endless stories that growing in the grace and knowledge of God provides peace that surpasses all understanding. That’s the peace we long for as we wade through troubling years, affected by crises, which is also my story. But rather than focusing this article on my testimony, I’d rather draw attention to the importance of keeping Christ crucified in our crises, as presented in Scripture.
Depending on your vocation and background, keeping Christ crucified may go against what you were taught. While I was being trained and certified in crisis intervention and stress mitigation as a chaplain, by government-approved certifying agencies, Christ certainly didn’t have center stage.
This world does not fall short of people who want to help others in times of crises, nor does it fall short of people who desire to do a better job helping others. So, the question is, where is Christ, uncrucified, in your crisis work?
If you’re a Christian, you may be wondering why I encourage that we keep Christ crucified in crises.
If you’re not a Christian, perhaps you’re doubting who Christ is and wondering why His crucifixion is so significant in times of crisis.
If you’re a mental health worker, you may be thinking that bringing Christ into crises doesn’t matter since there is an increasing number of therapies that help people with their problems.
If you’re a social worker, maybe you’re mentally running through the number of resources available for people in crisis.
If you’re a chaplain, you may be relying on your required training for crisis care and the protocol you’ve been given by governing authorities.
If you’re a faithful pastor, perhaps you’re giving glory to God for other servants who keep a gospel-centered focus in all of life’s circumstances.
We’ve all had people in our lives (ourselves included), who have been affected negatively by a crisis. With the thought of helping you in your work as a vocational caretaker, I hope to present through this article the importance of Christ crucified as the firm foundation of care for those in crisis and crisis recovery.
To begin: words matter. As we minister to people in crisis, the words we use and our understanding of their definitions, especially in light of God’s Word, matter.
Since the time God spoke to Adam and Eve in the garden, His words have been questioned, attacked, undermined, confused, and twisted. Satan’s first words to Eve were, "Did God really say . . . " (Genesis 3:1 CSB)? That question was a direct yet subtle attack from the enemy of our souls against the authority and character of God. The attack did not end when Eve dethroned God from her heart; the invisible war continues today with our thoughts, doubts, and desires that are against the knowledge and character of God (2 Corinthians 10:3-5). Those who acknowledge Christ as Lord are battling against dethroning God as the Sovereign King over our lives.
How often do we use correct words and with accurate understanding of their definitions? For example, the words effective and affective. One pen stroke of one letter entirely changes the meaning.
Imagine a light bulb. An effective bulb will function as intended—the filament will produce light and dispel the darkness. An affective bulb will shatter under internal or external pressure, or both.
If we’re honest, we’ve each struggled with or we’re still struggling with using accurate words in the context of a crisis circumstance.
Inaccuracies suppress truth, as we saw in Genesis 3. So again, our words matter.
Suppression of truth can come in various forms, such as distorting a word’s original meaning so the word is more palatable or adaptable to how society comes to commonly use a term. For example, the definitions of nice, silly, awful, naughty, and apology are no longer related to the original meanings..
In Romans 1 the apostle Paul outlined that unrighteousness suppresses the truth and God’s character (attributes), even though His eternal power and divine nature are revealed in all of creation (Romans 18-20). Paul follows up with a warning and consequences for those who suppress the truth by pointing out that God’s judgment is based on the truth and there is no escaping His judgment (Romans 2:2-3).
Let’s consider the unfavorable word judgment, and then I’ll explain how the term relates to truthful compassionate crisis care.
That brings me back to our English word crisis.
We must understand the meaning of crisis through Jesus’s crucifixion to understand why it’s important to keep Christ crucified in our present-day crises.
When we hear the word crisis, we sift through an assortment of thoughts to determine what that means. Typically, our conclusion is based on our observations, experiences, training, what others have defined as a moment of crisis, and likely influenced by news media reporting catastrophes.
If someone asked you to define the term crisis, would you be able to make a clear judgment? Take a moment right now to determine your definition.
Trying to define crisis takes some of us to trials we’ve gone through, only to end up with aroused anguish over the memories. Whatever the case, my guess is that it was difficult to define crisis. Thankfully, only most of the population in our American culture needs to form a case about the definition, so those of us who are unclear or all stirred up within ourselves can remain undiscerning until a verdict is made by the powers that be, right? Does defining crisis even matter?
I recently learned that American dictionary editors pay attention to how the population uses words. The editors then determine any additions or changes in definitions. They achieve this through nearly 200 linguistic authorities seated on their Usage Panel who vote on the inclusion or exclusion of words and meanings. [7]
Your thought path may be working toward these questions: What is the original meaning of crisis? How has the definition changed over the years?
The Greek word for crisis is krisis, defined by Strong’s concordance as "a decision, judgment."[8] As you were making your judgment to define crisis, did you realize you were implementing the krisis definition?
Strong’s also states that krisis generally refers to "divine judgment." Maybe divine judgement was one of God’s intentions behind His command that we not judge (Matthew 7:1). Do we sit in the place of God to adjudicate condemnation or righteousness in the heavenly court? Certainly not. Joseph understood this when he faced and forgave his brothers for tossing him into the pit. He said, "Don’t be afraid. Am I in the place of God? You planned evil against me; God planned it for good to bring about the present result—the survival of many people" (Genesis 50:19-20 CSB).
If you’ve read that story, perhaps you saw how Joseph assessed his brothers for evidence of repentance. True repentance brings about a restored relationship with God and others.
Biblical repentance is much more than our worldly apology, which some English sources now define as regret—an example of suppressing the truth.
Repentance has eternal significance because the offender understands that their sin was against a holy and just God who holds all power and authority to condemn, yet is merciful to revive and full of grace to impart eternal life to those who are "humble, submissive in spirit, and trembles at my word" (Isaiah 66:2). Regret alone can lead to death, as was the case with Judas.
Galen, and a famous self-proclaimed doctor for the Romans, born about 130 years after the Christ’s crucifixion,[9] used the etymology definition of krisis: "’turning point in a disease, that change which indicates recovery or death,’ . . . " literally ’judgment, result of a trial, selection,’[10] from the Greek krinein meaning "to separate, decide, judge."[11]
Just as other words in our English language have drifted from their original meanings, so has crisis.
Merriam-Webster dictionary states that crisis most commonly now means "a difficult or dangerous situation that needs serious attention."[12] As shared earlier, some recent non-dictionary sources have more significantly changed the definition. Many of the changes communicate mental health terminology coming from an affective (not effective) individual with an emotional and cognitive inability to rely on their normal coping abilities. Nearly all recent definitions of crisis weigh heavily on negative outcomes alone, not giving thought to what good and positive change can come. Such language communicates not only cope-lessness but also hopelessness unless there is an intervention.
Thank God for the intervention of Jesus’s crucifixion that brought the light of hope to be effective and dispel the darkness.
Let’s look back in Biblical history to see how Christ brought something positive during a time of crisis and how this relates to us today. Jesus said, "Now is the judgment of this world. Now the ruler of this world will be cast out" (John 12:31 CSB). The word for judgment here is the Greek word krisis.
This is the moment Jesus predicted his crucifixion to a crowd of people of various backgrounds and prejudices. Many had just welcomed Jesus into Jerusalem with palm branches, shouting Hosanna. Others had dinner with Jesus the day after He resurrected Lazarus. Greeks (not just Jews) were there for the Passover festival to worship. And there were others—the oppressive chief priests who had plotted to kill Jesus (and Lazarus) for spreading a message that was increasingly accepted above their rule. To a mass of people with different cultural, economic, and religious backgrounds, life's trials, catastrophes, griefs (including physical death), and positions of authority (religious and political), Christ proclaimed His moment of crisis (judgment) to come.
This is the moment that had been prophesied repeatedly in the Old Testament, since the original sin (Genesis 3) and the consequence of death. That moment holds eternal significance for the world, for God’s glory, and for our benefit (John 12:27-30). Christ’s crisis came in the crucifixion when He took on God’s righteous judgment of wrath against sin, yet He was judged by God as righteous because He had never sinned. His crisis was effective in bringing about a right standing before a just God for all those who trust in Him (2 Corinthians 5:21).
Christ’s crisis was the best and most positive crisis in history. In His moment of crisis, He took all the bad in this world—Satan— and crushed him, gifting us the greatest gift of good. In His resurrection to life, Christ became the Victor over sin and death. He offers this victory to us as He sits with all power and authority at the right hand of God (Hebrews 1:1-4, 1 John 5:1-5) in God’s glory (John 12:28-30).
Long before we knew any difference between right (righteousness) and wrong (sin), Christ’s crisis was God’s decision on our behalf, (Hebrews 10, Titus 3:3-7).
Christ’s crisis is truly the turning point of sin that affects us all, indicating either recovery or death (John 3:14-21).
God’s divine judgment through Christ’s crisis was not intended to bring us condemnation but rather salvation, justification, and the power to mature into the image of Christ’s true and unchanging character as we continually walk in sanctification (John 5:21-30, Romans 6, Philippians 2:12-16).
The separation that happens in God’s judgment is a separating of people from Satan by casting him out as ruler over men’s hearts so that we are no longer ruled by the deceitful desires of sin that lead to death.
Now, since you have been set free from sin and have become enslaved to God, you have your fruit, which results in sanctification—and the outcome is eternal life! For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Romans 6:22-23 CSB)
Christ’s crisis is the core of compassionate crisis care. Such care says no to sin, covers our sin by God’s grace through faith in Jesus Christ, and casts out sin by God’s mercy, power, and authority. When extreme difficulties impact our lives, we are naturally affected and may believe that we’re being punished by God, as Melanie had felt when she and her first-responder husband were separated for a time. What my friend forgot was that her righteous standing with the Lord was already granted to her through her faith in Christ. Unknowingly, she had un-crucified Christ in her thoughts; her thoughts were not God’s thoughts (Isaiah 55:8-9). She also hadn’t realized that the Lord was calling her to Him, into a deeper, richer, and God-glorifying relationship with Him.
As her Biblical counselor, sharing the weight of her burden by listening well and ministering God’s Word in the depths of her anguish, I was overjoyed to witness the effectual work of the Holy Spirit to restore and renew the light of Christ in her as she took obedient steps of faith and repentance.
Remembering Christ’s crucifixion is what I needed as I despaired into the depths of darkness from the sin I had allowed to rule my life. I’m grateful for the bold military chaplain who proclaimed Christ crucified during my moment of crisis and impending judgment to condemnation. In only one visit, the chaplain provided the water I needed for spiritual life and growth. Extended seasons of discipleship is not typically provided by chaplains but rather by biblical counselors. Through that troubled season of my life, I received discipleship from a Biblical counselor in my family. That season was also a time of refreshing as we searched biblical truths and relied on the power and authority of the Holy Spirit working through the sufficiency of Scripture, laying a solid foundation of faith that withstands life’s storms.
Looking to Christ as the Redeemer for all suffering originated in Adam’s and Eve’s moment of crisis is what Sara needed from me for the afflictions of her childhood. She now keeps her eyes fixed on Christ, "the pioneer and perfecter" of her faith, the One who "endured the cross, despising the shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God" (Hebrews 12:2 CSB) and intercedes for us (Romans 8:34).
The changing English definition of crisis does not surprise me. We are finite people who often focus on what is temporary and seen. This includes believers. Most of the time, we cannot escape from ourselves. We are glory-getters rather than glory-givers, like many of the rulers believed Christ before his crucifixion but did not speak up for fear of banishment from the synagogue by those who enforced religious law (John 12:37-43).
Understanding the divine judgment of God, poured onto Christ at the cross, is not a shared belief among the majority of the population. Nor was this spiritual reality ever built into the origin of the English word crisis. In times of crisis, in whatever way we choose to define it, recalling and resting in Christ-exalting, gospel-orientating counsel from God’s sufficient Word is what’s desperately needed. This does not mean that we are to neglect any medical intervention when physical issues arise in our bodies. It does mean that the spiritual heart must be nourished with biblical truths for spiritual life.
When we keep Christ crucified in times of crisis, we keep Him on the throne of our hearts which motivates us toward gospel-centered decisions that bring life rather than death.
In times of crisis, we must not only remember but grow in grace and knowledge of Christ as revealed in Scripture.
The truth revealed through God’s Word is of utmost importance in today’s world. There are continual changes in the world’s thinking, laws, and ways for how to walk through troubled times. But God’s Word is unchanging, eternal, and sufficient for salvation and training in righteousness (2 Timothy 3:16-17).
God’s Word is the lens required to accurately view God, ourselves, and our world.
His Word provides a solid and unshifting model of soul care for people, each created in the image of God.
If you are committed to grow in the grace and knowledge of God to firm up your foundation of care, I encourage you to attend live or virtually the Fallen Soldiers March Soul Care Conference on April 20, 2024 in Yorktown, Virginia. Registration details and updates can be found at https://fsmsoulcare.com
For Biblical Soul Care Counseling visit: https://fallensoldiersmarch.com
REFLECTION QUESTIONS
Do you trust in this truth of Christ, as revealed in the Holy Scriptures, to bring about life rather than death?
Do you continue to keep crucified Christ on the throne of your heart by resting in the work He accomplished for you on the cross?
When intervening as the rescuer for others during their crises, are you caught up redirecting to worldly messages or unbiblical coping skills rather than sufficiency in Christ and God’s Word?
If you haven’t trusted in the work of Christ, are you now or have you been to the point of exhaustion in your own efforts and attempts to toss off all the ways you’ve been affected by global suffering and personal sin?
Are you one who believes in Christ as the Savior, Redeemer, Provider, Comforter, and Healer but doesn’t speak up about Him out of a fear of rejection from others? Will you find someone to proclaim Christ to for their benefit?
Whether you’re a believer in Christ who’s stumbling in your own work of righteousness or have never called on Christ to receive His righteousness, will you receive, heed, and seize this moment by turning to Christ by faith and repentance?
by Mary Paas, Chaplain, ACBC & FBC Certified Biblical Counselor
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[1] "Effective Definition & Meaning," Merriam-Webster, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/effective.
[2] "Effective Definition & Meaning," Merriam-Webster, accessed November 29, 2023, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affective.
[3] "20 Words That Once Meant Something Very Different." TED Ideas, 18 Jun. 2014, ideas.ted.com/20-words-that-once-meant-something-very-different/.
[4] Ibid.
[5] "Words Whose Meaning Have Changed Over Time." The English Island, www.theenglishisland.com/lessons/words-whose-meanings-have-changed-over-time/. Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
[6] Ibid.
[7] Curzan, Anne. "What Makes a Word "Real?"." TEDx, Mar. 2014, www.ted.com/talks/anne_curzan_what_makes_a_word_real.
[8] Strong’s greek: 2920. κρίσις (krisis) -- a decision, judgment, accessed November 29, 2023, https://biblehub.com/greek/2920.htm.
[9] Jeanne Bendick, Galen and the Gateway to Medicine. 2nd ed. (Bathgate, ND: Bethlehem Books, 2021), p. 2.
[10] "Crisis (n.)," Etymology, accessed November 30, 2023, https://www.etymonline.com/word/crisis#etymonline_v_361.
[11] "Crisis (N)." Online Etymological Dictionary, 16 May 2018, www.etymonline.com/word/crisis. Accessed 24 Nov. 2023.
[12] "Crisis." Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/crisis. Accessed 25 Nov. 2023.
