There is nothing
more satisfying in life than running – if you are a runner. There’s nothing more satisfying than to the
crack of a bat or the feel of a ball in a glove – if you like baseball. The fulfillment we find in life comes from doing
what we were created to do. It is only
through such feelings of accomplishment the lights of our eyes shine
forth. So how do we get there? First we need to know what were created for,
only then can we know what we are good at.
There is value
in understanding ourselves, discovering our personalities and finding out who
we are as individuals. The Bible clearly
indicates we will be held accountable for our talents, Matthew 25. Not only is it satisfying, it is imperative
for us to be aware of our gifts and use them. We should be aware of our strengths, and know
and study the strengths of those around us.
Hippocrates was the
first person to document personality types, as early as 400 BC. We adhere to his types even today. Thankfully, we have a Biblical recording of personality
types as well. Paul refers to personality
types in Romans chapter 12 as spiritual gifts each possessing distinct
attributes separating them one from the other.
His descriptions give instructions along with each type and describe how
we can work together as a collective body.
Psychology today
studies personality types as well. Most psychologists
go along with Hippocrates and group personalities into four major categories
though they call them something else.
Hippocrates gave the following names: Choleric, Melancholic, Phlegmatic
and Sanguine. Since the meaning of those
words is largely cryptic and unflattering, the types have been renamed into the
following: Controller (Choleric), Analytic (Melancholic), Stabilizer (Phlegmatic)
and Persuader (Sanguine).
Each personality
theory attempts to categorize and describe behavior, showing how men and women interact
with the world around them. The
discussion is focused on the soul, made up of mind, will and emotions. Personality becomes the resultant interaction
of our mind, will and emotions and how we express those interactions to others.
Paul gives seven
gifts in Romans 12, each of them show a different aspect of mind, emotion, and
will.
The gifts of
prophecy and mercy are opposite aspects of our mind like two sides of a coin. How we approach sensory details determine
whether we intuit or experience factual data.
The gifts of
ministry and administration are opposite aspects of our will. The administrator tends to make quick
judgments, while the heart of the servant is only to perceive.
The gifts of teaching and giving are opposites
of the emotion. The teacher tends to
approach tasks in the realm of the mind, while the giver attempts to see needs
through feelings.
All of us are
exhorters in one way or another. How
extroverted or introverted we are determines how much of an exhorter we become.
This framework
conveniently covers the Myers-Briggs personality classifications of
Introvert/Extrovert, Sensory/Intuitive, Feeling/Thinking and Judging/Perceiving. And it is all in the pages of Romans 12. More later. . .
