Below are some my messages I present in my dialogs with Imams, Sheikhs, and Khards.
Jacob Lee
Missionary with Reaching Africa’s Unreached
www.ReachingAfricasUnreached.org
Afoji Moyo District
West Nile Uganda
My Goals for my Muslim Readers
- My goal is NOT to abuse what you believe in your religion of Islam. Abusing does not show the love of Messiah Jesus.
- My goal is NOT to abuse you personally. We are all created in the image of God and are to be honored as His created image-bearers. Jesus says, “Love your neighbor as yourself” and teaches all whom God has created are “our neighbors.” I am a follower AND worshiper of Messiah Jesus who loves AND respects Muslims.
- My goal is to be ready to give an answer to you when you ask me what I believe or hope in.
The Apostle Peter states in 1 Peter 3: 15-16 , “but in your hearts honor Christ the Lord as holy, always being prepared to make a defense to anyone who asks you for a reason for the hope that is in you; yet do it with gentleness and respect, having a good conscience, so that, when you are slandered, those who revile your good behavior in Christ may be put to shame.”
- My goal is to paint a beautiful picture with words:
- A beautiful picture of the beauty of Jesus Christ, who He is according to the Bible and what He has done
- A beautiful picture of what Christians believe about God Almighty
- A beautiful picture of our joy and satisfaction in having a relationship with God through the Lord Jesus Christ
- A beautiful picture of the peace we have in God’s presence, knowing our sins are forgiven by Jesus blood atoning sacrifice
*SO THAT you will also love and worship Messiah Jesus whom I serve and that you also will desire a personal saving relationship with Him.
- My goal is that you too would “taste and see” that the Lord is good!
Psalm 34:8 states, “Oh, taste and see that the Lord is good!
Blessed is the man who takes refuge in him!”
In Christianity, it is not enough to simply believe certain things about God or only follow rules and laws; it is MOST important to be in a loving, obedient relationship WITH God.
Jesus corrects the religious teachers of the law by quoting from the prophet Isaiah, “All of you praise me with your words, but you never really think about me. It is useless for you to worship me, when you teach rules made up by humans.” (Matthew 15:8-9)
Introduction
Salaam Alekum!
As-Salaamu Alaikum! Greetings from my family, friends, and fellow followers and worshipers of Messiah Jesus.
Recently my wife Carol and I had a good time visiting our children, grandchildren, and friends. As we left to return to our home in the West Nile of Uganda it was very hard to say good bye to them again. We love our family and it is always very difficult to leave them and Texas USA! How is it my wife and I could leave them ,sell our things, and make our move to the West Nile?
It is because of a Universal principle: Only a greater/stronger love can empower one to leave another love.
Jesus says, “As the Father (Jehovah) has sent me so I send you” (John 20:21) and “All authority has been given to me, THEREFORE GO and make disciples of ME of all nations baptizing them in the NAME of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit teaching them to observe all I have commanded you and behold I will always be with you” (Matt. 28:18-20. See also Mark 16:15, Luke 24:46-49, Acts 1:8)… “If you love me (Jesus) you will keep my commands (John 14:15) and “they are not a burden” (1 John 5:3). In the Quran Surah 21:91 Isa is to be a “sign to all peoples” not just the Jews during His time on earth.
My wife and I now live in the Afoji Moyo West Nile of Uganda. We were moved by my greater love and obedience of Messiah Jesus and love for you. Surah 5:82 states that men like me are “nearest in affection to Muslims these who say ‘We are Christians’ because among these are men devoted to learning and men who have renounced the world and are not arrogant”. My constant prayer to my Lord and Savior Jesus is that I can show the love of Jesus to you through my words and actions and in a way which brings honor to Jesus and draws you to put entire trust the Lord Jesus Christ alone for your salvation.
I pray often for you that the Word of Jehovah (Jesus: John 1:1-14) and the Holy Spirit (John 16) would show Himself to you. The Qur’an states Isa is the Word-Kalim (Surah 3:39 & 4:171) and Spirit-Ruh (Surah 4:171) of Allah. No other person or prophet in the Quran carries these titles. I pray that Jesus would reveal himself to you through the Scriptures in the Bible as well as through dreams and visions. In Matthew 17 and Revelation 1 it states the transfigured Jesus became white as light with garments of white. My prayer is that you will see Jesus in the beauty of his heavenly resurrected glory and put your trust in Him!
I know that you, as Muslims, are extremely religious in every respect of your lives. I respect you for that. Living in your midst I have seen that you perform many religious acts of devotion and that you greatly respect Isa of the Quran. I am a disciple of Jesus. In the Gospel, in John 20:21, Jesus says He has sent me. I am here to proclaim a fuller and deeper understanding of who Jesus is to you as well as what His mission was while He was here on the earth. Thank you for giving me your time. Please keep reading.
Let me say it again. I am a disciple of Messiah Jesus. He loves Muslims. I am also a worshiper of Messiah Jesus. I do read the Qur’an. I do not know Arabic so I have consulted different English translations of Qur’an. These English translations were done by Muslims. I consulted Arabic language scholars for understanding of Arabic words. I did this with the aid of my computer and Internet.
As you know Isa is spoken about much in the Qur’an with great honor and respect. This is what I like most about the Qur’an. Below are common and different beliefs between Muslims and Christians on the person of Isa/Jesus. Through reading these materials you will be helped to understand why I and many many others now and throughout history follow and worship Messiah Jesus.
Good Leaders are readers and readers are good leaders! Good leaders are thinkers and thinkers are good leader. You are a leader of your people! I encourage you to read and ponder (think upon ) the truths I present in this outline.
Note: At this site are dual language (Aringa/English; Madi/English and Arabic/English) short pamphlets: https://reachingafricasunreached.org/dual-language-gospel-tracts/
Who Is Jesus?
Compiled by Jacob Lee ( JacobLeeRAU@gmail.com)
Thank you for your hospitality! As-salaamu Alaikum
Christians are friends to Muslims. They should respect one another.
- Surah 5:82“…you will find the nearest of them in affection to the believers (Muslims) those who say, “We are Christians” because among these are men devoted to learning, and men who have renounced the world, and they are not arrogant” and “To thee (the people of the gospel) We sent the Scripture in truth confirming the scriptures that came before it, and guarding it in safety…” Surah 5:48
- Jesus commands LOVE “And he (Jesus) said to him, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with your entire mind. This is the great and first commandment. And a second is like it: You shall love your neighbor as yourself. On these two commandments depend all the Law and the Prophets.” (Matthew 22:37-40)
- From the prophet Isaiah 1:18: “Come on now, let’s discuss this!” says the LORD. “Though your sins are bright red, they will become as white as snow. Though they are dark red, they will become as white as wool.”
Both Christians and Muslims should read & study the Bible. The Qur’an urges Muslims to read about Jesus in the Bible.
- Surah 10:94“So if you are in doubt, [O Muhammad], about that which We have revealed to you, then ask those who have been reading the Scripture before you. The truth has certainly come to you from your Lord, so never be among the doubters.” This is not just the verbal message of Jesus as the Qur’an confirms the Torah, the Psalms, and the gospels which were written records at the time of Muhammad. See Surah 5:48
- Surah 57:27 “…We sent after them Jesus son of Mary and bestowed on him The Gospel: and ordained in the hearts of those who follow him Compassion and Mercy…”
- Surah 2:136 “Say ye, We believe in God, and the revelation given to us, and to Abraham, Ismail, Isaac, Jacob and to the tribes, and that given to Moses and Jesus, and that given to all the prophets from their Lord.:…” (See also Surah’s 2:87 and 4:163)
- Surah 5:46 “And We sent, following in their footsteps, Jesus, the son of Mary, confirming that which came before him in the Torah; and We gave him the Gospel, in which was guidance and light and confirming that which preceded it of the Torah as guidance and instruction for the righteous.” See also: Surah’s 10:94 and 32:23 and 6.
- Holy Bible: 2 Timothy 2:15 “Study to show yourself approved a workman who is not ashamed who rightly handles (studies) the word of God.”
- The authority of the Bible is no where questioned in the Qur’an but positively emphasized. See Surah 3:3– “He has sent down upon you, [O Muhammad], the Book in truth, confirming what was before it. And He revealed the Torah and the Gospel.”
God who is all powerful will not allow his Word to be corrupted or changed. God forbid! He has power over all things! No person or government has the power to corrupt God’s Word!
- Surah 2:148 “…For Allah Hath power over all things…” and “…there is none that can alter the words (and decrees) of Allah” Surah 6:34. See also: 15:9, 6:115, 18:27 and 10:64. The Qur’anic word “nazzal” used in 15:9 and 6:114 is the same word used in 5:44 for the Torah and Injeel. Writing which are eternal are protected and do not change.
- Jesus says in the Gospel of Matthew “For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished.” (Matthew 5:18).
- Astaghfur! May God forbid that his Word could ever be tarnished by mere man. God has sent the Bible and to say it has been altered by man is not to believe in the power of God. No man, group of men or government is stronger than God Almighty. See again Surah’s 6:34; 6:115 “There is nothing that can change His words”. See also 18:27
- The Bible existed without corruption in Muhammad’s day. The Qur’an instructs a person to go the “scriptures” , “Torah”, “Gospel”—Surahs 10:94, 3:3, 32:23, 5:46, 2:136, 57:27. If the Bible was corrupted or spoiled why does Qur’an tell its readers to go to it?
- There are NO Surah’s in the Qur’an that state the Bible which was in the hands of the Christians at the time of Muhammad had been corrupted. In Surah 2:79 the Qur’an does speak of evil men who “sell it for gain”. The Qur’an does not speak these evil men of altering the Bible/Scriptures but refers to greedy sale of it. It is not about altering/changing the Scriptures but the greedy sale of it. Also, in the previous Surah it says “illiterate men”. How could such men alter it? They could not.
- “The Dead Sea Scrolls are perhaps the greatest archaeological find of our time. Produced by Jewish monastic Essenes, the scrolls number about 800; 200 of which are of biblical material. In 1947, shepherds discovered them quite by accident in caves above the Wadi Qumran Valley, northwest of the Dead Sea, copies of Isaiah, written 1,000 years earlier than the previously oldest known copies have proven to be “word for word identical with our standard Hebrew Bible in more than 95 percent of the text. The five percent of variation consisted chiefly of obvious slips of the pen and variations in spelling.”
- “There are over 6,000 early manuscript copies or portions of the Greek New Testament in existence today. When we include the Latin Vulgate and other early versions, we have over 24,000 early copies or portions of the New Testament (twice that many when including quotes by early church fathers). Some of these date only twenty to thirty years from the original autographs. According to a former director of the British Museum, “The interval then between the dates of original composition and the earliest extant evidence becomes so small as to be in fact negligible, and the last foundation for any doubt that the Scriptures have come down to us substantially as they were written has now been removed. Both the authenticity and the general integrity of the books of the New Testament may be regarded as finally established.”” (Source: http://www.provethebible.net/T2-Integ/B-0801.htm )
- Conclusion: Evidence from both the Qur’an and existing Bible manuscripts which pre-date the Qur’an show that the Bible, both the Old and New Testament which Christians have today, is the same as what existed before Muhammad. God Almighty, praise His Name, has and will continue to faithfully preserved the Bible from corruption. To make a claim that Allah protects the Qur’an from corruption and then not the Bible is inconsistent and incorrect.
- Hebrews 1:1-3:“Long ago, at many times and in many ways, God spoke to our fathers by the prophets, But in these last days he has spoken to us by his Son (“SON”-See articles in this booklet), whom he appointed the heir of all things, through whom also he created the world. He (Jesus) is the radiance of the glory of God and the exact imprint of his nature, and he (Jesus) upholds the universe by the word of his power. After making purification for sins, he( Jesus) sat down at the right hand of the Majesty on high”
The Qur’an speaks of Jesus many many times. The Qur’an also always speaks in a positive way of Jesus and in some of the same ways the Bible speaks of him:
- Is born of a virgin– Surah 3:45, 19:20 & 21:91, Bible-Luke 1:27-35. Jesus birth was prophesied 700 years before His birth (Isaiah 7:14). If Allah can cause a virgin to conceive, then what is to prevent him from also taking on flesh and dwelling among us?
- He is highly esteemed– Surah 3:45; Bible-Philippians 2:9
- Called the Word– Surah 3:39 & 4:171 says that Jesus is Allah’s word: “Kalimatullah”. One cannot say that the Word is not God and that Word is not eternal. This confirms what is written in the Injeel John 1:1-5 where Jesus is called the “logos”. This “Word became flesh” (John 1:14) or more literally “the Word became flesh and pitched His tabernacle among us”. Jesus is the spoken mind of God. See also Revelation 19:11. Ancient Jews out reverence at times would use the title “the Word of God” for Yahweh. No other prophet is called “Kalimatullah”.
- Called the Messiah (Christ)– Surah 3:45 & 4:171 “Mashil”; Bible-John 1:41, 4:25-26
- He created life, healed the sick and raised the dead– Surah 3:42-55,5:113. Bible- John 21:25
- Considered to be a Prophet– Surah 19:30, Bible-John 4:19. The prophetic line of Deut.18:15-18 comes through Isaac as confirm in Surah 29:27.
- A Messenger– Surah 5:45, Sent-Bible-John 20:21
- Sign to Mankind not just Israel- Surah 21:91 “a sign to all peoples”; Bible-Matthew 28:18-20, Mark 16:15, Luke 24:46-49, Acts 1:8.
- Is Without sin– Surah 19:19, Bible-John 8:45-46, Bible-Luke 1:32, 35. The Qur’an records the sins and need of repentance for other prophets but not Jesus (See Surah’s 7:11-27, 28:16, 38:18-25, 38:31-36 & 47:19). Jesus never married, never had sexual relations with a woman, and never accumulated wealth. Jesus came from Jehovah however he remained holy and sinless, even with great temptations from Satan. Both the Qur’an and Bible teach this. Surah 19:19-“I am bestowing on you (Mary) a sinless/pure(Zakia) son.”, Bible Hebrews 4:15-16 says “For we do not have a high priest who cannot sympathize with our weaknesses, but One [Jesus] who has been tempted in all things as we are, yet without sin.” See also John 8:45-46.
- The Spirit of Allah (Ruhullah) – Surah 4:171, compare with Surah 58:22; Bible-Romans 8:9. No other prophet is called Ruhullah.
- Jesus is now alive in heaven– Surah 4:158, Bible-Luke 24:50-53
- Jesus knows the way to heaven-Surah 3:55. He knows because He has traveled the straight path from Jehovah to earth and returned to Jehovah in heaven. Bible- John 14:1-3. Who in all the Qur’an and the Bible is most capable of helping one go to heaven? –> JESUS
- Jesus died and was raised up– [Jesus said,] “Peace be upon me the day I was born, the day I die, and the day I am raised up again alive.” Surah 19:33. The same wording is used for the death of John the Baptist in Surah 19:15 so 19:33 is not speaking of some “future” death of Jesus. See also Surah 3:54 “Allah caused Isa to die –->” mutawaffika”–>”to kill, to cause to die, to terminate”. Bible: Compare Isaiah 53:10. See also Surah 3:144a “And Mohammed is but a messenger. Verily all Messengers have passed away before him”. “If in doubt the Qur’an instructs “question those who read the scriptures that was before” Surah 10:94. In Surah 4:157 it does not say that Jesus did not die. It does say that the Jews did not kill him. The Gospels agree! The Jews did not have the authority to crucify Jesus; they were under Roman occupation and authority. The Holy Bible says: “From that time Jesus began to show his disciples that he must go to Jerusalem and suffer many things from the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and on the third day be raised” (Matthew 16:21,27:26-31; Mark 8:31,9:31,15:15-20; Luke 9:22,23:32-37; John 19:1718). Predicted by the Prophets: Psalms 22:1-8 & Isaiah 53. Surah 19:33 confirms the gospel record in these verses in the Injeel.
- Jesus will return to judge-Surah 4:159 & 43:61, Bible-Matthew 25:31-46, Acts 10:42, 2 Timothy 4:8
- Obey Jesus– “Fear Allah and obey me” Surah 3:50; Bible-John 14:15
- Jesus will be honored by all people– Surah 3:45; Bible: Revelation 5:12
- He came with clear proofs– Surah 43:63; John 5:36
- The Bible and Qur’an verses above present Jesus as MORE than JUST a prophet. He is revealed as unique, special, and one of kind! There is no one who walked the earth His equal!
The Bible speaks of Jesus in the following ways:
- The Creator– John 1:3,10; Colossians 1:16; Hebrews 1:2. Compare with Isaiah 44:24 à “I (Yahweh) am the maker of all things.”
- The Word became flesh -John 1:14
- Son of Man- Mark 2:10, 10:45 compared to Daniel 7:13-14 where the “Son of Man” is worshiped and given everlasting dominion.
- God With Us, Emmanuel– Matthew 1:23
- The Christ the Son of the living God- Matthew 16:16-17, 11:25-30; Luke 1:35; John 17:1, 5; 5:18-19, 22-23; 14:9, 11; 20:28-29 Note: The “Son of God” is used 42 times in the New Testament/Injeel. Christians do not believe/teach that God Almighty had a wife-God forbid! Followers of Jesus consider anyone who believes such a thing an infidel! God never had a wife or a physical son. Christians do not worship 3 gods either…God forbids! God can appear in different forms. For example, God appeared to Moses in the form of a burning bush. As a follower of Jesus, we believe that God is a spirit (His living essence) and a Word (His spoken personality) who took the form of a man Messiah Jesus. We say that Christ is the Son of God in the same way light is born of light. The term “Son” shows deep respect, relationship, and intimacy. It is a spiritual sonship. When we say a person is a Son of the Soil it means this is place of origin, but one would not think that this geographical place got married or had physical relations. Even the Qur’an the term for wander on a journey is called “Ibn Sabeel”, or “Son of the Road. This does not mean that the road had sexual intercourse which resulted in another road. In the same way Jesus is called the “Son of God”. The Bible never teaches that the “sonship” of Jesus Christ was the result of any physical union of two partners. Nor does it imply that God is a created being. The Bible clearly teaches that God is eternal. The “sonship” of Jesus Christ was purely spiritual in nature. The immaterial nature of Jesus Christ was made of the same substance as God–his will, purpose and mind being the same as that of God with no conflict, but perfect harmony. His flesh was flesh and was not God–it was only where the essence of God dwelt to reveal himself to the world without the essence itself being physically seen. The Bible also clearly teaches that God is spirit. Jesus himself said that flesh comes from flesh, but spirit comes from spirit. The immaterial essence of God that dwelt in him according to the will of God, was God’s immaterial essence–not separated from God nor in conflict with God. The flesh of Jesus Christ responded perfectly to God in every situation of life because that God’s immaterial essence in him kept his flesh pure. Therefore, it is important to realize that Jesus Christ was fully God and fully man–human emotions being expressed without human sin. His flesh was not God even though the nature or essence, which indwelt that flesh was the very essence of God to whom he would return shortly. Perhaps it was for this reason that Jesus rarely asked people to worship him though he never refused their true worship. He asked people to worship God yet claiming to be equal with God and deserving the honor that is due only to God. He wanted people to understand the true character of God before they worshipped God. He wanted people to realize that the essence of God was in him. Therefore it is important to first understand what the Holy Bible–Taurat, Zabul, Anbia (Writings of the Jewish Prophets) and Injeel teach about the nature of God, so we can understand the true spiritual nature of Jesus Christ in the Injeel.” The Son of God in the Bible and Qur’an
- Son of the Most High– The angel Gabriel (Jibril) speaking to Mary in Luke 1:26-38, especially note vs. 33 & “Jesus kingdom will have no end” vs. 33
- The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world stated in John 1:29 by John the Baptist (Yahya who is a “prophet of righteousness”- Surah 3:39), Jesus blood ransoms His people on the cross. See Leviticus 17:11 and Hebrews 9:19-22 —Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins. Interestingly a picture of this also seen in Surah 37:107, Eid Al Ad-ha, where Allah saw the need for a ransom sacrifice on behalf of Abraham’s son. On the mountain the Ibrahim’s son asks “Where is the animal. Ibrahim responds ‘God will provide’” Torah Genesis 22:7-8.
- Jesus called himself “I AM” in John 8:58-59 (compare Exodus 3:14, when God is speaking out of the burning bush to Moses stating His Name is “I AM that I AM”). The Jewish leaders knew exactly was saying and took up stones to stone Jesus for blasphemy. This is also seen in John 10:30-39.
Jesus “I AM” statements:
1) John 6:48- I am that bread of life.
2) John 8:12- Then spoke Jesus again unto them, saying, I am the light of the world: he that followed me shall not walk-in darkness, but shall have the light of life. Compare with Psalm Psalms 27:1 à “The Lord (YAHWEH/ I AM) is my light and my salvation.”
3) John 10:9- I am the door: by me if any man enter in, he shall be saved, and shall go in and out, and find pasture.
4) John 10:11- I am the good shepherd: the good shepherd gives his life for the sheep. Compare with Psalm 23:1 à “The Lord (YAHWEH/ I AM) is my shepherd.”
5) John 11:25 -Jesus said unto her, I am the resurrection, and the life: he that believes in me, though he was dead, yet shall he live.
6) John 14:6 -Jesus said unto him, I am the way, the truth, and the life: no man comes unto the Father, but by me.
7) -John 15:1- I am the true vine, and my Father is the husbandman
- being worshiped– Luke 24:52; John 20:28; Angels worshiped him; Hebrews 1:6; wise men Matthew 2:11; a leper Matthew 8:2; a ruler Matthew 9:18; a blind man John 9:18; anonymous woman Matthew 15:25; Mary Magdalene Matthew 28:9; disciples Matthew 28:17; same worship given to the Father Revelation 4:10,5:11-14. Compare with Exodus 34:14à “Do not worship any other god for the Lord, whose Name is Jealous, is a jealous God”.
- called my Lord and my God– John20:26-28.
- One who forgives sin- Mark 2:1-12, 9:2, Matthew 26:28, Luke 7:48
- Chief Cornerstone: Ephesians 2:20
- The radiance of the glory of God and exact imprint of His nature and upholds the universe by the word of His power: Hebrews 1:3.
- Image of the invisible God: Colossians 1:15
- Firstborn over all creation: Colossians 1:15
- In Him all the fullness of God was pleased to dwell: Colossians 1:19
- Head of the Church: Ephesians 1:22,4:15,5:23
- King of kings and Lord of lords:1 Timothy 6:15, Revelation 19:16
- Light of the World: John 8:12
- Prince of peace: Isaiah 9:6
- Son of man: Mark 2:10 compare with Daniel 7:13-14.
- Son of David: Matthew 1:1,9:27, 15:22
- Alpha and Omega (Beginning and End): Revelation 1:8,22:13
- Lord of All: Acts 10:36; Romans 10(; 1 Corinthians 12:3; Philippians 2:11, Isaiah 45:22-24 “I am God…. before me every knee will bow, by me every tongue will swear.”
- True God:1 John 5:20
- Author and Perfecter of our Faith: Hebrews 12:2
- Bridegroom: Matthew 9:5
- Deliverer: Romans 11:26
- Lamb of God: John 1:29
- Mediator:1 Timothy 2:5
- Rock:1 Corinthians 10:4
- Resurrection and Life: John 11:25
- Savior: Matthew 1:21, Luke 2:11. Compare with Isaiah 43:11 “I, even I, am the Lord (Yahweh), and apart from me there is no Savior”.
- Showed Divine love: “If the innocent Jesus, who forgave and loved His crucifiers from the cross was not the Creator-God Himself, then the Creator –God is proven to be inferior to Jesus. And this cannot be. The Creator-God and Jesus are one and the same being. May all men know that truly Divine love” Da’ud Rahbar
- Psalm 22, the passion Psalm of David, fulfilled in Jesus. Compare Ps. 22:1 with Matthew 27:45; Ps. 22:7-8 with Matt.27: 39-44; Ps. 22:16 with Matt. 27:31; Ps. 22:17-18 with John 19:23-24.
Philippians 2:6-11 confirm the following facts:
1)Jesus was God while on the earth and at the same time took on human flesh. Jesus is 100% God and 100% man.
2) Jesus was the only person who ever lived on earth uniting the divine and human nature in a perfect way (See also-Romans 1:3-4)
3) Jesus, being the only sinless human, was able to offer Himself as a perfect sacrifice, dying on the cross for the sins of all those who believe and accept Him.
4) This was the mission of Jesus and He was perfectly obedient to it.
5) Jesus receives the highest Name ever; all people will have to bow to Him and accept His authority.
*Possible conversations between a Muslim and Christian concerning the Christian claim that Jesus is God:
- *Muslim: “Jesus cannot be God; no human person can be God.”
- *Christian: “Is there anything impossible for God?”
- *Muslim: “No, God can do anything!”
- *Christian: “If God would decide today to walk in a human body in front of your home and at the same time still control the whole universe would you be able to prevent God to do it?”
- *Muslim: “No, nobody can hinder God to do what He pleases!”
- *Christian: “Yes agreed, God decided in history to appear in a human body form on earth—and that person is called Jesus! How can you dare to say, this is not possible for God?”
Muslim Question: “Why, since God created everything, did He become human in the first place? He knows everything, so what is the purpose?
- God views sin seriously, and a price must be paid to atone for sin.
- Only a human can pay it because it is humanity which has sinned.
- Only God can pay it because humans are imperfect.
- Therefore, the only way that humans’ sin may be paid for, is by God becoming a person, and paying the price as a person.”
—————
Followers of Jesus receive salvation in 13 distinct ways:
- from death to life: Regeneration- sin spiritually kills us. We must be born again by the Spirit of God through faith in Jesus. See John 3:1-21.
- from guilt to acquittal: Justification-everyone stands guilty before God because of our sin. We find forgiveness exclusively in Jesus. See 2 Corinthians 5:20 and Romans 4:1-12.
- from rejection and shame to acceptance: Adoption- because of our sin we are outside God’s family. Only in Jesus are we given the right to become children of God. See John 1:12; Ephesians 1: 4-5
- from bondage to liberation: Redemption-in Jesus alone we are ransomed from the power of sin, death, and the devil. See 1 Peter 1:18-19
- from Satan’s kingdom to God’s kingdom: Citizenship- sinners are citizens of Satan’s kingdom until their allegiance is changed to Christ. See Ephesians 2:19
- from retribution to propitiation: Atonement-sin causes the wrath of a holy God to fall upon sinners. Only in the atoning death of Jesus is that wrath removed. See Hebrews 2:17
- from enmity to friendship: Reconciliation-sinners are God’s enemies until they become reconciled to God through faith in Jesus. See Romans 5:10
- from darkness to light: Illumination-sin darkens the heart and minds of sinners, who can be spiritually enlightened solely through the Spirit of Christ. See Ephesians 1:18-19a
- from impurity/uncleanness to purity/cleansing: Sanctification-sinners must be refined and purified by Christ’s Spirit in order to become holy, clean, and pleasing before God. See Thessalonians 5:23
- from barrenness to productivity: Fruitfulness-unregenerate sinners can do nothing to please God. Only with a connection to the true vine, Jesus, can sinners ever hope to produce spiritually pleasing fruit. See Romans 7:4
- from deformity to glorification: Transformation-sin mars/disfigures the image of God in mankind. Believers/Followers of Jesus alone are transformed into the image of Christ. See 2 Corinthians 3:18a
- from separation to union: Participation-sin brings death. B participation in the divine nature through the incarnate Christ, believers overcome mortality. See 2 Peter 1:4
- from defeat to victory: Salvation-eternal condemnation awaits everyone who does not have saving faith in Jesus Christ. See Revelation 7:10
(Source for “13 Distinct Ways followers of Jesus receive salvation”: The Language of Salvation: Discovering the Riches of What It Means to be Saved by Victor Kuligan)
Only through the Logos/Word (Kalim), Messiah Jesus, revealed in the Scriptures of the Bible can the power and effects of sin be overcome by a gospel of grace. Apart from Jesus Christ, we have no hope of salvation.
- As a follower of Messiah Jesus my only hope and confidence is in Jesus to overcome death and have eternal life in heaven. Followers and worshipers of Jesus the Messiah know for sure they will go to heaven after death. Jesus Himself gives His followers this confidence– “I (Jesus) give them (my disciples) eternal life, and they shall not perish; no one will snatch them out of my hand” John 10:28
Jesus said: “I am the Resurrection and the life; whoever believes (trusts) in me, though he dies, yet shall he live and everyone who lives and believes (trusts) in me shall never die.” John 11:25
*What is your hope and assurance of heaven?
*My old bones are at rest and I am peace with God! My faith and confidence are in Jesus’ merit, His forgiveness and resurrection.
*I do not have confidence in my good works to bring me to heaven.
*I trust in Jesus who loves me, washed me clean from my sins through His sacrificial death. His cleansing blood has removed my shame before God Almighty and brought me into the presence of a Holy, righteous and just God.
*Judgment Day is coming for us all.
*Ask Jesus to reveal Himself to you – He will!
*Put your trust in Jesus alone for salvation!
*I love you!
*I will continue to pray for you!
- Jesus gave Himself up voluntarily to save, to cleanse from the shame of guilt, and forgive sin! Jesus says in John 10:17-18— “For this reason the Father loves Me, because I lay down my life that I may take it up again. No one takes it from me, but I lay it down of my own accord. I have the authority to lay down and to take it up (raise it up) again. This charge I have received from my Father.”
- Please take time to watch this video from Dr. James White as a loving appeal from me to put your trust in Jesus Christ alone for your salvation:
Below is a sample prayer to the Father through Jesus asking for forgiveness and the assurance that when one dies, they will be in Paradise:
Lord God, heavenly Father, I come to you in the Name of your beloved Son, Jesus. I thank you that you sent Jesus to be my Savior. I ask you to forgive me all my sins for the sake of His suffering and death, and to remember them no more. I thank you that through Jesus I have the certainty of eternal life and that when I die, just like the thief on the cross, I will be in paradise. Thank you, Father, that I am your child and that you are my loving heavenly Father through Jesus Christ. In Jesus Name I pray. Amen
*I pray this resource will be a blessing to you!
Remember:
“Readers are leaders and leaders are readers.
Thinkers are leaders and leaders are thinkers!”
Thank you for your hospitality!
As-salaam Alaikum
Jacob Lee
jacobleerau@gmail.com
Jesus says, “Your sins are forgiven”
(Sermon by Jacob Lee)
At home “preaching the Word”
Old Testament, Torah, Psalms, Prophets
Large crowd è Jesus “taught with authority,” not like religious leaders who quote but have no understanding (See Matthew 7:28-29)
*Jesus preached the Law in greater way- “You have heard it said…” (Matthew 5:21-48). Jesus said, “Do not think I have come to abolish the law, but to fulfill it.” (Matthew 5:17-20)
The law of God exposes our sin. It is like mirror reveling dirt on the face.
*David – Psalms 40:12= our sins are beyond number.
Ezra 9:6 – “sins as high as the heavens”
Revelations 18:5 – “sins heaped to the heavens”
All people sin against God in their thoughts, words, and actions. They are beyond number!
Friends bring a paralyzed man making a hole in the roof and let him down right in front of Jesus– (In the midst of Jesus preaching)
The large crowd does not deter these good friends.
*His friends must have loved him
*Flat roofs on houses in Jesus day
* Jesus saw their “faith” in bringing him to Jesus
Says something most remarkable!
“Your sins are forgiven…”
*Our sins are many! See: Psalms 40:12 (beyond number), Ezra 9:6 (high), Rev.18:5 (heaped)
*Sins of omission which are not doing the things we should do and sins of commission which are doing the things we should not do
*Thoughts can be sinful-“You have heard it said…” Lust=adultery; hatred=murder. See Matthew 5:21-42
Are your sins forgiven? Will they be forgiven? On Judgment Day will your sins be forgiven?
How can anyone pay the debt of sin???????
*Illustration: If clean meat has unclean meat mixed in it it cannot ever be made clean by mixing more clean meat in it. We all are unclean before God because of our sin. Doing good works which is like “clean meat” can never make us clean who are unclean from our sin!
- We are all sinners and deserve God’s judgment and wrath (See: Romans 3:23 & 6:23). Sinning is easy but paying off sin is not only difficult but impossible for us!
- How does forgiveness come? There is only one way!
- Moses says in the Torah- Leviticus 17:11
“Without the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sin.”
*Old Testament Sacrificial system in place – Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Prophets etc.
*These animal sacrifices had to be “perfect”, “unblemished”
- Sacrifices è pointed è Jesus the Messiah (Jesus Messiah Surah 19:34 & 4:171; John 20:21) who would be the ultimate perfect sacrifice
- John the Baptist, in the Qur’an he is called “Yahya”, said about Jesus:
“The Lamb of God that takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29)
- Jesus IS the perfect, sinless (See: Surah 19:19, John 8:45-46, Luke 1:32, 35), spotless sacrifice
- Teachers (Scribes) of the Law (Torah) vs. 8 say in their hearts, “He is blaspheming, who can forgive sins but God?”
- YES! Only God can forgive sins!
*Exodus 34:7 Only “God can forgive sins”
*Isaiah 1:18 Only “God can wash away sin”
*Psalms 51:4 Only “God can make clean from sin”
*Psalms 100: 3 Only “God can remove all sin”!
- “Immediately, Jesus knew in His spirit” v.8
- Jesus knew what they were thinking
- Jesus says, “Why do you question these things in your hearts?”
Jesus says, “Which is easier to say to the paralytic ‘Your sins are forgiven’ or to say ‘take up your mat and walk’”?
- “BUTthat you may know that the Son of Man has power to forgive sins – get up and take your mat home”
- Result:
*Amazed the large crowd and they praised God! The crowd said “We have never seen anything like this”!
- This was a correct statement and feeling because there was not, nor will there be anyone like Jesus!
*One sinful person cannot pay for another sinful person’s sin (See: Psalm 49: 7- 9). That is impossible!
*However, God can forgive completely and perfectly through Jesus who was perfect and sinless!
* “Son of Man has authority to forgive”
* See Daniel 7:13-14 – “Son of Man” – all peoples, nations, people of every language worshiped Him – the Son of Man is given everlasting dominion and authority over all creation. The “Son of Man” is another term for God.
* The perfect sinless Jesus is able to forgive sin of all people through the shedding of His blood.
*With God all things are possible!
*We must not limit God
*Why is it not possible for God to take on Human flesh? No one can prevent Him!
*He is able if he wishes
*He did because it is the only way for sin to be forgiven, covered – for God to be both merciful and just at the same time.
*Come to Jesus….Jesus says in Matthew 11:28, “Come to me all you who are weary and burdened and I will give you rest.”
*He is the Way to God – John 14:6 à “Jesus says I AM the WAY, the TRUTH, and the WAY no one can come to the Father (God) but through me.”
*Acts 4:12 “There is salvation in no one else, for there is no other Name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”
John 10:1-18
As-Salaamu-Alaikum
I come, again, as a friend. I am grateful for the many times you have welcomed me and given your listening ears on our dialog topic of “Who IS Isa/Jesus?” As you know, I am a follower and worshiper of Jesus, who loves Muslims.
I hope you find in me one who is an example of Surah 5:82 “You will find the nearest in to Muslims those who say, ‘We are Christians,’ because among them are men devoted to learning, renounce the world, and are not arrogant”.
I pray my example of respect through my words and gifts of love are a witness of this. Jesus commands us to love our neighbor (everyone is our neighbor according to His parable of the Good Samaritan) as ourselves.
- Booklets, Bibles, Medicines, Reading glasses, Ag. Training, and other developments as we are able. Jesus teaches that we are to love our neighbor as ourselves (Luke 10 –Parable of Good Samaritan). Good deeds are the fruit of a changed person.
- Surah 2:256 “There is no compulsion in religion”, meaning, “Do not force anyone to become Muslim”. That is also what we to believe as born-again Christians.
- This is why I prefer “dialog” over “debate”. Dialog promotes understanding. This is important in a time when there is so much propaganda from both sides.
- I am often asked “Why would you leave your family, friends, nice life, and sell your things and move away from your home?” Answer: Obedience to Jesus which is moved by my love for Jesus. Principle Truth: Only a greater love can overcome a lesser love. This is true for all things: Example- Mother and children: when there is not enough food for the children, a mother will feed the children instead of herself. Her greater love for her children pushes away the compulsion to assuage her own hunger. It is a greater love for Isa than even for my own children which has brought me here to you! My love for you also pushes me to share the good news of Isa with you for your salvation and blessings. Jesus says in the Injeel, in John 10:10, “I come to give you life and a more abundant life” I want you to enjoy this abundant life in Jesus!
- While on earth, Jesus came and ministered primarily to Israel (Example Matthew 15:21-28). It is also very, very clear in the Gospels that he commands his disciples to carry the message of the good news of forgiveness of sins through him to all people. I can site many passage in the Bible but only one now, because of time: Luke 24:44-53 (page 217 in Aringa NT).
“Then he said to them, “These are my words that I spoke to you while I was still with you, that everything written about me in the Law of Moses and the Prophets and the Psalms must be fulfilled.” Then he opened their minds to understand the Scriptures, and said to them, “Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance for the forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things. And behold, I am sending the promise of my Father upon you. But stay in the city until you are clothed with power from on high. And he led them out as far as Bethany, and lifting up his hands he blessed them. While he blessed them, he parted from them and was carried up into heaven. And they worshiped him and returned to Jerusalem with great joy, and were continually in the temple blessing God.”
- Your Quran also speaks of Isa, not only for the Jews, but also for all people! Yusaf Ali, a Muslim, in his English, translates Surah 21:91 that Isa is a “sign to all peoples”. Isa is recorded as saying, in Surah 3:50, “Obey Allah and me”. It is out love and obedience to Jesus since His resurrection and ascension that I have traveled all over the world spreading the gospel of salvation in Isa.
- My prayer to in Jesus Name is for you to know forgiveness of sins through the sacrificial death and resurrection of Jesus . I pray that Isa, Kalim-ma-tullah –the Word of Allah (Surah. 3:39) and Isa-Ruhulla-the breath of Allah (Surah 4:171) would reveal to you His great, great love for you!
- a) No other prophet carries these titles. Common titles of Jesus for both Quran and Bible are listed on page 42 in your blue booklet.
- Today I want to look at the Bible together with you, specifically, John 10:1-18; page 247-248 in Aringa NT.
- First, because I am often told by my Muslim friends that our Bible has been corrupted. I like to remind my Muslim friends that the Quran says, in Surah 10:94, “If you are in doubt ask those who have read the scriptures before.”
In Surah 5:46, it is stated that Isa was given “the gospel, in which was guidance and light and confirming that which preceded it of the Torah as guidance and instruction for the righteous”. The authority of the Bible is nowhere questioned in the Quran but positively emphasized.
Surah 2:148 and 6:34 rightly state that Allah has all power and there are none that can alter the words of Allah. To state that the Bible has been corrupted by man is to NOT believe in the power of Allah. If the Bible was corrupted or spoiled, the Quran would not have instructed Muslims to go to it. All good Muslims believe no man or government is stronger than Allah.
- So now, when we read the in Bible in John 10:1-18, these are the same words Jesus spoke while on earth. Now let us read together the passage; page 247-248 in Aringa NT.
- There are no contradictions in the Bible. There may appear to be apparent contradictions but if one studies the passages carefully, one finds there is no contradiction.
- First note-V. 6 “this figure of speech Jesus used with them” =metaphor= a word or phrase is applied to an object or action to which it is not literally applicable. Jesus uses many metaphors concerning himself so that we can better understand who He is. Disciples did not understand……
- V. 7 “So Jesus said again to them, Truly, Truly, I am the door of the sheep”
- Important truth Christians believe…God wants us to understand…Jesus wants us to understand…!
- That is why, wherever Christian spread the gospel, they want the words of scripture translated into the native language, e.g., Aringa. (**There are currently 6909 living languages in the world.) At least one book of Scripture has been translated for 2932 of these languages. The New Testament is available in 1,333 languages, with portions in 1045. The complete Bible has been translated into 553 languages. Many teams are working hard on other languages, e.g. Old Testament into Aringa.
- That is why you have an Aringa New Testament in your hands, instead of one in Greek which was the original language of the New Testament. Christians believe God wants to communicate his will to us…he wants us to understand.
- Jesus uses the metaphor of “door” and “good shepherd” to describe himself. Other Metaphors of Jesus in the Injeel: “I am the bread of life; I am the light of the world; he that follows me shall not walk in darkness; I am the resurrection and life; whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die”; I am the way the truth and the life; no one comes to God but through me.”
- Other metaphors in John 10:1-18: “Father”→God, (Allah,Jehovah, Elohim-Lord, God);“thief and wolf”→refer to Satan.
“Sheep”→disciples of Jesus V.16 “I have other sheep not of this fold (Jews) and I must bring them in too”, that is you and me, the non-Jew…Surah 21:91- “sign to all people” not just the Jews.
- v. 9 “I am the door. If anyone enters by me he will be saved and will go in and out and find pasture”.
- Saved from what? → God’s judgment. Positively those who believe “find pasture”=provided an abundant life.
- How does salvation come and where does one get the abundant life? Jesus
- Three times Jesus says- “I am the good shepherd and I lay down my life for the sheep.”
- How is sin forgiven? The Torah tells us in Leviticus 17:11 “Without the shedding of blood there is NO forgiveness of sins”. The prophets all did sacrifices. Good example is your Eid Al-Adha.
- Yahya (John the Baptist), a “prophet of righteousness” (Surah 3:39), in Injeel John 1:29 says, while looking at Jesus, “Behold the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world”.
- “I lay down my life” → cross. Many think the cross looks like defeat but the opposite is true. V.18 Jesus says, “I lay it down of my own will, no one takes it from me. I have the authority to lay it down and take it up.” The nails did not hold Jesus on the cross…it was his love for the sheep and the sheep not of this fold= you and me, that held him on the cross.
Death could not hold him because of his righteous life. Jesus blood cleanses the sin and shame of the Christian and through Jesus’ resurrection, those who trust in him alone are also raised up to heaven.
God transfers the sins of people to Jesus who put their complete trust in Jesus life, death, resurrection, and ascension.
The Holy, Sinless Jesus paid for sins with his own pure undefiled blood.
- You can do nothing to cleanse yourself of your sin. But it can be cleansed by receiving Jehovah’s sacrifice, which is Jesus .
- Illustration: If clean (halal) meat has unclean meat mixed in it, it cannot ever be made clean by mixing more clean meat in it. We all are unclean before Jehovah because of our sin. Doing good works, which is like “clean meat”, can never make us clean who are unclean from our sin!
All who receive God’s gift of Jesus and believe in his sacrificial death and resurrection from the dead are made perfectly clean, their shame is removed and then are able to gain entrance into heaven.
“But to all who did receive him (Jesus ), who believed in his name (Jesus ), he gave the right to become children of God, who were born, not of blood nor of the will of the flesh nor of the will of man, but of God.” (John 1:12-13) and “Whoever has the Son has life, whoever does not have the Son of God does not have life” (1 John 5:12). See also: John 3:36 and 5:16-30.
God views sin seriously, and a perfect complete price must be paid to atone for sin.
Only a human may pay it, because it is humanity which has sinned.
Only God is able to pay it, because humans are imperfect.
Therefore, the only way that humans’ sin may be paid for, is by God becoming a person, and paying the price as a person.
Obey Isa (See Surah 3:50) and put your complete trust in Him alone for salvation and you will be saved!
The Holy Bible calls this being “born again” or “born from above”.
John 3:1-18
“Now there was a man of the Pharisees named Nicodemus, a ruler of the Jews. This man came to Jesus by night and said to him, “Rabbi, we know that you are a teacher come from God, for no one can do these signs that you do unless God is with him.” Jesus answered him, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born again he cannot see the kingdom of God.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can a man be born when he is old? Can he enter a second time into his mother’s womb and be born?” Jesus answered, “Truly, truly, I say to you, unless one is born of water and the Spirit, he cannot enter the kingdom of God. That which is born of the flesh is flesh, and that which is born of the Spirit is spirit. Do not marvel that I said to you, ‘You must be born again.’ The wind blows where it wishes, and you hear its sound, but you do not know where it comes from or where it goes. So it is with everyone who is born of the Spirit.” Nicodemus said to him, “How can these things be?” Jesus answered him, “Are you the teacher of Israel and yet you do not understand these things? Truly, truly, I say to you, we speak of what we know, and bear witness to what we have seen, but you do not receive our testimony. If I have told you earthly things and you do not believe, how can you believe if I tell you heavenly things? No one has ascended into heaven except he who descended from heaven, the Son of Man. And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of Man be lifted up, that whoever believes (puts their complete trust) in him may have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life. For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him. Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.” (John 3:1-18 ESV)
Who is Jesus? What True Followers of Jesus Believe and Preach
By Jacob Lee
Below are my notes for my Sheikhs and Imam Friends. One of your questions to me when we last met was “Who Is Jesus?”
Thank you for your hospitality! Salaam Alekum!
Mark 4:35-41 “And they (the disciples) were filled with great fear and said to one another, ‘Who then is this, that even the wind and sea obey him?” (Verse 41). This same story can also be found in Luke 8:22-27.
*This account of Jesus calming the sea sets the context for the following three gospel stories in Mark 5 (Also found in Luke 8:26-56)
1. Demon possessed man-Mark 5:1-20
2. Woman with the flow of blood- Mark 5:25-34
3. Raising Jairus daughter from the dead- Mark 5:21-24 & 5:35-43
A very important principle when one reads and studies the Bible is “context”. One cannot understand or interpret the Bible if one does not follow this fundamental principle. Bible Verses and Bible stories fit and work together like the different parts of our bodies fit and work together.
I. Today I would like us to look at the common themes God is teaching in the three gospel stories found in Mark 5
A. Theme 1 – Jesus is at the center of each of these stories
B. Theme 2 – The hopeless situation of the people and how Jesus is the answer out of utter hopelessness
C. Let us read together Mark 5
II. Look at individual accounts
A. Demon possessed man
*Man with many demons (“legion” = 6,000 Roman soldiers)
*Long time without clothes
*Lived among the tombs – wanted to be in the place of death
*He would be bound with chains but would break them to go into desert
*Slave – demons “drove” him
*Crying out, cutting himself with stones
*Outcaste in society; separated from family and friends; abandoned
*John 10:10 – “The devil comes to steal, kill and destroy, but I have come to give abundant life.”
*Unclean – physically and spiritually – lived among pigs and death; demons – “unclean spirits”
*Picture of torment, despair
*Truly without hope
B. Jairus
*Religious leader and respected in Jesus’ day and time – “ruler of the synagogue”; comparable to a Pastor or Imam
*Desperate – “little daughter” dying
*Imploring – fell at Jesus’ feet; begging for help; knew about Jesus’ healings
*Loved his daughter – clearly seen
*Feeling of hopeless – he knew death was near
*Death comes to us all, but especially painful to see a child die (“little girl”)
*Death is the result of sin in the world and no one is able to stop it
*It is the ultimate display of our helplessness
*We are unable to contain or control death – I will die…you will die!
*On the way to Jairus’ house we meet the third person in the story – another picture of hopelessness
C. Woman with the flow of blood
*we are told she suffered for 12 years without relief–12 YEARS. (The same age of Jairus’ daughter)
*spent all her money on doctors (doctors’ abilities are limited, even in America)
* “Unclean” – in Jesus’ day such a flow of blood made a person unclean; such a person was unable to attend prayers and was NOT suppose to associate with others in public
*Separated and in a situation of great shame for her and her family
*Hopeless
D. We can all relate to each story: evil, uncleanness, and death
1. Evil spirits – they are here to kill, steal and destroy and to torment us all
*What has been destroyed in your life? How have you been stolen from?
How has death come into your life?
*Jesus says, “BUT, I have come to give life and life more abundantly.” (John 10:10b)
2. Death
*How many burials have you been in the last year? Six months? Weeks?
*The Old Testament prophets talk of life as a “puff of smoke” or like a flower which is here today and gone tomorrow
*Death will grab and squeeze you! And ME!!!
*What is our hope/confidence after death????????
*On Judgment Day do you know if your sins will be paid off? Pardoned?
3. Uncleanness: all sin makes us filthy/unclean before a HOLY God.
*Outward filth is only a representative of inward filth
*We have ways to clean the body, BUT what can cleanse the heart and remove the inward shame? What proceeds from one’s mouth reveals the contents of one’s heart. This is the corruption that makes one defiled/unclean in God’s sight – SEE: Matthew 12: 34-35)
*Jesus says that what flows out of the mouth is what makes us unclean
*Matthew 15:11ff “And he (Jesus) called the people to him and said to them, “Hear and understand: it is not what goes into the mouth that defiles a person, but what comes out of the mouth; this defiles a person.” Then the disciples came and said to him, “Do you know that the Pharisees wereoffended when they heard this saying?” Jesus answered, “Every plant that my heavenly Father has not planted will be rooted up. Let them alone; they are blind guides. And if the blind lead the blind, both will fall into a pit.” But Peter said to him, “Explain the parable to us.”And he said, “Are you also still without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into the mouth passes into the stomach and is expelled? But what comes out of the mouth proceeds from the heart, and this defiles a person. For out of the heart come evil thoughts, murder, adultery, sexual immorality, theft, false witness, slander. These are what defile a person. But to eat with unwashed hands does not defile anyone.” (See also: Mark 7:14-23)
*Every single American, African. Person in the world is in a state of hopelessness and is defiled by sin.
*We ALL need divine rescuing and deliverance from: evil oppression; from uncleanness; from death. We cannot rescue, deliver, and cleanses our inward heart ourselves. We ourselves cannot remove of our shame before a holy God and live honorably before a HOLY God.
III. Jesus is at the center of each of these stories
A. The demon-possessed man (with many or “legion” demons)
*Demons fear and recognize Jesus’ authority and power
*The demons recognize who Jesus is
*Just earlier – the boat was in a raging sea; Jesus says, “Peace! Be still!”
*This man had a legion (a great number) of demons
*No man of God or prophet today or in history has ever done what Jesus had done! What Jesus did was beyond human giftedness.
*Demons say to Jesus through the man (vs. 28) “What have you to do with us, Jesus, Son of the Most High God? I beg you do not torment me.”
*Jesus gave the demons permission to leave; this demonstrates Jesus’ powerand authority
*What is the result of Jesus’ power? Jesus power is motivated by LOVE.
-It brings deliverance and healing
-The man sits at Jesus’ feet; showing submission to Jesus’ Lordship
-The man was clothed and in his right mind healed of mental disturbance/cleansed/washed; and clothed.
-The people see and FEAR – they do not understand such power motivated by love; they want Jesus to leave (fear and shame keep people from experiencing Jesus’ love)
-delivered man wants to stay with Jesus (a true follower of Jesus always wants to be with Him)
-Jesus sends him on a mission: “Declare how much GOD has done for you!”
-The delivered man obeys immediately and goes about “declaring how much Jesus has done for him.”
-One who follows Jesus obeys what Jesus has commanded: “Go into the entire world and TELL!” (Mathew 28:18-20) These were Jesus’ last words before He bodily ascended into heaven where He is alive today in heaven praying for those He has called to Himself!
B. Jesus and the woman with the flow of blood
*Crowd – people were pushing in all around Jesus, touching Him
*Jesus sensed a different “touch” – a touch made in faith in Jesus’ power
*Jesus KNOWS someone touched him in “faith” and the woman KNOWS she has been healed.
*The woman was in a hopeless situation, unclean and no options left
*She acts in faith – she believes that Jesus is greater than human doctors
*Faith is like an electric wire which connects us to the Power Source
*Both, Jesus and the woman, knew – Jesus knows each person and his need; He knows YOUR need today; He responds in love to those who look to Him in faith
*Jesus does the same to those today who look to Him alone for salvation, deliverance, healing, hope, and a personal relationship with God.
*Jesus is the answer to your hopeless need (it’s no greater than the woman’s)
*Jesus heals her, cleanses her…he will do the same for you! He has for me!
*Our need is deeper than a physical healing and cleansing. We all need inner healing and cleansing. This only Jesus can give!
What can cleanse the filth in our hearts (our thoughts and attitudes) and release us from our separation/shame before a Holy God????
Scriptures teach us that a blood sacrifice of an innocent, pure, without defect being was needed to cleanse one from sin.
-Garden of Eden – God made garments from slain animals
-Cain and Abel – made offerings but only Abel’s blood sacrifice was accepted
-Abraham and Moses – both were told to offer blood sacrifices. David and prophets made blood sacrifices.
-Jesus was announced by John the Baptist as, “Lamb of God who takes away the sin of world.”
-We all need the cleansing power of Jesus’ pure sacrificial blood to cleanse us of our guilt and shame and separation from God
-Those who trust in and follow Jesus receive cleansing from sin and shame
C. Jairus’ 12 year old daughter
-Jesus arrives (messenger gives word) è “daughter has died”
-Jesus’ response, “Do not fear, only believe and she will be well.”
-He enters the home; crowd laughs when Jesus says, “She is sleeping.” The crowd knew she was dead
-But Jesus knew He would impart life back into her – something only God can do
* As followers of Jesus our hope is in Jesus to overcome death. Jesus said “I am the Resurrection and the life; whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live and everyone who lives and believes in me shall never die.” (John 11:25)
*What is your hope and assurance of heaven?
*My old bones are at rest and I am peace with God! My faith and confidence are in Jesus’ merit,His forgiveness and resurrection
*I do not have confidence in my good works to bring me to heaven
*I trust in Jesus who loves me, washed me clean from my sins through His sacrificial death. His cleansing blood has wiped my shame away and brought me into the presence of a Holy, righteous and just God
*Judgment Day is coming for us all.
*Place your trust in Jesus for your salvation
*Ask Him to reveal Himself to you – He will! Put your trust in Jesus alone for salvation
*I love you
*I will continue to pray for you!
Thank you for your hospitality! Salaam Alekum!
**Note: The following outline leans heavily on the methodology found in Mike Shipman’s book **Any-3: Anyone, Anywhere, Anytime — Win Muslims to Christ Now! My adaptations fit it into our culture, bringing in the concept of honor/shame (See helpful treatment on this topic: The Global Gospel: Achieving Missional Impact in Our Multicultural World by Werner Mischhke) which is prevalent in the Majority World societies like ours and which is also common in the Bible. I also interpose the need for “inner cleansing”. There is great importance placed in Islam for outer cleansing. J.D. Greear in his book Breaking the Islam Code: Understanding the Soul Questions of Every Muslim
Thank you for your hospitality! Salaam Alekum!
Jacob William Lee Introduction: I was born in September of 1955. I was married to Carol Ann on July 10,1981. We have three grown married children. We have many beautiful grandchildren back in USA. I grew up on an Iowa farm and worked as a builder in my 20’s. I went to University in my 30’s and received a Bachelor’s Degree. In my 40’s I received a Masters Degree in Educational Leadership. I was a teacher and headmaster for many years as well a pastor in our local church in Texas.
When I was 20 years old I became a true follower of Jesus. Jesus took away my shame and debt of sin through His sacrificial blood. Jesus has delivered me from the power of evil and has given me abundant life. I was raised in a religious home. I used to try to be a good person, so I could please God. However, I was never quite good enough. One night, after having read our Holy Book, the Bible, to help me fall asleep, I had an experience of God’s forgiveness of my sins and I knew God wanted me to have a relationship with Him and live for His glory. Even at that time I had a feeling that God wanted me to tell others about Him who have never heard about His forgiveness. I was overwhelmed because I knew God is holy and I was not. It was a joyful experience to know that a Holy God would want me to be in a relationship with HIM.
(** See note above) God is in heaven and is holy, but we on earth are unholy. Through our religion, we try to please God with our good works, but it is never quite good enough. We climb, and then fall. Climb, then fall. It is frustrating, isn’t it?
Most religions are alike, aren’t they?
We are all trying to please God, to get our sins forgiven. We are all sinners aren’t we? Even good people sin. Sinning is easy, but paying off our sin debt to God is much more difficult, isn’t it? Our sin brings shame and inner uncleanness before a holy God, doesn’t it?
In your Muslim religion what are you doing: to pay off your sin debt? To remove your shame from sin and inner uncleanness? To please God?
1). Are your sins forgiven yet?
2). Is all your shame before God now gone? Is your inner man been made clean?
3). When will your sins be forgiven, your shame be gone, and your inner man be made clean?
4. On Judgment Day, do you know for certain that your sins will be forgiven or that you will be without shame of sin and your inner man completely clean?
What I believe is different. I know my sins are completely forgiven, my shame before God has been taken away and my inner man has been made perfectly clean. This is not because I am a good person, even though I do try to be good. My sins are forgiven because God Himself has paid for my sin. The outcome of this forgiveness is that my shame before a holy God is gone and I have been cleansed within from the filth of sin through Jesus’ sacrificial blood. Satan’s power over me has been broken in my life by Jesus. I have been set free through Jesus.
Part One: Jesus
Jesus, the Word of God, was in Heaven with God from the beginning. He was born into this world through the Virgin Mary. Both the Bible and the Qur’an teach this. Jesus never sinned, even though He was tempted in every way imaginable. Jesus overcame the desires of His flesh. He never married; never killed anyone; never gathered riches for Himself. Jesus once fasted 40 days and 40 nights while being tempted by the devil, yet He never sinned.
Jesus performed great miracles. He cast out demons; healed the sick and blind; Jesus even raised the dead.
It is interesting that, though Jesus was not yet old, He began prophesying about His death. To his followers He said, “I must die, but I will rise again.” Do you know why Jesus said, “I must die?”
Part Two: Why did Jesus have to die?
The answer is found in the Taurat (the first 5 books of the Bible). The Taurat tells us about the first persons God created, Adam and Eve. God put them in a perfect paradise, called the Garden of Eden. They were given great freedom to eat fruit from any tree in the garden except for the fruit of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil. God warned them that if they ate of that fruit they would die.
A covering for sin
One day, Satan visited Eve in the form of a serpent and tempted her to eat the fruit that God had forbidden. She ate the fruit, and gave it to Adam, who also ate it. Immediately, they were afraid, so they hid from God. But because God knows everything, He found them and punished Adam and Eve for their disobedience.
God’s Punishment
As punishment for their disobedience, God cast Adam and Eve out of the garden paradise, and eventually they did die. God’s desire had been for them to live forever, but because of their sins, they lost paradise and died.
It is interesting that the Taurat says Adam and Eve committed just one sin and it resulted in their judgment and death. Adam and Eve seemed like good people, probably better than us. Perhaps they had already done hundreds of good works. They hadn’t killed anyone, committed adultery, or stolen anything. But they disobeyed just once and it resulted in death. Sometimes we think that if our good deeds outweigh our bad deeds that our sins will be forgiven, but that is not what the Bible says.
Promised Savior and New Clothes
Yet God still loved Adam and Eve. So He made a way for their sins to be forgiven. After pronouncing His judgment on Adam and Eve, God also judged the serpent (Satan) who had deceived them. God promised that from the woman’s descendant a Savior would come who would crush Satan’s head, although Satan would also injure Him. Over the centuries that followed, many prophets of God foretold the coming of a Savior who would take away the sins of the world.
Then God did something very interesting. He changed Adam and Eve’s clothes. God replaced the clothes made of leaves that Adam and Eve had made with new clothes made from animal skins. Of course, to make these clothes, an animal had to die. The death of an innocent animal was the price that God paid to cover the sins of Adam and Eve. Because He loved Adam and Eve, God Himself offered the first sacrifice for the forgiveness of their sins. The Bible teaches us that apart from the shedding of blood there is no forgiveness of sins (Hebrews 9:22.) Since that first sacrifice all of our forefathers have offered sacrifices to have their sins forgiven: Adam and Eve, Cain and Abel, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David and others.
Part Three: “That is why Jesus had to die!”
And then Jesus came, born of a virgin, the descendant of a woman. Jesus lived a sinless life, and performed great miracles. At the beginning of Jesus’ ministry, a prophet named John looked to Jesus and said, “Look, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sins of the world.”
That is interesting, isn’t it? Jesus was called “the Lamb of God.” Why? Because a lamb is an animal used for sacrifice. Do you remember my question: “Do you know why Jesus said, “I must die”? That is why Jesus said, “I must die.”
Jesus came to be God’s sacrifice to pay for our sins, remove our shame from sin, and give us inner cleansing from the filth of sin. This is why He surrendered Himself to the Jewish leaders and Roman soldiers to be crucified. He was God’s sacrifice for your sins and mine.
As He was dying, Jesus cried out, “It is finished,” meaning that our sin debt had now been paid for. Then Jesus bowed His head and died. But on the third day Jesus rose from the dead, just as He had promised. For the next 40 days, Jesus appeared to more than 500 of His followers and then was taken up into heaven. We know that one day Jesus will return to earth as Judge over all mankind.
Conclusion
“That is why I know my sins are forgiven.” The Bible tells us that if we surrender our life to Jesus as Lord and believe that He has paid for our sins through His sacrifice and that God has raised Him from the dead, our sins will be forgiven. And that is why I know my sins are forgiven.
It makes sense, doesn’t it, that we cannot pay off our own sins but that God made a way for our sins to be forgiven through Jesus’ sacrifice”?
Do you believe that Jesus died as a sacrifice for our sins and was raised from the dead?
The Bible says in Romans 10: 9-10 says “if you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”
The way people usually surrender themselves to Jesus is through prayer. Prayer is speaking to God what is in your heart. Romans 10:9-10 is a good guide for a prayer of surrender.
May I pray for you and your personal needs?
Thank you and God bless you!
Salaam Alekum!
Where Did Jesus Say, “I Am God, Worship Me”?
Based upon a video by David Wood
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sS-lLTfCI7c&t=5s
When Muslims want to argue about the deity of Christ, they may ask a specific question: “Where did Jesus say, “I am God, worship me”? When eliciting a response from you, many are taught to demand exact words and phrases: “Where did Jesus use these EXACT words in a phrase, “I am God, worship me?”.
The best thing to do in response is to turn this demand for exact words around and question them, “Where did Jesus say, “I am only a prophet, don’t worship me?”. This “exact words” criterion must be applied to both the Bible and the Qu’ran. For example, where in the Qu’ran did Jesus say, “I am the virgin-born son of Mary,” in those EXACT words?
Is the goal to get to the truth or merely confuse?
The reasonable question to ask is, “Where and how did Jesus claim to be God?”, though the answers to this question will be cited as misinterpretations or will be re-interpreted in another way. So, as a counter point, it is best to clarify the question by looking at the claims made by Jesus which only God could truly make.
Claims only God could make
| Statements about God (Allah) | Qu’ran (Surahs) | Torah (Old Testament) | Injeel (New Testament) |
| 1. Who is the “First and the Last”? | Surah 57:3; “He is the First and the Last, and the Outer and the Inner, and He has knowledge of all things. | Isaiah 44:6; “This is what the Lord, Israel’s king, says, their protector, the Lord who commands armies: “I am the first and I am the last, there is no God but me.” |
Revelation 1:17-18; “When I saw him I fell down at his feet as though I were dead, but he placed his right hand on me and said: “Do not be afraid! I am the first and the last, and the one who lives! I was dead, but look, now I am alive—forever and ever—and I hold the keys of death and of Hades!” |
| 2. Who can forgive sins? | Surah 3:135; “And those who, when they commit an indecency or wrong themselves, remember Allah and ask forgiveness for their sins—and who forgives sins except Allah? And they do not persist in their wrongdoing while they know.” | Exodus34:7;“The Lord, the Lord, a God merciful and gracious, slow to anger, and abounding in steadfast love and faithfulness, 7 keeping steadfast love for thousands, forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin…” | Mark 2:5-12;“Your sins are forgiven…But that you may know that the Son of Man has authority on earth to forgive sins”—he said to the paralytic—“I say to you, rise, pick up your bed, and go home.” |
| 3. Who is our final Judge? | Surah 22:56-57; “Sovereignty on that Day belongs to God; He will judge between them. Those who believe and do good deeds will be in the Gardens of Bliss. But those who disbelieve and reject Our revelations—these will have a humiliating punishment.” | Psalm 9: 7-8; “But the Lord sits enthroned forever; he has established his throne for justice, and He judges the world with righteousness; he judges the peoples with uprightness. | Matthew 25:31-32; “When the Son of Man comes in his glory, and all the angels with him, then he will sit on his glorious throne. Before him will be gathered all the nations, and he will separate people one from another as a shepherd separates the sheep from the goats.” |
| Statements about God | Qu’ran (Surahs) | Torah (Old Testament) | Injeel (New Testament) |
| 4. Who is “The Truth”? | Surah 22:6; “That is because God is the truth, and because He gives life to the dead, and because He is Capable of everything.” | Psalm 31:5; “Into to thine hands I commit my spirit; Thou hast redeemed me Oh Lord God of Truth. | John 14:6; “Jesus said to him, “I am the way, and the truth, and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me.” |
| 5. Who raises the dead? | Surah 22:7;” And because the Hour is coming—there is no doubt about it—and because Allah will resurrect those in the graves.” | 1 Samuel 2:6; “The Lord kills and brings to life; he brings down to Sheol and raises up.” | John 11:25; “Jesus said to her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he dies, yet shall he live.” |
| 6. With whom does God share His Glory? | Surah 57:1; “Glorifying Allah is everything in the heavens and the earth. He is the Almighty, the Wise.” | Isaiah 42:8; “I am the Lord; that is my name; my glory I give to no other, nor my praise to carved idols.” | John 17:5; “And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed.” |
Further Evidence of the Deity of Jesus:
-
- Mark 2:28; The Lord of the Sabbath
- Matthew 22:41-45; Lord of the prophet, David
- John 8: 39-58; Has seen the prophet, Abraham; v.58- Before Abraham was I AM…the Jews seek to stone him for blasphemy. See also John 10:30 “I and the Father are One” Jews seek to stone v.33 “for blasphemy my…claim to be God” Jews understood what Jesus was claiming!
- Matthew 12:6; Greater than God’s temple
- Matthew 11:27; A unique relationship with the Father
- Matthew 18:20; Answers prayers
- Matthew 28: 18; has all authority
- Matthew 28: 20; Will be with his followers wherever they are
- John 16:15; All that the Father has belongs to Jesus
- John 5:21-23; Jesus must be honored as the Father is honored (which involves worship). Jesus never stops them from worshipping Him!:
-
-
- Matthew 2:11-Wise Men from the East
- Matthew 14:33-12-Disciples in boat after Jesus calmed the sea
- John 9:38-Man who was healed of blindness
- Matthew 28:17-Disciples
- John 20:28-Disciple Thomas
-
Reaching Africa's Unreached 