SCOTUS Rules In Favor of Biblical Counseling

The Supreme Court’s landmark ruling in Chiles v. Colorado affirms that biblical counsel has a rightful place in America’s counseling rooms and that the government cannot silence it.

In an 8-1 decision, the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down a Colorado law that banned certain forms of talk therapy for minors dealing with questions of sexual orientation and gender identity.

At the heart of this ruling is Kaley Chiles, a licensed Christian counselor who refused to allow government overreach silence her faith-informed practice. Colorado’s 2019 law effectively prohibited counselors from offering therapy that helped minors reduce unwanted same-sex attraction or align their sense of identity with their biological sex while freely permitting approaches that affirmed LGBTQ+ identities. In other words, the state allowed one side of the conversation and banned the other.

Chiles, guided by the conviction that she must “obey God rather than men” (Acts 5:29), challenged the law as unconstitutional viewpoint discrimination, and the Supreme Court agreed. Writing for the majority, Justice Neil Gorsuch stated plainly that the law “censors speech based on viewpoint,” a direct violation of the First Amendment.

The case has been sent back to lower courts for review under strict scrutiny, a legal standard so demanding that few government restrictions survive it.

This ruling isn’t merely about legal technicalities as it strikes at a question the Church has faced with growing urgency: will Christians be free to counsel, disciple, and care for hurting people according to the Word of God?

Scripture is clear that we are “fearfully and wonderfully made” (Psalm 139:14), created male and female in the image of God (Genesis 1:27). When young people experience confusion about who they are, often shaped by cultural pressures, familial brokenness, or social media influences they deserve access to counselors who will walk with them in truth and love, pointing them toward wholeness in Christ rather than simply affirming every painful feeling.

The Colorado law presumed to know better than parents, pastors, and trained professionals who are guided by Scripture and genuine care for souls. The Supreme Court has now pushed back against that presumption, reaffirming that government cannot license one worldview while muzzling another.

This decision is especially meaningful for Christian parents. God entrusts children to their mothers and fathers with a clear mandate: “Train up a child in the way he should go” (Proverbs 22:6). The state doesn’t own the hearts and minds of your children. This ruling reinforces your God-given authority to seek counsel for your family that aligns with your faith, your values, and Scripture’s teaching on human identity and flourishing.

For too long, parents who simply wanted faith-consistent care for their struggling children were told that such care was dangerous and off-limits. This ruling says otherwise.

The 8-1 margin of this decision is a striking affirmation that viewpoint-based censorship is constitutionally indefensible, even in emotionally charged cultural territory. It’s a reminder that the First Amendment was designed precisely to protect unpopular speech, including speech rooted in biblical conviction.

But legal victories, as welcome as they are, don’t transform hearts, only the gospel does that. As Paul writes, “Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind” (Romans 12:2). The Church’s greatest work still happens not in courtrooms but in counseling offices, living rooms, Sunday school classes, and youth groups, wherever believers speak truth in love to the next generation.

Thank God for Kaley Chiles’ courage, for justices willing to uphold foundational liberties, and for this renewed space to offer compassionate, biblically grounded care.

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