Let me start off by saying that personality tests are one of my favorite pastimes (and forms of procrastination). I’m always eager to learn which character from the Big Bang Theory encapsulates my personality (sigh…. Leonard’s mom with a dash of Bernadette). However, the obsession with personality tests have resulted in some unfortunate outcomes. While self-awareness can be a powerful practice, this is not always the underlying goal we hold. Ultimately, we need a guide in our efforts for self-improvement and I hold to the belief that the Fruits of the Spirit may be an appropriate place to look.
The Trouble with Personality
The problem is not with personality tests, but in the way that we’ve abused them. We wield our personality types as a weapon and as an ‘out’. “I can’t help it”…. “this is just who I am”…. “people with my personality style just do this”… Yes, we all have unique eccentricities that make us unique; but an awareness of character flaws should never be intended to provide us safety in being a negative, unhealthy or damaging person. An awareness of my potential areas of weakness or struggle empowers me to check myself for triggers, potential growth or context for my life experiences.
“There is only one corner of the universe you can be certain of improving, and that’s your own self.”
Aldous Huxley
The Pursuit of Greater
Admitting a weakness is not the potential harm– hindering a potential growth is a different matter. Resigning to our character flaws being the only version of ourselves seems a bleak outcome. It’s limiting ourselves to the worst version of ourselves (or at least less than ideal version). We are capable of change and that includes personality. We already know that our personalities fluctuate over time (sorry– this does mean that those personality types you wear like a name badge might actually change a little throughout your lifetime); and while these changes will occur organically, we can also do our part to actively work towards positive changes.
But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. And the ones of Christ Jesus crucified the flesh, with its passions and desires. If we are living by the Spirit, let us also be walking-in-line with the Spirit.
Galatians 5:22-23
Fruits of the Spirit
The book of Galatians provides a list of attributes that are possessed by those who will not inherit the Kingdom of Heaven and then follows that list with the Fruits of the Spirit; the implication is that those who possess the Fruits of the Spirit will inherit the Kingdom of Heaven. This list reads very differently than the Gifts of the Spirit, which insinuates that certain people are endowed with certain gifts. This can feel disheartening in the same way that being told you have some control over influencing your personality can feel disheartening. If I am capable of change, that semblance of control also means that I have a certain responsibility over that change. If I can be better, then I should be working towards being better.
(if you haven’t read about the Fruits of the Spirit in context within the full chapter, I would encourage you to look at The Passion Translation for Galatians 5)
The Role of the Fruits of the Spirit
Rather than aimlessly scouring for yet another self-improvement book (once again, an addiction of mine, so no shame), the Fruits of the Spirit reads as a guide on the attributes we should strive towards. Of course, this seems an impossible feat, as those are some weighty characteristics. But at the end, it provides us directions on how we can work towards these traits:
- Be someone of Christ Jesus, defined as someone who crucifies the flesh
- Walk in-line with the Spirit, defined as the next step after living by the Spirit
While the goal of improving our personality and growing the Fruits of the Spirit are weighty, we must pursue both. But these are both the result of being of Christ Jesus and living by the Spirit. If we are truly living for God, our personality should be an ever-changing aspect.
