Each week we have been applying the Enneagram types to characters in the Bible and what we can learn from each of them about us and our relationships. So far we have learned about FIVE: The Investigator or Observer with the Magi, Thomas, and Nicodemus. EIGHT: The Challenger or Leader with John the Baptist and Samson. ONE: The Perfectionist with the Apostle Paul. TWO: The Helper with Mary and Martha. And last week it was THREE: The Achiever with Jacob.
Now we are coming to the last three weeks. And in week 6 we meet the loyalty of SIX. Enneagram Type SIXes are commonly known as “The Loyalist.” Sixes are loyal, practical and witty. Sixes are worst-case scenario specialists. They’re always looking for some authority or leader to make them feel secure.
The best character study of a SIX in the Bible is one of Jesus’s disciples. This disciple was one of Jesus’ most loyal companions and defender. He was faithful but sometimes fearful. Fiercely loyal to his master, Jesus, he was prepared to die with him. Who is this loyalist? Find out this week and that maybe you are a SIX too.
DYK?
According to some Enneagram teachers, there are probably more SIXes than any other Type. The world needs SIXes, also called Loyalists,to ensure that the community is preserved and that we’re prepared when disaster strikes. Just like the name, you’re loyal and committed. Reliable, hardworking, responsible, and trustworthy. Excellent troubleshooters, they foresee problems & foster cooperation. They are internally stable and self-reliant, courageously championing themselves and others.
But Ruth replied, “Don’t urge me to abandon you, to turn back from following after you. Wherever you go, I will go; and wherever you stay, I will stay. Your people will be my people, and your God will be my God. Wherever you die, I will die, and there I will be buried. May the LORD do this to me and more so if even death separates me from you.”
Ruth 1:16-17
PJ Point
And like Ruth, you care deeply about the people and places you’re called to. In an unhealthy state, you can let fear dictate your choices,but like Ruth, you can learn to take risks that lead to great joy and God-centered glory.
DYK?
Trust is a big issue for SIXes. If you have earned their trust – as a leader, friend, or spouse – then they will be with you through thick and thin.They won’t jump ship.
But SIXes can also be some of the more skeptical people in your life. Often SIXes find themselves playing “Devil’s Advocate” – asking probing or even accusatory questions. They aren’t purposefully trying to be obnoxious or derail the whole system. They just want to know that those in charge have everything under control and have planned for anything that can and will go wrong.
DYK?
Other SIXes end up distrusting nearly all authority figures in order to protect themselves from that same disappointment. This is the difference between “Phobic” and “Counterphobic” SIXes. All SIXes must deal with their fear. Phobic SIXes tend to have more of a “flight” response, whereas Counterphobic SIXes have a more aggressive “fight” response.
DYK?
SIXes are worst-case-scenario thinkers. They live in the world of “mights”, “coulds”, and hypotheticals. If there ever is a real disaster or problem, you want a SIX around because they’ve already gone through the scenario multiple times in their head. SIXes are more likely to actually count the number of rows to the exit on the airplane and pay attention to the safety briefing before takeoff “just in case.”
DYK?
Every number on the Enneagram lives in some sort of inner tension. For SIXes, that tension comes in their relation to authority. As children Sixes picked up on the fact that the adults in charge can’t always be trusted. So, as adults, they are inherently skeptical of those in power. At the same time, though, their greatest need is a sense of safety and security. Some SIXes end up trusting too strongly in human authority figures and are inevitably let down at some point.
DYK?
Consider the wings of a SIX. Six with 7 wing is the Buddy. They are more extroverted, materialistic, sociable, playful, funny, energetic, active and impulsive.But the Six with 5 Wing is the Defender. They are more introverted, intellectual, cautious, focused, paranoid, anxious and standoffish.
PJ Point
The best character study of a SIX and I think with a 5 Wing in the Bible is one of Jesus’s disciples. This disciple was one of Jesus’ most loyal companions and defender. He was faithful but sometimes fearful. Fiercely loyal to his master, Jesus, he was prepared to die with him. Who is this loyalist?
DYK?
He began life as Simon but would later be called Peter or Cephas which means the rock. But Peter definitely had his share of screw-ups and times of foot in the mouth disease recorded for us to see 2,000 years later!
“Simon, Simon, look! Satan has asserted the right to sift you all like wheat. However, I have prayed for you that your faith won’t fail. When you have returned, strengthen your brothers and sisters.” Peter responded, “Lord, I’m ready to go with you, both to prison and to death!” Jesus replied, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster won’t crow today before you have denied three times that you know me.”
Luke 22:31-34
PJ Point
Peter was the foremost among the disciples, not because he was the most loving or most knowledgeable, but because he was the most committed to Jesus and the group. Peter latched onto Jesus as an authority figure like none other.
DYK?
The Loyalist is part of the Head triad along with 5 and 7’s. But a SIX when under stress will start to show the average to unhealthy characteristics of a THREE. In the heart one. They become competitive and arrogant. They avoid feeling anxiety by being busy. They are reluctant to try anything if failure is a possibility. They react out of their heart like when the mob comes to arrest Jesus, Peter even slices off someone’s ear.
Then Simon Peter, who had a sword, drew it and struck the high priest’s servant, cutting off his right ear. (The servant’s name was Malchus.) Jesus told Peter, “Put your sword away! Am I not to drink the cup the Father has given me?”
John 18:10-11
PJ Point
And, in typical Six fashion, Peter also flees when things get tough. He famously denies association with Jesus, three times over.
But he is also the one primarily entrusted with carrying on Jesus’ mission after the resurrection and ascension.
When they lit a fire in the middle of the courtyard and sat down together, Peter sat among them. Then a servant woman saw him sitting in the firelight. She stared at him and said, “This man was with him too.” But Peter denied it, saying, “Woman, I don’t know him!” A little while later, someone else saw him and said, “You are one of them too.”But Peter said, “Man, I’m not!” An hour or so later, someone else insisted, “This man must have been with him, because he is a Galilean too.” Peter responded, “Man, I don’t know what you are talking about!” At that very moment, while he was still speaking, a rooster crowed. The Lord turned and looked straight at Peter, and Peter remembered the Lord’s words: “Before a rooster crows today, you will deny me three times.” And Peter went out and cried uncontrollably.
Luke 22:55-62
DYK?
Who was the first to confess true belief in who Jesus was? Peter.Who played “Devil’s Advocate” when Jesus told the disciples he was going to be killed? Peter.Who jumped out of the relative safety of the boat during the storm into the certain terror of the raging sea in order to be near Jesus? Peter.Who was the closest friend and confidant of Jesus? Peter.Who was the leader of the disciples? Peter.Who was willing to fight and die for Jesus? Peter.When push came to shove, who gave into fear time and time again? Peter.Who did Jesus want the women to specifically tell about his resurrection? Peter.Who was able to overcome his fear and deliver one of the most powerful sermons in recorded history? Peter.
PJ Point
Peter attached himself to Jesus, but he also had his own fears and anxieties to overcome. Peter had a hard time coming to grips with the fact that Jesus was going to leave them. When Jesus said “let not your hearts be troubled – you believe in God, believe also in me,” I’m sure he was speaking directly to Peter.
DYK?
Because like all of us SIXes have a core sin or fear. And a SIX at the core fear is well fear. The fear of being without support or guidance.They have fear of fear itself, being in danger, uncertainty, chaos, not having support, security and guidance. They also fear being blamed, in trouble, alone, targeted, helpless, unsafe and physically abandoned.
PJ Point
The kind of place that Peter felt like he was after the death of Jesus. And that conversation that Jesus and Peter had on the beach after his resurrection always gets to me. Because it hits at the core fear of Peter and sixes. And maybe all of us.Three times Jesus asked Peter, “Do you Love Me?” And three times Peter replied, “Yes Lord I do” Jesus’ response to Peter’s affirmation of love is an instruction to take care of the others. Then feed my sheep.
PJ Point
Jesus is redirecting Peter away from a single point of loyalty to a more group-oriented commitment. Jesus is encouraging Peter to step up and commit not just to Jesus but to the group. Jesus knew that Peter, the Loyalist, was going to be the glue that held the group together. Peter was stronger than he knew. Jesus saw that from the beginning. That’s why he changed his name from Simon to Peter in the first place.
I tell you that you are Peter. And I’ll build my church on this rock. The gates of the underworld won’t be able to stand against it.
Matthew 16:18
PJ Point
Peter was going to be that solid bedrock, that foundational member of the group. It took some time for Peter to see in himself what Jesus had seen all along. When moving the direction of growth SIX will start to show the healthier side of a 9. They become more trusting in themselves and more open to life and others. They empathize with others and see their viewpoints. They learn to relax, be present in themoment and not be so hyper-vigilant.
PJ Point
SIXes, you must know that you are stronger than you think. You are more capable than you think. SIXes, hear again the words of the Master, “Do not let your hearts be troubled. You believe in God – believe also in me.”
Worrying doesn’t take away tomorrow’s troubles it takes away today’s peace.
PJ Point
Type SIXes and all of us need to remember you and we have the ultimate security of God’s protection and love. Bible Verse: Deuteronomy 31:6 “Be strong and courageous. Do not be afraid or terrified because of them, for the Lord your God goes with you; he will never leave you nor forsake you.”
PJ Point
God’s invitation to you today and all of us. I invite you to be free from the fear of uncertainty and the false notion that you must be watchful and diligent to assure your protection from harm. You are safe with Me. I am a faithful God who will always be with you.
PJ Final Point
SIXes we value your leadership, your loyalty, your commitment, and even your questions. You are the bedrock of our churches and families and organizations. Without you, we would all tend to simply drift apart from each other. You keep us grounded and secure. You help provide us with the security you so desire for yourselves.
Are you a SIX? If not what is your number?
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