by Steven Clark Goad

Believe it or not, we have a few things in common with our Muslim community. We are all created in the image of God. We all believe in a Supreme Being. They call him Allah. We call him Yahweh.

They trace their faith back to "father" Abraham as do we. We follow the teachings of Jesus and accept him as Lord and Savior. Muslims also re-vere Jesus, considering him one of God's greatest prophets to human-kind. They do not see him as the risen Lord and Savior whose finished work at Calvary atoned for the sins of humanity. So just what is the true nature of Islam? In what was does Islam's teaching differ with the tenets of Christianity?

The Muslim's holy book is the Quran, consisting of 114 suras (chapters). Two other sources also have divine authority for Islam: the Hadith, which consist of the words and traditions of their prophet Muhammad; and the Sharia (sacred law). These sources are often at diametric odds with the Bible. One example is the mutilation of females which is not found in the Quran but in the Sharia. Some Islamic apolo-gists have recently suggested, apparently in an attempt at pluralism and political correctness, that a Jihad is not a holy war but a war within each individual to improve oneself spiritually. However, the three holy word sources for Muslims state otherwise. The Sharia for example reads, "Jihad means to war against non-Muslims…signifying warfare to estab-lish the religion" (Reliance of the Traveller o9.0). The Quran states, "O you who believe, fight those of the unbelievers who are near you and let them find in you hardness" (Sura 9:123).

Those good Muslims who wage Jihad against us infidels are promised eternal reward: "And if indeed you die or you are slain, certainly to Allah shall you be gathered together" (Sura 3:158). A holy physical war is in direct opposition to what our Lord Christ taught during his life and in his inspired word. He told Peter to put his sword away; that those who lived by the sword it would die by the sword. His turn-the-other-cheek method of persuasion is dissonant in contrast to the cries for brutality by the teachings of Islam.

Amazingly the Quran acknowledges the virgin birth of Jesus by Mary, yet denies he was crucified. "They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him, but it only appeared to them so…" (Sura 4:157). To deny his crucifixion denies his bodily resurrection, it would seem to me. Thus, the very core of Christianity, our Lord's death, burial, and resurrection (pictured in the symbolism of water baptism) is rejected. Islam is at loggerheads with Christianity.

Muslims will often say in public they believe in Jesus. Mormons say the same thing. But what Jesus do they believe in? Jesus was much more than a prophet. Muhammad claimed that God revealed his word to him. Jesus was the living incarnate word of God. In Christ the "word became flesh" (John 1:14). The source of Christ's message was not inspiration, but incarnation. And our Lord's primary mission was not as prophet, but as redeemer. He came to suffer and die in our place and to be risen from the dead. Muhammad is still buried to this day. Jesus the Christ left us with an empty tomb.

Islam and Christianity both teach of one God. Yet there is a difference. Islam rejects the concept of Father, Son, Holy Spirit and specifically deny the deity of Jesus. It goes so far as to call this teaching blasphemy. "Christ the son of Mary was no more than a messenger" (Sura 5:75). Given that Muslims do not accept the three expressions or personalities of God, we may only surmise that we are not praying to the same God. As Christians we pray to God in the name, or by the authority, of Jesus the Christ (John 14:13,14). Islam teaches that God is unap-proachable, not even a spirit being, but totally transcendent. This seems not to be the God of the Bible. Of the 99 attributes/names of Allah, love cannot be found among them.

Islam denigrates females. A woman's testimony in a court of law is worth only half that of a Muslim male. Women are not permitted to marry non-Muslim men, however Muslim men may marry non-Muslims. A male may even have four wives at one time, yet a woman may not have but one husband. She cannot speak to any man unless her husband is present. Males are permitted to beat their wives (Sura 4:34). Consider Huhammad's words: "I stood at the gate of hell and saw that the majority of those who entered it were women" (Sahih Al-Bukhari 62:88). This clashes glaringly with how women are pictured in Christianity.

What of Islam and heaven? Muslims speak of paradise. Christ-ians have a hope of heaven because they are saved by grace through faith in Christ's atoning sacrifice at the cross (Ephesians 2:8,9). Good works are the fruit of the Christian's faith, not in order to obtain salvation. Mus-lims know of no such atonement or mercy. They must earn their salvation by works. "And whoever does good deeds whether male or female, and he/she is a believer-these shall enter the garden, and they shall not be dealt with a jot unjustly" (Sura 4:124). Here is a sure-fire way to get to paradise. According to the Hadith, "He who memorizes them all by heart [Allah's 99 names, scg] will enter paradise" (Sahih Al-Bukhari 93:12:489).

Pray four our Muslim neighbors.

-Steven Clark Goad

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