Unbound

By: Truth in Love Biblical Counseling Center

Narrated by: Jonathan Michael

Length: 6 hrs and 34 mins

Publisher's Summary

Unbound is a Biblical counseling and discipleship tool to help people discover and live out true freedom in Christ. No matter the struggle, from simple to complex, God's word provides the only dependable guidance and help. 

Twelve Steps not working? Try the Biblical answer that has helped thousands. Struggling to grow in your faith? We hear every day.

Every believer needs to do this program!

©2016 Truth in Love Biblical Counseling Center (P)2019 Warren G Lamb

Helping me grow in Christ

I love the audio version of this book! I listen to it when I work, when I drive, or even while cooking. The truths in this audio book are based on God’s word and are really helpful in combating the every day lies we believe about ourselves or others. I have done this study in a group setting several times and have listened to the audio version countless times. Similarly to the Bible, each time I read or listen, I gain something new and practical to live out my life in a more God-honoring way. I’m not convinced we will ever truly “arrive” this side of heaven, however the truths taught in this book can help us live healthier, more authentic Christian lives and have a greater impact on those around us, should God so choose to use us that way. I would highly recommend this audio book. Overall, I am really blessed by the fruit of this product, and you will be too!

Excellent Tool for Seeing God's Grace in Truth

The Audible version of Unbound narrated by Jonathan Michael is an excellent foundational tool for helping every human to come and know the truth that they are first created in the image of God, the Imago De (Genesis 1:26-27) Many Church cultures in the modern day and in the early church create systems formed in legalism, over focusing on sin before focusing on the truth that FIRST God created man very good and He was pleased (Genesis 2:25). They were not ashamed. The over emphasis in Churchianity culture to hyper focus first on being sinners, negates the grace that Christ came to achieve. The focus and foundation of Unbound is to help believers understand they are first created good and what binding has happened in our personal lives along the way to be in besetting sin patterns that separate us from the goodness of God. This is a thorough tool to help one understand how our personal journey has been formed more by the world rather than the truth of who we are in Christ. Being created good first. Not asceticism, but true transformation, digging into the deeper layers of gunk and manure we put on ourselves when we walk separated from the One who can truly help us be more like Him. (Romans 12:1-2; Romans 5). It is by grace that we are saved not of ourselves is woven through this helpful foundational tool of becoming more and more like Christ in our every day lives. Worth the intentional work. I have seen this book and structure transform many to reflect God's glory and goodness in their lives, accepting fully their Worth and value as God sees them.

Man-centered, not God centered.

Unfortunately, we bought the audio version of this book. Waste of money. We thought it was a biblical (nouthetic) counseling book; as opposed to secular psychology. We only needed to listen to the first chapter and a bit of the second chapter, to see that this book is not formulated on biblical truths, but rather on psychology and modern day pop christian culture.

Firstly, the book starts off with the wrong perspective. It starts off with man's worth, instead of with man's sin. The first chapter is about Worth. One would think that it would be about Christ's worth; but it is all about man's worth. We do clearly understand from the Word, that all human life has value; and about the sanctity of life. But this book goes beyond that, to teach that you are worthy of love, respect etc. Just because of being human. The Word teaches that we are not worthy of love; we are undeserving of it; and that is why God's mercy is so great and why His love is so unmerited and kind towards sinful, lost people.

Another staggeringly unbiblical teaching from chapter one, is that no person on earth, is a failure or can fail. Wow you only need to read the account of man's fall, to see how great a failure man is. The more you read the Bible, the more you just read about failure after failure on man's side. Because man is corrupt and fallen; and God alone is perfect and unfailing.

In true biblical counseling, the first matter to address is not how great or wonderful man is; but how seriously man is depraved and how greatly man is in need of a perfect Substitute; a sinless and blameless Substitute, to be for us, what we cannot be. We are unworthy. He is worthy, We are failures; He is perfect. We are sinful, He is Holy. He is everything we are not. In this book, this is reversed. It starts off, by telling man how much he is worthy.

The second chapter starts off, by talking about Jesus Christ as our base foundation. Yes, that is biblical and certainly, if biblical counseling does not focus on Jesus Christ as the main objective and focus and foundation - it is not biblical. But right after that, the book teaches that we were not made to glorify God (gross misrepresentation of the truth of the Word); but rather that we were made so that God can love us and have us with Him, for ever. This flies in the face of God's attribute of aseity (God's self-existence and self-sufficiency) Acts 17:24-25 clearly states that God does not need anything.

"Unbound" is very definitely not a reformed, biblical counseling book. If you are looking for biblical truth, this is not the book where you will find it. If you are into Nouthetic counseling, skip this one.

The only positive thing that I can say about this book, is that the reader is encouraged to extensively read the Bible (saturate oneself in the Word). It is highly profitable to read the Word and God's Word does have answers to every problem man faces. So we are thankful that they are very strongly encouraging that. But you can do that without the help of this book.

Rather go with books by Jay E. Adams or Wayne Mack.