I thoroughly enjoy taking personality tests. More adequately understanding myself and others is something I deem quite beneficial, especially since I interact with a lot of different types of people on a regular basis. It seems I’m not the only one, either. In any given week, something floats around Facebook that is either a personality test or an article outlining what it means to be extroverted-ly introverted or introverted-ly extroverted. People seem to thrive on labeling themselves, understanding themselves, and being understood by those different than they are.

With our society placing such an emphasis on personalities, it’s not surprising that the church (Christians) has gotten caught up in all of the hullabaloo. And it’s not necessarily a problem. Only sometimes, it is.

When we use our personality as a crutch —  justifying dismissive or lazy attitudes — we are completely contradicting Scriptures. Yes, some personalities are more prone to being by themselves. And some personalities don’t interact quite as well with other personalities. But if we are using personalities as a license for behaving however we want, we’re sinning.

The Scriptures speak repeatedly about transformation. While we were each born with unique personalities, those traits are now captive to Christ. We have submitted to His demands,  and are now busying ourselves with taking on “the mind of Christ.” In so doing, we are training our personalities to adhere to the gospel message. We are putting away our natural tendencies (toward quick tempers, dismissive tones, arrogance and thoughtless speaking) and putting on characteristics that are becoming of Christians. Will it be easier for some to hold their tongue? Absolutely. Will it be easier for others to be hospitable? Yes. But because my personality makes it more difficult, does that excuse me from doing what the Bible clearly tells me to do? To be unified and forbearing with my brethren? To be meek? To speak gently? Absolutely not.

When we use our personalities as a crutch, we are hurting the church. We are hurting her head – Jesus. When we say “well, my personality doesn’t really respond well to that person, so I’m going to just avoid them” — are we acting like Jesus? When we say, “well, people just know my personality will say whatever comes into my head” — are we using our tongues like Jesus? The examples could go on and on, but the point is this. If we blame sinfulness on a personality quirk, we are wrong. We are justifying what we should have put to death. We are holding on to the old man that we are commanded to keep dead!

Personalities are God-given, though, and that is where the second half of the equation comes in to play. No, we shouldn’t all transform our personalities into one bland blob, making us all the same. Paul highlighted differences within the body of Christ as a beautiful thing (1 Cor. 12). But it wasn’t because the members were using their personalities as an excuse to sin. Instead, it was that they were reigning in their personalities (or handing over the reigns, really) to be the most useful for the Lord.

So how can we use our personalities as a catalyst for good works, instead of using them as a crutch to hold onto sinfulness? It seems self-awareness would be great places to start. First, it will take understanding what your personality is like. What kinds of things are you prone to? If you are prone to getting easily upset with others, don’t use that as an excuse to not be involved in things you don’t want to do. Instead, realize you need to work diligently on cultivating a more patient heart. But if you are prone to being a go-getter, use that for the glory of God! Encourage those around you. Do things without having to be asked, or without having to be recognized. If you are more of a loner, don’t use that to cut yourself off from the kingdom. Instead, realize it may take extra effort to be involved, so you may need to ask someone to keep you accountable. But it may also mean that you thrive on writing notes, sending encouraging Facebook messages, or running a take-them-a-meal website from the comfort of your own home.

Whatever your personality may be, a requirement of being a Christian is to hand that over to the Lord. After all, God gave you your personality. Use it to glorify Him. And He will not be glorified if we use our personalities to allow sin to set up shop in our hearts, or we allow our personalities to make us mediocre in our Christian walk. Instead, we must give Him control of our personalities, allowing Him to do the most good with us in whatever capacity that means.

Yes, it’s good to know yourself. We need to be able to identify our strengths so we can use them for the Lord, but also identify our weaknesses so we can keep ourselves from letting Satan use them. Our unique personalities are God-given and useful to Him. We just need to be sure we are’t using such a beautiful gift as a crutch to hang on to sinful attitudes and convenient apathy.