Have you ever had the opportunity to talk with a Muslim and try to explain the Gospel
to him? If so, you've probably discovered that simply sharing the essential points
of the Gospel is not enough to win a Muslim to Christ.
Booklets such as the "Four
Spiritual Laws" and "Knowing God Personally" are very often effective
tools in explaining the Gospel to Muslims. You must be prepared, however, because
once you've finished sharing such a booklet you will find that your discussion has
only just begun. In my 25 years of fulltime ministry, rarely have I seen a Muslim
pray to receive Christ immediately after the Four Spiritual Laws were shared with
them. Recently a brother and I saw two Muslims come to the Lord, but only after
a period of four months. Both of these men had seen the
Jesus film, and there is a prayer at the end of the film that is the same
in the Four Spiritual Laws. One of them, a businessman, prayed with tears in his
eyes! Still, it took months to explain the Gospel to them.
The reason for this is that there are five major issues concerning the very nature
of God, Christ, and the Bible which must be worked through and which a Muslim must
understand before he will be prepared to accept the Gospel and make a commitment
to Christ. The following material is designed to give you a basic understanding
of these issues. Now one might say, "Why not simply add these to the Four Laws
and then distribute it?" Although this may seem like a good idea, it leads
to one important consideration: everything in Muslim culture is based on relationships.
You cannot hand a Gospel presentation to a Muslim and say, "Here's how to become
a Christian" and then leave. On the contrary, you must be prepared to spend
time with him - to discuss, argue, debate and even to laugh and to cry with him.
Only then is it possible to see someone become a true believer.
Three Perquisites
When you endeavor to share Christ with a Muslim, you are stepping into a true spiritual
battle. The average Muslim has great cultural and religious biases against many
of the foundational truths of Christianity. For him, the cross is a stumbling block.
No other religion hates the cross like Islam, and it is for this reason that you
must be prepared not only intellectually, but also in spirit and in attitude before
taking up this challenge.
There are three simple, yet vitally important prerequisites we need to examine before
moving on to the theological issues involved in sharing Christ with a Muslim.
1. You must be filled with the Holy Spirit
One of the most critical elements in witnessing to a Muslim is that one must be
Spirit-filled. Jesus said in John 15:26,
"When the Helper comes, whom I will send to you from the Father that is the
Spirit of Truth, who proceeds from the Father, He will bear witness of me."
Success in witnessing is simply sharing the Gospel in the power of the Holy Spirit
and leaving the results to God.
I'm sure we could all recount experiences where we've share the Gospel and felt
that we were perhaps not filled with the Spirit, but were then amazed to see the
person accept Christ. God in His sovereignty works, at times, in spite of us to
bring people to Himself. Again, when you are sharing with a Muslim you are engaged
in an intense spiritual battle. IF you are not filled with the Spirit of the Lord,
you will find yourself quickly exhausted both spiritually and emotionally. I have
been in sessions with Muslims where I felt as if I was going to have a heart attack.
To give you an example from my own life, I once sat with a Muslim man from Lebanon
in a smoke-filled cafe late on evening, trying to explain the Gospel. As we talked,
our discussion began to get really heated. The conversation kept going in circles,
back and forth, up and down until I thought I was going to explode. At one point,
I was so frustrated I thought to myself, "Why can't he understand?" and
I literally felt like punching him in the face! I had to remind myself, "You
must continue in the power of the Holy Spirit."
Satan would like to let you think that people you are sharing with are just too
far from the Kingdom to become Christians, but you must continue. The Holy Spirit
gives us wisdom to answer even the most difficult questions asked by Muslims. I
was once sharing with a Muslim when he asked me a question that I had not heard
before: "Doesn't the Old Testament prophesy about the coming of the Prophet
Mohammed?" He quoted a verse from Deuteronomy which I had always known to be
about Christ. I immediately asked the Lord to give me wisdom to answer him and started
by asking him a question; does the Koran say that Moses was referring to Mohammed,
or are you the one saying that?" He immediately replied that Mohammed did not
say in the Koran, "Moses spoke about me". At that moment, the Lord impressed
upon me the verse from Luke that says Moses spoke about Jesus:
He said to them, "This is what I told you while I was still with you: Everything
must be fulfilled that is written about me in the Law of Moses, the Prophets and
the Psalms." Luke 24:44,
also John 5:46
2. You must be in prayer at all times.
You will have to pray the Muslim into the Kingdom of God; otherwise you shouldn't
even begin to share with him. Islam is based on one presupposition: that Christianity
is false. The Muslim claims that Islam exists because Christianity was corrupted,
and if ever they accepted Christianity to be true, then Islam would have no reason
to exist.
When you go witnessing, you must not go straight onto the field with the purpose
of sharing. When I go on campus, I always spend time in prayer first. The few times
that I am extremely pressed for time, or am unable to spend extended time in prayer
I still go forward in an attitude of prayer. There is no other way. Muslims are
perhaps the most difficult people in the world to evangelize, and there will come
moments when you're so discouraged you'll want to quit. It is that precise moment
that you must start again in prayer, and continue always in prayer.
1 Thessalonians 5:16-18.
"Be joyful always; pray continually; give thanks in all circumstances, for
this is God's will for you in Christ Jesus."
Ephesians 6:18, "And
pray in the Spirit on all occasions with all kinds of prayers and requests."
You cannot enter into an evangelistic appointment of this nature unless you are
filed with the Spirit and bathed in prayer.
3. You must have love.
The mass media in the West has done an excellent job of ensuring hatred toward the
Muslim people through their portrayal of Islam. When the average Westerner or American
thinks of the religion of Islam or of Muslims in general, what does he think of
if not the Ayatollah Khomeini, the oil embargo, or terrorism? There seems to be
little compassion, little concern for their need for Christ, and a lack of understanding
that they are lost without the message of the Gospel. At times, there seems only
to be the pervasive stereotype of the "fanatic Muslim terrorist." Are
we to say that over a billion of the world's people are terrorists? And even if
they were, would this be reason enough to hate them? We need Christian love to combat
these misconceptions and to restore our burden for those who are lost without Christ.
Secondly, we need love because only love will keep us from losing heart when a Muslim
rejects Christ. Without love, it is so easy to stop praying for him, or to lose
interest in spending time with him. I have experienced several situations like this
where I just did not want to see a certain person's face again. I remember a man
from Tunisia named Mahmud. He grew up thinking, "Christianity is false,"
and while all his arguments were sincere, it was because of his rejection of Christ
that I found myself rejecting him. But guess what! Two years later, Mahmud prayed
to receive Christ! Muslims actually feel sorry for Christians; they consider us
to be misguided blasphemers. They believe that we are preaching God, and want to
bring us to the truth. However, it is through the love of Christ working through
us that they can come to know Him personally.
The third reason we need love is because it is the only thing against which a Muslim
cannot argue. You can talk about Iran and Iraq, two Muslim nations having fought
a war against one another, and they will say, "What about Ireland, the Catholics
and the Protestants?" You bring up the Bible, they bring up the Koran. You
argue for Christ, they argue for Mohammed. Take any issue you like and the Muslim
will have an answer for it. However, reach out to them with unconditional love and
acceptance, and there will nothing they can do except to love you back.
Matthew 22:37-40: Jesus
replied, "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul
and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. And the second
is like it Love your neighbor as yourself. All the Law and the Prophets hang on
these two commandments."
None of these prerequisites may be new to you, but they must be emphasized before
getting into details of explaining the Gospel to a Muslim. These three things -
being Spirit-filled, being in prayer, and loving - are far more important than knowing
all about Islam or the Koran. I know Americans who have led Muslims to the Lord
with no knowledge of Islam and, while the more one knows the better, I doubt if
there is anyone who can bring a Muslim to the Lord if he is not Spirit filled, not
praying, and not loving. It is by these three things that the Gospel will be proven
true.
Five Areas You Need to Explain to a Muslim
There are five major issues which must first be explained and worked through with
a Muslim before you will be able to go back and say, "Here is how you can become
a Christian":
- The Authenticity of the Bible
- The consistency of God's revelation
- Why Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God
- Did Jesus really die on the cross?
- The Trinity
Again, you need to take necessary time to explain each of these issues. Once, I
worked with a Muslim for a period of over two years. On many occasions we would
have all-day meetings, from morning until evening, discussing these things. There
will be times when you think you're not getting across to your contact; however,
this is not true. As someone once said, "It's not strange for a Muslim to hear
the Gospel more than fifty times before it starts to make sense to him."
1. The Authenticity of the Bible
The Muslims claim that both the Old and New Testaments have been changed, and that
the Bible is, therefore, not trustworthy. For this reason they believe it was necessary
for God to give another book, the Koran, to replace it. They believe that the Koran
contains the essence of all the heavenly books, including the Old and New Testaments.
A. Can the Word of God really be changed? In addressing this issue, it is important
to direct the Muslim's attention to the fact that the Bible is God's Word. The following
are a few good questions you might consider when asking your Muslim friend:
- If the Bible is God's Word, how could man change it?
- Isn't God able to protect His Word from being changed?
- Since the Bible is God's Word, whom are we accusing when we say it's been changed?
Aren't we accusing God Himself by saying that He was not able to protect it from
being changed?
- Who changed the Bible? When was it changed?
- Which parts were changed? And for what reason?
By asking him such questions, you will find out that he does not have answers to
any of them. The Muslim simply says, "It was changed," and that just shows
that he has absolutely no proof or evidence to support his allegations.
B. What does the Bible say regarding itself?
Because the Muslim agrees that the Bible is God's Word, you may also want to direct
his attention to what it says about itself:
Matthew 5:1 "...until
heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen,
will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished."
Matthew 24:35 "Heaven
and earth will pass away, but my Word will not pass away."
1 Peter 1:24, 25 "...the
grass withers and the flowers fall off, but the Word of the Lord abides forever."(Also
Isaiah 40:8)
1 Timothy 3:16 "All
scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction,
and for training in righteousness."
2 Peter 1:21 "For no
prophecy was ever made by an act of human but men moved by the Holy Spirit spoke
from God."
C. What does the Koran say about the Bible?
The Koran itself does not say the Bible has been changed. In fact, it says that
unless one obeys the Torah and the Bible, they are nothing. It mentions the Torah
and the "Zabur" (the Old Testament with the Psalms) and the "Injil"
(which is the New Testament) many times. When the Koran was written, no mention
was made of the Bible having been changed. Thus, when Islam began in the 6th century,
600 years after Jesus Christ, the Bible was accepted as true.
D. What about the issue of translation?
The Bible we have in our hands today was translated form the original languages
of Hebrew and Greek. Whether it was printed in 1999, 1970 or 1950 it was translated
form the original language. We have a complete Bible that dates back to the Third
century A.D. 300 years after Christ and 400 years before Islam. It is a complete,
original Bible and we have several of these in existence: one in a museum in London
and another in the Vatican in Rome.
However, someone may say, "Well, maybe it was changed before the year 300."
We have thousands of original copies of various sections of the Bible that date
back to before the year 300. If these pieces were put together, the result would
be hundreds, if not thousands of complete Bibles dating back to before the year
300. The oldest of these manuscripts dates back to around the year 100 AD. We also
know that the first books of the New Testament were written in 40 or 50 AD. Evidence
of this may be found in the writing s of the Church Fathers, by whom many books
and articles were written prior to 100 AD. The entire New Testament, with exception
of five sentences that have nothing to do with theology or doctrine, can be reconstructed
from the quotes of the church fathers found in these writings. In essence, we have
the original copies from the same times as the writings of the Apostles who wrote
by inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
What is interesting is that in the days of Christ, the region of the Middle East
where Christ was born and brought up was under the influence of Greek civilization.
The Greek judiciary system required two witnesses to appear before a judge to bring
evidence in a trial. God in His sovereignty, however, has provided us with four
witnesses, all of whom are in agreement concerning the events of the life of Christ.
2 Corinthians 13:1
says, "... every fact is to be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses."
Finally, the Bible is not a scientific book, but where it mentions science it is
accurate. It is not a history book, but where it mentions anything historic it is
again accurate. It is not a geography book, but where it mentions geography it has
proven to be true and accurate. The Bible, as it is in our hands to day, is the
true Word of God and is able to stand up to any type of test, research, or criticism.
2. The consistency of God's revelation
In the Muslim mind, God has established three religions over the course of history:
Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Muslims believe that He first sent Moses to establish
Judaism, but because the Jews were a stiff-necked, disobedient people He scattered
them all over the world and sent Jesus, the Son of Mary, to establish Christianity.
By the fifth century, however, Christianity had become so corrupt that God sent
Mohammed to establish Islam, His last and final revelation. Muslims believe that
Islam includes both Judaism and Christianity and they say that even Abraham was
a Muslim. In their mind, Islam is everything and everything is Islam. What we need
to explain to the Muslims - and it is not an easy task - is that God was consistent
in His revelation and will continue to be so until the end.
God's primary purpose was not to establish a religion; religions are man-made. Rather,
he desired to establish a personal relationship between Himself and man. This is
the message of the entire Gospel. The first two chapters in the Bible speak about
creation, including that of man and woman. In the third, we read about the fall
of man into sin. From the fourth chapter of Genesis through the end of the book
of Revelation the primary message of God's Word is that of Salvation.
There is a very important passage in
Genesis 3:14-15 is which God confronts Adam and Eve regarding their sin:
And the Lord God said to the serpent, "Because you have done this, cursed are
you more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly
you shall go, and dust shall you eat all the days of your life; 'And I will put
enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise
you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel."
Take time to explain this passage. Muslims already believe in the story of Adam
and Eve, the creation and the fall. They also believe that Satan appeared in the
shape of a serpent and tried to seduce the woman to eat from the fruit that she
succumbed to temptation and ate, and then gave some of the fruit to her husband
to eat. The key point here, however, is God's promise: "... the seed of the
woman shall bruise the head of Satan." If you ask a Muslim, "Who form
the time of Adam and Eve until today was indeed only born from a woman and not the
union of a man and a woman?", they will say "Jesus". They know this
and believe it. Explain who the seed of the woman is, and also God's promise - that
from the seed of the woman He would destroy Satan and redeem man. Explain that this
promise, given the moment man fell into sin, was fulfilled by Jesus Christ.
You can also show how the prophets pointed their prophecies toward the coming of
Christ. His coming was, from the beginning, part of God's plan:
Isaiah 7:14 "Behold,
the virgin shall be found with child and bear a son, and she will call his name
Emmanuel."
Isaiah 9:6 "For a child
will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his
shoulders; and his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal
Father, Prince of Peace."
Matthew 1:23 "Behold,
the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name
Emmanuel, which translated means, 'God with us'."
3. Why we believe Jesus is the Son of God
Is Jesus really the Son of God? The moment you begin speaking to a Muslim, typically
the first and most offensive objection they have is that we say that Jesus is the
Son of God. This is because when we say "Son of God", they think we are
talking about a physical son (God having sexual relations with Mary), and this is
blasphemy. We, too, believe this is blasphemy. You must clarify to the Muslim that
when we say "Son of God", we do not believe that God ever had a physical
relationship with a woman to have His son.
In explaining the Sonship of Christ to the Muslim, we need to tell them
that Jesus is the Son of God from a spiritual point of view, not a physical one.
Jesus is not the physical offspring of God. Refer to Luke chapter 1 and read together
verses 26 through 35, about how the angel brought the news to Mary that she would
conceive and give birth to a son. Pinpoint these important words to him: "The
Holy Spirit will come upon you... So the holy one to be born will be called the
Son of God." He is not the physical son of God, but we call him the Son of
God because he came from the Spirit of God. Therefore, he is not the physical son,
but "He shall be called the Son of God." Underline these words for him.
The second concept you need to understand and explain to the Muslim is that, especially
in the Arabic version of the Bible, there is a big difference between the words
"son" of God, and "child" of God. In Arabic, there are the words
"ibn" and "walad". "Ibn" means "son" and
"walad" means "child". "Ibn" refers to the child you
adopt; "walad" means it was born to you. This is why we never call Jesus
in Arabic "Walad Allah." We call him "Ibn Allah", meaning he
came from God. If the person you are sharing with is an Arab, ask him, "What
is the difference between 'ibn' and 'walad'?" Let him think - see what he comes
up with, and then explain the difference.
There is one other logical illustration you might give to a Muslim. In Arabic, the
phrase "son of..." is used to signify where one is from. For instance,
I am from Lebanon, and am often called a "Son of Lebanon." A man from
Morocco would be called a "Son of Morocco." And because the Nile is the
most famous part of Egypt, an Egyptian will often be called "Son of the Nile."
One could also be called "Son of Education", meaning that he is a very
well educated person. The phrase may also be used to express one's main interest.
In the same way, Christ is called "Son of God" because He came from the
Spirit of God.
4. Did Jesus really die on the cross?
A. Does the Koran refute Christ's crucifixion?
Muslims do not believe that Jesus died on the cross. There is a verse in the Koran
which says, "They killed Him not, they crucified Him not, but it was likened
unto them. They killed Him not knowingly, but God raised Him and God is the most
merciful of merciful." 90% of the time, the Muslim will tell me immediately,
"But they killed Him not, they crucified Him not!" In the Muslim's mind,
this verse is saying that God was so merciful that He could never allow a wonderful
prophet such as Jesus to be crucified by His enemies. They believe God saved Him,
and lifted Him up to heaven. God then punished Judas Iscariot, who had betrayed
Him the night before, by changing him into the likeness of Christ. Muslims believe
it was Judas, not Christ, who was crucified and they say this in defense of a prophet
whom they consider to be great and wonderful. They say this out of zeal and respect
for Jesus.
In explaining the second part of the Koranic verse, which says, "They killed
Him not knowingly", you can remind the person you're sharing with of the attitude
the Jews held toward Christ. When Jesus was taken to the Roman governor, they did
not believe He was the Messiah. They wanted to get rid of Him. So by saying, "They
killed Him not knowingly", the Koranic verse is simply saying they killed Him
without knowing He was the Messiah.
B. The Biblical prophecy and necessity of Christ's crucifixion.
The issue of Christ's death on the cross also brings us back to the verses in Genesis 4, we see how God accepted
Abel's sacrifice, the lamb, but rejected Cain's sacrifice, which was the fruit of
his labor. Explain to the person with whom you are sharing that the lamb is a substitute
for man and represents the coming of Christ. The fruit of Cain's labor was representative
simply of good works, and was not sufficient to meet God's requirement.
In Genesis 22, Abraham takes
his son as a sacrifice in obedience to God's command: And He said, "Take now
your son, your only son, whom you love, Isaac, and go to the land of Mariah; and
offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell
you." (Genesis 22). What
does this mean? Why would God have asked such a thing? Discuss the passage together,
focusing especially on the picture of God providing a ram miraculously as a substitute
for Abraham's son. Abraham had lifted his knife and was ready to kill his son, but
what happened instead? He heard a voice saying, "Abraham! ... Do not stretch
out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear
God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me." (Genesis
22:12). What would have happened had Abraham not listened? His son would
have been killed. But Abraham believed and took instead the ram, which he sacrificed
in the place of his son. You can explain that the ram represents Jesus Christ, and
we can look back 20000 years ago and see Him on the cross for you and me. Turn to
John 1:29, where John the Baptist
proclaims, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes the sins of the world!"
Jesus is the Lamb of God.
In addressing the issue of Christ's death further, I strongly suggest you read through
Isaiah 53, which very clearly
speaks about the coming of Christ and the redemption of mankind - Jesus Himself
bearing our sins on the cross, He being the sacrifice. The entire chapter talks
about Jesus, but you should focus especially on
Isaiah 53:4-12. Take time to underline all the prophecies regarding Him.
If possible, let the person you're sharing with read the passage for them self,
out loud. I have had dozens and dozens of Muslims read that chapter aloud and every
time I ask them, "Who do you think the prophet Isaiah is talking about here?"
No one has ever given a wrong answer. They say, "It is Jesus, son of Mary.
Christians Arabs call him "Yassoua," which is taken from "Yashoua,"
the Hebrew name for Jesus, while Muslims call Him "Issa," taken from "Yssus,"
the Greek name for Jesus. Take this opportunity to show him that what was prophesied
in Isaiah was fulfilled in the person of Christ nearly 600 years later.
Another important thing to point out here is that "the Lord was pleased"
(verse 10) to offer Christ as a sacrifice for man's sin. God is just; He said in
Romans 6:23, "For the
wages of sin is death," which is eternal separation from God. However, God
is also merciful. He would not allow the whole world to go to hell. From the moment
man fell, the death of Christ was planned as the solution for sin.
Now there are those who would question the necessity of Christ's death on the cross,
citing good works as a means of atonement for one's sin. But suppose I stole your
watch and you caught me, brought me to the police and turned me in. Suppose further
that because of this, the police sentenced me to five days in jail. Could I get
out by saying "Wait a minute. I bought him lunch yesterday, paid for his subway
and everything!" Would the police accept it? Of course not! It's not logical.
Good works alone are not sufficient payment for one's crimes.
I will often use the illustration of the just judge: A judge is sitting in the courtroom,
wearing his judicial robe, and a young girl stand before him. She has been charged
with driving without a license and speeding down the highway, for which the penalty
is ten thousand francs. He points his finger at her and asks, "Are you guilty
or not?" To which she answers, "Yes, Your Honor: But I cannot afford to
pay the penalty." The judge, however, tells her, "You must pay!"
And with that dismisses the court. He then steps down from the bench, takes off
his robe and gives the girl ten thousand francs. Why? Because he is her father,
and while he could not dishonor his name by letting her go free, he is also merciful
and loving and could not bear to see her put in jail because of her inability to
pay. The only solution, therefore, is for him to pay the penalty himself.
In the same way, we can see how Christ has paid the penalty for our sin in
Philippians 2:5-11. Christ, being equal with God, nevertheless emptied Himself,
taking off the robe of heavenly glory and coming down as a man to bear the cross.
At the cross, the justice and the mercy of God met together, and both were satisfied.
Ask the person with whom you are sharing, "What would you think of God if for
thousands of years He promised that Jesus would come and die for the sins of the
world, and at the last moment, when Jesus was about to be put on the cross, He took
him alive and changed Judas into the image of Christ? Does this description fit
the God we know?" Not only would this make God out to be a liar, but also there
would have been no provision for man's sin! Jesus was the only sacrifice sufficient
for man's salvation.
C. If Jesus died on the cross, and if Jesus is God, does that mean that God died
on the cross also?
In the Gospel of John 4, we are
told that God is Spirit. In the original Hebrew language, Spirit is "roh."
from this word, the word "rihe" is taken, which is also the air in the
atmosphere. Air is everywhere. Though you cannot see it, you know it is present:
you can feel it, you breathe it, even though it has no color or shape. The same
thing is true with the Spirit of God - He is present everywhere.
If you take an empty bottle, you know that it is empty of any liquid, yet it is
filled with air. The air that's inside the bottle, furthermore, has taken the shape
of the bottle, even though the air has no shape. The characteristics of the air
inside the bottle are identical to the air outside the bottle. The fact that there
is air inside the bottle does not mean there is none outside the bottle, because
air exists everywhere in the atmosphere. Now, if you were to take the bottle today,
and smash it against the wall, it would break into hundreds of little pieces. It
would be shattered. Can we say that the air inside the bottle would also be shattered?
No. Only the vessel that contained the air has been shattered.
The same thing took place when God, who is Spirit, dwelt among us in the body of
Jesus Christ. God took the likeness of man. That does not mean that He no longer
existed. Rather, like the air when it filled the bottle, God still exists everywhere.
Furthermore, Jesus' crucifixion on the cross does not mean that God was killed,
but rather that the body, which contained the Spirit of God, was killed. God has
always existed, even during the three days in which Jesus was dead in the tomb.
This is exactly what the Apostle Paul has written in his epistle to the
Philippians 2:5-11.
"Have this attitude in yourselves, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although
He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped,
but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness
of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient
to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, also God highly exalted
Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of
Jesus every knew should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under
the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus is Lord."
5. The Trinity
The final major issue which must be addressed with the Muslim is that of the Trinity.
Muslims often say, "You Christians believe in three different gods - God the
Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. That is blasphemy! One cannot believe in three
different gods."
The task of helping a Muslim understand the Trinity is not an easy one- there are
even many Christians who have a hard time explaining it. Take a molecule of h2O
for example: It manifests itself in three different forms, liquid water, solid ice
and vaporous steam; but it is the same substance. Others use the sun illustration:
the glowing ball of gasses itself, the source, as representing God the Father; the
radiating light represents Christ, the light of the world; and the heat that we
feel representing the work of the Holy Spirit.
Regardless of which illustration you use, it's important to use the Word of God
itself. Begin by establishing our belief in only one God -
1 Corinthians 8:4 says, "there is no God but one," - and then
follow up with sharing as many verses as possible which illustrate the Trinity.
In conclusion
Please remember that this is not an argument we are trying to win, nor are we out
to prove the other person wrong. Rather, it is the Gospel we wish to share and explain
to the Muslim. Avoid all forms of arguments and debates and seek to explain the
Gospel and answer any questions a Muslim may have, especially pertaining to the
five basic issues discussed here. As Peter said in his epistle:
1 Peter 3:15 "...but
sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to
everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness
and reverence."
As we give an answer, let us trust that the Word of God, which is living and active,
will minister to our friends through the power of the Holy Spirit and lead them
to know the Way, the Truth, and the life through Jesus Christ our Lord.