The God Of Islam V Christianity Theology Religion Essay

Published Date: 02 Nov 2017

This report examines the crucial question that needs to be addressed which is whether the God presented in the Quran is indeed the same God revealed in the Holy Bible. The Quran alleges that the God of Islam, Allah, is indeed the God of Abraham and hence the God of Scripture, Yahweh Elohim. But is this the case?

Are we to assume that just because the Quran states that Allah is Yahweh of the Bible that both Jews and Christians are obligated to believe this to be true? Or do we examine the nature and attributes of Allah in order to compare them with the biblical portrait of Yahweh to find if this is the case?

This process of examination is essential since our objective is to discover the true nature of God, a process whose outcome entails eternal consequences in regards to man's future destiny in the afterlife. After all, if Allah is the God of Abraham then Jews and Christians are wrong for not embracing Islam. But if Allah is not Yahweh, then Muslims are not worshiping the same God only with a different name.

How often do we wonder about our faith and how it relates to our lives? Are we to say that we are born again Christians, but what do we know about Christianity and where does it come from? Wouldn’t it be nice to think that our faith in God makes us a believer? Who is this God and how come we dedicate our lives to Him? Who is this God that is so well known and yet is not known?

When Paul was talking to the Athenians, they were curious about his new ideas and his mysterious God, and yet they were the ones that people went too for wisdom and insight. I think the author of our text book said it better than I could, "Paul did not confuse the false gods that Athenians worshiped with the one true God of Christ. He pointed to an idol that the Athenians had built to ‘cover their tracks.’ This ‘unknown God,’ whom Paul took to be our Lord, was different in nature and name than the other idols. The argument we cited above would only be true if Paul had pointed to Zeus or another god in the Greek pantheon and said, ‘This god I shall proclaim to you. You do not know this god’s true nature.’ Rather, he differentiated the one true God from the false ones, which he clearly viewed as idols."

As great as the Athenian thinkers are, the debate over what is truth was something that Paul took advantage of and so he introduced his ideals with the possibility of an unknown god in which was already known to the Athenians as the unknown god. As Paul introduced the subject of the unknown god, he filled it with the possibility of a god better known as Jesus as the Father, Son and the Holy Spirit.

What makes Christianity different from those that worship God who call themselves Muslim? If you ask a Muslim about the connection between Yahweh and Allah, their response would suggest that Allah is not triune, Allah is one god. They are just as dedicated if not more to their god, the one and only true god who created all things. They are proud to worship god and defend their faith like most Christians should be doing. Muslims pray five times a day, the first one being the "al-Fajr" which was the first Morning Prayer to Allah, then the "Al Zuhr," the "Al Asr," the "Al-Magnrib," and the "Al-Isha," which was the last prayer of the day. Their belief was the reassurance of faith in Allah that would remove the evil of their lives and that they would be rewarded for the prayer.

Christianity and Islam are two of the world's largest religions; the Islamic faith numbers about 1.3 billion people and Christianity which is said to be the largest religion numbers at about 2 billion. The Jews are the 14th largest faith group numbering at 14 million people. (http://www.religionfacts.com/islam/comparison_charts/islam_judaism_christianity.htm) The two are different in beliefs but are similar in origin. Like many religions both Islam and Christianity claim to be the one and only true ways to God. Although Islam and Christianity differ in major ways, they also share some similarities. Both religions are inherent from Judaism in that their belief is with on god and not polytheistic in nature. The Orthodox Christianity teaches that God is of one substance and three persons. The Islamic faith is of one God without triune characteristics.

Rick Warren, the author of Purpose driven does believe in a Triune God, but why does Mr. Warren in his inaugural speech for president Obama only mention one part of the Triune God? What if he included all the aspects of God, the Father, Son, and the Holy Spirit, better known as the Trinity? Would he be talking about the same God of the Islamic faith if he mentioned the name of Jesus or prayed in his name?

In searching for the names of "god" in reference to both religions and what the meaning of his name might be. It is realized that we have many names for "god" that are mentioned in not only Christianity, but in the Islamic faith. I decided to pull some language from the Wikipedia website, the free encyclopedia to refer to this name and the differences in the meaning of his name.

"The Ancient cognate equivalent for the word "god" included proto-Semitic el, Hebrew elohim ‘God or/of gods’, Arabic ilan (a or the) god" and Biblical Aramaic, ‘Elaha God’. The personal or proper name for God in many of these Languages may either be distinguished from such attributes or homonymis. An example would be Judaism, the Holy name is sometimes related to the ancient Hebrew ehyeh, ‘I AM’" (www.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_God) Even Moses had a curiosity of who he should be referring to so that he could tell the Jews in Egypt on which "god" he was referring too.

"Then Moses said to God, ‘if I come to the people of Israel and say to them, the God of your fathers has sent me to you and they ask me, what his name is? What shall I say to them?’ God said to Moses, ‘I AM who I AM’ and he said, ‘say this to the people of Israel, YHWH has sent me to you. This is my name forever and thus I am to be remembered throughout all generations’" (Exodus 3:13-15)

If this is the case, then why it is educators around the world compare the name of Allah to YHWH if His name is was disclosed to Moses. To this day many believe that it is the same God.

"In Exodus 6:3, when Moses first spoke with God, God said "I used to appear to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob as El Shaddai, but I did not make myself known to them by my now YHWH. When Moses heard the name of God he realized that since he had a speech impediment as a result of when he was called, "uncircumcised lips" (Ex 6:12) he was unable to pronounce it accurately. He was able to say Allah, and that was the name conveyed to Pharaoh and the Egyptians and the name of Allah was referenced from that point on." (Unknown writer)

I disagree with what the author has just stated because when Moses had questioned God on how he was to carry out God’s command, the Lord gave directs that Moses and Aaron was to speak in a certain manner to the leadership of Egypt, to speak for Him and it is never stated in the text that Moses referred to God as Allah.

The Islamic Center in Lansing Michigan has the opportunity to serve the Islamic community. This center services a school and worship center that promotes more of a moderate view of the Islamic faith. They have put some effort in conforming to supporting those of a similar faith within the armed forces by joining the Michigan’s Veterans Task Force which is a faith based approach to spiritual and moral healing for veterans and their families. The Veterans Task Force has promoted the use of small social healing groups to deal with Post traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) and the problems with the reintegration of families from the separation of Combat. The Michigan Veterans Task Force tends to reference comfort out of the Bible through each trial and tribulation that one may have in life. There is an attempt to do the same with the Islamic faith. The Islamic center is tasked to give references out of the Qur’an that will help a veteran through suffering and the readjustment to civilian life. It has proven to be a daunting task to find the quotes in the Qur’an that don’t subjugate the veteran from extended anxiety that the Qur’an is known to portray. Most quotes from the Islamic faith are coming from the Imam’s own mind in support of the veteran who protects their freedoms, but may be conflicting words if compared to the Qur’an because when you talk about suffering and duty to except the grace of God within the situation that you are in, it is not from works or lack of works that the suffering is tormenting the veteran, but it is because of man’s evil heart that the actions of man brings destruction of the world and through the grace of God, they will have hope in healing and living a new life.

Islam teaches that in order to achieve true peace of mind and surety of heart, one must submit to God or "Allah" and live according to His revealed Law. Being a Muslim requires willful submission and active obedience to God and living in accordance with His message. Christianity teaches Salvation and does not teach absolute submission to God, but teaches that man is sinful and can never inherit eternal life in the presence of God as a result of the sins of our first parents, Adam and Eve, as well as our own personal sin. Therefore it became necessary for God to become man by sending His son, Jesus Christ, who as the Son of God was without sin. His purpose was to suffer and die in atonement for our sins and by the grace of God that those who believe in Him would receive Salvation. Muslims believe all of God's prophets, who include Abraham, Noah, Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad brought the same message of Pure Monotheism. For this reason, the Prophet Muhammad was not the founder of a new religion, it was Abraham and Ishmael, Moses, even Jesus was a prophet but not a god, but Mohammed was the Greatest and Final Prophet of Islam.

The Qur'an, the Muslim Bible, is believed to be the last book of God sent to mankind. This is believed to have been given the distinction of being personally guarded by God from human tampering and shall remain safe from the tampering of mankind until the Day of Judgment as guidance for all Humanity. By contrast, Christianity is traditionally understood to be founded by Jesus of Nazareth. The belief that Jesus was coming as the Savior was started prior to his arrival though. The Essene movement started several hundred years prior to Christ’s arrival. They believed that a Savior was about to come to fulfill Gods Mosaic covenant and bring grace to the world. Christians view God as Lord and Savior overall and accept the Bible as his faultless word. The areas of disagreement between Islam and Christianity are quite clear.

Refer to book on Jewish History

Islam is a religion of insecurity and the god of Islam teaches whom he pleases and leads astray those he pleases. "We never sent a messenger who did not use the language of his people to bring them clarity of understanding. And God leaves people astray at will, and guides anyone at will: and God is the almighty, supremely wise. (Sura 14:4)

According to this text, the god of Islam is almighty and exalted in power, full of wisdom so he is not to be questioned on whom he chooses. There is nothing on the part of human kind that can change his mind. And yet fatalism is a belief that events are fixed in all time in such a manner that human’s beings are powerless to change them. There has got to be a great level of anxiety in which the servants of Islam try to prove their loyalty to win the favor of Allah. The greatest of servants may not be in favor of Allah and be destined for the everlasting damnation of hell or unless that person pleases Allah and obeys his messenger who was Mohammed.

The God of the Christians does not seem to have the same attitude as Allah. When God spoke, he may have spoke in parables but not in deceit, scheming those that he loved. Throughout the Qur’an, the prophet Mohammed included text that Allah would not swear on his own name, only on those things that were below him. There was no obligation to alter his plan and yet according the Qur’an, he was unfaltering. "Verily, the hypocrites seek to deceive Allah, but it is He Who deceives them. And when they stand up for As-Salat (the prayer), they stand with laziness and to be seen of men, and they do not remember Allah but little. (S. 4:142 Hilali-Khan)

Not only is Allah a schemer, but also a plotter who plots different schemes for mankind instead of making it a clear choice for mankind to serve him. "Yet they plotted, but God plotted too; and God is the best of plotters. (S. 3:54)

Do we need to be safe from God’s strategy? There is only one strategy in the Christian faith and the strategy is to love God, love one another, believe that Christ died on the cross and saved you from your sins and by grace you were saved and through faith the works of Christ would emanate through you. This is a simple strategy that has no hooks, no tricks, and no deceit behind it. Christ will bring comfort in our confidence in Him. If God was plotting or scheming, or did set up a secrete strategy that only he knew, it would create a lot of anxiety. "Did they feel safe from the strategy of God? But none feel safe from the strategy of God but people who are lost. (S. 7:99) "Remember how the unbelievers schemed against thee, to keep thee in bonds, or to slay thee, or get thee out (of thy home). They scheme and plot, but the best of schemers is Allah. (S. 8:30)

The term for scheme in Arabic is makara which denotes one who is a deceiver, one who is conniving, a schemer. It is always used in a negative sense. "He who plats evil will be known as a schemer." (Proverbs 24:8, NIV) In the NRSV version of the Bible a schemer is a mischief-maker. The Allah is thus seen as the best of deceivers, the premiere schemer and conniving one.

This is not simply a Christian perspective but one thoroughly endorsed by Muslim theologians as well.

Another example of how Allah and God are different is that Allah is said to have shown the opposing fighting forces as few to Muhammad since if he had shown them as they actually were, the Muslims would have been afraid to fight. Hence, Allah had to use deception in order to encourage the Muslims to fight in his cause. "And when we desire to destroy a city, we command its men who live at ease, and they commit ungodliness therein, then the Word is realized against it, and we destroy it utterly. (S. 17:16) Whereas, The Lord shows that by selecting a few in number of his followers would be all that is necessary to show the world that He is Lord. "The Lord said to Gideon, ‘the troops with you are too many for me to give the Midianites into their hand. Israel would only take the credit away from me, saying, "my own hand has delivered me.’ Now therefore proclaim this in the hearing of the troops, ‘whoever is fearful and trembling, let him return home.’ Thus Gideon sifted them out; twenty-two thousand returned, and ten thousand remained. Then the Lord said to Gideon, ‘The troops are still too many; take them down to the water and I will sift them out for you there. When I say, ‘this one shall go with you,’ he shall not go.’ So he brought the troops down to the water; and the Lord said to Gideon, ‘All those who lap the water with their tongues, as a dog laps, you shall put to one side; all those who kneel down to drink, putting their hands to their mouths, you shall put to the other side.’ The number of those that lapped was three hundred; but all the rest of the troops knelt down to drink water. Then the Lord said to Gideon, ‘With the three hundred that lapped I will deliver you, and give the Midianites into your hand. Let all the others go to their homes.’ (Judges 7:2-8, NRSV)

Allah commands men to sin in order to destroy them completely; the Lord never commands men to sin but uses them as an example for his will for good. They (Jinns- demon spirits) worked for him (Solomon) as he desired ... then when we decreed death upon him, nothing showed them his death except a little creeping creature of the earth, which gnawed away at his staff. And when he fell the Jinns saw clearly how, if they had known the unseen, they would not have continued in the humiliating penalty (of work). S. 34:13-14. Allah deceived the Jinns into working for Solomon by preventing the latter's death from being disclosed to them; otherwise they would have stopped their work. Allah also deceived both Christians and Jews into thinking that Jesus was crucified when in fact "it was so made to appear unto them", seeing that he never was crucified or killed. (S. 4:157)

According to S. 9:51, nothing befalls Muslims except what Allah has ordained. And in S. 14:4, we are told, "Allah leads astray whomsoever He will and guides whomsoever he will." And, "Whomsoever Allah guides, he is the one who follows the right way; and whomsoever He causes to err, these are the losers. And certainly we have created for hell many of the jinn and the men; ... Whomsoever Allah causes to err, there is no guide for him; and He leaves them alone in their inordinacy, blindly wandering on." (S. 7:178-179, 186)

"Every man’s fate we have fastened on his neck; on the day of Judgment [sic] we shall bring out for him a scroll which he will see spread open." (sura 17:13) There is no security for the Islamic faith; the only security that I would see if I were a Muslim is one that would be a straight ticket to heaven, the message of Jihad. If I were to die in the name of Allah, that would automatically bring forgiveness and mercy of all of my sins and I would go to heaven. "And if you are slain or die in the way of Allah, forgiveness and mercy from Allah are far better than all they could amass. (Sura 3:157)

All throughout the Islamic writings of the Qur’an, chilling words of violence are portrayed in the text of the Islamic faith. In the second sura of the Qur’an (Al-Baqarah), a verse stands out. Allah encourages the Muslim to "fight them until there is no persecution and the religion is Allah’s" (2:193) "The Prophet said, "The person who participates in [holy battles] in Allah’s cause and nothing compels him to do so except belief in Allah and His Apostles, will be recompensed by Allah either with a reward, or booty [if he survives] or will be admitted to Paradise [if he is killed in the battle as a martyr]. (hadith 1.35) So I can be the worst person out there and do many evil things, but compared to a paradoxically – the worst person can be saved.

In comparison to Christianity and the Bible, we can say that by grace we have that security that we will go to heaven if we believe. "For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not parish but may have eternal life." (John 3:16) The entire gospel comes to a focus in this verse. God’s love is not static or self-centered; it reaches out and draws others in. Here God sets the pattern of true love, the basis for all love relationships – as a father of my own family I know that if you love someone dearly; you are willing to pay dearly for that person’s responsive love. God paid dearly with the life of his Son, the highest price he could pay because he knew that from the fall of man that sin entered our hearts and there would no way that we could be redeemed. Jesus accepted our punishment paid the price for our sins, and then offered us the new life he bought for us. When we share the gospel with others our love is emanated like His love for us, it is not taken by force, it is not earned through works, and there is no expectation to sacrifice ourselves for his cause. Jesus paid for all of those things so that we may be free to choose to live by faith, in peace and love and to serve others like he has served us.

A good way to notice the difference in which God is is by looking at the messenger of the faith, Mohammed and Jesus. Right from the beginning of the Islamic faith the founder was found to be very insecure about his faith, in Hadith 5.266 – Mohammed didn’t know what Allah would do to him. Abu Huraira reported from Allah’s Messenger so many a hadith and one of them was this: that Allah’s Messenger said, "the most wretched person in the sight of Allah on the day of Resurrection and the worst person and target of His wrath would be the person who is called Malik al-Amlaak (the King of Kings) for there is no King but Allah."

In the book of Timothy, Paul gives instruction in regards to the pursuit of righteousness, godliness, faith, love, endurance, and gentleness. It’s amazing how the famous sayings of today were originally found in the Bible. "Fight the good fight…" Paul also talks about recognizing Jesus as Lord. "…I charge you to keep the commandment without spot or blame until the manifestation of our Lord Jesus Christ, which he will bring about at the right time – he who is the blessed and only Sovereign, the King of kings and Lord of lords." (1Timothy 6:14-15) Clearly the King of Kings was rejected by Mohammed and therefore Allah is not the Triune God in which we worship as followers of Christ.

Although Islam accepts the holiness of Jesus, it denies his Godliness. According to the teaching of Islam, Jesus is not God, nor is he united with God. On the other hand, Christians view Jesus as a God and live their lives in accordance of him. Moreover, Islam teaches that Jesus is not the Son of God. God does not have any children because He is above that.

Jesus was sent to mankind because God can’t touch sin or be tempted by sin. The Holy Bible teaches that God cannot be tempted by evil and neither tempts anyone with evil; evil being understood as referring to immorality and sin. "When tempted, no one should say, "God is tempting me." For God cannot be tempted by evil, nor does he tempt anyone; but each one is tempted when, by his own evil desire, he is dragged away and enticed. (James 1:13-14) "You are not a God who takes pleasure in evil; with you the wicked cannot dwell. (Psalm 5:4)

Yet, the Quran teaches that Allah is the author of evil: "And your Lord would have made humankind one people, had that been the divine will; but they will not stop disputing, except those to whom your Lord has shown mercy. And it is for this that God created them. And the word of your Lord will be fulfilled: "I will fill hell with sprites and humans all together!" (S. 11:118-119)

Not only does Allah guide people astray, but also has created men specifically for hell. To make matters worse, he even ordains the evil one to commit to this task as we have already seen in S. 17:16 and further clarified by this Muslim tradition: "When We intend to let a community perish, We command its prosperous ones who lead dissolute lives there, so the Word is proven true against it and so We annihilate it."

A keen reader might raise the objection that the Bible itself indicates in several places that God had intended to do evil to certain nations and individuals such as Absalom in 2 Samuel 17:14. Or that Jeremiah had been deceived by God in Jeremiah 20:7: "O LORD, thou hast deceived me and I was deceived." King James Version

In regards to 2 Sam. 17:14 as we had noted earlier God does not tempt anyone with moral evil in the form of sin but brings upon man calamity as a consequence of their sins. In fact, the term which the King James translates as evil is the Hebrew ra. Accordingly, some Hebrew scholars see it as being derived from the word ra'a which means to "break, smash, crush." (Vine's Complete Expository Dictionary of Old and New Testaments, p. 232)

In Basic training, the military goes through this period of training that seems to break down the individual to teach them a lesson on how to live as a Soldier. Many times Christians would view this period of time as Suffering and humbling ourselves before God. In fact the context itself shows that the word can only mean "persuade" since Jeremiah is complaining that God is persuading him to continue his ministry, even though he doesn't want to:

"O LORD, You induced me, and I was persuaded;

YOU ARE STRONGER THAN I, AND HAVE PREVAILED.

I am in derision daily;

Everyone mocks me.

For when I spoke, I cried out;

I shouted, ‘Violence and plunder!’

Because the word of the LORD was made to me

A reproach and a derision daily.

Then I said, ‘I will not make mention of Him,

Nor speak anymore in His name.’

But His word was in my heart like a burning fire

Shut up in my bones;

I was weary of holding it back,

And I could not." Jeremiah 20:8-9 NKJV

God was therefore insisting that Jeremiah continue and did so by constant persuasion. This passage has nothing to do with deception whatsoever. It has to do with correction and obedience to do God’s will.

Another possible objection would be the King James rendering of Ezekiel 20:25 where God says to Israel that he "gave them also statutes that were not good, and judgments whereby they should not live." This strongly suggests that God is the author of evil. The fact is that in the NIV version of the Bible, the title of the chapter is "Rebellious Israel" and that God is questioning the leadership on their judgment of their rebellious hearts. Since they rebelled against God, they were to answer for their sin. It was not God that preset the conditions, it was man. The context of the passage is referring to Israel's reluctance in observing God's holy commands, which prompted God to hand them over to their own desires (Ezekiel 20, NIV).

Scripture clearly teaches that when God sees that a nation refuses to embrace the truth he has revealed, the Lord then hardens their hearts that they might continue in their wickedness. This is done that he might bring upon them the judgment that they deserve for their evil (Romans 1:18-32; 2 Thessalonians 2:9-12). Therefore, God does not give mankind unholy commands but allows us to make our own choices, to embrace statutes which are evil. This is the meaning of the Hebrew text as accurately reflected in the New King James Version: "Therefore, I also gave them up to statutes that were not good, and judgments by which they could not live." Yet, the Arabic "makara" does not allow for other possible meanings. And the Quran itself gives examples of Allah using deception and sin to fulfill his will.

Many times the Qur’an will say things that are against the Christians like in the S. 4:157, the unbelieving Jews boasted by saying, "We killed the Messiah Jesus the son of Mary, the apostle of Allah." The only problem with this is that the unbelieving Jews never admitted that Jesus was Messiah and would not have killed him if they had believed that he was their long-awaited Messianic Deliverer. The unbelieving Jews had Jesus killed because they believed he was a false Messiah: "And they began to accuse him, saying, ‘We have found this man subverting our nation. He opposes payment of taxes to Caesar and CLAIMS to be Christ a king.’" Luke 23:2 NIV

The errors in the Quranic teaching on what Christians believe become apparent to anyone familiar with the basics of Christian doctrine. Christians have never taken Mary as a goddess alongside God. Although in the Catholic tradition, Mary is looked as somewhat a Sainte, she still is no god. Also, Christians have never said God is three gods or the third of three which is tritheism, or Polytheism, three separate gods forming a unity; as opposed to the Trinity, which is one God, the Lord almighty, who exists in Three distinct and yet inseparable persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.

The similarity between Muslims and Christians is that they both believe in the existence of heaven, but this heaven is a very different place depending on who you talk too. The Quranic paradise is totally different from the biblical portrait of heaven. In Allah's paradise, we find sexual and carnal pleasures for believers to engage in throughout eternity: "But give glad tidings to those who believe and work righteousness, that their portions is Gardens, beneath which rivers flow, every time they are fed with fruits therefrom, they say: "Why, this is what we were fed with before," for they are giving things in similitude; And they have therein damsels (pure mates) pure (and holy); and they abide therein (forever)." (S. 2:25)

"But those who believe and do good. We will admit to gardens below which rivers flow, where they will abide forever. There are pure mates for them there; and we will admit them to a shaded shelter. (S. 4:57) There is a contrast in faiths in regards to faith verses works. Islamic faith clearly shows that in order to get to heaven, works are the means of accomplishment, but in Christianity, it is by faith you are saved and will be able to enjoy the salvation of God in heaven, but what do we experience in heaven? The Muslims believe that they will have pure maidens and be living in a shaded place. I assume that they can associate the pleasures in life and view this human pleasure as heaven. But heaven is not something that we can really associate with seeing that we will be in spirit and the need for companionship and shade from the hot sun will not be necessary.

The necessity of a sexual relationship seems to immolate with the Islamic religion so I included two more references on this subjugation of women in the Islamic faith. "Of a rare creation have we created the Houris, and we have made them ever virgins, dear to their spouses, of equal age with them for the people of the right hand. (S. 56:35-38, Pickthall) and " We have created the females as a special creation, making them virgins, loving wives as companions for the company of the right---(S. 56:35-38, Thomas Cleary)

But for those who fear Allah is a blissful abode, enclosed gardens and vineyards, and damsels with swelling breasts (Arabic - Kawa'eb), their peers in age, and a full cup. (S. 78:31-34, Pickthall) The orthodox Islamic understanding of these references are that Muslim men shall have a host of swelling breasted maidens to engage in sex with, who return to their virginal state after intercourse. The paradise of Christians is one that is not consistent of such carnality, but filled with the infinite love and joy of God. Hence, the believers’ reword is to dwell with God forever in eternal glory of his name in spirit and no longer indulging in those of the physical pleasures in this world of sin, but living in the Glory of God.

So our relationship with women and our life partners doesn’t mean that we will never know them again, but we will be of a different relationship as pointed out in the Gospels when Jesus was responding to the Sadducees when they asked about marriage. "Jesus answered and said to them, 'The sons of this age marry and are given in marriage. But those who are counted worthy to attain that age and the resurrection from the dead neither marry nor are given in marriage; nor can they die anymore for they are equal to the angels and are sons of God, being sons of the resurrection." (Luke 20:34-36)

I would say the biggest difference between the two religions is that Allah is not triune. The final proof that Allah is not Yahweh, Elohim of the Holy Bible is that Allah is not a trinity. According to the Holy Bible, there is only one true God. (Deuteronomy 6:4; Galatians 3:20). Yet, at the same time Scripture affirms that this One God eternally exists in three Persons: The Father "...elect according to the foreknowledge of God the Father..." (1 Peter 1:2) The Son "... looking for that blessed hope and glorious appearing of our Great God and Savior Jesus Christ..." (Titus 2:13) The Holy Spirit: "But Peter said, 'Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lay to the Holy Spirit... you has not lied to men but to God." (Acts 5:3-4) The Trinity is Three in One "... baptizing them in the Name (singular - implying unity) of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Spirit ..." (Matthew 28:19)

But the Allah of the Quran is not any of the three Persons mentioned above. For example in the Islamic text it, Says: He is Allah, the One and Only; Allah, The Eternal, Absolute-, He begetteth not, nor is He Begotten; and there is none like unto Him. (S. 112: 1-4)

Allah does not "beget" meaning that Allah has no children either in a spiritual or carnal sense. Thus, Allah can never be the Father. Nor does he allow himself to be "begotten", i.e. does not take on human nature such as God the Son did when he became man for our salvation. Finally, in orthodox Islam the Holy Spirit is not God, but the angel Gabriel. This fact separates Allah from ever possibly being the same God that Christians worship.

Furthermore, we read in I John 2:22-23: "Who is a liar but he who denies that Jesus is the Christ? He is Antichrist who denies the Father and the Son. Whoever denies the Son does not have the Father either; he who acknowledges the Son has the Father also."

Thus, to the Christians Allah cannot be the biblical God since the inspired New Testament record teaches that anyone denying the Father and Son as God is Antichrist.

One common Muslim allegation needs to be briefly addressed before concluding. In Exodus 31:17 it says that after Yahweh created the universe, he rested on the Sabbath and was refreshed. This description is not befitting God since he never fatigues nor does he need to be refreshed.

In response to this, as we have already noted scripture often uses anthropomorphic language in describing God's relations with man. The context of this passage deals with the necessity of Sabbath observance as a sign between God and Israel, and as such God is speaking to his covenant people in relational terms. It is also through these terms and traditions that God took care of his people by following His example. Giving rest to not only themselves but also to their fields.

Just as God rested on the seventh day, it is important for Israel to do likewise especially in light of the fact that they are the chosen people of God and must imitate him by observing all his commands. Furthermore, the term for Sabbath in Hebrew is Shabbat. It has the following meanings: to stop, to cease, to rest, to end. Also, the term "refreshed" doesn't necessarily mean that God needed to take a breather after creating the universe anymore than the expression "my heart was refreshed" implies fatigue. Rather, it refers to God rejoicing over the goodness of his creation. The Lord never tires and he is always present.

Thus, these terms do not imply that God literally needed to rest and be refreshed. It simply means that after the formation of man God stopped his work of creation and rejoiced at the fact that all creation up to that point was very good. (Genesis 1:31)

This interpretation is consistent with the clear teaching of Scripture that God never fatigues: "He will not allow your foot to be moved- He who keeps you will not slumber. Behold, He who keeps Israel shall neither slumber nor sleep." (Psalm 121: 3-4) "Have you not known? Have you not heard? The everlasting God, the LORD, the Creator of the ends of the earth, neither faints nor is weary. His understanding is unsearchable." (Isaiah 40:28)

This report on the god of Allah as presented in the Quran leads us to conclude that he cannot possibly be the same God worshiped by Abraham and as described in the Holy Bible. The contradictions in attributes and nature between Yahweh and Allah are too numerous to pass over, and cannot be reconciled. With that in mind, we must point out another major difference between the two; namely that the God of the Holy Bible gives an assurance of salvation through Jesus Christ the Lord, something which Allah never guarantees: Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes in him who sent me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life. (John 5:24)

And if anyone hears my words and does not believe, I do not judge him; for I did not come to judge the world but to save the world. (John 12:47) The Bible clearly teaches that there is no other way for man to be saved, since Jesus alone can guarantee eternal life, something which the Quran cannot promise any Muslim: "Jesus said to him, 'I am the Way, the Truth, and the Life. No man comes to the Father except through me.'" (John 14:6)

"Nor is there salvation in any other, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved." (Acts 4:12) The reason why Christ alone can promise salvation is because he alone paid the penalty for sin which is death. By his death on the cross Christ provided the only acceptable sacrifice to God on behalf of sinners: "Being justified as a gift by His grace through the redemption which is in Christ Jesus; whom God displayed publicly as a propitiation) a sacrifice offered which satisfies the divine justice of God) in his blood ..." Romans 3:24-25

"For the wages of sin is death, but the gift of God is eternal life through Jesus Christ our Lord." (Romans 6:23)

It is therefore up to each of us to decide whether to accept Jesus Christ as Yahweh's Son and the Savior of the world and receive the assurance of eternal salvation through the Trinity. Or continue to worship Allah of the Quran who never promises Muslims the joy of knowing that their sins have been forgiven, giving them the assurance of eternal salvation. The choice is left for the reader to decide.