The Christian Response to Muslims

Christians have been asking many questions about Muslims. Who are they and what do they believe? Does true Islam sanction violence? Most importantly, what attitude should Christians have toward Muslims?

Overcoming Stereotypes
It is important to understand that not all Muslims are terrorists. In fact, only a small number of them promote violence. Most are decent, peace-loving people.

Why do some Muslims use the Koran to justify violence while others condemn it? It is important to understand that Muslims practice their religion with varying degrees of faithfulness.

Some are quite secular in their outlook and way of life. They profess to be Muslims but do not faithfully practice their religion. They may not even know much about its teachings. Other moderate Muslims believe Islam is just a religion and try to practice it faithfully. Most are peace loving and generally only use peaceful persuasion to make converts. They are often embarrassed by acts of terrorism that are carried out in the name of Islam.

Fundamentalist Muslims, on the other hand, have a political as well as a religious agenda. Although in the minority, they are the most vocal. They believe everyone should live in submission to Islamic law. They take the teaching of the Koran and Mohammed's commands to fight for the cause of Allah literally and believe violence is justified for taking control of the world.

The Wrong and Right Responses to Muslims
Muslims around the world are carefully watching to see how Christians respond to them. We have an unprecedented opportunity to reach out to them by demonstrating the love of Christ. We must love the sinner while hating the sin. How we react to Muslims may very well determine whether we draw attention to the Gospel or obscure it.

This is not to say that we must close our eyes and simply overlook these acts of violence. Scripture teaches that those in authority have been empowered by God to punish the responsible ones (I Peter 2:13-14).

But, individually, we must never respond with the spirit of hatred and revenge. To do so is not the way of Christ. "For you have been called for this purpose, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving you an example for you to follow in His steps. While being reviled, He did not revile in return; while suffering, He uttered no threats, but kept entrusting Himself to Him who judges righteously" (I Peter 2:21, 23).

In his editorial in the October 27, 2001,issue of World magazine, John Piper said it so well when he warned of the danger of falling into the sin of hatred.

"The spirit of revenge sends the false signal that Christ is not an all-sufficient, all-satisfying Savior. We justify our own little jihad, and seek our satisfaction by injuring the adversary. But true Christians treasure Jesus above vengeance."

However, neither is it right to cave in to the shrill voices that are preaching a warped view of tolerance and saying that all religions, including Islam, lead to God. Piper said this emphasis is equally wrong.

"In reaction against indiscriminate hate there is now a stampede to pluralism and twisted tolerance. If Muslims are hated, then let us call ecumenical gatherings, and let us all praise the virtues of Islam and the wisdom of Allah and the goodness of Mohammed. But let no one speak the intolerable and indispensable truth that Jesus is the only way to God."

Jesus said, "I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father but through me" (John 14:6). We should never hesitate to boldly say that the only way to God is through the Lord Jesus Christ.

To react to Muslims by falling into these equally wrong traps of hatred and tolerance is to hide the message of eternal life from them. Both of these attitudes are wrong and keep Muslims in spiritual darkness. Let us stand against these sins and instead focus on lovingly sharing with them the message of salvation through Jesus Christ and His finished work on the Cross.

Satan Blinds Minds
Why do people commit terrible acts of violence? Satan is a key player because one of his strategies is to keep people from hearing and understanding the Gospel. "The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God" (II Cor. 4:4).

Muslims make up more than one-fifth of the world's population. Satan has blinded the minds of this huge group of people by cutting them off from the truth of who Jesus is and what He has done for them. Overwhelming numbers of Muslims have never heard a clear presentation of the Gospel even once.

Even Terrorists Can Be Changed by Christ
Yes, it is true! Sometimes we fall into the trap of thinking that certain people, such as terrorists, are beyond hope. They are so evil that they can never experience spiritual regeneration.

But Jesus Christ specializes in changing the hearts of even the most wicked. "If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creature; the old things passed away; behold, new things have come" (II Cor. 5:17). Christ can change some of the hardest, most evil people in the world. Even the Apostle Paul was a violent man until the living Christ met him and changed his heart!

The Power of the Gospel
If the problem is one of spiritual blindness and lack of access to the Gospel, the only real remedy is for Christians to lovingly share Christ with Muslims and to invite them to follow the Savior.

However, all too often, the Church becomes terribly pessimistic about the Muslim World. The sheer number of Muslims who have a belief system that seems so different from ours tends to overwhelm us. We also hear about the fierce pressure that they put on Muslim-background Christians. The unfortunate result of this pessimism is that the Church becomes paralyzed by fear and unbelief.

What we need are these encouraging words from God's Word: "The weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses" (II Cor. 10:4). These "fortresses" are the various forms of pressure that Satan puts on people to blind them and keep them in spiritual bondage. The "weapons" that we fight with are not guns or other instruments of violence. Instead, they are spiritual weapons that have the power of God behind them!

Some of our spiritual weapons are defensive and enable us to take a firm stand against the flaming darts of Satan (see Eph. 6:10-17). But the weapons here are offensive. Let me suggest that prayer and evangelism are the only two offensive weapons in our arsenal.

Through prayer, we can make a huge difference by praying for Muslim nations and individuals in them. In fact, when fear begins to grip your mind, stop and pray for Muslims-even those who promote terrorism!! Pray for Muslims to have open hearts and for the Gospel to reach them. Ask God to raise up workers to help evangelize Muslim countries. Pray for those who are already doing this.

Then ask God to use you to befriend and evangelize the Muslims you know. Show them practical love. Be loving and humble. Don't advocate a particular culture or political agenda. Focus on Jesus Christ and His uniqueness. Offer to study the life of Christ with them by reading through one of the Gospels. Ask God to give them spiritual understanding and to draw them to faith in Christ.

Jesus Christ is the only answer. Ask God to show you what part He wants you to have in evangelizing Muslims. Trust Him to use you to reach out to them with loving, courageous witness.

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