OK, this might take a few minutes to read through, but the length is necessary to build a sufficient picture of Islam in the world today, and how it compares to Christianity.
So please read through to the end.
The Islamic group Boko Haram, whose translated name means "Western education is forbidden", is responsible for the kidnapping of hundreds of school children in Nigeria.
Their leader, Abukar Shekau, tells us "You people should understand that we only obey Allah, we tread the path of the Prophet. We hope to die on this path ... Our goal is the garden of eternal bliss," he says.
He goes on to say that "Boko Haram is interested only in "battle, hitting, striking and killing with the gun, which we look forward to like a tasty meal," he said.
http://fxn.ws/1zqgbd9
Extreme as that may sound, you have to realize that this group is still fundamentally Islamic.
They believe they follow the teachings of Muhammad, who they consider to be a prophet of Allah. That belief is what makes Islam the religion that it is, it's common thread uniting Islamic believers.
It is important for us to realize that "Allah" of Islam is the same supreme being and Creator of creation that the Jews (YHWH) and Christians (God the Father) believe in and are called to worship. And as you will read below, the very roots of Islam, Judaism and Christianity all trace back to Abraham, the "father of faith", somewhere around the year 1800 BC.
There is definitely only one Supreme Being, a singular Creator of all of creation.
He is not an unproven concept or ideal, as might be found in other religions.
God, our Creator, the Father of Jesus Christ, has tangibly manifested Himself unto men since the beginning of mankind. And, our God is a self-declared jealous God. (Exodus 20:5)
He wants man, and all of creation, to worship Him with love and honor.
Our God deserves this level of honor, and is right to demand this of us.
God is good, He is also love, and His word is always and forever true and unchanging. (Matthew 19:17, 1John 4:8, Psalm 119:160)
Acknowledging His existence and Supreme nature is the common ground between these three prominent religions.However, the central distinction between these three religions is the belief about God's will, His plan and His law of righteousness set forth toward mankind.
And our belief about His law of righteousness, or what God requires of a person to be in right standing with Him, is really what distinguishes each major religion.
Once we believe in God's existence, we all ask the same basic questions: "What does God desire from me, and what benefit does He promise me if I seek to do His will?"
Righteousness, or right-standing with God, is what we each seek after when we adhere to religious beliefs.
Muslims see their righteousness earned from following the teachings of their prophet Muhammad, the Arab religious leader who founded the nation of Islam in the early 600 CE/AD period of history.
Jews see their righteousness as coming from a direct lineage to Abraham, and their keeping the covenant laws as directed by God, given to them through the prophets Abraham and Moses.
Christians see our righteousness only coming freely by God, through a personal choice to believe in our heart that Jesus, being the only Son of God, gave up His own life to restore our relationship with God. His sinless life and sacrificial death as a man purchased the total forgiveness for the sin nature of all men, a once-for-all payment applied to all who believe in Him.
Therefore indicating that righteousness is not something to be earned by our own works, but rather only by our believing in Him, and receiving what God accomplished for us through this living sacrifice.
The Islamic Quran, authored largely by Muhammad, who indicated that it was given to him by God through an angel called Gabriel, acknowledges Jesus as a prophet of God, equating Him with Abraham. But nowhere in these teachings is Jesus acknowledged as the Son of God.
The Quran speaks of Jesus many times throughout the writings, even referring to Him as the Messiah, or Christ.
According to Wikipedia:Muslims believe the Quran to be the final revelation of Allah to man, and a completion and confirmation of previous scriptures. Despite the primacy that Muslims place upon the Quran as Allah's final word, Islam speaks of respecting all the previous scriptures, and belief in all the revealed books is an article of faith in Islam.
Among the books considered to be revealed, the four mentioned by name in the Quran are the Tawrat (Torah) revealed to Musa(Moses), the Zabur revealed to Dawud (David), the Injil (Gospel) revealed to Isa (Jesus), and the Quran revealed to Muhammad.
Many of the Jews who saw Jesus's works and heard His words, agreed that He was truly their "Messiah", whom the prophets foretold would come. John, the baptizer who called fellow Jews to repentance, and performed ceremonial washing in the river Jordan, prophesied Jesus' coming and announced the arrival of the Messiah when He first saw Jesus appear.
The title of Messiah, which through the Greek language rendering into English became "Christ", actually describes the One who the Jewish prophets of old declared will come to set men free. (Daniel 9:25)
Jesus declared, "If the Son sets you free, then you are truly free!" (John 8:36)
So, while the Jewish prophets over the centuries declared that the Messiah was to come, and the Muslims agree that Jesus was a prophet sent by God, only the Christians believe that this Messiah, the Christ whose coming was foretold by prophets, has indeed come in the person of Jesus (Yeshua, Isa). And, that Jesus, the begotten Son of God, is the only doorway to eternal life and righteousness that God has provided to us!
Jesus made this crystal clear when He declared: "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me! He who trusts in the Son shall have eternal life.
Whoever does not trust in Me shall not see life, but the wrath of God shall abide upon him."
Our Creator has always had a plan for reconciling all of mankind to Himself and restoring a loving relationship with us after the earlier fall of mankind. God chose people who kept their trust in Him, through whom He could carry out his plan of redemption. The lineage of these people of faith goes back to Adam, and includes historically notable figures such as Noah, Elijah, Abraham, his grandson Jacob (who became Israel), King David and Moses.
There are fourteen generations from Abraham to King David, fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah Jesus, a true descendant of David and Abraham.
Jesus' own declarations, along with the accompanying demonstrations of God's power and authority manifest through Him, were documented by those Jews whom He walked with and taught directly. His followers composed the writings about their experiences of Jesus, and further teachings toward fellow believers, which became what we call the New Testament Bible.
Healing, casting out devils, walking on water, complete authority over natural forces, being the voice of God... These were the continued and frequent revelations of Jesus' heavenly deity!
None of the religious leaders of His day were accustomed to seeing such miracles, or hearing such truths. Many of them did not believe that Jesus was even sent to them from God. They saw and heard his power and authority, only to accuse him of belonging to the devil
Jesus declared to them that He was sent from God.
"But I have a greater witness than John—my teachings and my miracles. The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that He sent me". (John 5:36)
So, of the three major religions originating with the father of faith, Abraham (Ibrahim), only Christianity believes what Jesus the Christ declared about himself and his Father, our God. And, through our belief in Jesus as being the son of God, we are given the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, as guide and teacher of God's ways, equipping us with power and authority to be used for good purposes in this world, then ushering us into the eternal life we are now promised.
The Islamic Quran seems to firmly oppose this level of faith, stating in 42:41 that "It is not for any mortal that God should speak to them, except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger to reveal by his permission whatsoever He will."
Mohammed certainly believed in Jesus as a prophet of God, and even referred to him as the Messiah, which was a unique title given to the one who would come to set men free!
And yet Mohammed considered Jesus as just another prophet of God, like himself, firmly believing that no man could ever be the son of God.
So, what were the manifestations of God like through the life of the religious leader Mohammed?
Were there examples of divine healing, or any casting out of devils? Did he Muhammad display any of the miracles that God historically demonstrated to reveal himself to his people? Any voices from heaven that all present could hear? Any burning bushes? Plagues, utter darkness, toads, pillar of fire, parting of rivers?
How about the message which Muhammad proclaimed was given by an angel of God?
I can tell you for sure, God does not change. He has no need to, and he declared this about himself many times. So, whoever he gives a message to, it will always line up with what he has said in the past. Even Jesus' teachings line up perfectly with the teachings of the former prophets of the Bible, and he was very clear that he was not here to undo one teaching of God, nor the law he had given.
Knowing that he was dealing with men who relied largely on what their senses tell us, God was always willing to confirm His presence and truths with tangible signs and wonders, audible and visual demonstrations confirming his agreement with what was being told. In other words, miracles.
So if what Mohammed spoke and wrote about were from God, as he indicated he believed it was, it would have to line up perfectly with what was given to the prophets before him, particularly since he acknowledges these prophets in his own writings.
And, knowing how easily his word could be challenged, God would have given some tangible manifestation to confirm His word, signs and wonders, indicating that He is behind the words being delivered. Since God did these miracles through Jesus to confirm Jesus' teachings were genuine and from Him, why not at least do the same through Muhammad?
Let's consider again what Jesus said: "He that believes and acknowledges that I am the Son of God shall be saved, and shall inherit eternal life. He that does not believe shall not even see life, but the wrath of God shall be upon him". (John 17:3, John 3:36)
And also, "No one comes to the Father except by Me". (John 14:6)
The Islamic book of Quran even acknowledges Jesus as having been born of a virgin, exclusively by Allah's will. And yet in complete error, it strictly will not allow for Jesus, or any man, to be called the Son of God/Allah.
The apostle John, one of the twelve disciples who walked with Jesus during his earthly ministry, wrote "For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever would believe in Him shall not perish, and he shall inherit everlasting life" (John 3:16)
This "believing" in Jesus as the son of God means more than believing in Him historically. It means believing His very teachings, of whom the apostle John was a direct witness!
John, Mathew, Mark, Peter and Luke were all Jewish men, and who walked with Jesus daily during the several years of His ministry on earth. They were there when He was crucified on the cross. They were witnesses to His death and burial in the tomb.
They saw the empty tomb after Jesus had been removed from there by God, having been sent into the depths of Hell, where He remained for three days, as a sacrificial, "once for all", payment for the penalty for all mankind's sin.
These same Jews were present in a locked meeting room when Jesus, having ascended from Hell victorious over death, and being exalted by God into Heaven as Lord over all creation, entered that locked room and stood among His followers to continue teaching these men on what was to come. (John 20:19)
These are the very men who wrote of what they saw and heard, and their separate writings all fit together and corroborate the truth of what occurred.
Jesus taught, "By the testimony of two or three witnesses shall every truth be established" (Matthew 18) The prophets and writers over the many generations of Jewish history, all corroborate the truth of which they speak, and all were in an active relationship with the living God of creation.
The writers of the biblical "New Testament", were all of Jewish descent, and all corroborated each others writings. They also all corroborated what was declared by the former prophets of God from Judaic history, all those who came before Jesus and who foretold of His future arrival and purpose.
I am a witness to you that by my own biblical understanding, the Old and New Testaments of the Bible agree perfectly, and are a linear, unfolding story, even including the prophecies of what is still to come. And all the Biblical writings are given under the inspiration of God.
All of these writers were witnesses to the goodness and love of God toward mankind, and of His consistent beneficial nature revealed in His interaction with mankind. They had all interacted with God directly, specifically through His son Jesus, whom God has sent into the world to reveal Himself to us as fully as is possible in this natural realm.
Jesus declared, "If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father!" (John 14:9)
God declared through the Hebrew prophet Malachi, "I am the Lord thy God, and I change not"
The Quran also mentions John the Baptist, the man of God present in Jesus' time who foretold of Jesus' coming. Those who were present when Jesus went to be baptized by John, describe what they saw and heard: "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16)
And yet, the Quran, while acknowledging both John the Baptist and Jesus as men of God, declares that there could not be a Son of God, and that God would not ever have a Son of His own. (Quran chapter 112)
This disputes the very words spoken by both John and Jesus, also witnessed by the Jewish masses who were there with them and also experiencing these miracles of God.
Muhammad, the Arab leader and founder of Islam, directed the writing of the Quran, but without a direct corroboration of what he wrote about. His understanding was a result of travelling throughout the middle eastern region, areas adjacent to the Mediterranean Sea, researching the teachings that had been passed down from generation to generation.
The Quran is more of an independent work.
The Quran references many historical occurrences that Biblical writers had previously revealed. But only a few select facts, so that what is "not" revealed, along with what has been added by the writers, make it a vague shadow of the reality of the Bible, and fully a substitute of the truth that God had already revealed to the very men whom the Quran writers speak so highly of...
The teachings of the prophet Muhammad, the main author of the Quran, are the fundamentals of the principles of Islam. Muhammad was born in 570 AD, or nearly six centuries after Jesus, to a generation following a line originating with biblical prophet Abraham (Ibrahim in Arab).
According to the Jewish writings, God promised Abraham a child when Abraham and his wife were getting old and did not have a child to leave their inheritance to. Abraham waited on God to deliver on His promise, but eventually, when his wife Sarah was still seemingly barren, and they were both getting too old, as Abraham was nearly 86 years old, they chose to take matters into their own hands.
Abraham impregnated Sarah's maid-servant Hagar, but this soon caused Sarah regret and she sent Hagar away. In the wilderness, Hagar cried out to God, and an angel appeared unto her.
The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority.” Then he added, “I will give you more descendants than you can count.”
Then the angel also said to Hagar, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son.
You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress. This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.”
Hagar did as the LORD instructed. She returned to Abraham's household, and she had a male child named Ishmael.And while this child was born of Abraham's seed, and was the beginning of a line of descendants that Hagar could not count, this was not the generations whom the Lord would make His covenant with. (Genesis 17)
Then God said to Abraham, “Regarding Sarai, your wife—her name will no longer be Sarai. From now on her name will be Sarah. And I will bless her and give you a son from her! Yes, I will bless her richly, and she will become the mother of many nations. Kings of nations will be among her descendants.”
Then Abraham bowed down to the ground, but he laughed to himself in disbelief. “How could I become a father at the age of 100?” he thought. “And how can Sarah have a baby when she is ninety years old?” So Abraham said to God, “May Ishmael live under your special blessing?”
But God replied, “No—Sarah, your wife, will give birth to a son for you. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my covenant with him and his descendants as an everlasting covenant. As for Ishmael, I will bless him also, just as you have asked. I will make him extremely fruitful and multiply his descendants (Arabs). He will become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will be confirmed with Isaac, who will be born to you and Sarah about this time next year.” When God had finished speaking, he left Abraham." (Genesis 16)
In the correct time, Sarah did bear Abraham's son, the one whom the Lord would bless through His covenant for all generations to come, and he was named Isaac. It is through their son Isaac that God's covenant promises of durable power and riches and protection would be divinely fulfilled. Princes would come from the descendants of Ishmael, but kings would come out of the descendants of Isaac.
Isaac also had a son, who he named Jacob, and whose name was changed by God to be "Israel".(Genesis 32:28) Israel also had twelve sons, and one of those sons born to his first wife was named Judah.
Historically, Jesus, referred to by the Jews of that time as the King of kings, is a descendant of Judah, the forty-second generation from Abraham. Jesus is also the only direct descendant of God, as his mother Mary was impregnated by the Holy Spirit of God. She had not yet been intimate with her husband-to-be Joseph. (Matthew 1:18)
Therefore, it is only through Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, that the doorway for all men to come to God and be reconciled has been established. (John 14:6)
Our path to righteousness and eternal life is not through Abraham, nor through Mohammed, nor any mere human, even if they were a prophet sent by God.
Righteousness can not even be obtained through our keeping God's laws! If it were, then why would it be necessary to offer sacrifices to God regularly for our sins?
No, righteousness can only be gained through the Son of God, Jesus the Messiah, who now sits at the right hand of God as Lord of all creation.
Remember that Jesus not only talked to us about God, He actually revealed God to us: Jesus declared "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father" (John 14:9)
So in God's eyes, Islam is not equivalent, and certainly not superior, to Christianity. It's very teachings are not in line with what God has consistently and openly revealed to men over thousands of years. And remember what God has already declared through His prophet Malachi: "I AM the Lord thy God, and I change not"
Again, consider that Jesus declared "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me" (John 14:6)
Muslims believe that Muhammad was the final prophet of God.
The problem here is, Muhammad's teachings don't line up with what Jesus and those before Him taught about God. The consistency throughout thousands of years of Biblical history, including both the Old and New Testaments, is because the truths were given through men by the inspiration of God's Holy Spirit, Who also changes not.
God, His Spirit and His Son are all to be considered one and the same! They all agree perfectly, and they operate as One, in exact accord and without changing.
In them there is no darkness and there is only truth.
They are all powerful,being the ultimate authority, and they are always good toward us!
Hebrew and Christian beliefs are founded on and confirmed by tangible experiences of God, and not just by an ideology based on a few known historical facts.
God is always willing to confirm His truth with signs and wonders, as He always has!
"So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and powerful arm, with overwhelming terror, and with miraculous signs and wonders." (Deuteronomy 26:8)
"He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.” (Daniel 6:27)
“People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know." (Acts 2:22)
"But the apostles stayed there a long time, preaching boldly about the grace of the Lord. And the Lord proved their message was true by giving them power to do miraculous signs and wonders." (Acts 14:3)
"And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose." (Hebrews 2:4)
وَالَّذينَ كَفَروا وَكَذَّبوا بِآياتِنا أُولٰئِكَ أَصحابُ النّارِ ۖ هُم فيها (Quran 2:39)
Here is the English interpretation of the above verse, in the context of Allah supposedly speaking to the Arab people: "But those who are faithless and deny Our signs, they shall be the inmates of the Fire, and they shall remain in it [forever]."
So, in case anyone out there is still spiritually asleep, believing that Islam is a gentle religious lamb, with a few radicals stirring up trouble in remote lands, realize that the ideals which all Muslim followers believe in, including Boko Harem, are the basic tenets of Islamic teaching.
Worldwide, there is an ever increasing population of Muslims in traditionally non-Muslim countries, including America. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_by_country
With the Islamic population growing in America, and European countries, whose fundamental teachings call for Muslims to be against non-Muslims, and especially against Jews, we should all be concerned and aware of the Islamic agenda playing out globally, as it is increasing here on our own soil.
Here in 2019, we now have members elected to our US House of Representatives who condemn Israel, and speak openly against the Jewish people and even against all who support Israel. I will caution them to respect the fact that God has declared an everlasting covenant with His people, these descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Israel.
God will honor His covenant. He has certainly not fallen asleep, nor turned a blind eye or deaf ear to their persecution.
Anyone who doubts God's willingness to stand with His covenant people against persecutors should count the number of times God's people were saved by Him from harm and destruction, always against seemingly impossible odds!
And so, Islam is not just another religion like Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism or Hinduism.
The Quran adherents call for the intolerance of non-Islamic beliefs, and there is interpretation by some that it mandates the conversion or else forceful elimination of all who do not share Islamic beliefs.
In comparison, Christianity has two basic laws affirmed as primary by Christ: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as you do yourself. If you do not take these mandates as critical, then you are not a true Christian and you do not know God!
If you truly know God, you know His love for us, and you have that same love in you.
In Christianity, the destruction of unbelievers is left up to God to carry out in His time.
Our understanding is that God wants all unbelievers to have every chance, up to their last breath, to receive Jesus as Lord, knowing Him as the only begotten Son of God, trusting in Him as our only pathway into eternal life.
Jesus declared that we are already condemned to eternal death and destruction, but given hope and eternal life through our faith in Him.
We Christians are all appointed as God's ambassadors to represent Him with our expression of love toward others... Because love is the true witness of who God is.
Those who receive our love also receive Him.Those who reject our love, which is the love of God in us, reject Him and do not even know Him! (1John 4:8)
Islamic teachings might sound promising, and even similar to other religions on the surface. Some could point out the intolerance and extremism of Christians over the centuries.
Of course there have been, and will continue to be, people who misinterpret the various teachings, religious and otherwise, that they follow.
Sure, some Muslims may not take the teachings of their faith so seriously as to want to enforce the dictates of their prophet Muhammad, not yet at least.
I can assure you that there are also many Christians who go to church regularly, but who cannot even quote a single statement that Jesus made, let alone consider themselves His ambassador on this earth.
But of the 2.5 to 7+ million Muslims just in America today, watching us as we militarily, politically and spiritually engage their Islamic brethren around the globe daily, how long will they remain at peace with Christians here?
Take a look at what is happening in European countries today. In Germany, the increase of Islamist members has raised significant concerns. http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3715/germany-islam-christianity
Britain is facing similar trouble with the the influx of Islamist members.
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4112/islamization-britain
Reports are that citizens are now resisting the rising tide of Muslims in their countries, concerned about the dangers of Muslim extremists strengthening in their lands, and becoming influential as lawful members of their societies.
The peace and security we all come to expect in America is being forfeited by the liberal minded and spiritually weak politicians who are continuing to watch, along with the rest of us, our own borders become a free flowing avenue for anyone to come in and make themselves welcome, without adhering to the responsible controls put in place by prior lawmakers, rules meant to defend and maintain our great nation's values.
Imagine what the growing influence of Islamic thinkers could have on our society in the future!
Look at any Islamic/Muslim ideology ruled nation on earth today: Turkey, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Algeria, Iran, Egypt, Libya, Palestine, etc., any country where the majority of political/social influence is Islamic. Why would any Muslim want to leave any one of those traditionally Muslim societies and insert themselves into these traditionally Judeo/Christian cultures?
Of course, we are largely tolerant of all religions, and our laws support that position. We believe that it is every person's right to worship who they please, and as they please. And we should always welcome anyone who is willing to stand with us to uphold the traditions, principles and freedoms we hold so dearly, and which have made us the greatest nation in the history of mankind.
But, we should not want the structure of laws and ideals maintained by Muslim nations to modify our government and society here in America! Could we be any better off as a society ruled by a dictatorship with the intolerant values apparent in those aforementioned examples?
I am sure we would not. But if you disagree, then I would only ask you then choose to live in a nation that most closely aligns with your own ideals, and leave America what it was always meant to be, a land of free people, putting our foremost trust in God and His Son Jesus.
I choose to keep the belief system that America was founded upon, which has made us the greatest nation ever known: One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Our belief system and laws are most certainly founded on the Christian tenets of freedom, love, and a mutual trust in the Creator of all things availing Himself to us for guidance, prosperity and protection. Our God-given system of beliefs has certainly worked out far better for people around the world than the benefits offered historically by predominately Muslim nations.
Oh, and one more difference to point out. Muslim men apparently believe that the reward they earn for their terror and sacrifice in this life, is to be sexually united with virgins in the next life.
Well, Jesus teaches "For in the resurrected state neither do [men] marry nor are [women] given in marriage, but they are like the angels in heaven". (Matthew 22:30)
And Paul, a Christian who established much of the original churches for Jesus, and who wrote many of the letters in the New Testament Bible, declared something complimentary:
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28)
So, there is a vast difference in what the two religions teach about the rewards awaiting us in the next life, and they cannot both be correct.
A few years ago in Sudan, a Muslim country in Africa, a Christian woman was sentenced by law to be put to death for not renouncing her Christian beliefs!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariam_Yahia_Ibrahim_Ishag
Again, this is an example of modern Arab nations following Islamic teaching, and upholding Sharia (Islamic) law...
In contrast to Islamic beliefs, Christianity has a heart of tolerance, compassion, caring, generosity, patience and love! This is why we do not harass and reject Muslims who choose to come and work beside us toward mutual goals.
Let me point out a fundamental truth about Christianity that really sets us apart from others.
When any person accepts the truth of Jesus into their heart, they instantly are united spiritually with God, our Creator, and his own Spirit abides with that person's heart. That is His promise to each of us who choose to believe in what He has done!
This makes sense spiritually, since God is a Spirit and we are made in His image. (Gen. 1:27)
One religion(Islam) looks at things from the natural, carnal point of view, and the other (Christianity) looks at things from the spiritual, heavenly point of view.
Which future makes more sense as revealing the true intent of God, who himself is a Spirit and not a mere man?
Jesus tells us that if someone is not for us, then they are against us. (Luke 9:50)
If someone is not being influenced by God, then they are subject to influence by the devil.
But we are assured by Jesus that if we "resist the devil he will flee". (James 4:7)
That is good news. But, the only effective resistance to the devil's lies is God's truth.
God wants that none would perish. We are each called to line up with God's thinking on this.
Christians are here to reveal the love nature of God, and to resist all evil.
Jesus declared "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13:34)
Revealing God through the demonstration of His love is our command from God, as this will allow non-believers to see Him as love. In this, they might believe in His Son Jesus, the Savior of men... and become born from above and saved.
And then the will of God, even the desire of His heart toward mankind, will come to pass...Heaven on earth!
Thank you for your patience demonstrated in reading this message.
Amen!
So please read through to the end.
The Islamic group Boko Haram, whose translated name means "Western education is forbidden", is responsible for the kidnapping of hundreds of school children in Nigeria.
Their leader, Abukar Shekau, tells us "You people should understand that we only obey Allah, we tread the path of the Prophet. We hope to die on this path ... Our goal is the garden of eternal bliss," he says.
He goes on to say that "Boko Haram is interested only in "battle, hitting, striking and killing with the gun, which we look forward to like a tasty meal," he said.
http://fxn.ws/1zqgbd9
Extreme as that may sound, you have to realize that this group is still fundamentally Islamic.
They believe they follow the teachings of Muhammad, who they consider to be a prophet of Allah. That belief is what makes Islam the religion that it is, it's common thread uniting Islamic believers.
It is important for us to realize that "Allah" of Islam is the same supreme being and Creator of creation that the Jews (YHWH) and Christians (God the Father) believe in and are called to worship. And as you will read below, the very roots of Islam, Judaism and Christianity all trace back to Abraham, the "father of faith", somewhere around the year 1800 BC.
There is definitely only one Supreme Being, a singular Creator of all of creation.
He is not an unproven concept or ideal, as might be found in other religions.
God, our Creator, the Father of Jesus Christ, has tangibly manifested Himself unto men since the beginning of mankind. And, our God is a self-declared jealous God. (Exodus 20:5)
He wants man, and all of creation, to worship Him with love and honor.
Our God deserves this level of honor, and is right to demand this of us.
God is good, He is also love, and His word is always and forever true and unchanging. (Matthew 19:17, 1John 4:8, Psalm 119:160)
Acknowledging His existence and Supreme nature is the common ground between these three prominent religions.However, the central distinction between these three religions is the belief about God's will, His plan and His law of righteousness set forth toward mankind.
And our belief about His law of righteousness, or what God requires of a person to be in right standing with Him, is really what distinguishes each major religion.
Once we believe in God's existence, we all ask the same basic questions: "What does God desire from me, and what benefit does He promise me if I seek to do His will?"
Righteousness, or right-standing with God, is what we each seek after when we adhere to religious beliefs.
Muslims see their righteousness earned from following the teachings of their prophet Muhammad, the Arab religious leader who founded the nation of Islam in the early 600 CE/AD period of history.
Jews see their righteousness as coming from a direct lineage to Abraham, and their keeping the covenant laws as directed by God, given to them through the prophets Abraham and Moses.
Christians see our righteousness only coming freely by God, through a personal choice to believe in our heart that Jesus, being the only Son of God, gave up His own life to restore our relationship with God. His sinless life and sacrificial death as a man purchased the total forgiveness for the sin nature of all men, a once-for-all payment applied to all who believe in Him.
Therefore indicating that righteousness is not something to be earned by our own works, but rather only by our believing in Him, and receiving what God accomplished for us through this living sacrifice.
The Islamic Quran, authored largely by Muhammad, who indicated that it was given to him by God through an angel called Gabriel, acknowledges Jesus as a prophet of God, equating Him with Abraham. But nowhere in these teachings is Jesus acknowledged as the Son of God.
The Quran speaks of Jesus many times throughout the writings, even referring to Him as the Messiah, or Christ.
According to Wikipedia:Muslims believe the Quran to be the final revelation of Allah to man, and a completion and confirmation of previous scriptures. Despite the primacy that Muslims place upon the Quran as Allah's final word, Islam speaks of respecting all the previous scriptures, and belief in all the revealed books is an article of faith in Islam.
Among the books considered to be revealed, the four mentioned by name in the Quran are the Tawrat (Torah) revealed to Musa(Moses), the Zabur revealed to Dawud (David), the Injil (Gospel) revealed to Isa (Jesus), and the Quran revealed to Muhammad.
Many of the Jews who saw Jesus's works and heard His words, agreed that He was truly their "Messiah", whom the prophets foretold would come. John, the baptizer who called fellow Jews to repentance, and performed ceremonial washing in the river Jordan, prophesied Jesus' coming and announced the arrival of the Messiah when He first saw Jesus appear.
The title of Messiah, which through the Greek language rendering into English became "Christ", actually describes the One who the Jewish prophets of old declared will come to set men free. (Daniel 9:25)
Jesus declared, "If the Son sets you free, then you are truly free!" (John 8:36)
So, while the Jewish prophets over the centuries declared that the Messiah was to come, and the Muslims agree that Jesus was a prophet sent by God, only the Christians believe that this Messiah, the Christ whose coming was foretold by prophets, has indeed come in the person of Jesus (Yeshua, Isa). And, that Jesus, the begotten Son of God, is the only doorway to eternal life and righteousness that God has provided to us!
Jesus made this crystal clear when He declared: "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me! He who trusts in the Son shall have eternal life.
Whoever does not trust in Me shall not see life, but the wrath of God shall abide upon him."
Our Creator has always had a plan for reconciling all of mankind to Himself and restoring a loving relationship with us after the earlier fall of mankind. God chose people who kept their trust in Him, through whom He could carry out his plan of redemption. The lineage of these people of faith goes back to Adam, and includes historically notable figures such as Noah, Elijah, Abraham, his grandson Jacob (who became Israel), King David and Moses.
There are fourteen generations from Abraham to King David, fourteen from David to the Babylonian exile, and fourteen from the exile to the Messiah Jesus, a true descendant of David and Abraham.
Jesus' own declarations, along with the accompanying demonstrations of God's power and authority manifest through Him, were documented by those Jews whom He walked with and taught directly. His followers composed the writings about their experiences of Jesus, and further teachings toward fellow believers, which became what we call the New Testament Bible.
Healing, casting out devils, walking on water, complete authority over natural forces, being the voice of God... These were the continued and frequent revelations of Jesus' heavenly deity!
None of the religious leaders of His day were accustomed to seeing such miracles, or hearing such truths. Many of them did not believe that Jesus was even sent to them from God. They saw and heard his power and authority, only to accuse him of belonging to the devil
Jesus declared to them that He was sent from God.
"But I have a greater witness than John—my teachings and my miracles. The Father gave me these works to accomplish, and they prove that He sent me". (John 5:36)
So, of the three major religions originating with the father of faith, Abraham (Ibrahim), only Christianity believes what Jesus the Christ declared about himself and his Father, our God. And, through our belief in Jesus as being the son of God, we are given the Holy Spirit to dwell within us, as guide and teacher of God's ways, equipping us with power and authority to be used for good purposes in this world, then ushering us into the eternal life we are now promised.
The Islamic Quran seems to firmly oppose this level of faith, stating in 42:41 that "It is not for any mortal that God should speak to them, except by revelation, or from behind a veil, or by sending a messenger to reveal by his permission whatsoever He will."
Mohammed certainly believed in Jesus as a prophet of God, and even referred to him as the Messiah, which was a unique title given to the one who would come to set men free!
And yet Mohammed considered Jesus as just another prophet of God, like himself, firmly believing that no man could ever be the son of God.
So, what were the manifestations of God like through the life of the religious leader Mohammed?
Were there examples of divine healing, or any casting out of devils? Did he Muhammad display any of the miracles that God historically demonstrated to reveal himself to his people? Any voices from heaven that all present could hear? Any burning bushes? Plagues, utter darkness, toads, pillar of fire, parting of rivers?
How about the message which Muhammad proclaimed was given by an angel of God?
I can tell you for sure, God does not change. He has no need to, and he declared this about himself many times. So, whoever he gives a message to, it will always line up with what he has said in the past. Even Jesus' teachings line up perfectly with the teachings of the former prophets of the Bible, and he was very clear that he was not here to undo one teaching of God, nor the law he had given.
Knowing that he was dealing with men who relied largely on what their senses tell us, God was always willing to confirm His presence and truths with tangible signs and wonders, audible and visual demonstrations confirming his agreement with what was being told. In other words, miracles.
So if what Mohammed spoke and wrote about were from God, as he indicated he believed it was, it would have to line up perfectly with what was given to the prophets before him, particularly since he acknowledges these prophets in his own writings.
And, knowing how easily his word could be challenged, God would have given some tangible manifestation to confirm His word, signs and wonders, indicating that He is behind the words being delivered. Since God did these miracles through Jesus to confirm Jesus' teachings were genuine and from Him, why not at least do the same through Muhammad?
Let's consider again what Jesus said: "He that believes and acknowledges that I am the Son of God shall be saved, and shall inherit eternal life. He that does not believe shall not even see life, but the wrath of God shall be upon him". (John 17:3, John 3:36)
And also, "No one comes to the Father except by Me". (John 14:6)
The Islamic book of Quran even acknowledges Jesus as having been born of a virgin, exclusively by Allah's will. And yet in complete error, it strictly will not allow for Jesus, or any man, to be called the Son of God/Allah.
The apostle John, one of the twelve disciples who walked with Jesus during his earthly ministry, wrote "For God so loved the world that He sent His only begotten Son, that whosoever would believe in Him shall not perish, and he shall inherit everlasting life" (John 3:16)
This "believing" in Jesus as the son of God means more than believing in Him historically. It means believing His very teachings, of whom the apostle John was a direct witness!
John, Mathew, Mark, Peter and Luke were all Jewish men, and who walked with Jesus daily during the several years of His ministry on earth. They were there when He was crucified on the cross. They were witnesses to His death and burial in the tomb.
They saw the empty tomb after Jesus had been removed from there by God, having been sent into the depths of Hell, where He remained for three days, as a sacrificial, "once for all", payment for the penalty for all mankind's sin.
These same Jews were present in a locked meeting room when Jesus, having ascended from Hell victorious over death, and being exalted by God into Heaven as Lord over all creation, entered that locked room and stood among His followers to continue teaching these men on what was to come. (John 20:19)
These are the very men who wrote of what they saw and heard, and their separate writings all fit together and corroborate the truth of what occurred.
Jesus taught, "By the testimony of two or three witnesses shall every truth be established" (Matthew 18) The prophets and writers over the many generations of Jewish history, all corroborate the truth of which they speak, and all were in an active relationship with the living God of creation.
The writers of the biblical "New Testament", were all of Jewish descent, and all corroborated each others writings. They also all corroborated what was declared by the former prophets of God from Judaic history, all those who came before Jesus and who foretold of His future arrival and purpose.
I am a witness to you that by my own biblical understanding, the Old and New Testaments of the Bible agree perfectly, and are a linear, unfolding story, even including the prophecies of what is still to come. And all the Biblical writings are given under the inspiration of God.
All of these writers were witnesses to the goodness and love of God toward mankind, and of His consistent beneficial nature revealed in His interaction with mankind. They had all interacted with God directly, specifically through His son Jesus, whom God has sent into the world to reveal Himself to us as fully as is possible in this natural realm.
Jesus declared, "If you have seen Me, you have seen the Father!" (John 14:9)
God declared through the Hebrew prophet Malachi, "I am the Lord thy God, and I change not"
The Quran also mentions John the Baptist, the man of God present in Jesus' time who foretold of Jesus' coming. Those who were present when Jesus went to be baptized by John, describe what they saw and heard: "And Jesus, when he was baptized, went up straightway out of the water: and, lo, the heavens were opened unto him, and he saw the Spirit of God descending like a dove, and lighting upon him: And lo a voice from heaven, saying, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased." (Matthew 3:16)
And yet, the Quran, while acknowledging both John the Baptist and Jesus as men of God, declares that there could not be a Son of God, and that God would not ever have a Son of His own. (Quran chapter 112)
This disputes the very words spoken by both John and Jesus, also witnessed by the Jewish masses who were there with them and also experiencing these miracles of God.
Muhammad, the Arab leader and founder of Islam, directed the writing of the Quran, but without a direct corroboration of what he wrote about. His understanding was a result of travelling throughout the middle eastern region, areas adjacent to the Mediterranean Sea, researching the teachings that had been passed down from generation to generation.
The Quran is more of an independent work.
The Quran references many historical occurrences that Biblical writers had previously revealed. But only a few select facts, so that what is "not" revealed, along with what has been added by the writers, make it a vague shadow of the reality of the Bible, and fully a substitute of the truth that God had already revealed to the very men whom the Quran writers speak so highly of...
The teachings of the prophet Muhammad, the main author of the Quran, are the fundamentals of the principles of Islam. Muhammad was born in 570 AD, or nearly six centuries after Jesus, to a generation following a line originating with biblical prophet Abraham (Ibrahim in Arab).
According to the Jewish writings, God promised Abraham a child when Abraham and his wife were getting old and did not have a child to leave their inheritance to. Abraham waited on God to deliver on His promise, but eventually, when his wife Sarah was still seemingly barren, and they were both getting too old, as Abraham was nearly 86 years old, they chose to take matters into their own hands.
Abraham impregnated Sarah's maid-servant Hagar, but this soon caused Sarah regret and she sent Hagar away. In the wilderness, Hagar cried out to God, and an angel appeared unto her.
The angel of the Lord said to her, “Return to your mistress, and submit to her authority.” Then he added, “I will give you more descendants than you can count.”
Then the angel also said to Hagar, “You are now pregnant and will give birth to a son.
You are to name him Ishmael (which means ‘God hears’), for the Lord has heard your cry of distress. This son of yours will be a wild man, as untamed as a wild donkey! He will raise his fist against everyone, and everyone will be against him. Yes, he will live in open hostility against all his relatives.”
Hagar did as the LORD instructed. She returned to Abraham's household, and she had a male child named Ishmael.And while this child was born of Abraham's seed, and was the beginning of a line of descendants that Hagar could not count, this was not the generations whom the Lord would make His covenant with. (Genesis 17)
Then God said to Abraham, “Regarding Sarai, your wife—her name will no longer be Sarai. From now on her name will be Sarah. And I will bless her and give you a son from her! Yes, I will bless her richly, and she will become the mother of many nations. Kings of nations will be among her descendants.”
Then Abraham bowed down to the ground, but he laughed to himself in disbelief. “How could I become a father at the age of 100?” he thought. “And how can Sarah have a baby when she is ninety years old?” So Abraham said to God, “May Ishmael live under your special blessing?”
But God replied, “No—Sarah, your wife, will give birth to a son for you. You will name him Isaac, and I will confirm my covenant with him and his descendants as an everlasting covenant. As for Ishmael, I will bless him also, just as you have asked. I will make him extremely fruitful and multiply his descendants (Arabs). He will become the father of twelve princes, and I will make him a great nation. But my covenant will be confirmed with Isaac, who will be born to you and Sarah about this time next year.” When God had finished speaking, he left Abraham." (Genesis 16)
In the correct time, Sarah did bear Abraham's son, the one whom the Lord would bless through His covenant for all generations to come, and he was named Isaac. It is through their son Isaac that God's covenant promises of durable power and riches and protection would be divinely fulfilled. Princes would come from the descendants of Ishmael, but kings would come out of the descendants of Isaac.
Isaac also had a son, who he named Jacob, and whose name was changed by God to be "Israel".(Genesis 32:28) Israel also had twelve sons, and one of those sons born to his first wife was named Judah.
Historically, Jesus, referred to by the Jews of that time as the King of kings, is a descendant of Judah, the forty-second generation from Abraham. Jesus is also the only direct descendant of God, as his mother Mary was impregnated by the Holy Spirit of God. She had not yet been intimate with her husband-to-be Joseph. (Matthew 1:18)
Therefore, it is only through Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, that the doorway for all men to come to God and be reconciled has been established. (John 14:6)
Our path to righteousness and eternal life is not through Abraham, nor through Mohammed, nor any mere human, even if they were a prophet sent by God.
Righteousness can not even be obtained through our keeping God's laws! If it were, then why would it be necessary to offer sacrifices to God regularly for our sins?
No, righteousness can only be gained through the Son of God, Jesus the Messiah, who now sits at the right hand of God as Lord of all creation.
Remember that Jesus not only talked to us about God, He actually revealed God to us: Jesus declared "If you have seen me, you have seen the Father" (John 14:9)
So in God's eyes, Islam is not equivalent, and certainly not superior, to Christianity. It's very teachings are not in line with what God has consistently and openly revealed to men over thousands of years. And remember what God has already declared through His prophet Malachi: "I AM the Lord thy God, and I change not"
Again, consider that Jesus declared "I am the way, the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except by me" (John 14:6)
Muslims believe that Muhammad was the final prophet of God.
The problem here is, Muhammad's teachings don't line up with what Jesus and those before Him taught about God. The consistency throughout thousands of years of Biblical history, including both the Old and New Testaments, is because the truths were given through men by the inspiration of God's Holy Spirit, Who also changes not.
God, His Spirit and His Son are all to be considered one and the same! They all agree perfectly, and they operate as One, in exact accord and without changing.
In them there is no darkness and there is only truth.
They are all powerful,being the ultimate authority, and they are always good toward us!
Hebrew and Christian beliefs are founded on and confirmed by tangible experiences of God, and not just by an ideology based on a few known historical facts.
God is always willing to confirm His truth with signs and wonders, as He always has!
"So the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a strong hand and powerful arm, with overwhelming terror, and with miraculous signs and wonders." (Deuteronomy 26:8)
"He rescues and saves his people; he performs miraculous signs and wonders in the heavens and on earth. He has rescued Daniel from the power of the lions.” (Daniel 6:27)
“People of Israel, listen! God publicly endorsed Jesus the Nazarene by doing powerful miracles, wonders, and signs through him, as you well know." (Acts 2:22)
"But the apostles stayed there a long time, preaching boldly about the grace of the Lord. And the Lord proved their message was true by giving them power to do miraculous signs and wonders." (Acts 14:3)
"And God confirmed the message by giving signs and wonders and various miracles and gifts of the Holy Spirit whenever he chose." (Hebrews 2:4)
وَالَّذينَ كَفَروا وَكَذَّبوا بِآياتِنا أُولٰئِكَ أَصحابُ النّارِ ۖ هُم فيها (Quran 2:39)
Here is the English interpretation of the above verse, in the context of Allah supposedly speaking to the Arab people: "But those who are faithless and deny Our signs, they shall be the inmates of the Fire, and they shall remain in it [forever]."
So, in case anyone out there is still spiritually asleep, believing that Islam is a gentle religious lamb, with a few radicals stirring up trouble in remote lands, realize that the ideals which all Muslim followers believe in, including Boko Harem, are the basic tenets of Islamic teaching.
Worldwide, there is an ever increasing population of Muslims in traditionally non-Muslim countries, including America. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Islam_by_country
With the Islamic population growing in America, and European countries, whose fundamental teachings call for Muslims to be against non-Muslims, and especially against Jews, we should all be concerned and aware of the Islamic agenda playing out globally, as it is increasing here on our own soil.
Here in 2019, we now have members elected to our US House of Representatives who condemn Israel, and speak openly against the Jewish people and even against all who support Israel. I will caution them to respect the fact that God has declared an everlasting covenant with His people, these descendants of Abraham, Isaac and Israel.
God will honor His covenant. He has certainly not fallen asleep, nor turned a blind eye or deaf ear to their persecution.
Anyone who doubts God's willingness to stand with His covenant people against persecutors should count the number of times God's people were saved by Him from harm and destruction, always against seemingly impossible odds!
And so, Islam is not just another religion like Christianity, Judaism, Buddhism or Hinduism.
The Quran adherents call for the intolerance of non-Islamic beliefs, and there is interpretation by some that it mandates the conversion or else forceful elimination of all who do not share Islamic beliefs.
In comparison, Christianity has two basic laws affirmed as primary by Christ: Love the Lord your God with all your heart, and love your neighbor as you do yourself. If you do not take these mandates as critical, then you are not a true Christian and you do not know God!
If you truly know God, you know His love for us, and you have that same love in you.
In Christianity, the destruction of unbelievers is left up to God to carry out in His time.
Our understanding is that God wants all unbelievers to have every chance, up to their last breath, to receive Jesus as Lord, knowing Him as the only begotten Son of God, trusting in Him as our only pathway into eternal life.
Jesus declared that we are already condemned to eternal death and destruction, but given hope and eternal life through our faith in Him.
We Christians are all appointed as God's ambassadors to represent Him with our expression of love toward others... Because love is the true witness of who God is.
Those who receive our love also receive Him.Those who reject our love, which is the love of God in us, reject Him and do not even know Him! (1John 4:8)
Islamic teachings might sound promising, and even similar to other religions on the surface. Some could point out the intolerance and extremism of Christians over the centuries.
Of course there have been, and will continue to be, people who misinterpret the various teachings, religious and otherwise, that they follow.
Sure, some Muslims may not take the teachings of their faith so seriously as to want to enforce the dictates of their prophet Muhammad, not yet at least.
I can assure you that there are also many Christians who go to church regularly, but who cannot even quote a single statement that Jesus made, let alone consider themselves His ambassador on this earth.
But of the 2.5 to 7+ million Muslims just in America today, watching us as we militarily, politically and spiritually engage their Islamic brethren around the globe daily, how long will they remain at peace with Christians here?
Take a look at what is happening in European countries today. In Germany, the increase of Islamist members has raised significant concerns. http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/3715/germany-islam-christianity
Britain is facing similar trouble with the the influx of Islamist members.
http://www.gatestoneinstitute.org/4112/islamization-britain
Reports are that citizens are now resisting the rising tide of Muslims in their countries, concerned about the dangers of Muslim extremists strengthening in their lands, and becoming influential as lawful members of their societies.
The peace and security we all come to expect in America is being forfeited by the liberal minded and spiritually weak politicians who are continuing to watch, along with the rest of us, our own borders become a free flowing avenue for anyone to come in and make themselves welcome, without adhering to the responsible controls put in place by prior lawmakers, rules meant to defend and maintain our great nation's values.
Imagine what the growing influence of Islamic thinkers could have on our society in the future!
Look at any Islamic/Muslim ideology ruled nation on earth today: Turkey, Nigeria, Afghanistan, Algeria, Iran, Egypt, Libya, Palestine, etc., any country where the majority of political/social influence is Islamic. Why would any Muslim want to leave any one of those traditionally Muslim societies and insert themselves into these traditionally Judeo/Christian cultures?
Of course, we are largely tolerant of all religions, and our laws support that position. We believe that it is every person's right to worship who they please, and as they please. And we should always welcome anyone who is willing to stand with us to uphold the traditions, principles and freedoms we hold so dearly, and which have made us the greatest nation in the history of mankind.
But, we should not want the structure of laws and ideals maintained by Muslim nations to modify our government and society here in America! Could we be any better off as a society ruled by a dictatorship with the intolerant values apparent in those aforementioned examples?
I am sure we would not. But if you disagree, then I would only ask you then choose to live in a nation that most closely aligns with your own ideals, and leave America what it was always meant to be, a land of free people, putting our foremost trust in God and His Son Jesus.
I choose to keep the belief system that America was founded upon, which has made us the greatest nation ever known: One nation, under God, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.
Our belief system and laws are most certainly founded on the Christian tenets of freedom, love, and a mutual trust in the Creator of all things availing Himself to us for guidance, prosperity and protection. Our God-given system of beliefs has certainly worked out far better for people around the world than the benefits offered historically by predominately Muslim nations.
Oh, and one more difference to point out. Muslim men apparently believe that the reward they earn for their terror and sacrifice in this life, is to be sexually united with virgins in the next life.
Well, Jesus teaches "For in the resurrected state neither do [men] marry nor are [women] given in marriage, but they are like the angels in heaven". (Matthew 22:30)
And Paul, a Christian who established much of the original churches for Jesus, and who wrote many of the letters in the New Testament Bible, declared something complimentary:
"There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither bond nor free, there is neither male nor female: for ye are all one in Christ Jesus" (Galatians 3:28)
So, there is a vast difference in what the two religions teach about the rewards awaiting us in the next life, and they cannot both be correct.
A few years ago in Sudan, a Muslim country in Africa, a Christian woman was sentenced by law to be put to death for not renouncing her Christian beliefs!
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mariam_Yahia_Ibrahim_Ishag
Again, this is an example of modern Arab nations following Islamic teaching, and upholding Sharia (Islamic) law...
In contrast to Islamic beliefs, Christianity has a heart of tolerance, compassion, caring, generosity, patience and love! This is why we do not harass and reject Muslims who choose to come and work beside us toward mutual goals.
Let me point out a fundamental truth about Christianity that really sets us apart from others.
When any person accepts the truth of Jesus into their heart, they instantly are united spiritually with God, our Creator, and his own Spirit abides with that person's heart. That is His promise to each of us who choose to believe in what He has done!
This makes sense spiritually, since God is a Spirit and we are made in His image. (Gen. 1:27)
One religion(Islam) looks at things from the natural, carnal point of view, and the other (Christianity) looks at things from the spiritual, heavenly point of view.
Which future makes more sense as revealing the true intent of God, who himself is a Spirit and not a mere man?
Jesus tells us that if someone is not for us, then they are against us. (Luke 9:50)
If someone is not being influenced by God, then they are subject to influence by the devil.
But we are assured by Jesus that if we "resist the devil he will flee". (James 4:7)
That is good news. But, the only effective resistance to the devil's lies is God's truth.
God wants that none would perish. We are each called to line up with God's thinking on this.
Christians are here to reveal the love nature of God, and to resist all evil.
Jesus declared "So now I am giving you a new commandment: Love each other. Just as I have loved you, you should love each other. Your love for one another will prove to the world that you are my disciples.” (John 13:34)
Revealing God through the demonstration of His love is our command from God, as this will allow non-believers to see Him as love. In this, they might believe in His Son Jesus, the Savior of men... and become born from above and saved.
And then the will of God, even the desire of His heart toward mankind, will come to pass...Heaven on earth!
Thank you for your patience demonstrated in reading this message.
Amen!