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In a recent issue of Time, a question was raised, “Want to stop terrorism? Start talking to terrorists who stop themselves.” An interesting suggestion. The article suggests that perhaps the smarter question is not why do people join terrorist groups, but why do they leave terrorist groups? The overarching conclusion of a recent study of 28 former terrorists is disenchantment — becoming disenchanted with the romanticism of terrorism. They have discovered that terrorism is ideologically bankrupt!
SO, how does this relate to Christianity? There is mounting evidence that Muslims, in rather staggering numbers, are leaving Islam for Christianity. Listen to some of these statistics:
- In Russia, some 2 million Muslims converted to Christianity.
- 10,000 French Muslims converted, as did 35,000 Turkish Muslims.
- In India, nearly 10,000 left Islam for Christianity.
- In Algeria, over 80,000 Muslims have become Christians.
- In Morocco, between 25,000 and 40,000 Muslims have converted to Christ.
- In 1996, the Egyptian Bible Society sold about 3,000 video copies of the Jesus film. In year 2000 that figure climbed to over 600,000 copies!
- In Sudan, about 5 million Muslims have trusted Christ since the early 1990s. This is of course despite the horrific persecution of Christians occurring in that nation.
- In Iraq, more than 5,000 Muslims have become Christians.
- A leading Muslim cleric in Saudi Arabia, Sheikh Ahmad Al Qatanni, has stated that every day, 16,000 Muslims convert to Christianity. . . every year, that is six million Muslims becoming Christians. . . A tragedy has happened.”
Why is this occurring? One Sudanese Evangelical leader contends that “People have seen real Islam and they want Jesus instead.” Several key pointers or bridges that make Christianity relevant to a Muslim:
Bridge #1. Avoid condemning Islam or speaking in a derogatory manner about Muhammad. Instead of criticizing Islam outright, one must seek to understand it. This involves being a good listener. When speaking with a Muslim, it is generally wise to allow the Muslim to speak first. Courtesy, respect and honor are important in Islamic culture.
Bridge #2. Remember that a Muslim is a believer in God. Islam is monotheistic and Allah shares many of the same attributes as the true God of the Bible. This is the common ground upon which a relationship can be built.
Bridge #3. In the heart of every Muslim is the fear of Allah. The Qur’an teaches that every Muslim will some day stand before Allah. For most Muslims, there is always the anxiety that they are not doing enough to merit Allah’s favor. For the Christian, the concept of grace is so important and here the bridge of grace must be built. For the Christian, the fear of God is not horror and terror; it is reverence and awe for the One with whom we have a personal relationship. This point is crucial for Muslims, because they have no concept of a personal relationship with the living God.
Bridge #4. Most Muslims have a certain sense of sin, rooted largely in their failure to attain Allah’s high standards. Islam gives no assurance for the pardon for sin and here is where the Christian message takes hold, for Jesus did that on Calvary’s cross.
Bridge #5. Make use of the truth that Muslims know to lead them to the whole truth about God’s Word. Muslims already know that God is light and that in Him there is no darkness at all. They know Jesus is the Son of Mary and that one of His titles is the Word of God. They know that Jesus will soon return to reign. They know that humans must be pure to approach God. Once a relationship is established, the Word of God can be used to corroborate what Islam teaches and provide further instruction regarding the true nature of Christianity.
Bridge #6. Because the Qur’an rejects God as Trinity, it is difficult for Muslims to grasp the deity of Jesus. For that reason, once a relationship of trust is established, it is imperative to focus on the deity of Jesus, perhaps using such verses as Matthew 3:16,17; 17:5; 28:19; John 10:30; 14:6; 8:58; Romans 8:26,27; 1 Peter 1:2, etc.
Muslims also stumble over Jesus as the Son of God, because often they teach that God cohabited with Mary to produce Jesus. What we as Christians must do is demonstrate that Jesus’ sonship describes His relationship to the other members of the godhead and not that He had a point of origin or beginning. Jesus is the manifestation of the unseen God (see Hebrews 1:1-3 and Colossians 1:15-20). [This section has summarized the entire book by Charles R. Marsh, Share Your Faith with a Muslim. Chicago: Moody, 1975]
Islam is one of the most difficult religions to penetrate with the gospel. For that reason, the establishment of a relationship with Muslims is imperative. Once trust and confidence are present, the Holy Spirit will have the freedom to move in the hearts of Muslims through us. We must know Islam and we must be willing to spend time with Muslims.
See Time (24 March 2008), pp. 46-47; “Breakpoint” (24 March 2008)—most of the statistics in this Perspective came from this article; and James P. Eckman, The Truth About Worldviews, pp. 82-84. |
