Everywhere you go, you’ll come across two main personality types: extroverts and introverts. Misunderstanding their traits can cause conflicts, but understanding them brings many benefits. Relationships aren’t shaped by race, tribe, or other identity factors—people are simply introverts or extroverts. For example, the success or failure of marriages isn’t always tied to cultural backgrounds. Instead, individuals may lean toward being more introverted or extroverted, without a clear line separating the two.
Introversion and the Christian Journey
The contrast between the two convicts crucified with Jesus illustrates the significance of following Christ while drawing an analogy to the traits of introverts and extroverts. The thief who tried to conspire with Jesus for release is likened to an introvert, while the other represents an extrovert. Introverts often focus inwardly, prioritising personal interests and close family ties. However, this inward focus can occasionally create tension in marriages, especially during conflicts involving extended family, like disagreements about “your mother” or “your sister.”
Interestingly, introverts may appear content but often struggle to find deep fulfilment. While they can be kind and generous, their actions sometimes carry subtle expectations. For instance, if they give a gift, failing to acknowledge it may mean no further generosity. Sustaining their goodwill requires consistent expression of appreciation by the recipient. Their happiness is often fleeting because it depends on external validation—something not always attainable in a world that seems to favour introversion. Yet, despite this, introverts may still engage in quiet acts of goodness, unseen by others.
Extroversion: Boldness and Its Challenges
Extroverts thrive outside their comfort zones, often aiming to make a positive impact on others’ lives. This quality isn’t limited to Christians—entertainers, activists, and leaders often embody extroversion too. While some careers require extroversion, others are better suited for introverts.
In Zimbabwe, individuals like Blessed Mhlanga and Itai Dzamara showcase the courage and boldness of extroverts, earning admiration from fellow extroverts but sometimes being misunderstood by introverts..
Extroverts find joy in taking risks, even if it comes at a personal cost, as they are driven by their beliefs. Avoiding such challenges can decrease their happiness. This key difference in temperament can make it challenging for introverts and extroverts to co-exist in marital harmony if they fail to understand each other.
Salvation: A Call to Both Personalities
Christianity welcomes both introverts and extroverts to grow in Christ. While extroverts may appear more naturally drawn to outward expressions of faith, as demonstrated by one of the two converts at the cross, genuine conversion goes beyond personality traits. Grace enables both types to follow Jesus in their unique ways.
Though Christianity often emphasises extroverted expressions—preaching, evangelism, and communal worship—it demands more than outward traits. Merely being extroverted doesn’t guarantee the ability to love one’s enemies. Genuine faith springs from God’s love and the Holy Spirit’s guidance (Romans 8:8-9), not just personality.
The Essence of True Christianity
Christianity, while often seen as fitting for extroverts, also resonates with introverts, though introverts are sometimes mistakenly considered more spiritual than extroverts. Modern disillusionment with Christianity partly arises from its historical misuse by those who exploited it, potentially linked to introversion. It calls for more extroversion than what natural extroverts might embody. Without the guidance of the Holy Spirit, even rational individuals may reject Christianity’s present-day expressions.
At its core, Christianity is an individual journey—a direct relationship with God, not contingent on pastors or tradition. To grasp its true nature, one must look to Jesus in the Gospels. His most radical trait? Loving his enemies—even those who crucified him.
Jesus’ Defiance of Social Norms
Jesus’ ministry often challenged the religious and social norms of His time. While the Pharisees avoided “sinners” to maintain their sense of purity, Jesus actively sought them out, sharing meals with tax collectors (Luke 19:1-10), standing up for adulterers (John 8:1-11), and embracing those marginalised by society. His actions highlighted a divine priority: compassion over conformity, redemption over reputation.
Key Example: Mary Magdalene
A woman liberated from “seven demons” (Luke 8:2), Mary became one of Jesus’ most devoted followers, as she witnessed His crucifixion, burial, and resurrection (John 20:1-18), a privilege rarely granted to women in that era. This caused malicious critics to speculate about an intimate relationship, but Jesus’ inclusion of her was a deliberate statement: no one is beyond grace.
- The Scandal of Unconditional Love
- Jesus’ interaction with the “sinful woman” in Luke 7:36-50 epitomises His disregard for societal scorn: Her act: Weeping at His feet, anointing Him with perfume—a gesture of raw repentance and love.
- The Pharisee’s reaction: Shock that Jesus would allow a “sinner” to touch Him. This behaviour contradicted traditional Jewish customs, where individuals deemed sinners were not allowed to associate with others considered righteous.
- Jesus’ rebuke: “Her many sins have been forgiven—as her great love has shown” (v. 47). As Jesus praised her, the woman showed a love so genuine that it disregarded the opinions of others, as it truly came from her heart.
This moment underscores a core truth: Jesus measured people by their current state of their hearts, not their pasts. Jesus knew about her sinful past but chose to focus on the state of her heart in that moment. The true condition of the heart can only be understood through the actions that reveal it at a given time.
- The Outcasts Who Found Hope
- Zacchaeus (Luke 19): Sharing a meal with a corrupt tax collector was seen as taboo, but Jesus overlooked that and brought change through His willingness to visit his home. Gossipers may have tried to tarnish Jesus’ reputation, but they couldn’t succeed because He always upheld His integrity, even when engaging with sinful individuals.
- The Samaritan Woman(John 4): The Samaritan woman, once an outcast, became the first to share the message with her people after a life-changing encounter with Jesus. Their conversation revealed profound spiritual truths, showing that His teachings emphasised the sincerity of one’s heart rather than any bias.
- The Thief on the Cross (Luke 23:39-43): A dying criminal was granted paradise simply by acknowledging Christ. Without any history of good deeds, the convicted thief was redeemed, demonstrating that salvation isn’t earned through actions but through the state of one’s heart at any moment. Jesus’ mission was clear: “It is not the healthy who need a doctor, but the sick” (Matthew 9:12).
- The Challenge to Modern Christianity
Jesus’ example should encourage us, as Christians, to confront uncomfortable questions:
- Do we prioritise the “respectable” over the broken?
- Are we more concerned with image than imitation of Christ?
- Would we welcome a modern-day Mary Magdalene or Zacchaeus into our churches?
Final Reflection:
As Christians, our focus should not be on how others perceive us but on the condition of others’ hearts, regardless of their sinful actions. The most pressing question for all Christian organisations should be: “If our churches lack despicable ‘sinners,’ have we truly preached the same gospel Jesus did?”
Andrew Masuku is the author of Dimensions of a New Civilisation, laying down standards for uplifting Zimbabwe from the current state of economic depression into a model for other nations worldwide. A decaying tree provides an opportunity for a blossoming sprout. Written from a Christian perspective, the book is a product of inspiration, relieving those who have witnessed the strings of unworkable solutions, leading to the current economic and social decay. Most Zimbabweans should find the book to be a long-awaited providential oasis of hope, in a simple conversational tone.
The Print copy is now available at Amazon.com for $13.99
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