Islam, Muhammad, Jesus, & Parakletos

Here are some facts about Islam that I think would be helpful for everyone to understand. If you are reading and are a Muslim, I hope that you would be challenge by what is said and examine the Qur’an and Christian theology and history and see if what I am writing is true. If you are reading this and you profess to be a Christian, I would say to you as well that just because you claim to be Christians is no guarantee in itself that you are a genuine Christian with your sins forgiven or that you are on your way to heaven.

Here are some quick facts about the Qur’an.
-- Qur’an is considered Islam’s “holy book” composed of 114 “suras” or chapters.
-- Muslims regard the Qur’an as the infallible Word of God.
-- The author of the Qur’an was Muhammad (about A.D. 570) wrote about the revelations of Allah around A.D. 610.
-- The view of Jesus as Lord and the representations of the Trinity are considered heresy to Islam. Sura 4, “Women”, verse 171 says, “The Messiah, Jesus the son of Mary, was no more than God’s apostle…So believe in God [Allah] and his apostles and do not say: ‘Three.’ Forbear, and it shall be better for you. God is but one God. God forbid that he should have a son!”


What did Muhammad teach about his relation to Jesus? Did he see himself as superior to Jesus? According to Sura 61, “Battle Array”, verse 6, Muhammad does state that Jesus taught that, “an apostle…will come after me whose name is Ahmad [Muhammad].” Christ taught something completely different in that God the Holy Spirit who he called the Comforter (John 14:16-17) whom he could send from the Father, would come after him. This Comforter (parakletos) would come and glorify him, Jesus the Christ. The word “parakletos” is very important because Muhammad must have confused the Greek word “parakletos” with “periklytos”, which translates to mean “famed, praised”. As some of you know, Muhammad could not read. Muhammad taught that Jesus teaches that he, Muhammad, was to be the last and “seal” of God’s prophets.

We must note that the Gospels make it very apparent that Jesus taught that revelational history reached its climax and finality in him (Heb 1:1-2) and also that his apostles completed God’s revelatory activity (II Tim 3:16-17).

I will again write more on another day. I would like each of you reading to remember that we must evangelize the Muslim world by every appropriate means possible. Remember that this can be accomplished by the grace and power of God. If I were in a Muslim country today, speaking out against Muhammad and Islam is punishable by death. Nevertheless, the biblical Christ is the Muslim’s only hope of heaven, and the church must evangelize the Muslim world without hesitation.

--Armando

Islam, The Hadith, & The Gospel of Jesus Christ

Over the last few months, I have written about the fallacy of the L.A. Church of Christ, Mormonism, & Jehovah’s Witness. These “off-branches” of Christianity are far from the truth of what true Christianity actually entails. Now I would like to avert our attention towards other false beliefs and religions that teach a completely different view on God. We’ll start by taking a look at Islam and what Christians can do in order to witness to a Muslim and share the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

One of the important views of Islam is the understanding of the hadith, which are the traditions of Muhammad. Other than the hadith, the Qur’an scriptures are of higher authority than the hadith for Muslims. The hadith contains thousands of records of the words and deeds of Muhammad and were recorded over a 200 year period after Muhammad’s death. These recordings had no eyewitnesses present or friends of eyewitness to account for Muhammad’s words unlike the Gospel which accounts of the life and teaching of Christ which was witnessed by thousands. The hadith was complied by al-Bukhari, who died in AD 870, which was 238 years after Muhammad’s death.


In sharing the Gospel with a Muslim, we must understand three truths that the Qur’an affirms: (1) God’s words and revelations cannot be altered. (2) Previous revelations were given to the Jews and the Christians: the Taurat (Torah), the Zabur (Psalms), and the Injil (Gospel). (3) These three revelations were still present with the Jews and the Christians during Muhammad’s lifetime (the hadith also affirms this fact).

What does this all mean? Simply this, if the Judeo-Christian scriptures were present – and uncorrupted – during Muhammad’s day, then we can express to Muslims, based on the authority of both the Qur’an and the hadith, to read the bible and read about the previous revelations about God and about Jesus’ claims of deity.