Islam Vs Christianity

STUDIES IN ISLAM

ISLAMIC Symbols

Crescent moon & star

The symbol above pre-dates Islam by several thousand years and the origins of the symbol is unknown. Many Muslims reject using the crescent moon as a symbol of Islam because some feel it is essentially an ancient pagan icon.

Prayer Stance

Mosques

Islam’s Expanding Influence INCREASING INTENSITY • Islam is growing and expanding

Islam’s Expanding Influence INCREASING INTENSITY • Islam is growing and expanding • Population Growth

Islam’s Expanding Influence INCREASING INTENSITY • Islam is growing and expanding • Population Growth

1980 - about 18% of World Population 2000 - over 20% of World Population (predicted growth)

2025 - over 30% of World Population (Source: Samuel Huntington, The Clash of Civilizations and the Remaking of World Order)

Islam’s Expanding Influence INCREASING INTENSITY • Islam is growing and expanding • Population Growth INCREASING PROXIMITY (closeness) • Global Expansion

Islam’s Expanding Influence INCREASING INTENSITY • Islam is growing and expanding • Population Growth INCREASING PROXIMITY • Global Expansion • Local Presence in the West

Five Beliefs •God •Angels •Holy Books •Prophets •Day of Judgment

The Five Pillars 1. Confession of Faith (Testimony) • There is but one god • Mohammed is greatest prophet • Qu’ran is the only writings

Children are taught at young ages to sit for hours and memorize Qu’ran

The Five Pillars 1. Confession of Faith 3. Prayer • 5 times per day; facing Mecca

SAUDI ARABIA

Why Mecca is so special to the religion of Islam? • Mecca is: – Islam's holiest city – The birthplace of the prophet Muhammad, the founder of the Islamic faith.

The Great Mosque in Mecca • The Great Mosque which houses the Kaaba and Zamzam Well is located in the city. • The Zamzam Well is believed to have been the source of water for Hagar and Ishmael when they were abandoned in the desert by Abraham.

The Great Mosque

The Five Pillars 1. Confession of Faith 3. Prayer 5. Tithe • Give money generously to charity

The Five Pillars • Confession of Faith • Prayer • Tithe • Fast • Especially during the month of Ramadan •

Ramadan is the ninth month of the Islamic calendar.

The Five Pillars 1. 2. 3. 4.

Confession of Faith Prayer Tithe Fast

6. Pilgrimage •

The Holy Koran dictates that all Muslims in good health with adequate finances must make a pilgrimage (called the Hajj) to Mecca at least once in their lifetimes.

During the pilgrimage to Mecca, which all Muslims are required to make, the faithful perform the tawaf, circling the Kaaba seven times. Tradition says that when Prophet Muhammad (PBUH) arrived in Mecca his enemies spread a rumor that the Muslims were weakened by fever. The Prophet therefore told his supporters to run around the Kaaba for the first three times, to show how strong they were, and the custom is a part of the pilgrimage to this day. At the end of their pilgrimage, the faithful then perform another farewell tawaf of the Kaaba. The Qur'an states; "It is the duty of all men towards God to come to the House a pilgrim, if he is able to make his way there." (sura 3,97) The Kaaba is a gray stone building 11 metres in height, is the main shrine of Islam. Only Muslims are permitted to enter it. The term Kaaba (Arabic: 'cube') describes the shape of the building. It is covered with a black veil of silk and cotton, which is replaced by draperies of white fabric during the pilgrimage season. The Kaaba contains the sacred Black Stone which, according to tradition, was brought down to earth by the Angel Gabriel. Even in pre-lslamic times, the Kaaba in Mecca was an important shrine.

The Kaaba

The Zamzam Well

About two million Muslims (from some 100 countries) make this religious journey each year.

What Muslims Say About Holy Books •Qu’ran – preserved by Muslims • Old Testament – corrupted • New Testament – corrupted

What Christians Say About Holy Books • Qu’ran

– not scripture

• Old Testament – preserved by God • New Testament – preserved by God

What Muslims Say About Jesus •Virgin birth • Performed miracles • Is a prophet of Islam • Did not die • Will return in the end times • Is not God

What Christians Say About Jesus •Virgin birth • Performed miracles • Is a prophet • Died on a cross & was resurrected • Will return in the end times • Is God • Is the second member of the Trinity

John 1:1, 14 “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God…And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us.”

Philippians 2:68 “Although Jesus existed in the form of God, he 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. Being found in appearance as a man, he humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.”

What Muslims Say About Salvation •People save themselves • Exercise their will to do good • Others may help through teaching • Allah may help? • Allah will judge good vs. bad deeds

What Christians Say About Salvation •

In Adam, we all became tainted by sin • All have sinned and fallen short • People cannot save themselves • The Holy Spirit is our helper

• God is just and demands a payment for sin • Christ died to pay the penalty for our sins • We are saved by grace through faith alone

Romans 3:10-12 “There is none righteous, not even one; There is none who understands, There is none who seeks for God; All have turned aside, together they have become useless. There is none who does good; there is not even one.”

Titus 3:5 “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy.”

1 Timothy 2:5 “For there is one mediator between God and Man, the man Christ Jesus, who gave himself as a ransom for all…”

What Muslims Say About Heaven and Hell

• No one knows where they will go • Select groups of special people go to heaven • God will judge good and bad deeds to decide who gets into paradise • No real need for divine justice

What Christians Say About Heaven and Hell • Because of sin, no one deserves to go to heaven • God requires just payment for sin • Those who trust in Jesus Christ’s atonement for their sins will go to heaven –

He paid the ultimate price

Hebrews 4:16 “Let us therefore draw near with confidence the throne of grace that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need.”

Isaiah 53:4-6 “Surely our griefs He Himself bore, And our sorrows He carried; Yet we ourselves esteemed Him stricken, Smitten of God, afflicted. But He was pierced through for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; The chastening for our well-being fell upon Him, And by His scourging we were healed. All of us like sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to his own way; But the Lord has caused the iniquity of us all to fall upon Him.”

1 John 5:1112 “God has given us eternal life, and this life is in His Son. He who has the Son has the life; he who does not have the Son of God, does not have the life.”

How Should We Respond to People Who are Islamic? 1. Focus on similarities to build common ground and understanding 3. Don’t argue; Instead engage in respectful conversation about differences 5. Don’t attack Islam or be judgmental/selfrighteous, but humbly speak of the good news of Jesus Christ. 4. Love them as God loves them 5. Pray for God’s truth to be revealed

Romans 2: God's Righteous

Judgment

• You, therefore, have no excuse, you who pass judgment on someone else, for at whatever point you judge the other, you are condemning yourself, because you who pass judgment do the same things. • Now we know that God's judgment against those who do such things is based on truth. So when you, a mere man, pass judgment on them and yet do the same things, do you think you will escape God's judgment? • Or do you show contempt for the riches of his kindness, tolerance and patience, not realizing that God's kindness leads you toward repentance?