Are the Personalities Biblical?

A member of my ReBUILD coaching group recently asked, “Are The Personalities biblical?” She wondered if there was a biblical basis for common views about personality differences.

As you may know, I have written about The Personalities in many of my books, including A Gift of Mourning Glories. My assistant, Diane Pestes, and I compiled some answers to my friend’s concern.

Biblical Concepts Can Be Implied

Many Christians and denominations have agreed over the ages about certain concepts even though the actual word or term does not appear in the Bible. For example, the word “Trinity” is not in the Bible, but the concept comes through in the Bible’s teaching. My pastor spoke recently on leadership in the church and mentioned that the word “leadership” is not used in Scripture.

As Mark Batterson wrote in Whisper (Multnomah, 2017, p 40), “Just because something isn’t in the Bible doesn’t make it unbiblical. By unbiblical, I mean contrary to the teachings of Scripture. There is another category—abiblcal—and this carries a very different connotation It simply means that there is no precedent in Scripture.

“Does that make it unbiblical? Not necessarily. There is no precedent for pulpits or hymnals or devotionals. But as long as the methodology doesn’t contradict orthodox theology, we’re on good ground. We might even be on holy ground.”

In the same way, the word “personality” does not appear in the Bible, but the concept can be found. The Greek physician Hippocrates is believed to have first identified and used the term “personality” as he observed those he lived and worked with. He suggested there were four basic temperaments or personality types: sanguine, choleric, melancholic, and phlegmatic.

The Bible does not define temperament or personality types, but it does state that people are different and have various gifts. God does not treat everyone exactly the same. The Holy Spirit works in our hearts according to our individual needs. Several passages imply that we have differing personalities. Below are two examples of Scripture that demonstrate people are different. Our gifts and strengths are to be used in serving the body of Christ.  

1 Peter 4:10-11 NIV

Each of you should use whatever gift you have received to serve others, as faithful stewards of God’s grace in its various forms. If anyone speaks, they should do so as one who speaks the very words of God. If anyone serves, they should do so with the strength God provides, so that in all things God may be praised through Jesus Christ.

1 Corinthians 12:8-10 ESV

For to one is given through the Spirit the utterance of wisdom, and to another the utterance of knowledge according to the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by the one Spirit, to another the working of miracles, to another prophecy, to another the ability to distinguish between spirits, to another various kinds of tongues, to another the interpretation of tongues.

Bible Characters Exhibit Different Personalities

In both the Old and New Testaments, we can find examples of people behaving according to a certain personality type.

For example like a Popular Sanguine (Yellow), Peter was brash and impulsive and spoke without thinking. “Christ accepted him with his strengths and weaknesses. When Jesus chose his followers, he wasn’t looking for models; he was looking for real people. He chose people who could be changed by his love, and then he sent them out to communicate that his acceptance was available to anyone—even to those who often fail.”¹

In turn, Moses like a Perfect Melancholy (Blue), wanted things right. “Moses seemed drawn to what needed to be righted. Throughout his life, he was at his finest and his worst responding to the conflicts around him. Even the burning bush experience was an illustration of his character. Having spotted the fire and having seen that the bush did not burn, he had to investigate. Whether jumping into a fight to defend a Hebrew slave or trying to referee a struggle between two kinsmen, when Moses saw conflict, he reacted. Notice that Moses chose to suffer and had a need to correct the conflicts and investigate.” ³

When I think of a Powerful Choleric (Red), I always first think of the Apostle Paul who was focused on his goal and worked tirelessly.  In 1 Corinthians 15:10 we read, “But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.”

And finally, Abigail, the wife of Nabal in the Old Testament, had the easy going, laid back personality of a Peaceful Phlegmatic (Green) who could smooth the ruffled feathers of the people around her.  With the gift “of the Peaceful Phlegmatic, [she was] able to see the big picture in the midst of troublesome situations. In 1 Samuel 25. … Abigail quickly sized up the situation and took command.”⁵ 

“Christ accepted him [Peter] with his strengths and weaknesses,” Southard and Littauer say. “When Jesus chose his followers, he wasn’t looking for models; he was looking for real people. He chose people who could be changed by his love, and then he sent them out to communicate that his acceptance was available to anyone—even to those who often fail” (68).

When you embrace your God-shaped personality, you begin to experience what a powerful and positive difference you can make in the lives of others. 

Final Thoughts

Please understand that no one personality is better than another. Each personality has strengths. When these natural strengths are left unrefined, they become weaknesses. Maybe you’re great at helping people. Maybe you like to plan and organize. Maybe you’re good at soothing ruffled feathers. Own your strengths and the giftings of your personality and use them. Acknowledge your weaknesses and work to minimize them.

^NOTES:

1 Betty Southard & Marita Littauer, Come as You Are, (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1999), 68
2 Betty Southard & Marita Littauer, Come as You Are, (Minneapolis: Bethany House Publishers, 1999), 39

3 Ibid., 40

4 Ibid., 112

5 Ibid., 168