Saturday, August 20, 2016

99 Answers To Islam

Why this list of questions?

When I first started encountering Muslims as a new Christian, I was dismayed to discover that I did not have an adequate reply to the questions that they asked and the challenges they posed.  This was embarrassing for me.  I determined to learn to be able to counter their arguments.

Since then, I  observed that that all Muslims share the same set of questions about Christianity.   Because of this uniformity, apologetics to Muslims to is easier than many people realize.
Many of the questions on this started with the Muslim debater Ahmed Deedat from South Africa.  In the 1970's he popularized a number of arguments by unleashing them on Christians who were not prepared to answer them, just as I also was. He made many videos and wrote pamphlets and books. Soon, however, John Gilchrist, a Christian missionary, also in South Africa, showed that it was possible to teach the church there to answer Deedat's questions. When the church knew how to answer them it made his arguments not just useless but counterproductive for for the spread of Islam.

I still meet Muslims who study Deedat's materials and gleefully watch his videos when he could trip up Christians in debates. They don't know that his arguments have long been satisfactorily answered by even more knowledgeable Christian apologists since then.
I believe the Church partly to blame when Muslims become emboldened after they find that the Christians they encounter can't provide answers when these questions are raised.  All the answers have been worked out.  They are not hard.

My approach requires very little knowledge about Islam, but builds on what most Christians already know.  The fact that Muslims have all these questions represents an opportunity to share the gospel, and their expectation that these are difficult questions makes this approach all the more effective.  You may ask, how can this be effective there are no anti-Islamic arguments?  The fact that Islam claims to be the correction or replacement for Christianity and Judaism, and yet provides no decisive argument against Christianity is itself a testimony that the Quran is not from Allah.

Also notice that since there is no particular teaching about Islam in this material below,  this means that pastors can equip their church to counter Islam, but without explicitly mentioning it, by including some of this material in each of their sermons.

Also, since Ahmed Deedat used the King James version, some of his the questions ask are specific to the particulars of this translation, such as the phrase "only begotten". I once heard of an evangelist who encountered a Muslim in a remote part of Africa who started by asking the missionary about 1 John 5:7.

Trinity  (Muslims have many questions about this)
x) Do Muslims and Christians worship the same god?
A: Jesus taught us to worship "The Father".
x) Does it matter if you worship the Muslim god or the Christian god?
A: Jesus said, "I am the Way, the  Truth, the Life; nobody comes to the Father but by me." (John 14:16)
x) Do you worship three gods?
A: Jesus said "The Lord is one" (Mark 12:30).  We believe in a "tri-unity", or Trinity; not a "tri-theity".
x) What is the "Trinity"?
A: One being, three persons.  Co-eternal.
The Holy spirit is seen in Gen 1, the Son of Man is in Daniel 7.  Jesus used this title about 80 times for himself.  If Christ were not divine then someone other than God would be worthy of worship for taking the penalty of sin on him.
x) Why can't there be any prophets after Jesus?
A: Gal 1:8,9, Jude 3.  Jesus paid the penalty for sin.  Anyone teaching anything else is fundamentally contradicting the Bible.
x) Isn't it undignified to say that Jesus (God) went to the bathroom?
A: It shows the high price that had to be paid for your redemption, that God became incarnate for your sake.
x) Is Jesus God?
A: Jesus is one person in the trinity.  Jesus is not God the Father.
x) Who did Jesus pray to?
A: God the Father.
x) How can Jesus be God if it says that God is not a man (Numbers 23:19)?
A: Jesus was not incarnate at this time.  In context it means that God does not lie.
1) Why is there no verse where Jesus says "I am God"?
A:  This would have given his opponents occasion to stone him for blasphemy.  Also Jesus' favorite self-designation was "son of man" in reference to Daniel 7.
x) Why do you believe Jesus is "God"?
Thomas said "My Lord and my God" (John 20:28) and Jesus accepted this.  Also John chapter 1.
8) Do Christians worship Mary?
A: No, The Bible does not teach this.
x) Was Jesus impolite by calling his mother "woman"?
A: No, this is a term of endearment.
x) Did God beget Jesus by carnal relations with Mary? "Only Begotten"?
A: This heresy does not even have a name.  The KJV phrase "only begotten" is a translation of "Monogenes", meaning one of a kind, or unique.  There is nobody else who is fully God, and fully man.
x) What then does it mean by:  “The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall overshadow thee. " (Luke 1:35)?
A: It is the same language as Genesis 1:2: (the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. ESV)
x) Why did Jesus say "My God, my God why have you forsaken me?"
A: This is from psalm 22, prophetic of Jesus.
x) Doesn't Jesus deny divinity in John 10:35 when he quotes "ye are Gods?"
No, he was defending himself against a charge of blasphemy, a capital offense.  His point is that it is not unlawful to call himself Son of God.
x) Why did Jesus say "my Father is greater than I" John (14:28)?
A:  Jesus entered into the human experience. He submitted to the Father.  See Philippians 2.
x) Why did Jesus say "Why do you call me good"? Doesn't this show that Jesus is not God?
A: It means not to call him good without recognizing his divinity.

x) What is the big deal with the resurrection?  Many prophets performed miracles, including raising the dead.
A: This is divine endorsement of Jesus' claims.
x) Wasn't the doctrine of the trinity invented at the council of Nicea?
A: Constantine convened this council discuss the the claim by Arius that Jesus was not God, but a created being.  This was contrary to the accepted view.  Constantine did not want division in his empire.  The cannon of scripture was not a topic of discussion.

x) Why did Jesus say "I have not spoken of myself; but the Father who sent me, he gave me a commandment, what I should say, and what I should speak)?" (John 12:49)
A: Jesus has three offices, namely, priest, king and prophet.  As prophet he only speaks what he hears from the Father.
x) Why is the word "Trinity" not in the Bible?
This word summarizes what is taught in various passages.
x) How do you know that the Holy spirit is not the angel Gabriel, who brought the Quran?
A: In Matt 28:19-20 we read: Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost: Teaching them to observe all things whatsoever I have commanded you: and, lo, I am with you alway, even unto the end of the world.
Note this "name" is singular.

x) Why don't we worship the holy spirit?
A: The holy spirit wants to draw attention to Jesus:  He shall glorify me (John 16:14)

Bible Corrupt
x) What about 1 John 5:7?
A: Research is constantly performed to determine the original text.  The "Trinity" does not depend on this verse.  The fact that verses like this have annotations shows that we are always improving the text, and are open about this process.
6 ) How do you know that your Bible isn't corrupted?
A: Modern translations point out verses with manuscript difficulties, so these should not be used as the only basis of doctrines.  For verses without such notes, which is the majority of the text, the burden is on you to demonstrate that they are corrupt.
x)  What about the Gnostic NT books?
A: These were written after the apostles died.  They were not accepted by the church as a whole.
x) Did the Jews or Christians make up scripture to make money? (Q 2:79)?
x) When was the Bible written?
The OT was finished around 400 B.C, and the NT around AD 90.
x) How was it transmitted? 
Churches copied the various writings of the apostles to each other:
When this epistle is read among you, cause that it be read also in the church of the Laodiceans, and likewise read the epistle from Laodicea. (Col 4:16) There was no time when all manuscripts were in one place or under control of one group.


x) What are the earliest MSS?
The P52 manuscript (fragment) is from before 150 AD.
x) How do you know the Bible is true? (Bible contains verifiable claims to initial audience)
We must keep in mind that the church suffered much persecution and was in no position to use coercion or incentive to cause people to join.  The fact that the church came into existence and survived is their testimony to us that they had compelling reasons to believe in the veracity of the books they preserved.
Many claims were verifiable to the the original audience, such as Matt 28:15 and 1 Cor 15:6.
x) Why does Catholic Bible have more books?
The Jews of Jesus' day maintained certain books along side of but outside of  their accepted cannon.  The Catholic church found parts of these useful for justifying some of their doctrines.  Protestant bibles eventually stopped including these books, although they appeared in the original 1611 KJV.
x) Why are the four gospels anonymous?
A: There has always been uniform agreement in church history on the names of these books.  They did not try to give them authority by naming Luke and Mark after apostles.
x)What is the purpose of the Old Testament?
A: The law has three purposes:  1. knowledge of sin 2. help restrain evil, 3. Reveal what is pleasing to God.
x) Is Christ foretold in the Old Testament?
A: Jesus talked about this on the road to Emmaus.  These teachings are distributed through the NT.
x) Why are the four gospels anonymous?
A: There has always been uniform agreement in church history on the names of these books.  They did not try to give them authority by naming Luke and Mark after apostles.
x) Why do Christians have so many Bibles?
The Hebrew and Greek texts are generally agreed on.  There are many translations.
x) Who is Paul and why do do you read his epistles?
Paul wrote two-thirds of the NT, mostly from prison.  Received the Gospel by revelation (Gal 1:11)  He suffered a lot for his faith (2 Cor 11:25).   He could not have credibly made claims like "I bear in my body the marks of the Lord Jesus" (Gal 6:17) unless he had many scars on his body.  Unlike other "prophets" he did not primarily teach on the basis of his revelation as authoritative.  Instead, Most of his teachings he justified by reasoning and OT references.  So most of what he wrote we could still believe even if he had not written it.

Salvation

x) How do you get saved in Christianity?
A: Repent and be baptized.
2) Why can't I just keep on sinning since Jesus paid for all our sin?
A: If you persist in sin, it shows you never are not repentant.
x) Did Paul do away with circumcision to make Christianity appealing to pagans?
This was the decision of the Jerusalem council, in Acts 15.
3) Where is Jesus in the Old Testament?
A: Many places.  This is a big topic.
4) How can Jesus take on himself the penalty for someone else's sin?
A: We are called "In Christ".  Gal 2:20 says "I have been crucified with Christ".
 5) Why did God create mankind?
A: For fellowship.  We are made in the image of God and can
7) Why can't God just forgive sin without Jesus?
A: God speaks and worlds come into existence.  God's word must remain true.  "you shall surely die" (Gen 2:17) must mean something.  In fact the first death was an animal to cover Adam and Eve.  Violation of God's command must have consequences.
God is just and the justifier of the unjust (Rom 3:26)
x) Where did Jesus teach salvation by grace?
A: The Son of Man came not to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many.(Matt 20:28)
Communion was instituted by Jesus, with the bread as his body and the wine as his blood:
This is my blood of the new covenant, which is poured out for many for the remission of sins (Matt  26:28).
This day you will be with me in paradise (Luke 23:43).
He who believes and is baptized will be saved; but he who disbelieves will be condemned (Mark 16:16).

General
x) Does the Bible permit polygamy?
A:In the beginning, God made Adam and Eve. The Bible teaches that you will have trouble if you have more than one wife.
x) Can Christians eat pork? (Acts 10).
A: God showed Peter this in a vision.
x) Is Alcohol permitted?
A:  ...be not drunk with wine, wherein is excess; but be filled with the Spirit (Eph 5:18)
x) What about violence in the Old Testament?
A: There were only limited mandates; for example the Jews do not have permission to attack the Philistines at any time.
13) Didn't Jesus say he came to bring a sword (Matt 10:34)?
A: This passage shows the divisions and persecutions that persecutions that Christians will have to endure.  The sword is pointed at us.
14) Didn't Jesus say he was only sent to the lost sheep of Israel?
A: Jesus paid the price for sin of all humanity.  The great commission was for all nations (Matt 28:16)
x) Is Christianity responsible for this or that evil?
A: The most important command, given by Jesus, is to love your neighbor as yourself  (Mark 12:30).  There is no greater prophet than Jesus, so nothing can supersede this.
x) Why wait so long for the Cross?  What about Abraham, how was he saved?
A: We have Gen 3:15, the promise of the Messiah, and we have Cain and Abel.
x) Was Abraham a Christian or a Jew?
A: He is  a fore-runner of both.  He was the father of Judaism but he also paid tithes to Melchizedek, who is a type of Christ.  (Hebrews 7).


x) Shouldn't men have a beard, like Jesus?
A: There is no reference to Jesus having a beard.  Can't be important.  But Acts mentions that Paul shaved his head.
x) Why does the Bible command women to wear a veil (1 Cor 11:6)?
A: In Corinth, the temple prostitutes had short hair.  Some church ladies were adopting this fashion for themselves.
x) Did Mary wear a veil?
A: There is nothing about Mary wearing a veil in the Bible.
x) What is the Christian form of government?
A: The early church had all things in common.  "My kingdom is not of this world".  Eventually Jesus will return to rule.
x) Was Mohammed a prophet like Moses (Deut 18:15)?
A: Jesus performed spectacular miracles, like Moses did.
x) Did Jesus prophesy of Mohammed ( John 16:5-11)?
A: If he did, he would have endorsed someone who would contradict him.  He did warn of false prophets that would come in his name (Matt 17:15, Matt 24:24).
x) Indecent verses in the Bible? (Ezekiel 23:1-10)
A: It got the attention of the people at the time, and yours. God is not "politically correct"
x) Were prophets without sin?
A:  They were like us. We learn from their message, good deeds and their mistakes.
x) How do you pray?
A: We  worship in Spirit and in Truth.  We do not use vain repetitions.  We do not pray to be seen by others.  We do not worship with our lips having our hearts far from God.
x) Is there compulsion in Christianity?
where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is liberty (2 Cor 3:16)
x) Was Paul a liar (Rom 3:7)?
x) Were there eye-witnesses to the crucifixion?  Didn't all the disciples flee?
A: They did not stay away.  John and Mary saw Jesus on the cross.  Matt 27:55-56, says that many women were "watching from a distance".
x) Why does it say God repented (Gen 6:6)?
A: The Bible uses anthropomorphic language to describe God.  This is the only thing we really understand.
x) Why do you believe that Jesus rose from the dead?
A: 1 Cor 15.
x) Was Jesus really dead? 
A: The Romans were severe to others and themselves.  In Acts 16:27-28, the Philippian jailer was about to kill himself when he discovered the doors were open.  The soldiers would do their job well.


Questions
?) What parts of the Bible do you believe and why?
This can be useful to ask.  The Quran motivates belief that the Bible is true, and at the same time that it it can't all be true because it contradicts the Quran.  Some Muslims like to bridge this contradiction by claiming parts of the Bible are "changed", or false for some reason.  It in that case it is good to establish reasonable criteria for determining what Bible passages are problematic.
?)What deep insight into the Bible does the Quran supply?
For a book that is supposedly inspired, the Quran does not interact much with the Bible.  For example, no explanation is given why it was revealed by an angel when Galatians 1 warns against this.



?)What is the earliest complete Quran manuscript?
Back in Deedat's day it was widely assumed that the Quran was perfectly preserved.  In fact, the Evangelist Jay Smith has been publicizing recent research on the major Quran manuscripts that seem to indicate that the text evolved over time.

?) Explain the resurrection? The origin of Christianity?
If Jesus was a prophet of Islam and taught contrary to Christianity then how did Christianity arise in the same location as Jesus and in the first century?
Muslims generally have difficulty constructing a coherent story from their Jesus to the historical Christian Jesus that is consistent with the Quran.
?) Does your Quran explain this story from your previous answer or did you just make that up?
In the debate between Josh McDowell and Ahmed Deedat, Josh listed about a dozen Muslim theories on what happened to make it so Jesus appeared to be crucified.
?) How is the Quran supporting you?

?) Failure of prophet Jesus?

?)  Paradigm?

?) What motivates to read the Quran?
?) Luther was able to reform Christianity without appealing to supernatural revelation.


Resources

"Quran Manuscripts tell the tale Jay Smith 2015" on YouTube
Jay Smith made a series of five videos after his 2014 debate with Shabir Ally, that are collected together in this one.  He talks about the major Quran manuscripts, how they differ from today's 1924 Cairo edition, and how there appears to have been gradual changes towards a common standard over time.
Muslims on the one hand want their religion to be the only one for all humanity, but yet don't seem to want to expose it to scholarly scrutiny.

"Gilchrist and his debate legacy" on YouTube
Explains some of the background of Ahmed Deedat and modern Islam.  Shows that the church can render their arguments counterproductive.

"Ahmed Deedat vs Josh McDowell Debate: Was Jesus Christ Crucified? (Full)" on YouTube
I heard a story from a knowledgeable source.  John Gilchrist knew he was not "quick on his feet" enough to debate Ahmed Deedat, so he suggested a young author named Josh McDowell instead.  Deedat lost this debate so badly so that he did not release the official video, so all we have is this amateur footage, which has its own charm.  This video shows that there are a dozen or so Muslim conjectures on what actually happened to Jesus; the Quran is a bit vague on this.


"Foundations"
After becoming familiar with Muslim arguments, it is useful to listen to R. C. Sproul's series on "foundations" which is a series of 60 lectures on Systematic theology, or something similar.

Is The Original New Testament Lost? :: A Dialogue with Dr. Bart Ehrman & Dr. Daniel Wallace on YouTube
This shows the reasonable boundaries of discussion since this is discussion with a knowledgeable opponent of Christianity


?) If the Quran does not provide a compelling case against Christianity, then what is the use of Islam?