how to witness to muslims copyright by norman geisler 2003
TRANSCRIPT
How to Witness to Muslims
Copyright by Norman Geisler 2003
Outline
• I. Overcoming Misunderstandings
Outline
• I. Overcoming Misunderstandings
• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
Outline
• I. Overcoming Misunderstandings
• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
• III. How to Witness to Muslims
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• D. About the Cross
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe:
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe:
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe:
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. Three Persons in God is Idolatry
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe:
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. Three Persons in God is Idolatry
• B. Response
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe:
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. Three Persons in God is Idolatry
• B. Response– 1. The Trinity is Not God, Christ, and Mary
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe-
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. Three Persons in God is Idolatry
• B. Response– 1. The Trinity is Not God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. We believe in only one God
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity: Muslims believe-
– 1. The Trinity is God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. Three Persons in God is Idolatry
• B. Response– 1. The Trinity is Not God, Christ, and Mary
– 2. We believe in only one God
– 3. Three persons in one God is not impossible
Father
Holy
Spirit
SonHuma
nNatur
e
DivineNatur
e
Father
Who³Who²
Human Nature
(Divine Nature)
Who¹
What²
What¹
(Son) (Holy Spirit)
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About the Christ
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About the Christ–Misunderstanding: Christ is the son of
God in a physical sense (walad)
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About the Christ–Misunderstanding: Christ is the son of
God in a physical sense (walad)
– Correction: Christ is the Son of God in a figurative sense (ibn)
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• Misunderstanding: The Bible is corrupted.
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• Misunderstanding: The Bible is corrupted.– Correction: It is not corrupted because:
– Muhammad commanded Christians to read it (2:136; 4:163; 5:56), and--
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• Misunderstanding: The Bible is corrupted.– Correction: It is not corrupted because:
– Muhammad commanded Christians to read it (2:136; 4:163; 5:56), and--
– The Bible today is the same as in his day.
We Have Every Verse from the Original Bible
Sir Frederic Kenyon Wrote:– “The number of manuscripts of
the New Testament, of earlytranslations form it, and ofquotations from it in the oldestwriters of the Church, is so largethat it is practically certain thatthe true reading of everydoubtful passage is preserved insome one or the other of theseancient authorities. This can besaid of no other ancient book inthe world” (Our Bible and theAncient Manuscripts, 55).
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• D. About the Cross
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• D. About the Cross– Misunderstanding: God would not allow
His prophet to suffer such a shameful death.
I. Overcoming Misunderstandings• A. About the Trinity
• B. About Christ
• C. About the Bible
• D. About the Cross– Misunderstanding: God would not allow His
prophet to suffer such a shameful death.
– Correction: 1) God can do anything He wants; 2) Abraham sacrificed his son.
Abraham’s Sacrifice of His Son
• “[Abraham] said: `O my son! I see in a vision that I offer thee in sacrifice;… For this was obviously a trial--and we ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice”(Sura 37:101-107).
Outline
• I. Overcoming Misunderstandings
• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
Outline• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
– A. Don’t argue with them (to lose, is to lose face--which is very humiliating for
them).
Outline• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
– A. Don’t argue with them (to lose, is to lose face--which is very humiliating to them).
– B. Don’t use a marked Qur’an or Bible (it is a sign of disrespect).
Outline• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
– A. Don’t argue with them (to lose, is to lose face--which is very humiliating for
them).
– B. Don’t use a marked Qur’an or Bible (it is a sign of disrespect).
– C. Don’t put the Qur’an or Bible below your belt or below other books.
Outline• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
– A. Don’t argue with them (to lose, is to lose face--which is very humiliating for them).
– B. Don’t use a marked Qur’an or Bible (it is a sign of disrespect).
– C. Don’t put the Qur’an or Bible below your belt or below other books.
– D. Don’t criticize the Qur’an orMuhammad.
Outline• II. How Not to Witness to Muslims
– A. Don’t argue with them (to lose, is to lose face--which is very humiliating for them).
– B. Don’t use a marked Qur’an or Bible (it is a sign of disrespect).
– C. Don’t put the Qur’an or Bible below your belt or below other books.
– D. Don’t criticize the Qur’an or Muhammad. – E. Don’t take them to church until they are ready (they will be
offended by men and women sitting together and touching each other).
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
– B. Pray with them and for them.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
– B. Pray with them and for them.
– C. Stress your personal relation to God.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
– B. Pray with them and for them.
– C. Stress your personal relation to God.
– D. Quote the Qur’an.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
– B. Pray with them and for them.
– C. Stress your personal relation to God.
– D. Quote the Qur’an.
– E. Read from the Bible (especially the Gospels).
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.
– B. Pray with them and for them.
– C. Stress your personal relation to God.
– D. Quote the Qur’an.
– E. Read from the Bible (especially the Gospels).
– F. Use the parables of Jesus.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.– B. Pray with them and for them.– C. Stress your personal relation to God.– D. Quote the Qur’an.– E. Read from the Bible (especially the Gospels).– F. Use the parables of Jesus.– G. Speak to them one-on-one.
Outline• III. How to Witness to Muslims
– A. Get personally acquainted with them.– B. Pray with them and for them.– C. Stress your personal relation to God.– D. Quote the Qur’an.– E. Read from the Bible (especially the Gospels).– F. Use the parables of Jesus.– G. Speak to them one-on-one.– H. Have a Bible study with them--in John.
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– I. Focus on the Sermon on the Mt. (Mt. 5-7)
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:
• He was virgin born
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:
• He was virgin born• He was a prophet
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:
• He was virgin born• He was a prophet• He did miracles
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:
• He was virgin born• He was a prophet• He did miracles• He bodily ascended to heaven
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:
• He was virgin born• He was a prophet• He did miracles• He bodily ascended to heaven• He will return again
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– J. Stress agreement with the Qur’an on the facts about Jesus that:• He was virgin born• He was a prophet• He did miracles• He bodily ascended to heaven• He will return again• He said to consult the Bible
Sura 5:68 Say: "O People of the Book! ye have no ground to stand upon unless ye stand fast by the Law, the Gospel, and all the revelation that has come to you from your Lord."
Christians Should Stand on the Bible
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– K. Share evidence that the Bible is not corrupted (Geisler, General
Introduction to the Bible, Part 3)
III. How to Witness to Muslims
– I. Focus on the Sermon on the Mt. (Mt. 5-7)
– J. Share evidence that the Bible is not corrupted (Geisler, General
Introduction to the Bible, Part 3)
– K. If they ask “Do you believe in the Trinity,” then ask what they mean by“Trinity”?
The Need to Reach Muslims • One fifth of the world’s population is Muslim (1.2 billion).
• Only one-tenth of one percent of Christian giving goes to win the Muslim world.
• Most mission money is spent on our own churches here in America.
• There are more missionaries in Alaska than in the entire Muslim world.
• “We cannot substitute praying for obeying.” A.W. Tozer
“For we do not wrestle against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rules of the darkness of this age…. Therefore take up the whole armor of God…. Praying always, with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit…” (Eph. 6:12-18).
Remember:We are in a Spiritual Battle
The Call of Muhammad
“Muhammad had not moved from his spot when revelation came to him accompanied by the usual convulsions…. Muhammad recovered, he sat up and began to wipe his forehead where beads of perspiration had gathered.” (Haykal, 337)
The Call of Muhammad
“Stricken with panic, Muhammad arose and asked himself, ‘What did I see? Did possession of the Devil which I feared all along come to pass?’…He feared the cave might be haunted.” (Muslim biographer, M. H. Haykal, The Life of Muhammad, 74)
The Call of Muhammad
“As she did on earlier occasions when Muhammad feared possession by the devil, so now stood firm by her husband and devoid of the slightest doubt…she said to him, ‘Joy to my cousin! Be firm. By him who dominated Khadijah’s soul I pray and hope that you will be the Prophet of this nation.’” (Haykal, 75)
MUHAMMAD
Not Virgin Born
JESUS
Virgin Born
SinlessNot Sinless
Not Messiah
Not Word of God
Called Messiah
Did MiraclesNo Miracles
Called Word of God
Body in Grave Body in Heaven
ACCORDING TO ISLAM
Consistent with Teachings of the Qur’an (Sura 9:5)
Contrary to Teachings of the New Testament (Mt. 26:52)
Contrary to Example of Jesus Christ
Consistent with Example of Muhammad
Logical Outworking of Islam
Illogical Outworking of Christianity
Christianity grew by use of the sword on it
Islam grew by use of the sword on others
Use of the SwordJIHAD CRUSADES
On Innocent On Guilty
An act of GodAn act of Man
For Religious Reasons
On all Unbelievers
For Moral Reasons
As a Last Resort As a First Resort
On some Unbelievers
Commands to KillGod who gives life can take it
QUR’AN OLD TESTAMENT
At any Time At a Specific Time
For Redeeming EveryoneFor Redeeming No One
Confirmed by GodNot Confirmed by God
ISLAM GOD: absolute one
CHRISTIANITYGOD: 3 persons in 1 essence
HUMANITY: sinful by natureHUMANITY: good by nature
JESUS: major prophet who performed miracles but was not God
DEATH OF CHRIST: Judas, not Christ
SALVATION: Work toward salvation; good deeds must outweigh bad ones
JESUS: second person of eternal Trinity; added humanity in the incarnation
DEATH OF CHRIST: died and rose in same physical body
SALVATION: Free gift of forgiveness and physical resurrection via faith in Christ’s atoning work
BIBLE: corrupted BIBLE: Word of God