The question: “What are your views on the use of the four temperament studies e.g. melancholoy, sanguine and their use on determining why a person behaves a certain way and how does this line up with God’s word and the use of theophostic prayer ministry.”
Answer:
It is a mistake to assume that the Bible is designed to give expert guidance on every subject. For example, no-one would go to the Bible to look for answers about the chemical periodic table. Unless someone has specialist knowledge of counseling and psychology (I certainly do not), then they are not qualified to comment on the effectiveness of specific counseling paradigms. However the principles of Theophostic counselling include beliefs in demonic possession and Satanic influence, and these are Bible subjects. Fortunately there is no such thing as a supernatural person who is responsible for evil. For example: http://www.christadelphian.org.uk/wcb/devil.html
References in the New Testament to demons do not mean that there are malevolent spirits that are the cause of illness. For example: http://www.btdf.org/forums/index.php?/topic/26-demons/
However the question raises the interesting point that God calls a whole range of people. God is not just restricted to calling one personality type.
1Co 12:14-27 For the body does not consist of one member but of many. (15) If the foot should say, “Because I am not a hand, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. (16) And if the ear should say, “Because I am not an eye, I do not belong to the body,” that would not make it any less a part of the body. (17) If the whole body were an eye, where would be the sense of hearing? If the whole body were an ear, where would be the sense of smell? (18) But as it is, God arranged the members in the body, each one of them, as he chose. (19) If all were a single member, where would the body be? (20) As it is, there are many parts, yet one body. (21) The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” (22) On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, (23) and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, (24) which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, (25) that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. (26) If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. (27) Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.
There are examples in the Bible of opposite personality types who were called by God, and of similar personality types of which there are good and bad cases in the Bible. For example the temperaments of the apostles Peter and John were very different; similarly Paul and Barnabas were very different. David, a man after God’s own heart, may have been of a similar personality type to Esau, who was a very ungodly man. Both were passionate and popular leaders of men. It is not our personality type that is important. It is important what we do with it and how we relate to God.
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