{"id":31146,"date":"2022-09-10T15:18:42","date_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:18:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-enneagram-a-tool-the-church-must-only-use-wisely\/"},"modified":"2022-09-10T15:18:42","modified_gmt":"2022-09-10T20:18:42","slug":"the-enneagram-a-tool-the-church-must-only-use-wisely","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/the-enneagram-a-tool-the-church-must-only-use-wisely\/","title":{"rendered":"The Enneagram: A Tool the Church Must Only Use Wisely"},"content":{"rendered":"
Aaron Burden photo – Unsplash <\/p>\n

By Meredith Boggs<\/em><\/p>\n

The Enneagram has saturated evangelical circles with a powerful resurgence in the past few years.<\/p>\n

With its gaining popularity, new books and podcasts on the topic are popping up seemingly everywhere. And it has created quite the buzz in Christian subculture.<\/p>\n

There are powerful lessons to be gleaned from the Enneagram in regard to our type and patterns, and ways to understand ourselves as well as those in our care. But are we placing too much stake in this tool?<\/p>\n

We have to be careful to not confuse personal growth with spiritual growth. While they aren\u2019t mutually exclusive and can go hand-in-hand for believers, they aren\u2019t the same.<\/p>\n

Personal growth places an emphasis on recognition and continual development to reach one’s highest potential. Spiritual growth is ultimately about our sanctification and becoming more Christ-like.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

While there\u2019s nothing wrong or sinful with seeking personal growth, as believers we\u2019re stopping woefully short if we aren\u2019t wholeheartedly pursuing our own spiritual growth or the spiritual growth of others.<\/p>\n

Christians are called to \u201cgrow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ\u201d (2 Peter 3:18)\u2014not to grow into the healthiest version of our Enneagram type.<\/p>\n

While growing in grace and knowledge may pave the pathway for us to grow into a healthier version of our Enneagram type, that isn\u2019t the primary objective.<\/p>\n

Placing precedence on personal growth through the Enneagram instead of wholeheartedly seeking spiritual growth can be derailing.<\/p>\n

While there are spiritual applications to be made, the Enneagram isn\u2019t the gospel.<\/p>\n

And as Christian leaders, we should be intentional in pointing people to the Bible, the inherent Word of God\u2014not an Enneagram book or great new podcast episode on the subject.<\/p>\n

In the same way, daily devotionals can be helpful in our spiritual journey by providing lessons and takeaways for reflection but cannot be our primary source of spiritual food, which is Scripture.<\/p>\n

The Enneagram can, at best, be a mere supplement to our spiritual growth.<\/p>\n

As church and ministry leaders, we desire to engage people\u2014who they are and where they are. But we also carry a responsibility to point them toward the ultimate truth of the gospel.<\/p>\n

\n
\n
\n
See also  What Churches Must Do to Reach Gen Z<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

As you find yourself in conversations with congregation members or fellow brothers and sisters who bring up the Enneagram as they seek spiritual growth, engage them on the topic.<\/p>\n

But then be quick to bring them back to what the Bible says about their latest eye-opening moments of understanding or current struggle they\u2019re facing.<\/p>\n

Encourage people in what they\u2019re learning and how they’re growing personally. But pull them toward foundational truths found in the Bible and equip them with ways to grow spiritually.<\/p>\n

The Enneagram can be a wonderful tool and a catalyst to profound personal and spiritual growth, but we must not substitute it where the ancient text of the Bible rightfully belongs in our lives.<\/p>\n

As ministry leaders we are held to a higher standard as James warns in 3:1: \u201cNot many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness.\u201d<\/p>\n

It\u2019s our responsibility to root ourselves in the practice of soundly teaching what the Bible says instead of offering watered down Christianity to those who have entrusted themselves to our leadership.<\/p>\n

We incur on ourselves a stricter judgement and carry a great responsibility to teach the truth of the gospel.<\/p>\n

Let us embrace those we lead where they are on their unique spiritual journey, but may we not substitute anything\u2014no idea, book, podcast, or personality typing system like the Enneagram\u2014for the living and breathing Word of God.<\/p>\n

MEREDITH BOGGS<\/strong> is the writer & speaker of  <\/em>The Other Half blog & podcast. She is a critical care nurse and sexual assault forensic nurse examiner, lives in Nashville, Tennessee, with her husband, Justin, and is expecting their first baby in 2021.<\/em><\/p>\n

\n
Dig Deeper at Lifeway.com<\/div>\n
\n
<\/div>\n
\n

Sacred Pathways: Nine Ways to Connect with God<\/h2>\n

Gary Thomas<\/p>\n

FIND OUT MORE <\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/div>\n

\n

Related posts:<\/h3>\n
What Do Pastors Believe About the End Times? What Do Pastors Believe About the Book of Revelation? 3 Ways to Reach Non-Religious People in Your Community <\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Aaron Burden photo – Unsplash By Meredith Boggs The Enneagram has saturated evangelical circles with a powerful resurgence in the past few years. With its gaining popularity, new books and podcasts on the topic are popping up seemingly everywhere. And it has created quite the buzz in Christian subculture. There are powerful lessons to be … Continue reading “The Enneagram: A Tool the Church Must Only Use Wisely”<\/span><\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-31146","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-sermons"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31146","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=31146"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/31146\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=31146"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=31146"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.biblia.work\/sermons\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=31146"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}