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| Teaching Christians how to live a "vivid" Christian life. | |
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Cheat Sheet #26
for conversations with Christians
Introduction
This is a printer-friendly version of section #26 in my article called Cheat Sheet. Don't just speed-read or skim through this because then you won't notice God prompting you. If you see something that causes you to feel a slight jolt or nudge inside, or if you catch yourself slightly squirming (physically or mentally), this is God's way of saying that He wants you to learn something or be obedient in that area. Easton's Bible Dictionary 
and the
Holman Bible Dictionary
define sin as disobedience to God's commands, laws, or wishes. It's a rebellion against God caused by self-centered thoughts, desires, or motives, leading to outward acts that are the manifestations of sin. All of the individual sins listed in the Bible (e.g., murder, adultery, lying, stealing) are different manifestations of our disobedience to God, whether we do them intentionally or not.
If the title of section #26 begins with the word "Obedience" then it describes something that God commands all Christians to obey. Our beliefs and actions need to properly line up with the New Testament. Otherwise, we'll be disciplined (perhaps severely) both in this life and in heaven. God is not playing games, so we need to take the New Testament seriously and learn what He expects of us, and then make sure we're obeying Him in all things (even when we don't want to). The painful consequences for our wrong beliefs or lack of obedience are no one's fault but our own. If everything at my website (VividChristianity.com), including this article, says what God wants it to say then He will confirm that for you by doing a miracle. See my home page for the details. *26 Is the Holy Spirit Female or God the Mother?
As you read this section, keep in mind that the New Testament is not merely a history book, it's meant to change us to become more and more like Jesus. When we read any passages in the New Testament, our goal should be to discern what God wants us to believe and do so that we can be obedient to Him. Sometimes people claim that the Holy Spirit is feminine or female or God the Mother. We're told that man and woman were created in the image of God, so it would seem to make sense that God is somehow both male and female: "So God created mankind in his own image, in the image of God he created them; male and female he created them." (Genesis 1:27)However, the arguments for the idea that the Holy Spirit is female don't stand up to scrutiny. God is a Spirit, so He didn't have a physical body or any physical characteristics when He created man and woman in His own image. Therefore, being created in His image doesn't refer to our physical bodies. Since man and woman together are in His image, it's best to say that somehow God has both masculine and feminine qualities or characteristics, without trying to assign any of the Trinity as being God the Mother because the Bible never says such a thing. One argument that people sometimes make is that the word "Spirit" is a feminine noun in Hebrew, which implies that the Holy Spirit is feminine or female. However, this is a wrong conclusion because (for example) only men have foreskins, yet the Hebrew word for foreskin is a feminine noun (Old Testament Hebrew Lexical Dictionary ).
The fact that a word is a feminine noun does not mean that it's only associated with females. Similarly, only women have wombs, yet a Hebrew word for womb is a
masculine
noun
(Old Testament Hebrew Lexical Dictionary ).
The fact that a word is a masculine noun does not mean that it's only associated with males.
Another argument is that the Holy Spirit seems to be associated with wisdom in both the Old and New Testaments: "Now Joshua son of Nun was filled with the spirit of wisdom because Moses had laid his hands on him. So the Israelites listened to him and did what the LORD had commanded Moses." (Deuteronomy 34:9)The argument that some people make is that wisdom is personified as a woman in Proverbs, as in this example: "Out in the open wisdom calls aloud, she raises her voice in the public square; on top of the wall she cries out, at the city gate she makes her speech: "How long will you who are simple love your simple ways? How long will mockers delight in mockery and fools hate knowledge?"" (Proverbs 1:20-22)However, this personification does not imply that the Holy Spirit is feminine or female or God the Mother. For example, notice what we're told about wisdom later in Proverbs (in several different translations): "I, wisdom [hokmah], dwell together with prudence; I possess knowledge and discretion...The LORD brought me forth [qanah] as the first of his works, before his deeds of old; I was formed [nasak] long ages ago, at the very beginning, when the world came to be. When there were no watery depths, I was given birth [hiyl], when there were no springs overflowing with water; before the mountains were settled in place, before the hills, I was given birth [hiyl], before he made the world or its fields or any of the dust of the earth." (Proverbs 8:12-26 NIV)We can see that people who made various versions of the Bible used different translations from the original Hebrew into English, based on their assumptions about what the above passage says. Here are some definitions of the above Hebrew words plus quotes from some Bible commentaries: Every Bible commentary that I've seen views wisdom in Proverbs 8:12-26 (above) as either a picture of Jesus or a personification of the attribute of wisdom, and many of those Bible scholars describe wisdom as having been created or born (based on passages such as Proverbs 8:12-26, above). Numerous other descriptions of this passage can be seen in these Bible commentaries on Proverbs 8:22
and
these Bible commentaries on Proverbs 8:24 ,
for example. Not a single one of these Bible scholars sees wisdom as being the Holy Spirit, so there's a lack of scholarly evidence and there's not a shred of scriptural evidence that the Holy Spirit is female based on the personification of wisdom as a woman.
In addition, we're told that Jesus (who is always described as a male throughout the Bible) is the wisdom of God: "Jews demand signs and Greeks look for wisdom, but we preach Christ crucified: a stumbling block to Jews and foolishness to Gentiles, but to those whom God has called, both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God." (1 Corinthians 1:22-24)This Bible commentary quote concerning Proverbs 1:20 (above) further explains that Jesus is the wisdom of God: "Here the person instructing throughout this whole book is represented under the name of "Wisdom"; by which we are to understand not the attribute of divine wisdom displayed in the works of creation; nor the light of nature in man; nor the law of Moses given to the Israelites; nor the revelation of the divine will in general, as it is delivered out in the sacred Scriptures; nor the Gospel, and the ministry of it, in particular; but our Lord Jesus Christ; for the things spoken of Wisdom, and ascribed to it in this book, especially in the eighth and ninth chapters, show that a divine Person is intended, and most properly belong to Christ; who may be called "Wisdoms" (b), in the plural number, as in the Hebrew text, because of the consummate and perfect wisdom that is in him; as he is a divine Person, he is "the Logos", the Word and Wisdom of God; as Mediator, "all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge are hid" in him, Col 2:3; and, as man, "the Spirit of Wisdom" rests upon him without measure, Isa 11:2. This, with what follows to the end of the chapter, is a prophecy of the ministry of Christ in the days of his flesh, and of the success of it; and of the calamities that should come upon the Jews for the rejection of him" (John Gill's Exposition of the Bible, Proverbs 1:20, emphasis added)Again, there's a lack of scholarly evidence and there's not a shred of scriptural evidence that the Holy Spirit is female based on the personification of wisdom as a woman. Another argument that people sometimes make is that the Holy Spirit is God the Mother based on the word "mother" in certain Old Testament passages. Throughout the Old Testament, Israel is occasionally referred to as God's adulterous wife and a prostitute, and the Israelites are referred to as God's children (with Israel as their mother), as in these examples: "When the LORD began to speak through Hosea, the LORD said to him, "Go, marry a promiscuous woman and have children with her, for like an adulterous wife this land is guilty of unfaithfulness to the LORD."" (Hosea 1:2)The above passages are examples of the many places where Israel is referred to as God's adulterous wife and a prostitute, and the Israelites are referred to as God's children (with Israel or Jerusalem as their mother). In Hosea 2:1-7 (above), Israel is twice referred to as the "mother" of the Israelites, and two chapters later in Hosea 4:5 we see another reference to their "mother." Notice what it says in several different translations: "You stumble day and night, and the prophets stumble with you. So I will destroy your mother" (Hosea 4:5 NIV)In Hosea 4:5 (above), God said that He would destroy or cut off their mother, which echoes what He said earlier in Hosea 2:1-7 (above). The Hebrew word for "destroy" or "cut off" in the above passage means: "to cease, to cause to cease, to be silent, to destroy. It is used in reference to beasts that die (Psa 49:12 [13]); a prophet who feels undone when he sees the Lord (Isa 6:5); Zion's destruction (Jer 6:2); eyes that weep without ceasing (Lam 3:49); the destruction of people who have no knowledge (Hos 4:6); the destruction of merchants (Zep 1:11); the destruction of the nation of Edom (Oba 1:5)." (The Complete Word Study Dictionary of the Old and New Testaments, Dr. Spiros Zodhiates, damah)In Hosea 4:5 (above), God was saying that He will destroy Israel for their unfaithfulness, and in Hosea 6:1-5 (above) we see a prophecy of the Israelites after God cuts them in pieces along with His prophets. So in the context of the book of Hosea, and in the greater context of the Old Testament, the "mother" in Hosea 4:5 (above) is the full community of the Israelites, whether in Israel, Jerusalem, or Samaria. There's not a shred of scriptural evidence that Hosea 4:5 (above) refers to the Holy Spirit as God the Mother, or God cutting off the prophets from the Holy Spirit, and there's no scholarly evidence because not a single one of these Bible commentaries on Hosea 4:5
sees the "mother" in that verse as being the Holy Spirit.
In the New Testament, the apostle Paul referred to the heavenly Jerusalem as our "mother": "For it is written that Abraham had two sons, one by the slave woman and the other by the free woman. His son by the slave woman was born according to the flesh, but his son by the free woman was born as the result of a divine promise. These things are being taken figuratively: The women represent two covenants. One covenant is from Mount Sinai and bears children who are to be slaves: This is Hagar. Now Hagar stands for Mount Sinai in Arabia and corresponds to the present city of Jerusalem, because she is in slavery with her children. But the Jerusalem that is above is free, and she is our mother. For it is written: "Be glad, barren woman, you who never bore a child; shout for joy and cry aloud, you who were never in labor; because more are the children of the desolate woman than of her who has a husband." Now you, brothers and sisters, like Isaac, are children of promise. At that time the son born according to the flesh persecuted the son born by the power of the Spirit. It is the same now. But what does Scripture say? "Get rid of the slave woman and her son, for the slave woman's son will never share in the inheritance with the free woman's son." Therefore, brothers and sisters, we are not children of the slave woman, but of the free woman." (Galatians 4:22-31)Just as we saw in Hosea, Paul was using Jerusalem as a metaphor of a mother and her children. He said that the Old Covenant (that God made with the Israelites through Moses) corresponds to the earthly city of Jerusalem and is the mother of the Jews, who were essentially enslaved to the rules of the Law of Moses. Then he said that the New Covenant corresponds to the heavenly Jerusalem (also mentioned in Hebrews 12:22, Revelation 3:12, 21:2, and 21:10-27) and is the mother of all Christians, who are under the freedom of God's grace and forgiveness. In Revelation 21:10-27, the apostle John gave us descriptions of the heavenly Jerusalem, with its high wall with twelve gates and twelve foundations, laid out as a square. Paul referred to this city as the Christians' "mother," just as the earthly city of Jerusalem was the Israelites' "mother." Paul was not making any kind of reference to the Holy Spirit being God the Mother, and nowhere else is there any shred of scriptural evidence that the Holy Spirit is female or God the Mother. Another argument that people sometimes make is that the word "hovering" in Genesis 1:2 is translated from the same Hebrew word that describes a mother eagle hovering over her young in Deuteronomy 32:11: "In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth. Now the earth was formless and empty, darkness was over the surface of the deep, and the Spirit of God was hovering [rahap] over the waters." (Genesis 1:1-2)Genesis 1:2 (above) describes the Holy Spirit hovering over the earth just as a mother eagle hovers over her young. However, this does not imply that the Holy Spirit is God the Mother, as some people assume. The writers of the Bible frequently used flowery or poetic language, figurative language, symbolism, etc., and they were very free with their metaphors. For example, sometimes Paul used the metaphor of himself as a father, and sometimes he used the metaphor of himself as a mother: "Even if you had ten thousand guardians in Christ, you do not have many fathers, for in Christ Jesus I became your father through the gospel." (1 Corinthians 4:15)So when we see metaphors or descriptions that are masculine or feminine, they don't mean that someone is male or female. In the same way, if Genesis 1:2 (above) is intended to describe the Holy Spirit as a mother hen hovering over her nest, as people sometimes claim, this doesn't mean that the Holy Spirit is female or God the Mother. As another example, notice that Jesus is a man and yet He described Himself using the metaphor or simile of a mother hen: "O Jerusalem, Jerusalem, the one who kills the prophets and stones those who are sent to her! How often I wanted to gather your children together, as a hen gathers her chicks under her wings, but you were not willing!" (Matthew 23:37 NKJV)The above passage doesn't mean that Jesus is female, just as Genesis 1:2 (above) doesn't mean that the Holy Spirit is female. In fact, notice how the apostle Paul described himself in this passage: "We were not looking for praise from people, not from you or anyone else, even though as apostles of Christ we could have asserted our authority. Instead, we were like young children among you. Just as a nursing mother cares for her children, so we cared for you. Because we loved you so much, we were delighted to share with you not only the gospel of God but our lives as well. Surely you remember, brothers and sisters, our toil and hardship; we worked night and day in order not to be a burden to anyone while we preached the gospel of God to you. You are witnesses, and so is God, of how holy, righteous and blameless we were among you who believed. For you know that we dealt with each of you as a father deals with his own children" (1 Thessalonians 2:6-11)In the above passage, Paul described himself as a young child, a nursing mother, a brother, and a father, all in the same passage. Again, the writers of the Bible were very free with their metaphors and similes, using any descriptions that got the point across best. The above passage doesn't mean that Paul actually was a young child or a mother or a father. In exactly the same way, the feminine descriptions or metaphors concerning the Holy Spirit don't mean that the Holy Spirit is female or God the Mother. There appears to be evidence that some early Christian authors thought of the Holy Spirit as Mother, as in this article: The Holy Spirit as feminine: Early Christian testimonies and their interpretation .
One thing to notice in that article is that there are very, very few Scripture passages mentioned, because the Bible doesn't present the Holy Spirit (or any part of God) as being female. Maybe the Holy Spirit is female or the Mother, we just don't have any actual scriptural evidence of that. When we read the writings of early Christian authors, should we trust that their views and opinions were accurate or true since they lived so close to the first century? Take a look at these passages: "I know that after I leave, savage wolves will come in among you and will not spare the flock. Even from your own number men will arise and distort the truth in order to draw away disciples after them. So be on your guard! Remember that for three years I never stopped warning each of you night and day with tears." (Acts 20:29-31)In Acts 20:29-31 (above), Paul said that even after teaching them in person for 3 years, he knew that after he left, there will be people who will start distorting the truth. In Galatians 4:9 (above), Paul said that after teaching them in person and then moving on to another city, it didn't take long before the Galatian Christians started turning back to their former views. So just because early Christian authors (such as the ones mentioned in the above article) lived close to the first century, this doesn't mean that their views and opinions were accurate or true. All humans are fallible. Their views and opinions must be compared with Scripture, but Scripture doesn't say anywhere that the Holy Spirit is female. Maybe the Holy Spirit actually is God the Mother; we just don't have any definite scriptural evidence of that. For the glory of the Lord Jesus, the Christ, the Son of God, who came in the flesh, was delivered over to death for our sins, and was raised to life for our justification. Dave Root home page and email: https://www.vividchristianity.com "Therefore I want you to know that no one who is speaking by the Spirit of God says, "Jesus be cursed," and no one can say, "Jesus is Lord," except by the Holy Spirit." (1 Corinthians 12:3) "Who is the liar? It is whoever denies that Jesus is the Christ. Such a person is the antichrist - denying the Father and the Son. No one who denies the Son has the Father; whoever acknowledges the Son has the Father also." (1 John 2:22-23) "If anyone acknowledges that Jesus is the Son of God, God lives in them and they in God." (1 John 4:15) "Dear friends, do not believe every spirit, but test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. This is how you can recognize the Spirit of God: Every spirit that acknowledges that Jesus Christ has come in the flesh is from God, but every spirit that does not acknowledge Jesus is not from God. This is the spirit of the antichrist, which you have heard is coming and even now is already in the world." (1 John 4:1-3) "And this is love: that we walk in obedience to his commands. As you have heard from the beginning, his command is that you walk in love. I say this because many deceivers, who do not acknowledge Jesus Christ as coming in the flesh, have gone out into the world. Any such person is the deceiver and the antichrist." (2 John 1:6-7) "He was delivered over to death for our sins and was raised to life for our justification." (Romans 4:25) |
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| All Scripture quotations, unless otherwise indicated, are taken from the HOLY BIBLE, NEW INTERNATIONAL VERSION (R). NIV (R). Copyright (C) 1973, 1978, 1984, 2011 by International Bible Society. Used by permission of Zondervan Publishing House. All rights reserved. (Emphasis added.) |