More Than a Prophet

Muslims believe Jesus was only a prophet. The New Oxford American Dictionary defines prophet as “a person regarded as an inspired teacher or proclaimer of the will of God.” A prophet sent from God will tell the truth regardless of the hearer receiving it. So if a true prophet doesn’t lie, let’s examine some of Jesus’ words from the Bible (which was written 500 years before the Koran).

First, Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” Notice Jesus said He was THE truth…not a truth. He also said in John 8:31-32, “If you abide in My word, you are My disciples indeed. And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.”

Followers of Islam argue that Allah (their word for God) had no son. Jesus referred to Himself as the Son of God in John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” He later said in John 3:36, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

The Koran encourages its followers to “kill the infidels” (Surah 9:5). Jesus said a few things contrary to that…

“But I say to you, love your enemies, bless those who curse you, do good to those who hate you, and pray for those who spitefully use you and persecute you.” - Matthew 5:44

“The thief does not come except to steal, and to kill, and to destroy. I have come that they may have life, and that they may have it more abundantly.” - John 10:10

“They will put you out of the synagogues; yes, the time is coming that whoever kills you will think that he offers God service. And these things they will do to you because they have not known the Father nor Me.” - John 16:2-3

Muslims deny that Jesus died on the cross. On the other hand, Jesus stated in Matthew 17:23, “…and they will kill Him, and the third day He will be raised up.”

When giving the Great Commission, Jesus said in Mark 16:17-18, “And these signs will follow those who believe: In My name they will cast out demons; they will speak with new tongues; they will take up serpents; and if they drink anything deadly, it will by no means hurt them; they will lay hands on the sick, and they will recover.” I’ve seen that power manifest using Jesus’ name, not Muhammed, whom Muslims esteem as the greatest prophet.

Many Muslims are concerned about their good deeds outweighing the bad. A religion (not a relationship) puts people into bondage. Jesus said in Matthew 11:28-30, “Come to Me, all you who labor and are heavy laden, and I will give you rest. Take My yoke upon you and learn from Me, for I am gentle and lowly in heart, and you will find rest for your souls. For My yoke is easy and My burden is light.”

Jesus also said in John 14:15, “If you love Me, keep My commandments.” One of them is you must be born again. (John 3:3, 7) No amount of good works will remit sin. “Most assuredly, I say to you, whoever commits sin is a slave of sin. And a slave does not abide in the house forever, but a son abides forever. Therefore if the Son makes you free, you shall be free indeed.” (John 8:34-36)

Based on what Jesus said, it’s obvious He is more than a prophet. He is the Son of God who is coming back again. Are you ready for His return?

“Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." - Acts 4:12

Real Ramadan

Every year Muslims observe Ramadan. One dictionary defines it as “the ninth month of the Muslim year, during which strict fasting is observed from sunrise to sunset.” Muslims believe the Quran was revealed to Muhammad during Ramadan, which is referred to as the “best of times.” Because Islam follows a lunar calendar, the dates of Ramadan change every year. For 2018 it began on the evening of Tuesday, May 15 and ends this Thursday evening (June 14).

For nearly two decades the White House has hosted Ramadan dinners. President Trump had one this past Wednesday after skipping it for 2017. I’ve even seen some churches displaying signs wishing their Muslim neighbors a “blessed Ramadan.” Certainly, I’m in favor of reaching out to non-Christians. The Apostle Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 9:22, “I have become all things to all men, that I might by all means save some.” However, I have a problem with encouraging religious practices contrary to the word of God.

Would you tell a Muslim to have a “blessed jihad”? Sounds crazy, doesn’t it? Yet that’s what people are indirectly doing by wishing Muslims a blessed Ramadan. This supposedly holy period is really a month of jihad. Mohammad’s conquest of Mecca and the Battle of Badr occurred then. The terrorist group ISIS has told followers the rewards for bloodshed are greater during Ramadan. 

Still think Islam is “a religion of peace”? Check out this extensive list of terrorist attacks. Among those that happened during Ramadan include the Pulse nightclub massacre in Orlando and an attack outside Islam’s second holiest mosque in Medina, Saudi Arabia.

There are now close to 3.5 million Muslims here in the United States. If one of them invited me to a Ramadan gathering, I’d probably decline but offer to pray for my Muslim acquaintance so that he hopefully comes to know Jesus who is more than a prophet. Fasting and other works do not bring spiritual purification. It’s only through knowing the Savior.

“Whoever transgresses and does not abide in the doctrine of Christ does not have God…If anyone comes to you and does not bring this doctrine, do not receive him into your house nor greet him; for he who greets him shares in his evil deeds.” - 2 John 9-11

The Jesus of Islam

Not too long ago during a prayer walk, I stopped to witness to two young men waiting for a bus. Both of them thought they would go to heaven for living good lives. Eventually Sayma told me he was Muslim but still prayed along with his friend Sam to get born again. Since Sayma didn’t have a Bible, I gave him a gospel of John pointing out it reveals a more accurate picture of who Jesus is.

The Koran has some verses about Jesus that agree with the Bible...

Jesus was born of a virgin (Surah 19:19-21)

Jesus taken bodily into Heaven (Surah 3:55)

Jesus was a miracle worker (Surah 2:253)

Jesus said to obey him (Surah 43:63)

However, there are Koranic verses about Jesus that conflict with Scripture...

Surah 3:59 claims Jesus was created. John 1:1 says, “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.”

Surahs 4:171 and 5:75 claim Jesus is no more than a messenger of Allah. Jesus said in John 14:6, “I am the way, the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.

Surah 5:116 says Jesus did not say to worship himself or Mary. This is half-right. Certainly we are not to worship Mary. 1 Timothy 2:5 says, “For there is one God and one Mediator between God and men, the Man Christ Jesus.” However, Jesus received worship from people such as the Syro-Phoenician woman in Mark 7:25.

Surah 9:30 claims you are cursed if you say Jesus is God's Son. John 3:36 says the exact opposite, “He who believes in the Son has everlasting life; and he who does not believe the Son shall not see life, but the wrath of God abides on him.”

Muslims also claim Jesus was never crucified and is the Messiah for Jews only. Romans 3:29 says, “Or is He the God of the Jews only? Is He not also the God of the Gentiles? Yes, of the Gentiles also”

In these last days, discernment is so important. Even supernatural manifestations of Jesus need to be judged by Scripture. Five years ago at a revival meeting, I heard Pastor John Kilpatrick talk about an incident that happened when he was 15 years old. A figure that looked like Jesus appeared before him in his bedroom. As John was about to fall down and worship this being, a voice inside him asked, “Where are his nail prints?” John then commanded this spirit figure to go away. 

Which Jesus do you preach and worship? Make sure He’s the one described in the Holy Bible. Otherwise, you are bowing down to a false Christ that cannot save you.

“But I fear, lest somehow, as the serpent deceived Eve by his craftiness, so your minds may be corrupted from the simplicity that is in Christ. For if he who comes preaches another Jesus whom we have not preached, or if you receive a different spirit which you have not received, or a different gospel which you have not accepted—you may well put up with it!” - 2 Corinthians 11:3-4

Holy Fire?

This Saturday will be the ninth anniversary of the 9/11 terrorist attacks. In response, a church in Gainesville, Florida is planning to burn copies of the Koran. Senior Pastor Terry Jones of Dove World Outreach Center has declared, "It is indeed a radical message but a very clear, radical message to Muslims, to Sharia law, that that is not welcome in America." This upcoming event has drawn protests from both Christians and Muslims. The city of Gainesville has refused to grant a burn permit to Dove World Outreach Center. Nevertheless, the church is going forward with its “International Burn A Koran Day.”

One might point out there is a Scriptural precedent for burning books that oppose God’s word. Acts chapter 19 describes a group of sorcerers in Ephesus who publicly renounced their faith in the occult…

18 And many who had believed came confessing and telling their deeds.

19 Also, many of those who had practiced magic brought their books together and burned them in the sight of all. And they counted up the value of them, and it totaled fifty thousand pieces of silver.

20 So the word of the Lord grew mightily and prevailed.

Once I attended a church service on Halloween night where congregation members brought books, records, and other non-Christian materials to be burned. If an ex-Muslim carried his copy of the Koran to such a gathering, I would be supportive of his decision to burn it. Otherwise, that unused Koran could fall into the hands of someone who becomes deceived into following its false doctrine.

But as a fellow minister of the gospel, I do not support Dove World Outreach Center’s “International Burn A Koran Day.” Romans 12:21 says, “Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” Pastor Jones himself stated, “Most people who criticize are also the people who don’t do anything…If they do not like our method, then they should do something themselves.” He even suggested Christians going door-to-door distributing Christian literature about the love of Jesus. That’s certainly a better way to reach out to Muslims with the gospel. The Great Commission does not include burning books.

A century before the Nazis took control of Germany, Heinrich Heine (a German Jew who converted to Christianity) prophetically wrote, “Where books are burned, they will, in the end, burn people, too.” Rather than burning Korans, I advise the congregation of Dove World Outreach Center to focus on getting the word of God burning in people’s hearts.

“And they said to one another, ‘Did not our heart burn within us while He talked with us on the road, and while He opened the Scriptures to us?’ - Luke 24:32

Bible Misinterpretations By Muslims

Muslims believe that Jesus was a prophet but not the Son of God. When I encounter a Muslim while street evangellizing, I’ll first ask him if he agrees that a true prophet of God doesn’t lie. When the Muslim says, “yes,” then I mention that Jesus said, "I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through Me.” (John 14:6) I also point out that Jesus called Himself the Son of God in John 3:16; “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son…”

Muslims seek to undermine the credibility of the Bible by calling sections of it “corrupt” that conflict with their religious book, the Koran, which was written over 500 years after the New Testament. Nevertheless, Muslims will select Bible verses taken out of context in an attempt to validate Mohammed as a prophet of God. One of which is Deuteronomy 18:18...

“I will raise up for them a Prophet like you from among their brethren, and will put My words in His mouth, and He shall speak to them all that I command Him.”

Notice “Prophet” in this verse is capitalized meaning it refers to deity. Muslims will not worship a prophet. Therefore this Prophet is none other than Jesus, the Son of the Living God.

An Islamic booklet one Muslim gave me also made reference to John 1:19-21...

19 Now this is the testimony of John, when the Jews sent priests and Levites from Jerusalem to ask him, “Who are you?”

20 He confessed, and did not deny, but confessed, “I am not the Christ.”

21 And they asked him, “What then? Are you Elijah?” He said, “I am not.” “Are you the Prophet?” And he answered, “No.”

This Islamic booklet stated that Bibles with cross-references link the words “the Prophet” with the prophecy of Deuteronomy. Therefore, Muslims conclude that Jesus Christ is not the prophet mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:18. Yet John the Baptist later declared in John 1:29, “Behold! The Lamb of God [Jesus] who takes away the sin of the world.” Muslims ignore the sin issue by focusing on good works, hoping they will do enough of them to receive eternal life.

Islam correctly affirms that in Genesis 21, Abraham had two sons named Ishmael and Isaac. But then Muslims claim that the prophet spoken of was not to come from among the Jews but from the Ishmaelites. Matthew 1:2 clearly states the Messiah descended from Isaac, not Ishmael.

Muslims also declare that Isaiah 42:1-13 is about the Servant of the Lord. This is true regarding the first nine verses where the Lord is speaking. But then there are no quotation marks around the next four verses, which is a commandment directly from the prophet Isaiah. Look specifically at verses 10 and 11...

10 Sing to the LORD a new song, and His praise from the ends of the earth, you who go down to the sea, and all that is in it, you coastlands and you inhabitants of them!

11 Let the wilderness and its cities lift up their voice, the villages that Kedar inhabits. Let the inhabitants of Sela sing, let them shout from the top of the mountains.

Muslims claim Isaiah 42:11 is about their “awaited one” because Genesis 25:13 makes reference to a man named Kedar who was the second son of Ishmael, supposedly an ancestor of Mohammad. But again the Messiah clearly descended from Isaac, not Ishmael!

Always remember to speak the truth in love when ministering to a Muslim. Avoid getting into an argument. Whether or not the Muslim prays with you, end the conversation politely by thanking him for his time and say, "Jesus Loves You."

"Study to shew thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth." - 2 Timothy 2:15 (KJV)