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    The Truth About Islam and Jesus
    The Truth About Islam and Jesus
    The Truth About Islam and Jesus
    Ebook115 pages1 hour

    The Truth About Islam and Jesus

    By John Ankerberg and Emir Caner

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    About this ebook

    Christians are often surprised when they hear Muslims say, "We believe in Jesus too, and we hold Him in great esteem." But what do they really mean? Are the Muslim Jesus and the Christian Jesus the same person?

    Immersed in the Islamic worldview as the son of a devout muezzin—mosque leader—Emir Caner helps readers untangle two very different belief systems. He and John Ankerberg take on the tough questions:

    • What role does Jesus have in Islam?
    • What does the Qu'ran say about Him? What does it not say?
    • Why are Muslims repulsed by the idea that Jesus is the Son of God, fully God and fully man?
    • What do Muslims have in mind when they acknowledge Jesus as virgin-born?
    • How can Christians discuss these belief differences without insulting Muslim friends and acquaintances?

    A concise, authoritative guide for informed Muslim-Christian interaction.

    LanguageEnglish
    PublisherHarvest House Publishers
    Release dateAug 1, 2009
    ISBN9780736936637
    The Truth About Islam and Jesus
    Author

    John Ankerberg

    John Ankerberg, host of the award-winning John Ankerberg Show, has three earned degrees: an MA in church history and the philosophy of Christian thought, an MDiv from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School, and a DMin from Luther Rice Seminary. He has coauthored the 2-million-selling Facts On series of apologetic books, as well as Taking a Stand for the Bible and Israel Under Fire.

    Read more from John Ankerberg

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      Book preview

      The Truth About Islam and Jesus - John Ankerberg

      Quran.

      Section One

      A Common Word, a Cheap Knockoff, or a New Cult?:

      The Jesus of Islam

      The greatest joys of traveling are found in meeting new people, experiencing new cultures, and tasting unique and exquisite food. Travel also fosters a healthy and challenging exchange of ideas. Interactions are often up close and personal, where belief meets practice and facts require substance. We soon realize that the world contains a vast array of opinions—and a vast array of adherents ready to vociferously defend their worldview, for it is indeed their life. The passing down of these belief systems—tradition, that is—forms the most powerful of all philosophical frameworks. Tradition is passed down not only from person to person, but from generation to generation, century by century.

      Throughout the world there is no better place for interaction than the local marketplace. At these crossroads outsiders observe, knowingly or unknowingly, the traditions of a society—its politics, religion, and culture. If you pay full price for an item, for example, you have been robbed—of money and of the experience. In fact, locals enjoy their interactions with foreigners nearly as much as they enjoy the profits they make. Their goods represent their life as well as their livelihood. (Handmade has far more to do with the people than their product.)

      However, these same marketplaces also have items common to any major store in a developed nation—but much less expensive. The buyer may come across brand-name shoes or designer jeans and be stunned to see the incredibly low price. Even looking with a critical eye, a naïve purchaser will still buy in the hope he’s received a fantastic bargain.

      But his enthusiasm for the item diminishes as swiftly as he purchased it. It’s found wanting and becomes a great disappointment. The label was only a camouflage for a product that couldn’t even endure the flight home or the first spin in the washing machine. As the purchaser really knew all along, the label was an obvious counterfeit.

      1

      Is the Jesus of Islam the genuine article?

      Although the buyer in the marketplace had every opportunity to see that the product he purchased was counterfeit, his hopes were falsely based on a label that looked identical to the original. Maybe there were other similarities—a seemingly identical logo, style, or feel. Perhaps a promotional tag promised the same value or guaranteed similar quality. Perhaps the item even stated that it came from the same location as the genuine article. The greater the similarities between the two, the greater the possibility of deception. But the eventual result was not only poorer, it was inadequate and unfulfilling. Ultimately, hopes were dashed and reality set in.

      The figure of the Jesus of Islam (Isa in Arabic) pawns itself off in the same fashion, with one major exception—it promises that it is the original and the Jesus of Christianity is the fraud. The Qur’an uses biblical terms to describe its Jesus, calling him Messiah (Masih), the Word (Kalima), and Prophet (Nabi).

      In other words, his logo is the same, but his character is radically changed.

      Likewise, the Jesus of Islam is represented as sharing a common religious history—parts of the Old and New Testaments—with the Jesus of the Bible. Both allegedly come from the same source.

      Finally, the Jesus of Islam promises similar results to those offered by the Jesus of the Bible. The Qur’anic Jesus is said to teach peace and show men and women the way to Paradise.

      Sadly, the adherents of this Jesus will one day recognize that they have been taken in by a counterfeit and a fraud. A name used in common does not necessarily mean a person in common.

      2

      Where did the Islamic Jesus come from?

      False Christs and false prophets will appear and perform great signs and miracles to deceive even the elect—if that were possible.

      —JESUS, IN MATTHEW 24:24

      Humans have always striven to reverse the order of creation for their own gain. Men and women, made in the image of God (Genesis 1:26), have attempted countless times to re-create God in their own image. The same can be said of Jesus Christ. Many individuals and groups throughout history have attempted to mold a new and improved Jesus, created in their own minds and for their own purposes. These false Christs are based in fiction and not in fact. Revising the Jesus of history according to our own wants and desires illustrates how prophecies, like the verse above from the Olivet Discourse, can easily be fulfilled in the future. After all, humankind has already often fallen for a lesser or mythological Jesus.

      The fact that a newly minted Jesus does not transform is all the more enticing. Why? Humanity, in its natural state, is not looking for transformation; rather, we seek for affirmation that we can obtain heaven by our own power and works. Sinful humanity is not looking for a savior or a deliverer. People simply want a guide to a better life.

      Islam provides such a remedy. The Jesus of the Qur’an and the Hadith possesses no traits of God (sura 5:17), but is a mere mortal and a messenger (sura 5:75) who simply points people in the direction of Islam (sura 5:111). He is one of us, created like Adam (sura 3:59), who affirms guidance and an admonition to those who fear Allah (sura 5:46). The key to the change? Jesus’ character is refashioned after Islam’s message. If the message of Islam is false, then the character of the Islamic Jesus is also false.

      Islam attempts to create its own domesticated Jesus; it maintains that it is the old faith with slight improvements.

      Where did the Islamic Jesus originate?

      It derives from a single, common source—human beings’ natural inclinations to uplift self and degrade the Savior. This mind-set has branded its mark upon the path of history into the present. Islam’s re-envisioning of Jesus is nothing unique; many before and many after have followed suit.

      Consider, for example, the advent of Christian liberalism in the nineteenth century. A reaction against belief in the supernatural, Christian liberalism degraded Christ’s work into a set of moral principles and guides, removing any reference to his atoning work on the cross. Jesus was reinvented as a good teacher—but not the one and only Savior. Charles Spurgeon (1834–1892), the famed preacher at the Metropolitan Tabernacle of London, England, fought tenaciously against these modern critics of

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