Muhammad's View of God (2)

Jim Davis

All of us have heard countless times the expression "Well, we all worship the same God." Some look to the origin of the word "God" to prove that there is only one God. The word Allah is a name for God, which is used by Arabic speakers, both Arab Muslims and Arab Christians. However, everyone using the name "Allah" does not share the same ideas about God. To claim that the word "God" has the same origin does not mean that the word "God" means the same thing to everyone. To say that different religions worship "God" does not mean that they all worship the same "God." If we do not embrace the same ideas about God, then we do not worship the same God. For it is our concepts and ideology about God that defines the "God" we worship. 

The Arabic word “Allah” occurs in the Quran more than 2150 times. The Arabic word "Allah" means God, the one and only true God who created the whole universe. Both Jews and Christians could agree with this concept of God, however it is only one concept. This one concept does not define the totality of God's being. In reality, the word "Allah" which designates God for the Muslims actually rules out the Jewish and Christian concept of God. Muhammad believed that this word couldn't be used to designate anything other than the one true God. By this he meant that it referred solely to his personal concept of God.
 
In the Aramaic language, a language related closely to Arabic and the language that Jesus habitually spoke, God is also referred to as “Allah.” This fact is used as proof that Jesus' concept of God was the same as Muhammad's. However, using the same word in reference to God does not mean that Jesus and Muhammad believed in the same God. 

Muhammad wrote the Quran to redefine God for both Jews and Christians because he rejected their concept of God. Muhammad claims to accept all the prophets of the Christian Bible, i.e., Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, Jesus, etc., but he rewrites the recorded biblical stories of each to fit his own theology. 

Muhammad wrote in the Quran: 

"And if you are in doubt about what We have revealed (the Quran) to Our worshiper (Muhammad), then produce a chapter like it, and call your witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides God if you are truthful. And if you do not do it, and you can never do it, then fear the Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones.  It has been prepared for disbelievers. And give good news (O Muhammad) to those who believe and do good deeds, that for them are gardens (Paradise) in which rivers flow...." (Quran, 2:23-25)

Muhammad challenges others to write anything comparable to what he had written. He asserts that there has never been anything as profound as the Quran. This is done to hopefully prevent anyone from challenging Muhammad's rewritten biblical stories that challenge the Jewish and Christian concepts of God.

However, there is nothing in the Quran comparable to what Jesus taught in the Sermon on the Mount. 

What makes Islam unbelievable to me is the fact that it challenges practically every concept of the Bible as Muhammad and his followers rewrite the biblical stories. Muhammad claims to believe in all the biblical prophets but he denies every grain of truth they taught. He does this by claiming that Jews and Christians distorted everything that the prophets and Jesus originally taught. 

If the original records were distorted, then it seems reasonable to expect that more accurate records of what they had taught would have existed somewhere long before Muhammad had his vision. Surely, there would have been records outside of the biblical records before the close of the New Testament era to substantiate what Muhammad taught six hundred years after the birth of Christ. There aren't any records to show us a "more accurate" accounting of the prophets and apostles. 

The amazing thing about the teaching of the prophets and Christ is that their teaching withstood the scrutiny of the people of their times. To me, this is just one of the things that make what they taught believable.

Islam And Christianity's Differing Views of God

Islam says that God is not a trinity and that Jesus was nothing more than a messenger. 

Muhammad said in the Quran:

"Indeed, they disbelieve who say, 'God is the third of three (in a trinity),' when there is          no god but one God. If they desist not from what they say, truly, a painful punishment             will befall the disbelievers among them. Would they not rather repent to God and ask         His forgiveness?  For God is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.  The Messiah (Jesus), son of             
Mary, was no more than a messenger . . . " (Quran, 5:73-75)

Note how the word "We" and "Our" are used in connection with worship in the Quran. If Muhammad's God is the one and only one to be worshipped, who is the "Our" that is being worshipped? Who is the "We" that is doing the revealing?

"And if you are in doubt about what We have revealed (the Quran) to Our worshiper (Muhammad), then produce a chapter like it, and call your witnesses (supporters and helpers) besides God if you are truthful. And if you do not do it, and you can never do it, then fear the Fire (Hell) whose fuel is men and stones.  It has been prepared for disbelievers. And give good news (O Muhammad) to those who believe and do good deeds, that for them are gardens (Paradise) in which rivers flow...." (Quran, 2:23-25)

However, Jesus himself spoke of three persons.

Matthew 28:16-20
Then the eleven disciples went to Galilee, to the mountain where Jesus had told them to go. When they saw him, they worshiped him; but some doubted. Then Jesus came to them and said, "All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. Therefore go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age." (NIV)

This conflicts with the Genesis account of creation.

Genesis 1:26-27
"Then God said, 'Let us make man in our image, in our likeness, and let them rule over the fish of the sea and the birds of the air, over the livestock, over all the earth, and over all the creatures that move along the ground.' 

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them (NIV)."

The words "Let us make man in our image," indicates that there was more than one doing the creating. We know angels do not have creative powers. The word "God" is derived from the Hebrew word "elohiym" (el-o-heem'), which is in plural form. The plurality of God is evident in Genesis. It is indicative that there was more than one involved in creation.

The Hebrew "Elohiym" is plural in form, but is singular in meaning. It is always used with a singular verb when used to designate the true God. (Clyde Woods, People's Old Testament Notes, Vol. 1 Genesis-Exodus, Woods Publications, Henderson, Tennessee. Page 4.)

"The original word 'Elohim, "God," is certainly the plural form of 'Eel or 'Eloah and has long been supposed, by the most eminently learned and pious men, to imply a plurality of Persons in the divine nature." (from Adam Clarke's Commentary, Electronic Database. Copyright (c) 1996 by Biblesoft)

The oneness of God comes from the unity of the Persons of divine nature. When God created woman Adam said that woman was bone of his bone and flesh of his flesh and they became one flesh (Genesis 2:21-24). Adam and Eve were two distinct personalities, but they became one flesh. Likewise, there is a plurality of divine Persons but they function as one.

In the Quran, Muhammad describes his view of God as he rejects the idea of God's only begotten Son.

"Say, 'He is God, the One. God, to Whom the creatures turn for their needs. He begets        not, nor was He begotten, and there is none like Him.'” (Quran, 112:1-4)

Muhammad writes again in the Quran: 

“Indeed, they have disbelieved who have said, God is the Messiah (Jesus), son of Mary.”  The Messiah said, “Children of Israel, worship God, my Lord and your Lord. Whoever associates partners in worship with God, then God has forbidden Paradise for him, and his home is the Fire (Hell).  For the wrongdoers, there will be no helpers.’”  (Quran, 5:72)

“Say, ‘He is God, the One. God, to Whom the creatures turn for their needs.  He begets        not, nor was He begotten, and there is none like Him.’”  (Quran, 112:1-4)

Islam’s idea of God is that he is too holy to come into this world as a one of us. They can’t imagine God having sex with a woman, but the Bible doesn’t say God had sex with Mary. Mary was a virgin when Jesus was born; her conception was without intercourse. If doctors can artificially inseminate a woman today without her having to have sex, surely it was possible for the Holy Spirit to inseminate Mary without intercourse.

God becoming one of us is the most sensible teaching of the Bible. He created a world with human freedom; this meant that the world would experience sin and evil. It would seem unfair for God to create such a world, and yet, claim himself too holy to touch such a world. It is no accident that you see God making clothes for Adam and Eve after the fall. God is in this thing with us. We are a part of God's plan to destroy evil once and for all. This necessitates God being eminently and intimately involved in our world. 

The incarnation of God means that God is not asking us to do anything that he wasn’t willing to do for us. He became sin for us. He died as he surrendered to the power of sin upon the cross. He succumbed to the power of sin just like we must succumb to it when we take our final breath. If He is God, then he must lead the way.

Hebrews 4:14-16
"Therefore, since we have a great high priest who has gone through the heavens, Jesus the Son of God, let us hold firmly to the faith we profess. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but we have one who has been tempted in every way, just as we are-yet was without sin. Let us then approach the throne of grace with confidence, so that we may receive mercy and find grace to help us in our time of need" (NIV).

The account of Mary in the Quran is much different than the Bible. The Quran says:

[19:16] Mention in the scripture Mary. She isolated herself from her family, into an eastern location. 

[19:17] While a barrier separated her from them, we sent to her our Spirit. He went to her in the form of a human being. 

[19:18] She said, "I seek refuge in the Most Gracious, that you may be righteous." 

[19:19] He said, "I am the messenger of your Lord, to grant you a pure son." 

[19:20] She said, "How can I have a son, when no man has touched me; I have never been unchaste." 

[19:21] He said, "Thus said your Lord, `It is easy for Me. We will render him a sign for the people, and mercy from us. This is a predestined matter.' " 

The Birth of Jesus is much different in the Quran:

[19:22] When she bore him, she isolated herself to a faraway place. 

[19:23] The birth process came to her by the trunk of a palm tree. She said, "(I am so ashamed;) I wish I were dead before this happened, and completely forgotten." 

[19:24] (The infant) called her from beneath her, saying, "Do not grieve. Your Lord has provided you with a stream. 

[19:25] "If you shake the trunk of this palm tree, it will drop ripe dates for you. 

[9:26] "Eat and drink, and be happy. When you see anyone, say, `I have made a vow of silence; I am not talking today to anyone.' " 

[19:27] She came to her family, carrying him. They said, "O Mary, you have committed something that is totally unexpected. 

[19:28] "O descendant of Aaron, your father was not a bad man, nor was your mother unchaste." 

The infant Jesus makes a Statement 

[19:29] She pointed to him. They said, "How can we talk with an infant in the crib?" 

[19:30] (The infant spoke and) said, "I am a servant of GOD. He has given me the scripture, and has appointed me a prophet.

[19:31] "He made me blessed wherever I go, and enjoined me to observe the Contact Prayers (Salat) and the obligatory charity (Zakat) for as long as I live. 

[19:32] "I am to honor my mother; He did not make me a disobedient rebel. 

[19:33] And peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I get resurrected." 

The amazing thing about the biblical account of Jesus' birth was that it was as common as the most common birth of our world. The extraordinary thing about the infant Jesus was that there was nothing extraordinary about the infant. He was as human and common as any other human. He was one of us, but he was God’s Son (John 3:16).

Islam claims Jesus was the son of Mary, but not the Son of God. 

[19:34] That was Jesus, the son of Mary, and this is the truth of this matter, about which they continue to doubt. 

[19:35] It does not befit GOD that He begets a son, be He glorified. To have anything done, He simply says to it, "Be," and it is. 

[19:36] He also proclaimed, "GOD is my Lord and your Lord; you shall worship Him alone. This is the right path." 

God begetting a Son is Gross blasphemy in Quran.
[19:88] They said, “The Most Gracious has begotten a son”! 
[19:89] You have uttered a gross blasphemy. 
[19:90] The heavens are about to shatter, the earth is about to tear asunder, and the mountains are about to crumble. 
[19:91] Because they claim that the Most Gracious has begotten a son. 
[19:92] It is not befitting the Most Gracious that He should beget a son. 

Jesus’ death in the Quran is different from the Bible.

Islam says, Jesus’ soul was raised, i.e., he was put to death prior to the arrest and crucifixion of his body. Thus, his persecutors arrested, tortured, and crucified an empty body - Jesus was already gone to the world of souls (Quran 3:55, 4:157). 
“They plotted and schemed, but so did God, and God is the best schemer. Thus, God said, ‘O Jesus, I am putting you to death, and raising you to Me; I will save you from the disbelievers.’” [Quran 3:54-55] 
“They claimed that they killed the Messiah, Jesus, the son of Mary, the messenger of God! In fact, they never killed him; they never crucified him; they were led to believe that they did.” [Quran 4:157] 
Islam has the God in whom they believe scheming to deceive the world about Jesus' resurrection. It is interesting to note that he doesn’t seek to deny the resurrection but only their perception of the resurrection. One can only wonder if the case for the doctrine of the resurrection was so strong in Muhammad’s time that he dared not challenge it.
The Myth of Intercession 

Islam says to believe that anyone, other than God, can intercede on our behalf to have our sins forgiven or our wishes fulfilled, is to set up partners with God. This is idolatry. The Quran proclaims that “All intercession belongs to God” (39:44), and that there will be “no intercession on the Day of Judgment” (2:254). 
Muslims believe that the myth of intercession is one of Satan’s most effective tricks to dupe millions of people into idol worship. Millions of Christians believe that Jesus will intercede for them, and millions of Muslims believe that Muhammad will intercede on their behalf. Consequently, Muslims believe these people idolize Jesus and Muhammad. 
The contradiction in the Quran is that it acknowledges that everyone in Paradise will intercede on behalf of his or her loved ones: “Please God, admit my mother into Paradise.” This intercession will work if the person’s mother deserves to go to Paradise (2:255, 20:109, 21:28). 
Another problem with intercession is that Muhammad is actually setting himself as God's only intercessor by saying he is God's Only prophet. If Muhammad is the Only prophet of God that proclaims the truth, does this not make Muhammad one's intercessor?

Conclusion:

There are two words in the word "Islam." The word "I" and the word "slam." Muhammad could have just as easily said it this way, "I slam Judaism and Christianity." This is most certainly what he does as he makes himself the only self-proclaimed prophet of God who knew God's will.

How can Islam say it believes in the biblical prophets while denying everything they ever wrote? They do this by saying that the Bible is a record that Jews and Christians have distorted. 

Quoting the Bible to those who do not believe in the Bible doesn't prove anything to them. However, Islam's weakest arguments are Muhammad's self-assertions that he is the prophet of God. Muslims are told to believe in Muhammad without questioning. Islam needs more credible witnesses. One man's assertion is not enough. 

Muhammad rewrites the Bible to make it fit him into the picture. This alone should raise questions in the minds of any serious student.

The difficulty with the entire religious world is that too many rely on what they have been told, and are not willing to seek the truth for themselves. This is what Muhammad tries to convince his followers to do without questioning his teaching.