Tag Archives: Bible

September 29, 2013 · 23:42

God Is Not Allah

God vs Allah

Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God is one LORD (Deuteronomy 6:4)

In our hypersensitive and politically correct world, our society has gone to extremes to avoid offending Muslims. Indeed, if anyone anywhere says anything even in the slightest sense negative about Muhammad or about Islam in general, there is a real danger of triggering a full-scale riot somewhere in the world. That being the case, many the world over, and especially here in the United States, bend over backwards to paint Islam in the best light, calling it a “religion of peace” and making distinctions between “radical/extremist” Muslims and the more peace-loving “moderate” Muslims. Nothing could be further from the truth. To further sugarcoat the bitter truth, a concerted effort has been made to equate Allah (the Muslim god) to the God of the Bible (Jehovah, Yahweh). They are not the same, and here I will attempt to show why.

First of all, God is a triune God; that is, He is three persons (Father, Son and Holy Spirit) in one Godhead. Without digressing into a lengthy discussion of the Trinity, I will just say that this is a doctrinal truth that is taught throughout the Bible beginning with Genesis 1:1, “In the beginning God created …” The Hebrew word for God is ‘ĕlôhı̂ym (a plural noun), and the verb “created” in Hebrew is bârâ’ (a singular verb). Grammatically, the noun and the verb should agree in number so that a plural noun would have a plural verb or a singular noun should be followed by a singular verb. That is not the case here indicating the unified plurality of God. Allah is just Allah. For Muslims our idea of a triune God is blasphemous because from their perspective, we are worshiping three gods; therefore we are “infidels.”

Secondly, for the Christian (and eventually for everyone else (Philippians 2:10)), Jesus (the second person of the Trinity) is God. He is also the “only begotten Son of God.” This too is anathema to the Muslims. Allah has no son. Jesus was just a good man – a prophet like Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Muhammad – but He was not God.

The similitude of Jesus before Allah is that of Adam; He [Allah] created him from dust. Then said to him: “Be” and he was. (Koran, Surah 3:59)

How can He [Allah] have a son when He hath no consort? (Koran, Surah 6:101)

By the same token, Muslims do not refer to Allah as “Father”:

And they [Jews or Christians] falsely, having no knowledge, attribute to Him sons and daughters. (Koran, Surah 6:100)

Jesus taught us to pray “Our Father, which art in Heaven, hallowed be Thy Name” (Matthew 6:9). A Muslim cannot pray in that way.

Interestingly, the Koran teaches that Jesus was Virgin Born. In fact, Surah 19 is all about Mary.

Behold! the angels said: “O Mary! Allah giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus. The son of Mary, held in honour in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest Allah …

 She said: “O my Lord! How shall I have a son when no man hath touched me?” And he [the angel] said: “Even so: Allah createth what He willeth: When He hath decreed a Plan, He but saith to it, ‘Be’ and it is!” (Koran, Surah 3:45, 47)

Perhaps you caught the phrase  “Word from Him.” The Koran often refers to Jesus as the “Word of Allah,” but the Word is NOT Allah. John 1:1 says that “the Word was God.” So, Christians are infidels because we attribute divinity to Jesus – Jesus IS God. The Koran teaches otherwise:

O People of the Book! [that would be Christians] Commit no excesses in your religion: nor say of Allah aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) a Messenger of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him: So believe in Allah and His Messengers. Say not “Trinity”: desist: it will be better for you: for Allah is One God: glory be to Him: (Far exalted is He) above having a son … (Koran, Surah 4:171)

They do blaspheme who say: “Allah is Christ the son of Mary.” But said Christ: “O Children of Israel! Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord.” Whoever joins other gods with Allah – Allah will forbid him the Garden, and the Fire will be his abode. There will for the wrongdoers be no one to help. (Koran, Surah 5:72)

Thirdly, Allah discourages friendship with infidels.

O ye who believe! Take not the Jews and the Christians for your friends and protectors; they are but friends and protectors of each other. And he amongst you that turns to them (for friendship) is of them. Verily Allah guideth not a people unjust. (Koran, Surah 5:51)

Jesus (God) on the other hand says:

Ye have heard that it hath been said, Thou shalt love thy neighbour, and hate thine enemy. But I say unto you, Love your enemies, bless them that curse you, do good to them that hate you, and pray for them which despitefully use you, and persecute you; That ye may be the children of your Father which is in heaven: for [God] maketh his sun to rise on the evil and on the good, and sendeth rain on the just and on the unjust. (Matthew 5:43-45).

Jesus said unto him, Thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind. This is the first and great commandment. And the second is like unto it, Thou shalt love thy neighbour as thyself. On these two commandments hang all the law and the prophets. (Matthew 22:37-40)

Allah encourages his followers to engage in physical struggle (war) in defense of the “faith”:

Not equal are those believers who sit (at home) and receive no hurt. And those who strive and fight in the cause of Allah with their goods and their persons, Allah hath granted a grade higher to those who strive and fight with their goods and persons than to those who sit (at home). Unto all (in Faith) hath Allah promised good: but those who strive and fight hath He distinguished above those who sit (at home) by a special reward. Ranks specially bestowed by Him and Forgiveness and Mercy. For Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Koran, Surah 4:95-96)

Fighting is prescribed upon you, and ye dislike it. But it is possible that ye dislike a thing which is good for you. And that ye love a thing which is bad for you. But Allah knoweth, and ye know not. (Koran, Surah 2:216)

Fight in the cause of Allah those who fight with you, but do not transgress the limits; for Allah loveth not transgressors. And slay them [the unbelievers] wherever ye catch them, and turn them out from where they have turned you out; for tumult and oppression are worse than slaughter; but fight them not at the Sacred Mosque, unless they (first) fight you there; but if they fight you, slay them. Such is the reward of those who suppress faith. But if they cease, Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. And fight them on until there is no more tumult or oppression, and there prevail justice and faith in Allah. But if they cease let there be no hostility except for those who practice oppression. (Koran, Surah 2:190-193)

This is just a small sample; there is so much more. By the way, just in case you suspect that these passages from the Koran are taken out of context, the Koran has no real context. It is a disjointed collection of sayings purportedly given to the prophet Muhammad by the angel Gabriel. It is not like the narratives or poetry contained in the Bible

Hopefully, I have supplied enough information for the reader to see the striking contrast between the God of the Bible and Allah of the Koran. But the most striking contrast of all is that the God of the Bible condescended to man in the form of “Christ Jesus: Who, being in the form of God, thought it not robbery to be equal with God: But made himself of no reputation, and took upon him the form of a servant, and was made in the likeness of men: And being found in fashion as a man, he humbled himself, and became obedient unto death, even the death of the cross” (Philippians 2:5-8). Our God paid the price for our sins. Allah of the Koran expects his followers to die for him. The teachings contained in the Koran, not to mention all the other teachings contained in the Hadith, are dangerous to any Muslim believer who takes them to heart. I submit that moderate Muslims, just like lukewarm Christians, are people who are mostly ignorant of their sacred writings or for one reason or another have not taken their holy book to heart. These, whether Muslim or Christian, equate God and Allah, but the two are not the same. God is not Allah.

References:

‘Abdullah Yusuf ‘Ali, The Meaning of the Holy Qur’an, (Amana Publications, Beltsville, MD, 1999).

Robert Spencer, The Complete Infidel’s Guide to the Koran, (Regnery Publishing, Washington, DC, 2009).

Pat Zukeran, World Religions Through a Christian Worldview, (Xulon Press, 2008).

 

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August 11, 2013 · 18:04

Big Dâg!- A Fish Story

Jonah and the Whale by Pieter Lastman

Jonah and the Whale by Pieter Lastman

Now the LORD had prepared a great fish to swallow up Jonah. (Jonah 1:17)

One of the strangest stories in the Bible is that of “Jonah and the whale.” In fact, the story is so incredible that even some Bible scholars have tried to invent alternative renditions to make the story more believable. Some suppose that the “great fish” that swallowed Jonah may have been something like a whale shark, or a sea monster like leviathan (thought by some to be a mosasaur), or a whale. The suggestion that the creature was a whale probably comes from the King James reference in Matthew 12:40 where it describes Jonah as being in “the whale’s belly.” However, the Greek word translated “whale” is kētos, which could be understood as “sea monster” as it is translated by the Revise Standard Version and the New American Standard Version Bibles. But kētos can also be translated as “a huge fish.” This understanding is more in keeping with the Hebrew of Jonah 1:17 which literally translates the Hebrew dâg gâdôl as “great fish.” What the great fish was, is up for speculation. It certainly could have been a whale shark, which is a “great fish,” but it certainly was not a whale or “sea monster,” otherwise the Hebrew word tannıyn would have been used (Job 7:12; Ezekiel 32:2).

Whether the “great fish” was a whale shark or some other variety of large fish is irrelevant. What should be noted is that “the LORD had prepared” the fish “to swallow up Jonah.” It is not impossible to understand this as a new creation miracle of God so that it was something totally new created just for this purpose. It is also reasonable to believe that God used a dâg gâdôl that was already in existence to be called upon do to the LORD’s bidding. God is not limited in His options.

The other point of contention in this story is that Jonah survives inside the belly of this great fish for three days. That is truly incredible! One would think that the digestive acids in the fish’s belly would have been enough to kill Jonah. Well, perhaps Jonah actually did die! Listen to Jonah’s words: “I cried by reason of mine affliction unto the LORD, and he heard me; out of the belly of hell cried I, and thou heardest my voice” (Jonah 2:2, emphasis added). The Hebrew word translated “hell” is she’ôl – the abode of the dead – translated “Hades” in the Septuagint (the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures). He describes himself as going to the depths of the sea. “I went down to the bottoms of the mountains; the earth with her bars was about me for ever: yet hast thou brought up my life from corruption, O LORD my God” (Jonah 2:6, emphasis added). That sounds dead. But some may challenge, “How can a dead man be aware of his condition?” Others may reasonably suggest: “This is Hebrew poetry; Jonah is speaking metaphorically.” For that, I would remind the reader of Jesus’ account of the death of the rich man and Lazarus (Luke 16:19-31). When the rich man died, he was aware of the flames of his new environment, he was aware of his thirst, he was aware of Lazarus in Abraham’s bosom, he was aware of the lost condition of his five brothers, and he was able to converse with Abraham. If this was true of the rich man – and Jesus relayed this as a factual account, not as one of His parables – then it certainly can be true of Jonah.

This understanding makes Jesus’ analogy in Matthew 12:40 even more poignant. “For as Jonas was three days and three nights in the [belly of the kētos]; so shall the Son of man be three days and three nights in the heart of the earth.” Jesus died an actual death. He was in the “belly of Hades” for three days. “And the LORD spake unto the fish, and it vomited out Jonah upon the dry land” (Jonah 2:10). In the same way, after three days in the tomb, God raised Jesus from the dead. For this reason, I believe Jonah actually died and was revived to accomplish the will of God. That is why Jesus could point to Jonah as the example of His death, burial and resurrection.

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July 14, 2013 · 21:19

Only One Way In

Noah's Ark: Entry Door Looking Out (Image Credit: http://asknoah.org/art_gallery2)

Noah’s Ark: Entry Door Looking Out (Image Credit: http://asknoah.org/art_gallery2)

… and the door of the ark shalt thou set in the side thereof … (Genesis 6:16)

Doors are useful things. Doors work two ways: they allow us entry into a variety of enclosures, and they permit us to exit the same. Doors keep us safe inside while keeping unwanted intruders out. Most homes have more than one door for entry and exit. Most vehicles have at least two doors; some have four or five. Airplanes have only one door for boarding, but there are at least four doors for emergency exit. Multiple doors to any enclosure make for ease of movement. You may come in through the front door, and then go out the back door to enjoy your backyard. You would not normally come in the front door, exit again through the front door, and walk all the way around the house to get to your backyard. The more doors you have, the easier it is to go from one place to another. Doors are very useful things!

About 1500 years after God completed His creation (man in particular), the world and mankind had degenerated to the point that it was no longer the “very good” creation that God had initiated. Man had become wicked and “every imagination of the thoughts of his heart was only evil continually” (Genesis 6:5). Things had gotten so wicked that “it grieved [God] at his heart” (Genesis 6:6). This is not difficult to understand especially for us earthly parents who have invested so much of our lives in teaching a child the ways of God. Then when they leave our homes, they turn their backs on everything we stand for, and everything we tried to instill in them. Any parent who has experienced this knows the heartache. Multiply that by billions and that might begin to give a sense for how God felt to see His “very good” creation turned putrid. “And the LORD said, I will destroy man whom I have created from the face of the earth; both man, and beast, and the creeping thing, and the fowls of the air; for it repenteth me that I have made them” (Genesis 6:7).

“But Noah found grace in the eyes of the LORD” (Genesis 6:8). God instructed Noah to build an Ark (Genesis 6:14). The Hebrew word translated “Ark” is têbâh and it literally means a “box.” God gave Noah the specific dimensions for this box (Genesis 6:15), and instructed him to build it with three decks (stories) (Genesis 6:16). He was to make a door – only one door – in the side of the ark – only one way in, and only one way out.

Noah was given 120 years to complete his project (Genesis 6:3). During that time as Noah was working on the Ark, he felt compelled to warn all who would listen about the coming cataclysmic judgment. Peter referred to Noah as “a preacher of righteousness” (2 Peter 2:5). We are not told in Scripture, but surely Noah must have been ridiculed and mocked. “Have you seen what that old fool is building!” many must have scoffed. But Noah was not to be dissuaded from his God-given task. “Thus did Noah; according to all that God commanded him, so did he” (Genesis 6:22).  When the project was complete God called all the animals into the Ark (Genesis 6:20). Noah, his wife, his three sons and their wives went into the Ark (Genesis 7:13), “and the LORD shut him in” (Genesis 7:16). The only way in was now inaccessible. Those remaining outside could no longer enter. For 120 years they were given the opportunity for safe passage, but now it was too late. The only way in was now shut tight, and those inside were saved and safe from the disaster facing those outside. Then the waters came – not only rain, but the very fountains of the deep were broken open (Genesis 7:11). “And all flesh died that moved upon the earth, both of fowl, and of cattle, and of beast, and of every creeping thing that creepeth upon the earth, and every man: All in whose nostrils was the breath of life, of all that was in the dry land, died” (Genesis 7:21-22, emphasis added).

Jesus said, “I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture” (John 10:9, emphasis added). Later He said, “I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man cometh unto the Father, but by me” (John 14:6, emphasis added).

It is a very popular notion these days to believe that there are many ways into heaven. Even the Roman Catholic Church, who has for centuries staunchly held to the dogma that the only access to heaven is through the sacraments of the Church, has given way to universalism, i.e. that everyone – Muslims, Hindus, Buddhists, yes and even Baptists – will all get to heaven. That is why they say we should strive to all get along together here on earth. This is the idea of many doors into the same place – very convenient! But that has never been the teaching of the Bible.

The Ark had only one way in, but access was available to anyone who would heed the warning. Those that rejected the message were destroyed. As at the time of the flood, where billions died and only eight were saved, we are facing a similar time of trouble. Jesus warned, “Enter ye in at the strait [narrow] gate: for wide is the gate, and broad is the way, that leadeth to destruction, and many there be which go in thereat: Because strait is the gate, and narrow [crowded or afflicted] is the way, which leadeth unto life, and few there be that find it” (Matthew 7:13-14, emphasis added). Today, Jesus would be labeled as intolerant for His teaching. There is no other way. Everyone will NOT go to heaven, but everyone has an equal chance. There is only one way in, and that way is through Jesus Christ. “But as many as received him [Jesus], to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name” (John 1:12). The Door will soon be shut forever. Have you found the only One Way in?

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June 23, 2013 · 20:09

Confronting Historical Adam

creating_adam

And the LORD God formed [ʼâdâm] of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and [ʼâdâm] became a living soul.  (Genesis 2:7)

The question of whether Adam was a true historical person is not a new one. Liberal theologians have debated the question since at least the middle of the nineteenth century. They eventually concluded that Adam was a mythical figure recorded in Scripture for the purpose of attributing to God a superintending role in the process of creation, which was mostly guided by evolution. This rejection of the literal reading of the text quickly degenerated into relegating the rest of Scripture to the stuff of myths, and ultimately to the rejection of the deity of Christ. The Bible thus became a good book to live by, but not necessarily to be taken seriously.

This is nothing new. However, the negation of the historical Adam, and the rest of the Genesis creation account, is now cropping up in Evangelical circles. Evangelicals who have traditionally stood for the inerrancy and infallibility of Scripture are now beginning to question the historicity of a real Adam and Eve as the very first, uniquely created, human pair from which the rest of humanity sprang. Granted, this is NOT a salvation issue. Our salvation is by Grace alone, through Faith in Christ alone, and by no other means. However, what one believes about the historical Adam has huge theological implications for several reasons.

First of all, the Bible is the “God-breathed” Word of God (2 Timothy 3:16), therefore it cannot be found in error because God does not lie (Numbers 23:19). Nor can God’s Word fail (Psalm 119:89; Isaiah 40:8; Matthew 5:18; Luke 21:33; 1 Peter 1:25). Some may try to discredit the Bible by claiming that it was written by men and therefore is full of errors. That is to charge that God is incapable of preserving His Word. Scripture makes clear that God’s Word is not to be tampered with (Deuteronomy 4:2), and that it is not the product of the will of man but of God Who inspired and guided men to pen the text (2 Peter 1:20-21). Since the writing of the original autographs, textual criticism had confirmed the integrity of the text that we now have over and over again. So, to question the historicity of Adam is to question the integrity of God and His Word. Personally, I would rather steer clear of that.

Secondly, Jesus confirmed the authenticity of the historical Adam (Matthew 19:4; Mark 10:6), as well as other “questionable” miracles contained in Scripture: Noah and the Flood (Matthew 24:37-38; Luke 17:26-27), the destruction of Sodom and Gomorrah (Matthew 10:15; 11:23-24; Mark 6:11; Luke 10:12; 17:29), and Jonah swallowed by the “great fish” (Matthew 12:39-40; 16:4; Luke 11:29). Since Jesus is the Creator (John 1:1-3; Colossians 1:16) and the ultimate Author of Scripture, one would surmise that He had first-hand knowledge of the events. So, to deny the historicity of Adam is to find fault with Jesus’ testimony. Ultimately it is to deny His deity, for how can God commit such errors! To deny the historical Adam is to charge that either Jesus purposefully lied, which God cannot do, or that He was uninformed, which God, through omniscience, is incapable of doing.

Thirdly, other New Testament writers affirm the historical Adam. Luke, the physician (Colossians 4:14), who had “taken in hand to set forth in order a declaration of those things which are most surely believed among us” (Luke 1:1), set down in his Gospel the genealogy of Jesus tracing it back all the way to “Adam, which was the son of God” (Luke 3:38). The significance of this is in that Luke, being a physician and scientist, was meticulous about the details he recorded as can be seen throughout his Gospel. Paul also, highly educated under the tutelage of Gamaliel (Acts 22:3), refers back to Adam especially with regard to original sin (Romans 5:14; 1 Corinthians 15:22, 45; 1 Timothy 2:13-14). Jude, the half-brother of Jesus, counts the generations of Enoch beginning with Adam (Jude 14).

With all the internal evidence for the historical Adam, especially that which comes from the lips of our Lord Himself, one has only two options: accept the historicity of Adam recorded in the foundational book of Genesis, or reject the Bible altogether as unreliable. That brings us full circle to the issue of salvation. If the Bible is unreliable with regard to historical Adam, how can it be trusted in regard to salvation? One cannot ride the fence on this issue, and it is time for Evangelicals to nail this down once and for all. Adam and Eve were real, historical figures and the progenitors of the human race.

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July 29, 2012 · 17:16

Making God Laugh

Why do the heathen rage, and the people imagine a vain thing?  (Psalm 2:1)

The Bibles tells us “that there shall come in the last days scoffers, walking after their own lusts, And saying, Where is the promise of his coming? for since the fathers fell asleep, all things continue as they were from the beginning of the creation” (2 Peter 3:3-4).  These “evil men and seducers shall wax worse and worse, deceiving, and being deceived” (2 Timothy 3:13) while “Professing themselves to be wise, they [have become] fools” (Romans 1:22).

As the return of Christ approaches, we see the fulfillment of this prophesy all around us.  Hostility toward “God’s Anointed” and those who follow Him is rapidly increasing.  The word translated “heathen” here is the Hebrew word gowyim meaning non-Jewish nations or people.  It could also be translated “gentiles” referring to those who are not the people of God.  From a New Testament perspective, these would be any who are not Christians, and therefore not a part of God’s family.  These are they that “rage,” that is, they assemble as a tumultuous mob “against the LORD, and his anointed” [His Messiah; His Christ] (v. 2).

They “imagine a vain thing” (v. 1), that is, they imagine something that will never happen.  They rebel against God and say, “Let us break their bands asunder and cast away their cords from us” (v. 3).  Their end has been predetermined:  “And he gathered them together into a place called in the Hebrew tongue Ar-ma-ged’-don” (Revelation 16:16) “And the beast was taken, and with him the false prophet that wrought miracles before him, with which he deceived them that had received the mark of the beast, and them that worshipped his image.  These both were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone.  And the remnant were slain with the sword of him [Christ] that sat upon the horse” (Revelation 19:20-21).

Although God is “not willing that any should perish, but that all should come to repentance” (2 Peter 3:9), man’s obstinate and overt rebellion against His Anointed would be almost comical, if it were not so sad.  “Shall the thing formed say to him that formed it, Why hast thou made me thus?” (Romans 9:20).  The question is ludicrous!  “He that sitteth in the heavens shall laugh: the Lord shall have them in derision” (v. 4).

As the day of His return approaches we see more and more blatant attacks on Christians and Christianity by our government and by the liberal media.  These attacks will only grow worse as a lost populace lashes out against God and His people.  Little do they know that God just laughs at their insolence, but “Blessed are all they that put their trust in him” (v. 12).

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