Christianity and the Enneagram: Lesson 2

Lesson 1 Review

Last lesson I wrote about how the Enneagram is a tool that Christians can use to help uncover our motives so that we can surrender to the Lord more of ourselves. 

We also mentioned that, like any man-made system, the Enneagram is good only so long as we are trusting that the Lord is the one who brings about true wisdom, true insight, and true repentance. The Enneagram is not the power behind that. It's God.

Talking About Sin

This lesson we're going to go over the nine Enneagram motivations and the ways they manifest themselves in us. Think of this as the nine ways we ache for God, and the nine ways we try to fill that ache, a.k.a. sin.

And before you think, "How depressing! I don't wanna talk about sins," let's remember that because of what Christ did on the cross, the discovery of new sins within us is not a threat to our goodness or identity. Christ died so that we can present all our sins before God and still be accepted. 

Think of this process like discovering more and more empty jars in our closet to put out in God's rain to fill with his goodness. It's good to find more and more ways to take God in. The process of being filled by God is unlike any human-conceived ecstasy or man-made pleasure. To be filled with God is glorious! It is what we were made for. So don't think of these aches as black holes; think of them as jars to fill.

Psychological Needs

So the nine numbers are separated into three basic categories that correspond to the three basic psychological needs of humans: the need to be loved, the need to have influence or power, and the need to be secure or safe both now and in the future.

• To feel safe or secure doesn't mean no harm will ever befall us. It’s knowing beyond a shadow of a doubt that we're going to be okay no matter what. This need is most felt by the 5, 6, and 7.

• To be loved means to be thoroughly known inside and out and accepted no matter our successes or failures. It's to know someone delights in us and that we aren't a burden to others. This need is most felt by the 2, 3, and 4.

• The power to influence includes the influence of circumstances around us, control of ourselves, and the ability to withhold control. This need is most felt by the 7, 8, and 9.

Everyone has these three needs, but we usually feel one of these needs more than the others. The Bible tells us that these needs or aches are our hunger for God. God alone provides safety and security both now and in the future. God alone knows, loves, and delights in us. And God alone give us power to act or withhold action while maintaining our inner peace.

God's Wealth and Our Sins

So here are the nine Enneagram ways we long for God and the corresponding sins that result when we aren't filled with God. Once again 2, 3, and 4 all correspond to a type of love. 5, 6, and 7 all correspond to a type of safety. And 8, 9, and 1 correspond to a type of control.

One: the Reformer longs for God's righteousness. Without it, they are angry: perhaps more easily recognized as impatience or frustration because my and others' progress towards perfection is too dang slow!

Two: the Helper longs for God's love or care. Without it, they are proud: judging my own worth above others based on status, age, worldly knowledge, education, or supposedly-good deeds; a byproduct of believing that I am always the one that helps others.

Three: the Achiever or Performer longs for God's glory. Without it, they are deceitful: acting or saying whatever I think my friends or God wishes to hear or see in order to gain esteem, goodwill, or praise.

Four: the Individualist longs for God's creativity or meaning. Without it, they are envious: a discontented attitude that believes what I have isn't good enough and what you have is, and if I have what you have, I'll be happier.

Five: the Observer longs for God's wisdom. Without it, they are greedy: a continuous grasping for more time, energy, information, or money out of fear that what I have is not enough to sustain me right now.

Six: the Loyalist longs for God's faithfulness or provision. Without it, they are fearful: a black cloud of dread that something bad is going to happen, and that when it happens, I won't be able to handle it.

Seven: the Enthusiast longs for God's joy. Without it, they are gluttonous: an insatiable appetite for distractions—be it celebrations, Netflix shows, or educational activities—while having an aversion to all that seems boring, painful, or uncomfortable.

Eight: the Challenger or Leader longs for God's power. Without it, they are lustful: attempting to bring into their sphere of influence people, situations, or things that aren't theirs to control.

Nine: the Peacemaker longs for God's peace. Without it, they are slothful: an unwillingness to disrupt their own inner equilibrium for the sake of affecting change in others, situations, or things.

Conclusion

As bleak as this all sounds, remember that God is in the business of fulfilling our aches and longings. Matthew 5 says, "Blessed are the poor in spirit . . . blessed are those who mourn . . . blessed are the meek . . . Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness because they will be filled."

Christians are the first pupils in God's kingdom school where we are learning to fill that need with God instead of our own man-made sins. It isn't bad to come face to face with our emptiness. In fact, Christianity is the only religion that says we are not only empty human beings, but we also can't fill ourselves. Only God can. Only trust in Christ can. There is hope for the sinner when he acknowledges his emptiness.

Lesson 1 on the Enneagram

More on the Enneagram: Who To Blame, Christian Perspective (Part 1), Spotting the 9 Sins, Digging Up the Roots, Technical Enneagram Terms, Cautions Against Enneagram Literature, Self to Lose; Self to Find (Part 1), Self to Lose; Self to Find (Part 2)