-Menorah Ministries-
Contrasting Jesus and Muhammad
Sura ‘Al-Fatihiah’ (The Opening) 1:1-7
In the name of Allah, the Beneficent, the Merciful. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the Worlds, The Beneficent, the Merciful. Master of the Day of Judgment, You (alone) we worship; You (alone) we ask for help. Show us the straight path, The path of those whom You have favoured; Not the (path) of those who earn Your anger nor of those who go astray
Jesus said: “...and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” (John 8:32)
NOTE: Authoritative Islamic texts are the Qur’an and Hadith. Muslims believe that the Qur’an is the revealed word of Allah (verse numbers differ slightly in different versions). Sura always stands for a chapter in the Qur’an. Islamic belief is that Muhammad is the perfect example to be followed by all Muslims. Whatever he said, practiced or approved is called Hadith. There are six different sets of authentic ahadith (Hadiths): Bukhari, Muslim, Abu Dawud, Tirmizi, Sunnan Ibn Majah and Sunnan Nasa’i. This pamphlet is intended to show the teachings and examples of Muhammad, and is not intended to be offensive to Muslims; many Muslims may have little real knowledge of what their god, Allah and their prophet has said on this topic.
Many people believe that all religions are equal and that the founders of the religions all taught much the same thing. Let us take a moment then to examine Christianity and Islam to see if this is true. The best way, in fact, to evaluate a particular religion is to look at the life, practice and teaching of its founder.
Jesus: The birth and life of Jesus were foretold by the Old Testament in more than 300 prophecies. He was born of a virgin and led a pure and sinless life. He commenced his ministry at 30 years of age and preached a message of repentance, peace and love by pursuing the righteousness of God. His ministry was attested to by miracles. As He died on a Roman cross 3½ years later, He asked God to forgive His enemies; He was buried but came back to life and was seen by more than 500 people before He ascended into Heaven (1 Corinthians 15:6). Jesus claimed to be the Son of God (e.g. John 5:25; 11:25-27; Matthew 3:16-17; 17:5), and He received worship due only to God (John 5:23; 20:28; 1 Timothy 3:16; 1 John 5:5-13). Note also the prophecy of Isaiah 9:6.
Muhammad: Muhammad was born about 570 years after the birth of Jesus. At the age of 40 he began to receive revelations from an angel called Gabriel who had six hundred wings (Bukhari Vol. 4; Hadith 455). He preached a message of peace for the first 13 years of his ministry in Mecca. When he fled to Medina, he prayed toward Jerusalem (Bukhari Vol. 6; Hadith 13; Vol. 9; Hadith 358; Vol. 1; Hadith No. 39) to win the favour of the Jews. However, when the Jews rejected him he began to receive more violent revelations, e.g. Sura 8:67. Throughout his life, he planned and participated in 27 battles (Ibn Kathir, Albedayah wa-Nehayah, Vol. 4, p. 179) and he encouraged his people to fight in battle (Sura 4:84; 8:60; Bukhari, Vol 5. Hadith No. 288 amongst many others) and assassinate opponents including nursing mothers (Ibn Ishaq, p. 676; Bukhari, Vol 5. Hadith No. 369). Muhammad died in A.D. 632.
The life, teaching and practice of Jesus Christ and the life, teaching and
practice of Muhammad stand in stark contrast.
In fact, it is impossible to follow the teachings of Jesus and Muhammad at the same time: they are diametrically opposed. Christianity teaches its followers to bless and not to curse (Romans 12:14) and that one cannot praise God and curse others with the same mouth (James 3:9-13); Muhammad cursed his own uncle for opposing him (Sura 111:1-5; 3:61; 108:1-3; Muslim Vol. 4; Hadith 7150; Bukhari, Vol. 5, Hadith No. 397). Jesus did not even curse those who crucified Him, but asked the Father to forgive them (Luke 23:34) while Mohammad ordered people killed because they mocked him (Muslim Vol. 3; Hadith 4436 and many others).
Jesus teaches that Christians’ love for one another will show the world that they are His disciples (John 13:35). Muhammad taught that he was made victorious through terror (Sura 3:151; 8:12; 8:67-68; 33:26; Bukhari, Vol. 4, Hadith No. 220). Jesus won people through love, Muhammad won people through fear. The difference cannot be clearer. When it comes to the life, practice and teachings of Jesus, no one can compare.
Which religion are you following?
Since both Jesus and Muhammad claimed to be following God, they must believe in different Gods. Which God do you want to follow?
Both Islam and Christianity preach that Jesus will return to judge the living and the dead (2 Timothy 4:1; 1 Peter 4:5; John 5:22, 27 and Bukhari Vol. 3, Hadith No. 425) Which standard will Jesus hold you to? The life and practice of Muhammad or His own life and practice?
Jesus died to pay the penalty for our sins - as affirmed by Matthew 20:28: “the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many”. He did this because we can never, by our own efforts, reach God’s perfect standard. He died so that our sins may be forgiven. He rose again after three days, victorious over death, winning the ultimate victory in history; but each one of us must choose to accept this free gift. If you refuse to accept the gift, you cannot enjoy the benefits of the gift. A gift is given, not earned – indeed, the giver would have the right to be offended if you attempted to offer some form of payment. God desires us to humbly receive his gift with a thankful heart.
“If you confess with your mouth Jesus as Lord, and believe in your heart that God raised Him from the dead, you will be saved” (Romans 10:9).
To “confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord” means that you must agree with God that:
1) you are a sinner and that you deserve to die;
2) you cannot save yourself from hell fire;
3) the Lord Jesus paid the penalty for your sins on the cross and He bought you with His precious holy blood;
4) you need Jesus to be your Lord and Saviour.
If you wish to receive the forgiveness of sin through Jesus Christ by faith, you need only to open your heart and ask God in your own words similar to the following:
Lord Jesus, I know I am a sinner. I admit that my good works can’t take away my sins and I accept You as my Lord and Saviour. Cleanse me from my sins with your precious blood, and help me to walk according to your will. Thank you for providing a way for me to draw near to You. Amen.
Now you have an opportunity to find out more for yourself—
as God has given you the means and the ability to search for the truth.
I am offering you a copy of the Holy Bible and “The Life of the Messiah” DVD absolutely FREE,
just by contacting us at the address below.
To read the Holy Bible online visit:
http://www.ibs.org/bibles
To watch the Jesus Film online visit:
http://www.jesusfilm.org/languages
Mizan ul Haqq
Email: anymorequestions@gmail.com
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