Category Archives: Biblical Musings

Sunday Brunch – The Serpent

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Photo courtesy of Romanticando

Do you believe that Satan is the serpent in the Garden of Eden? Do you know the meaning of the curse against the serpent in the Garden of Eden?

When I was involved with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, several decades ago, they gave an interpretation to Genesis 3:14-15. The interpretation was convoluted, didn’t make a whole lot of sense unless you put serious thought to it. Also, they referenced a series of other scriptures to interpret their meaning to the aforementioned scripture.

Were you ever taught anything in Bible school, Sunday school, church, etc. regarding the following scripture? If so, could you share what you were taught? I sense there are several interpretations out there, and I wonder what others believe regarding this scripture. This is what God said to the serpent after he’d tempted Adam and Eve to eat from the Tree of the Knowledge of Good and Evil:

Genesis 3:14-15

14 So the Lord God said to the serpent:

“Because you have done this,
You are cursed more than all cattle,
And more than every beast of the field;
On your belly you shall go,
And you shall eat dust
All the days of your life.
15 And I will put enmity
Between you and the woman,
And between your seed and her Seed;
He shall bruise your head,
And you shall bruise His heel.”

I believe Satan took over the form of the serpent and spoke to Eve – this was ‘somewhat’ referenced in Revelations.  However, I can’t find a scripture that CLEARLY states that the serpent was Satan. Other than the scripture in Revelations, is there any other scripture that CLEARLY states that Satan was the serpent in the Garden of Eden?

Here’s the scripture in Revelations:

Revelation 12:9

9 So the great dragon was cast out, that serpent of old, called the Devil and Satan, who deceives the whole world; he was cast to the earth, and his angels were cast out with him.

Satan is called a serpent in Revelations. However, the Genesis scripture quoted above has always had me scratching my head. Is God cursing Satan – apart from the serpent creature? Is God stating that there will be hatred between man and Satan? What does bruise your head and bruise his heel mean? Was the serpent a non-crawling creature before he tempted Eve? God said that the serpent would go on his belly and eat dust the rest of his life – does that mean the serpent was an upright creature prior to the temptation?

Share your thoughts!!

 

 

Sunday Brunch! What Does Perfection Mean To You?

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What does perfection mean to you?

During my upbringing as a Jehovah’s Witness, I was taught that spiritual gifts no longer existed. If a Jehovah’s Witness heard about some sort of miracle occurring, like a miraculous healing or a prophesy, then that “miracle” did not come from God, it was something Satan did to deceive people. I know that sounds ludicrous, but, it’s what I was taught when I was growing up.

The scripture that was used to defend the JW stance against miracles was this:

1 Corinthians 13:8-10

8 Love never fails. But where there are prophecies,they will cease; where there are tongues, they will be stilled; where there is knowledge, it will pass away. 9 For we know in part and we prophesy in part, 10 but when perfection comes, the imperfect disappears.

So, the underlined text of this scripture indicates that prophecies and tongues will cease when perfection comes.

What, exactly, is perfection? Is the Apostle Paul speaking of when Jesus returns, and eventually, all pain and suffering will be gone – is that perfection?

Please, share your thoughts.

 

Sunday Brunch – David And Goliath – From The Blog Archives!

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This is a repeat of an old blog post:

I was reading the story of David and Goliath to my five-year-old son a couple of days ago. When I was finished, I thought: something’s missing. It clicked that I was reading the children’s version. Since the Old Testament can be brutal, we must sanitize children’s Bible school stories so that we don’t traumatize our youngsters.

After my son went to bed, I got my Bible out and read the story of David and Goliath. David cuts off Goliath’s head with a sword…how sharp that sword must’ve been to sever Goliath’s head! It sounds so bloody and brutal. Plus, in the Bible I was reading it kept referring to David as being a boy…I wondered how old he was? Around fifteen or sixteen, maybe? Then, I kept thinking of David walking around holding Goliath’s severed head in his hand…

What’s the point to this blog post? I’m not sure! I know I keep thinking about this story and I have no idea why. Maybe because when people talk about it, they don’t recall the brutality of what happened. The Lord was with David and gave this youngster the power to overcome this giant whom everybody feared, but, it was so grotesque and bloody…I don’t think people recall that part of the story too much. I’m not sure when kids will be old enough to know the full story of David and Goliath…How old do you think kids should be before they hear the full story of David and Goliath?

I’ve copied and pasted a few verses from 1 Samuel chapter 17 below.

~Cecelia Dowdy~

1 Samuel 17: 48 So it was, when the Philistine arose and came and drew near to meet David, that David hurried and ran toward the army to meet the Philistine. 49 Then David put his hand in his bag and took out a stone; and he slung it and struck the Philistine in his forehead, so that the stone sank into his forehead, and he fell on his face to the earth. 50 So David prevailed over the Philistine with a sling and a stone, and struck the Philistine and killed him. But there was no sword in the hand of David. 51 Therefore David ran and stood over the Philistine, took his sword and drew it out of its sheath and killed him, and cut off his head with it.
And when the Philistines saw that their champion was dead, they fled…. 54 And David took the head of the Philistine and brought it to Jerusalem, but he put his armor in his tent.
55 When Saul saw David going out against the Philistine, he said to Abner, the commander of the army, “Abner, whose son is this youth?”
And Abner said, “As your soul lives, O king, I do not know.”
56 So the king said, “Inquire whose son this young man is.”
57 Then, as David returned from the slaughter of the Philistine, Abner took him and brought him before Saul with the head of the Philistine in his hand. 58 And Saul said to him, “Whose son are you, young man?”
So David answered, “I am the son of your servant Jesse the Bethlehemite.”

Sunday Brunch! Giants On The Earth – Part Two

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Did you know that giants lived on this earth during Biblical times?

I blogged about the Nephilim awhile back. I wanted to add to that blog post by mentioning some other giants mentioned in the Old Testament.

I was having a conversation with somebody at my church about the Nephilim, and he told me to read:

2 Samuel 21:20-22

NIV

20 In still another battle, which took place at Gath, there was a huge man with six fingers on each hand and six toes on each foot—twenty-four in all. He also was descended from Rapha. 21 When he taunted Israel, Jonathan son of Shimeah, David’s brother, killed him.

22 These four were descendants of Rapha in Gath, and they fell at the hands of David and his men.

This huge, giant man had six fingers on each hand, and six toes on each hand. A descendent of Rapha – the Rephaites were a race of giants in the old testament. I’m not sure if all of them had extra digits on their fingers and toes. When I read this scripture, I wondered about these people. Was this whole race of giants doomed? Were they even considered human?

When I asked about the Nephilim on Facebook, somebody pointed out that some churches don’t talk about them because they can’t agree on what they were. Although they’re not mentioned much in church – I want to talk about them.

What are your thoughts concerning this race of people during Old Testament times? I feel weird and confused when I think about them. Why? Because, they seem so other-worldly, non-human, that I almost feel like I’m reading a science fiction novel – only, I’m not – I’m reading the Bible.

In Deuteronomy, Og, a king, was the last of the Rephaites and he slept in a bed that was nine cubits long – which equals about fourteen feet!

Does that mean these giants were about fourteen feet tall and had extra digits on their fingers and toes?  Was this entire race of people doomed since they were born of sin? Please comment about these huge, thought-provoking people! 🙂

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Deuteronomy 2:11

New International Version (NIV)

11 Like the Anakites, they too were considered Rephaites, but the Moabites called them Emites.

Deuteronomy 3:11

New International Version (NIV)

11 (Og king of Bashan was the last of the Rephaites. His bed was decorated with iron and was more than nine cubits long and four cubits wide.[a] It is still in Rabbah of the Ammonites.)

 

Sunday Brunch – Have You Ever Seen An Angel?

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Have you ever seen an angel?

Hebrews 13:2

New International Version (NIV)

2 Do not forget to show hospitality to strangers, for by so doing some people have shown hospitality to angels without knowing it.

When I read that scripture, I think about the old TV series, Touched By An Angel. Remember that show? The angels were on earth, helping people with their problems. Near the end of each show, the angel announced to their assigned charge(s), “I’m an angel, sent by God.”

Have you ever had an experience where you saw an angel? Perhaps you were going through a tough time, or you received a mysterious warning from a person and before you could thank this person, they’d miraculously disappeared? Have you encountered people or a person in your everyday life whom you thought may have been an angel?

I haven’t, but, I’d be interested in hearing about your experience. So, have you ever encountered an angel?

~Cecelia Dowdy~

Sunday Brunch – One Church – Unified In Christ!

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Photo courtesy of Free Digital Photos

1 Corinthians 3:3-9

New International Version (NIV)

3 You are still worldly. For since there is jealousy and quarreling among you, are you not worldly? Are you not acting like mere humans? 4 For when one says, “I follow Paul,” and another, “I follow Apollos,” are you not mere human beings?

5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God has been making it grow. 7 So neither the one who plants nor the one who waters is anything, but only God, who makes things grow. 8 The one who plants and the one who waters have one purpose, and they will each be rewarded according to their own labor. 9 For we are co-workers in God’s service; you are God’s field, God’s building.

==

Why can’t we have one unified church in Christ? There are so many Christian-based religions that it makes my head spin.

This scripture makes me stop and think. The Apostle Paul is giving the early Christians guidance on whom to follow. He advises not to follow human beings, we’re all supposed to follow Christ. Christ’s laws are built upon a strong foundation – a foundation that will stand the test of time – surviving forever.

When I look at various supposedly Christ-based religions, seeing the differences in beliefs, some differences causing divisions between households and families, I wonder why can’t we all be unified in the body of Christ.

Why do you think we can’t be unified into one body under Jesus Christ? Is it due to the fact that we’re human – and it’s virtually impossible to unify all Christian humans into one body? Is it because there are supposedly Christ-based churches out there who neglect Paul’s advice and follow other men, instead of following Christ? Is it all of the above, in addition to other factors?

Please comment!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

 

Sunday Brunch – Should Women Cover Their Heads?

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Image courtesy of Stuart Miles / FreeDigitalPhotos.net

What’s your opinion about a woman’s head covering? Should a woman cover her head during worship?

When I was involved with the Jehovah’s Witnesses, decades ago, if a woman was leading a Bible study, and a man was present, she always covered her head in deference to him. The three of us (my Bible study leader, her husband, and myself) were at the Kingdom Hall, and when we took out our study books, she glanced at her husband and said, “Oh, I guess, I need to wear this since you’re here.”

She opened her purse and pulled out a scarf and she tied it on her head. I laughed (I was young, only 18) because I didn’t understand what she was doing. I thought she was kidding. She then pulled out her Bible and we read 1 Corinthians 11:1-16 (quoted at the end of this blog post) – this was their basis for their head-covering convention.

She then further explained that when the sisters of the congregation would go out in service, or pray together, they would cover their heads since there was no man present.

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So, should a woman cover her head while praying? Should she cover her head in church, or while praying with a man? Verse 15 states that a woman’s long hair is her covering – does this mean that a woman should not cut her hair? Does this verse mean that a woman’s hair has already been provided as a covering for her head?

Or, is this scripture cultural – something that was only applied to the church during the Apostle Paul’s time? Do you recall being taught about women’s head covering when you were growing up in the church?

Please leave a comment about this thought-provoking subject!

1 Corinthians 11:1-16

New International Version (NIV)

11 1 Follow my example, as I follow the example of Christ.

2 I praise you for remembering me in everything and for holding to the traditions just as I passed them on to you. 3 But I want you to realize that the head of every man is Christ, and the head of the woman is man, and the head of Christ is God. 4 Every man who prays or prophesies with his head covered dishonors his head. 5 But every woman who prays or prophesies with her head uncovered dishonors her head—it is the same as having her head shaved. 6 For if a woman does not cover her head, she might as well have her hair cut off; but if it is a disgrace for a woman to have her hair cut off or her head shaved, then she should cover her head.

7 A man ought not to cover his head, since he is the image and glory of God; but woman is the glory of man. 8 For man did not come from woman, but woman from man; 9 neither was man created for woman, but woman for man. 10 It is for this reason that a woman ought to have authority over her own head, because of the angels. 11 Nevertheless, in the Lord woman is not independent of man, nor is man independent of woman. 12 For as woman came from man, so also man is born of woman. But everything comes from God.

13 Judge for yourselves: Is it proper for a woman to pray to God with her head uncovered? 14 Does not the very nature of things teach you that if a man has long hair, it is a disgrace to him, 15 but that if a woman has long hair, it is her glory? For long hair is given to her as a covering. 16 If anyone wants to be contentious about this, we have no other practice—nor do the churches of God.

Sunday Brunch – Giants On The Earth – Who Were The Nephilim?

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From the blog archives:

Did you know the Bible tells of Giants on the earth? Giants – like in the fable Jack And The Beanstalk…

Genesis 6:1-4
1 Now it came to pass, when men began to multiply on the face of the earth, and daughters were born to them, 2 that the sons of God saw the daughters of men, that they were beautiful; and they took wives for themselves of all whom they chose.
3 And the LORD said, “My Spirit shall not strive with man forever, for he is indeed flesh; yet his days shall be one hundred and twenty years.” 4 There were giants on the earth in those days, and also afterward, when the sons of God came in to the daughters of men and they bore children to them. Those were the mighty men who were of old, men of renown.

Numbers 13:31-33 – 31 But the men who had gone up with him said, “We are not able to go up against the people, for they are stronger than we.” 32 And they gave the children of Israel a bad report of the land which they had spied out, saying, “The land through which we have gone as spies is a land that devours its inhabitants, and all the people whom we saw in it are men of great stature. 33 There we saw the giants (the descendants of Anak came from the giants); and we were like grasshoppers in our own sight, and so we were in their sight.”

Some translations use the word Nephilim instead of giant. Who were these gigantic people? Some teach that they were the offspring of fallen angels – these angels lusted after human women and they had intercourse with them and the women bore these huge, wicked children. Who knows? From the little bit of research that I was able to do, it appears that the term Sons of God is interpreted a couple of ways and that makes it debatable about the paternity of these huge creatures.

I’ve always thought the Nephilim were the offspring from fallen angels. Why? I guess because they were so huge, much larger than regular humans, coupled with the fact that it appears they were wicked, too. I also read that the Nephilim pop up again in the book of Numbers, so I’ve provided that scripture, too. So, it’s possible that the Sons of God appeared again and did the same thing again with human women? The Nephilim mentioned in Genesis were killed during the flood, so the scriptures can’t be talking about the same group of giants?

I just try to imagine how large these people were…were they twice the size of regular humans, maybe three times larger than the average human? The ones in Numbers state that the regular people were like grasshoppers compared to these giant people! Grasshoppers?? Reminds me of Gulliver’s Travels or Jack And The Beanstalk!

I’m just sitting here, trying to imagine what they would have looked like, giants stomping upon the earth, doing all sorts of wicked things to people. Frightening thoughts I’m having, but, just makes me stop and wonder, makes me wish I had a vivid snapshot of the way the world was back then…

Did you know about the giants in the Bible? Do you think the Nephilim/Giants were the offspring of fallen angels? Please comment!

– See more at: http://ceceliadowdy.com/blog/2010/10/giants-on-earth-who-were-nephilim.html#sthash.fBgaBok3.dpuf

Should Women Be Silent In The Church?

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1 Corinthians 14:34-35

34 Women should remain silent in the churches. They are not allowed to speak, but must be in submission, as the law says. 35 If they want to inquire about something, they should ask their own husbands at home; for it is disgraceful for a woman to speak in the church.

What is the meaning of that scripture?

If you take it literally, then a woman should not open her mouth when she enters a church. She cannot say “hello” or “How are you?” when she enters a church. This scripture also implies that women should not question anything in the church – but to glean the answers to their questions from their husbands at home.

I was taught that this scripture implied that women were not allowed to be clergymen – however, that’s not what the Apostle Paul says.

Were you ever shown this scripture as a child or as an adult – in Sunday school or Bible class? How was this scripture interpreted by your church/teacher/Bible person?

Share your thoughts!

~Cecelia Dowdy~

My romance collection is on sale for 99 cents each.

http://ceceliadowdy.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2012/08/johns-quest.jpg26525EBBittersweet Memories

– See more at: http://ceceliadowdy.com/blog/#sthash.MbTrJ092.dpuf

 

Sunday Brunch – Noah’s Ark And The Book Of Jashar/Jasher/Yashar

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Can you tell me the story about Noah’s Ark in Genesis? What happened when God commanded Noah to build the ark?

When I found out about the Noah movie being released in March 2014, I pulled out my Bible to read the account of Noah and the building of the ark – Genesis 6-9. When I read those chapters, I was confused. Why? Because, for some reason, I remembered when Noah was building the ark, people were laughing at him, making fun of him. They mocked Noah because it had never rained before on the earth, and they didn’t believe that God would cause a flood to destroy all of the creatures on the earth? The people seemed to think Noah was a lunatic. I also recall that after God shut the ark’s door, the people outside the ark banged on the door, begging Noah to let them in.

Although the Nephilim, sons of God, and daughters of men, are mentioned in the beginning of the sixth chapter, the rest of the Flood passage doesn’t mention other people besides Noah and his family. I’m not sure why I vividly recall learning the account differently?

Curious, I did a Google search, just to see if others recalled the same details as I. Surprisingly, I found other people had questions about the Noah Biblical Flood text – I found references that people recalled similar details as I did.

I then found some state that the book of Jashar, referenced in 2 Samuel 1:18 and Joshua 10:13, may contain some of the details that I recall from the Noah story I’d heard as a child. But, from my internet research, there is little known about the Book of Jashar/Jasher/Yashar – there was a book published by the same name, in 1625 – but, it’s not the same book referenced in the Bible – the 1625 book is just using the same name as the book mentioned in the Biblical text. The 1625 version appears to have the details that I was looking for in the the Genesis account. Confusing? Right?

What’s the point of this blog post? I’m not really sure! I’m just wondering if other blog readers recall learning the details about other people, besides Noah’s family, in the Flood reference in Genesis.

What do you recall about the Biblical account of the flood? Read Genesis 6-9! Compare Genesis 6-9 with what you recall learning about the Flood.