SIN AND SALVATION IN
CHRISTIANITY AND ISLAM
A. Abraham
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1. INTRODUCTION
2. SIMILARITY IN BELIEFS
3. QURANIC VIEW OF SIN
4. BIBLICAL VIEW OF SIN
5. QURANIC VIEW OF
SALVATION
6. BIBLICAL VIEW OF
SALVATION
7. CONCLUSION
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1. INTRODUCTION
God, who created us and
whom I serve and love more and more, allows me in His sovereignty to pass on to
you the Biblical and Islamic teaching of sin and salvation. I count it as a
great privilege to write to you on this most important subject. Before we
examine the facts in detail let us look at the bigger picture. In doing so we
shall realize that Muslims and Christians have a great deal in common. Perhaps
this is the reason why the Quran speaks very highly
of us Christians when it says, I quote Surah 5, Al-Maidah, verse 83:
'...And thou shalt assuredly find those who say, 'We are Christians', to
be the nearest of them in love to the believers. That is because amongst them
are savants and monks and because they are not proud.'
I am glad that the Quran uses the words 'amongst them' when it praises the
Christians, because as it points out later and also as we see today, not all
who call themselves 'Christians' are living up to their name. Many people who
are born in what some people still call mistakenly 'Christian countries' are
indeed far away from following Jesus. They practice adultery, homosexuality, drunkenness, do not care for their neighbours, and live in
selfish ways. Together with practising Muslims, those Christians who practice
their faith condemn all those horrible acts.
2. SIMILARITY IN BELIEFS
Indeed, the Muslim and
Christian communities have a lot in common as far as the basics in the
following areas are concerned:
Jesus:
'... the Lord our God, the Lord is one.' (Mar
'...And say 'We believe in
that which has been revealed to us and that which has been revealed to you; and
our God and your God is One; and to Him we submit.' (Surah
Al-'Ankabut, 29: 47)
'.... There
is no changing the words of Allah...'(Yunus, 10:65)
Since the Bible consists of
the Torah, the Zabur, and the Injil,
all of which are accepted by Muslims and Christians to be God's word, it can
not have changed according to the Quran.
Both, Christians and
Muslims can emphatically underline the above statements, even though we may
differ on the 'how' and the 'what' of the above. However, as an accepted rule
of interpreting God's revelation in both communities, we always must look at
apparent differences or contradictions in the light of ALL the verses in the
Scriptures. Take for example the Christian and Muslim belief that God is One. Christians have been misunderstood by Muslims to
believe in three gods. We need to look at this charge in the light of the
following facts quoted above. According to both, Christianity and Islam,
Therefore,
Muslims should, and really can not say that Christians believe in three gods
otherwise they contradict both the Bible and the Quran.
The only alternative is to look at passages that may give rise to the
misunderstanding and explain them in the light of other, clear passages. That
is exactly what Christians have done when they formulated the doctrine of the
Trinity. They did this as a response to misunderstandings that arose from
looking only at parts, instead of the whole revelation of God. In doing so they
realized that for example time by itself consists of past, present and future.
If any one of these is removed then universe and time will cease to be! Fire
generates heat and light. Thus fire, with its light and heat is one thing.
Multiplicity in unity is a very common phenomenon. This kind of spiritual unity
which reflects the Biblical understanding of the Trinity is distinguished from
mathematical unity where 1+1+1 = 3. In mathematical terms one could compare
Trinity with 1 x 1 x 1 = 1. '"Further, some have pointed to the fact that
Muhammad was simultaneously a prophet, a husband, and a leader. Why then should
a Muslim reject the idea of a plurality of functions (persons) in God.' ('Answering Islam' Geisler&Saleeb
p. 269)
The main stream of
Christianity throughout the entire world believes in one God, the Holy Trinity.
It is indeed a mystery, as God Himself is, and as eternity and infinity are.
'It is held that although the doctrine is beyond the grasp of human reason, it
is, like many of the formulations of physical science, not contrary to reason,
and may be apprehended though it may not be comprehended by the human mind.'
(See, 'Encyclopaedia Americana', 'Trinity', by F.C. Grant, Danbury, Con.:
Americana Corp., 1980)
The religion of Islam too
faces such intellectual challenges. The Quran uses
human terms to describe God. Orthodox Muslims do not explain the 'how'.
Similarly, it is a fact that God's word was revealed in a book, but how the
infinite can be expressed in the finite is not clarified.
Both, Christians and
Muslims, believe in an Almighty, All powerful, All
present, sovereign God who therefore can not be known unless he makes himself
known to us by revelation. This knowledge puts us in the right position of
humility when dealing with the awesome subject of sin and salvation. The
awareness that our knowledge of God is limited to that what he has chosen to
reveal to us makes us realize that logic, the science of reasoning, of common
sense play a limited role when it comes to the ways of God. In dealing with our
subject we always must keep this God - given framework in mind: Both,
Christians and Muslims, believe God is One and that
his word can not be changed. Whatever comes across our path that seems to say
otherwise must be understood in the light of the former two facts. If it is not
we contradict our own fundamental beliefs.
3. QUARANIC VIEW OF SIN
Firstly, in the Quran we find an awareness that
human beings will be corrupt once they are created. About Adam we read:
And when thy Lord said to
the angels: 'I am about to place a vicegerent in the earth,' they said, 'Wilt
Thou place therein such as will cause disorder in it, and shed blood? -and We glorify Thee with Thy praise and extol Thy holiness.' He
answered, 'I know what you know not.'
Secondly, the following
verses confirm the fear of the angels:
Iblis said, after disobeying Allah: '...I
will most surely bring his (Adam's) descendants under my sway except a few.' (Surah 17, Bani Isra'il, verse 62)
In another account of the
same story Iblis is reported to have said:
'Then will I surely come
upon them (Adam's descendants)...and Thou wilt not find most of them to be
grateful.' (Surah Al- A'raf,
As our terrible history
shows continually these verses came true and therefore it is very difficult to
explain how in Islam human beings can be basically good in the light of all the
horror they cause on a world wide scale.
Thirdly, some parts of the Quranic account of Adam's sin reflect the biblical
perspective. God made a covenant with him (Surah Taha 20:116) and with his descendants. (Gen 9:9) God
generally relates to men through a covenant. In Surah
Al'-Baqara,
'O children of
A covenant is a contract or
agreement between two parties. The corresponding word in the Injil, the Gospel is, 'testament.' That is why Christians
call the Injil, 'New Testament'. Throughout His
revelation God has made promises and given laws to his creation. When Adam and
Eve sinned they violated the three following important aspects of the covenant:
A. The covenant is
personal.
God Himself gave the
covenantal commands in the Bible (Exo 10:1-2) and in
the Quran. (Surah Al-Ma'ida, 5:8-11) Therefore sin is the breaking of a
relationship and disobedience or rebellion against God who is behind the
covenant. (Isa 59:1-2, Neh
9:26, Psa 10:2-6. 51:4) This is confirmed when
reading in the Quran about a tribe called 'Thamud' who disobeyed God's command given through a prophet
called 'Salih':
'Then they hamstrung the
she-camel and rebelled against the command of their Lord, and said, 'O Salih, bring us that which thou threatenest
us with, if thou art indeed one of the Messengers.'
Surah Al-A'raf,
7:78, see also 73 where people who sin are said to have: 'rejected our signs', Surah Yunus,
B. The covenant is
revealed.
Both, the Quran and the Bible speak clearly about God who reveals His
will to men. (Amo 4:13, Surha
Al-Nahl, 16:102, etc.) Man can respond to revelation either
with belief or disbelief. It follows that another definition for sin is
disbelief in God. The Quran makes this clear when it
says:
'Remember when thy Lord
said to the angels, 'I am about to create man from clay; And so when I have
fashioned him in perfection, and have breathed into him of My Spirit, fall ye
down in submission to him.' So the angels submitted, all of them together. But Iblis did not. He behaved proudly, and was of those who
disbelieved.' (Surah Sad, 38:75)
Not to believe in God and his
commandments means refusing to allow God to be God in one's life. It means a
refusal to acknowledge and trust God as God. God is selfishly and proudly
replaced with self. One starts to believe in one self or somebody else. It is
the purest form of idolatry, possibly the root of all sin which is equal to
committing 'shirk' (associating partners with God, worshipping somebody or
something else except God.
C. The covenant forms
the basis of Law.
God's law is his revealed
will made known through his commands. Therefore, the person that disobeys them
transgresses the law.
'(Allah) taught man what he
knew not. Nay! man does indeed transgress, because he
thinks himself to be independent.' (Surah Al-'Alaq, 96:7)
Like the Bible (Matt
'But whosoever is forced by
hunger, without being wilfully inclined to sin, then, surely Allah is Most
Forgiving and Merciful.'
If it is possible to
disobey God's law as long as one is not wilfully inclined to sin, then it
follows that it is also possible to obey God's law outwardly but still to
commit sin. Let us look now at Surah Al-A'raf,
(20) 'And O Adam, dwell
thou and thy wife in the Garden and eat therefrom
wherever you will, but approach not this tree lest you be among the
wrongdoers.' (21) But Satan whispered evil suggestions to them so that he might
make known to them what was hidden from them of their shame, and said, 'Your
Lord has only forbidden you this tree, lest you should become angels or such
beings as live for ever.' (22) And He swore to them, saying 'Surely I am a
sincere counsellor unto you.'
Verse 21 makes it clear
that Adam and Eve knowingly disobeyed or rebelled against God. Adam's supposed
forgetfulness mentioned as reason for his disobedience in Surah
20, Taha, verse 116 is hard
to reconcile with Satan's reminder of God's command. Moreover, if they had only
forgotten what God said, then surely we would not read in the next verse that
Satan deceived them:
(23) So he caused them to
fall into disobedience by deceit. And when they tasted of the tree, their shame
became manifest to them and they began to stick the leaves of the Garden
together over themselves. And their Lord called them, saying, 'Did I not forbid you that tree and tell you: verily Satan is
to you an open foe?' (24) They said, 'Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves; and
if Thou forgive us not and have not mercy on us, we shall surely be of the
lost.' (25) He said, 'Go forth, some of you being enemies of others. And for
you there is and abode on the earth and a provision for a time.' (26) He said,
'Therein shall you live and therein shall you die, and therefrom
shall you be brought forth.'
The fact that God said 'Go
forth' echoes the biblical account of separation from God because of sin. (Gen
3:3, 23-24) In Surah Taha,
20:122 we read that his life became miserable as a result.
If Adam's sin was caused by
mere forgetfulness then these severe punishments would in no way fit the light
'crime'. A deeper study reveals that the reason for the severity of it lay in
the fact that in both, the Biblical and Quranic
accounts Adam rejected the type of creature-hood God had assigned to him. He
rebelled against His maker who is absolutely Holy and
can not tolerate this.
Muslims have to go to
hell
It is agreed amongst
orthodox Muslims that all unbelievers, without exception, will be consigned to
the fire for ever, and that they will never be free from torment. All Muslims,
except those who die in war for the cause of Allah, will have to spend time in
hell in order to receive the punishment for their sins. However, once
disciplined they will be released from misery, if Allah wills. The belief that
punishment for Muslims in hell is only temporary for remedial purposes may be
possible in individual relationships. However, it is an impossible way of
action when many people are involved or when the one who punishes is in some
official position. In such he can not be merciful if he wants to remain just.
Let us think about the confusing implications it would have to look at
punishment as a reformatory process only that intended to make the sufferer a
better person. If even the greatest sin were immediately succeeded by hearty
repentance, there would be no mercy of God necessary in withholding punishment;
it could simply not justly be inflicted where reformation had been already
produced by other influences. There are also cases in which repentance is less
likely to be awakened by inflicting pain through punishment then by conferring
new joy and honour. In these cases the lightest penalty would be unjust, and
justice would require that the life of the sinner should be made brighter and
happier. By looking at these examples which applied the theory that rests the
justice of punishment mainly on its reformatory power, it can easily be seen
that it leads to all kinds of grotesque consequences. (For more details see,
'The Atonement', by Dale, London Congregational Union of England and Wales,
1894, pages 380-381)
The reformatory aspect (the
belief that chastisement will make the sinner better) which is ascribed to
God's punishment in hell is further questioned by statistics that show clearly
how most ex-prisoners committed offenses again once
they were released.
4. BIBLICAL VIEW OF SIN
The Torah, the Zabur and the Injil, which
together form what we call the Bible, are in complete agreement on this
subject. This is how it should be in the light of the above God-given
framework.
Sin is dishonouring God. (Jer 3:3-5, 31:19) It is 'any lack of conformity unto or
transgression of the law of God' (1 Joh 3:4 Ro
The moral character of a
man's actions is determined by the moral state of his heart. The disposition to
sin, or the habit of the soul that leads to the sinful act, is itself also sin
(Rom 6:12-17 Gal 5:17, Jam
Common
sense tells us that God created us for himself, to do
good, not to put ourselves at the centre of life and thereby destroying it. Yet
human experience shows time and time again that the latter is exactly what
happened. A brief look at the last century will underline what we all know to
be true: In 1905 the Armenian genocide took place. About 2 million Christians
were brutally murdered by Muslims belonging to the Othman empire. Nine years
latter the First World War started. It was followed by the Second World War in
1939. Many millions died in unbelievable suffering.
The list of absolute horror seems to be never ending:
The almost
unbearable complexity of evil is intensified when we look at the
socio-political atrocities: divorce, abortion, adultery, abuse, prostitution,
corruption to name but a few. Even education is powerless to stem the flow
of evil. Doctors, lawyers, politicians, artists, scientists use their skills
for good as well as for destructive and immoral purposes. Furthermore,
many of us know what is right and good yet we act irrationally and don’t
put our noble thoughts into practice. What an offence is wickedness to reason
and much more so to God! But iniquity becomes even more bizarre. Think of worthy motives in outrageous actions,
and ugly, selfish roots behind good actions. To add to the confusion humans are
also capable of great acts of heroism, of selfless, wonderful deeds, of
devotion and service to the truth. Thankfully, evil is identified only by
reference to the good which also exists though to a much lesser degree. If we
were basically good at heart only with the potential to sin, as many would have
has believe, then the world should be in a much better shape with peace being
the norm and trouble and selfishness being the exception. However, our experiences as described
above, tell of our innermost being basically inclined to evil yet still with
the potential to do good. That is why we have to teach our children to do the good
not the bad. The latter comes naturally to them. This profound duality of
experience comes both from personal responsibility and social conditioning.
Children resemble their parents in terms of temperament, intellectual and other
gifts and even in moral traits.
Human evil
stirs up feelings of guilt, indignation or shame. This proofs the fact
that our wicked human behaviour is not natural in the sense that we
were created as week beings, like animals that just follow their often
cruel instincts. What went wrong? Even the atheist philosopher Jean-Paul Sartre
reckoned: “Man is a being to whom something happened.” (Sartre,
‘Cahiers pour une morale’, Paris 1983, p.
51)
Judaism and
Christianity teach that our first parents, the heads of humanity, rebelled
against God. As a punishment they got separated from his immediate presence and
therefore from many of his blessings. Since then we, their children, have not
inherited their sins but their proneness, their inclination to commit wrong.
This is what theologians call ‘original sin’. The phrase has to be
understood as original sin flowing from the originating sin, propagating itself
in each person’s beginning and becoming the origin of actual sins. They start with dreadful thoughts and
desires in our heart. Original sin is defined as ‘universal sinfulness,
consisting of attitudes, orientations, propensities, and tendencies which are
contrary to God’s law, incompatible with his holiness, and found in all
people, in all areas of their lives.’ (Blocher,
‘Original Sin’, Leicester, 1997, p.18)
Common
sense tells us that because all human beings have sinned, all are separated
from a holy God and deserve punishment. The wrath of God is upon us because of
what our first parents have done and
because of our own evil deeds. We
decided to do them as a result of the corrupted and depraved nature we were
born with. (‘natura’
comes from ‘nasci’, ‘to be
born’). We inherited that
nature from our first parents, hence it’s name ‘Erbsünde’
in German, literally ‘hereditary’ sin.
Therefore,
the sceptic objects and says, ‘why should we suffer for the sins of our
first parents? It is not fair that because of them our nature is now inclined
to do evil rather then good.” To that opposition Henri Blocher, professor of Systematic Theology replies, that the
role of Adam and of his sin is ‘to make possible the imputation, the
judicial treatment of human sins. His role thus brings about the condemnation
of all, and its sequel, death. If persons are considered individually, they
have no standing with God, no relationship to his judgement. They are, as it
were, floating in a vacuum. Sin cannot
be imputed. But God sees them in Adam and through Adam, in the framework of
the covenant of creation. Therefore he sees their sins as committed against the
Genesis 2 command (Do not take from the fruit…), as grafted on to
Adam’s sin in Eden….How did the punishment, death, reach all
persons on the basis of their actual sinning? It reached them in the same way
that death entered Adam’s person (by personal disobedience): since all
were in Adam, the head, sin could be reckoned to them according to the terms of
the Adamic covenant, as offshoots of his sin.’
(Blocher, ‘Original Sin’, Leicester 1997,
p. 77f)
More support for the doctrine, again from human
experience
Headship
Human
experience once again proves the doctrine of original sin to be right.
Throughout history tribes, communities and nations have not just been conceived
as individuals but also as organic wholes under representative
‘heads.’ Both, leaders and followers express and influence a common
identity. In opposite to animals the human race is one in some spiritual way,
as well as genetically. Mistakes of leader have not just made them suffer
immensely but also their supporters. (E.g. Hitler in
Freedom
of choice
We must
also question the assumption that to commit an evil act is just a freedom of
choice exercised by individuals rather then also a process initiated and influenced by the nature of a person.
Similarly, the terms ‘biological’ and ‘spiritual’ are
not mutually exclusive. It is a fact that our feelings influence our physical
well being in a complex way. Fear, for example, influences our digestive
system. While there is a distinction between bodily processes and personal
freedom there is no separation. Both
work together in harmony. This truth solves the problem of original sin as
being of nature, something we can’t help because it was inherited due to
our first parents disobedience, and yet incurring guilt. Freedom of choice is not contrary to our human nature but part of
it.
Personal
history
Hereditary
sin, the concept that we have inherited our first parents
inclination to do evil, is reflected in the following parallels:
Moral and
religious life is modelled largely by symbolic systems, language, traditions,
art and literature. Choice is not an option for a long time. When we are old
enough to go against such influences, to do so is humanly speaking almost
impossible due to the strength of those pressures.
Psychology
has established the fact that children’s personalities are influenced by
damaged images of mother and father. There seems to be mysterious bonds of a
psycho-spiritual nature among people.
The science
of genetics has established that thoughts can not be transferred to and encoded
into the genetic system of human reproduction. But certain character traits are
passed on
without scientists being able to know how. The same is true for animal
instincts. Children do not receive from their parents
actual diseases such as calluses, gout and breast cancer but undoubtedly
certain genetic impressions which make them more likely to get those diseases.
Lastly, the
disputed field of the spirit world, if confirmed, supports the case of heredity
in sinfulness. Experiences of Marabuts, Phirs and Pastors indicate that evil spirits under some
conditions can not just negatively influence individuals but also their
children and relatives.
Ayatholla
Khomeini said: 'You should pay attention and all of us should pay attention (to
the fact) that man's calamity is his carnal desire, and this exists in
everybody, and it is rooted in the nature of man.' (Islamic Government does not
spend for its own grandeur, by Kayhan International,
September 4, 1985, p.3)
The answer given so far to
the question of ‘what went wrong’ makes us realize how completely
helpless we all are. It makes us aware that we are not worse or better then
others. From God’s perspective we are all in the same sinking boat.
Awareness of our powerlessness keeps us in the only rightful state before an
Almighty God, that of humility and compassion.
How can a newborn baby be called a sinner by birth as described in Psa 51:5 and 58:3? Is that not contradicting passages such
as Deu 1:39, Isa
The term 'original sin' is
frequently and properly used to denote only the moral corruption of the whole
nature inherited by all men from Adam. This inherited moral corruption consists
in, the loss of original righteousness, that is our right standing with God,
and the presence of a constant proneness to evil, which is the root and origin
of all actual sin. It is called 'Sin' (Rom 6:12,14,17. 7:5-17), the 'flesh'
(Gal 5:17,24), 'lust' (Jam 1:14,15), the 'body of sin' (Rom 6:6), 'ignorance,'
'blindness of heart,' 'alienation from the life of God' (Eph 4:18,19) It
influences and depraves the whole man, and its tendency is still downward to
deeper and deeper corruption, there remaining no recuperative element in the
soul. It is a total depravity, and, as mentioned already, it is also
universally inherited by all the natural descendants of Adam (Rom
The doctrine of original
sin is proved biblically and anthropologically:
The
doctrine of original sin does not mean that human beings are incapable of doing
anything good (Rom
The religion of Islam (6th
century) like a heretic group called the Pelagians
(5th century AD) deny the concept of original sin, and regard man as by nature
morally and spiritually well. However, as mentioned before, the Quranic account speaks about Adam and Eve having had to
leave the Garden of Eden as a punishment for their disobedience. Since mankind
still is excluded from
More recently the argument
has come up that the concept of original sin is contradicted by the science of
genetics. While it is true that thoughts can not be transferred to and encoded
into the genetic system of human reproduction, it is equally true that certain
character traits are passed on without scientists being able to know how. The
same is true for animal instincts. Joseph is quoted as having said in Surah Yusuf,
'And I do not hold my own
self to be free from weakness; for, the soul is surely prone to enjoin evil,
save that whereon my Lord has mercy. Surely, my Lord is Most Forgiving,
Merciful.' He does not place the blame on Satan or circumstances but points to
a problem at the core of human nature! In Surah Al-Nahl, 16:62 the universal effect of the problem is made
plain:
'And if Allah were to
punish men for their wrongdoing, He would not leave thereon a living creature,
but he gives them respite till an appointed term...'
This truth is supported by
at least two traditions:
Muslim recounts a story by
Muhammad in which Moses says to Adam: 'because of your sin you caused mankind
to come down to earth.' (Mishkat al-Masabih, trans and ed. James
Robson (
'Two men in white
raiment...opened up my belly, extracted a black drop from it and threw it away;
then they washed my heart and my belly with snow until they had thoroughly
cleaned them.' (Ibn Hisham,
ed., The life of Muhammad: (Ibn) Isahq's
Sirat Rasul Allah, trans.
Al Guillaume, London: Oxford University Press, 1955, p.72)
To quote a more resent
example, Ayatholla Khomeini said: 'You should pay
attention and all of us should pay attention (to the fact) that man's calamity
is his carnal desire, and this exists in everybody, and it is rooted in the
nature of man.' (Islamic Government does not spend for its own grandeur, by Kayhan International, September 4, 1985, p.3)
What is the punishment
for sin according to the Bible?
Only with deep reluctance
can we speak of the terrible consequences of sin. As we have seen in the story
of Adam and Eve, they are separation from God, the very source of life. If we
die in our sins the unspeakable result will be eternal, consciously experienced
punishment in hell. Out of the many verses (Isa
66:22-24, Dan 12:1-2) that confirm this horrible fate here is what Jesus said
when speaking about the day of judgement at the end of times in Mat 25:41,46:
Then he will say to
those at his left hand, 'You that are accursed, depart
from me into the eternal fire prepared for the devil and his angels...And these
will go away into eternal punishment, but the righteous into eternal life.'
5. QURANIC VIEW OF
SALVATION
The way of salvation
according to Islam is mainly by striving hard to do good works according to the
many laws described in the Quran. Through teaching,
education, the passing on of knowledge, Muslims hope to improve their old
nature which is inclined to do bad naturally into a nature that becomes
inclined to do good. To use an example they try to
change a bicycle into a space rocket. This of course is impossible since a
bicycle naturally is made to ride on the ground and a space rocket is designed
to fly into space.
6. BIBLICAL VIEW OF
SALVATION
The solution found in the
teaching of the Bible is not to improve the old nature but to get a new nature
that is inclined to do good. There we read in Rom 7:22
- 8:18:
'For I delight in the
law of God in my inmost self, but I see in my members another law at war with
the law of my mind, making me captive to the law of sin that dwells in my
members. Wretched man that I am! Who will rescue me from this body of death?
Thanks be to God through Jesus Christ our Lord! So
then, with my mind I am a slave to the law of God, but with my flesh I am a
slave to the law of sin. There is therefore now no condemnation for those who
are in Christ Jesus. For the law of the Spirit of life in Christ Jesus has set
you free from the law of sin and of death. For God has done what the law,
weakened by the flesh, could not do: by sending his own Son in the likeness of
sinful flesh, and to deal with sin, he condemned sin in the flesh, so that the
just requirement of the law might be fulfilled in us, who walk not according to
the flesh but according to the Spirit. For those who live according to the
flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who live according
to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit. To set the mind on
the flesh is death, but to set the mind on the Spirit is life and peace. For
this reason the mind that is set on the flesh is hostile to God; it does not
submit to God's law--indeed it cannot, and those who are in the flesh cannot
please God. But you are not in the flesh; you are in the Spirit, since the
Spirit of God dwells in you. Anyone who does not have the Spirit of Christ does
not belong to him. But if Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of
sin, the Spirit is life because of righteousness. If the Spirit of him who
raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, he who raised Christ from the dead
will give life to your mortal bodies also through his Spirit that dwells in
you. So then, brothers and sisters, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live
according to the flesh-- for if you live according to the flesh, you will die;
but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. For
all that are led by the Spirit of God are children of God. For
you did not receive a spirit of slavery to fall back into fear, but you have
received a spirit of adoption. When we cry, 'Abba!
Father!' it is that very Spirit bearing witness with our spirit that we are
children of God, and if children, then heirs, heirs of God and joint heirs with
Christ--if, in fact, we suffer with him so that we may also be glorified with
him. I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth
comparing with the glory about to be revealed to us.'
In the passage above the
old sinful nature is called 'flesh' and the new nature is called 'Spirit of
God', 'Spirit of Christ', 'Spirit of Life'. By the help of this Holy Spirit
only can man live a life that pleases God! The question needs to be asked, 'How
will God help us with the Holy Spirit?'
'But God proves his love
for us in that while we still were sinners Christ died for us. Much more surely then, now that we have been justified by his blood,
will we be saved through him from the wrath of God. For if while we were
enemies, we were reconciled to God through the death of his Son, much more
surely, having been reconciled, will we be saved by his life. (Rom 5:8-10, see also Eph 2:4-5)
The love of Allah in the Quran is conditional on man's behaviour and is therefore
inferior to the love of parents who love their children without any condition.
They do however hate the way their sons and daughters often disobey them. Out
of unconditional love for their rebellious children parents have to punish
them. A difference is made between loving them as persons but
disapproving of what they sometimes do. This is how the love of God is
portrayed in the Bible, of course in a much more perfect way then parents could
have.
Why is it necessary that
Jesus had to die for our sins?
We shall start our search
for an answer in the purpose of sacrifices that are a reoccurring theme in the
Torah. The Quran too acknowledges that God
commanded animal sacrifice in the time of Moses (Surah
2, Baqarah, verse 67). Its main meaning was that it
made atonement, it took away the sins of the people who offered it
(Lev
Why is the sacrifice which
Muslims, Jews and Christians believe to have been a ram (Gen
The Bible (Lev
Illustration
Jesus said: 'There was a
man who had two sons. The younger one said to his father, 'Father, give me my
share of the estate.' So he divided his property between them. Not long after
that, the younger son got together all he had, set off for a distant country
and there squandered his wealth in wild living. After he had spent everything,
there was a severe famine in that whole country, and he began to be in need. So
he went and hired himself out to a citizen of that country, who sent him to his
fields to feed pigs. He longed to fill his stomach with the pods that the pigs
were eating, but no-one gave him anything. When he came to his senses, he said,
'How many of my father's hired men have food to spare, and here I am starving
to death! I will set out and go back to my father and say to him: Father, I
have sinned against heaven and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called
your son; make me like one of your hired men.' So he got up and went to his
father. But while he was still a long way off, his father saw him and was filled
with compassion for him; he ran to his son, threw his arms around
him and kissed him. The son said to him, 'Father, I have sinned against heaven
and against you. I am no longer worthy to be called your son.' But the father
said to his servants, 'Quick! Bring the best robe and put it on him. Put a
ring on his finger and sandals on his feet. Bring the fattened calf and kill
it. Let's have a feast and celebrate. For this son of mine was dead and is
alive again; he was lost and is found.' So they began to celebrate.
Meanwhile, the older son was in the field. When he came near the house, he
heard music and dancing. So he called one of the servants and asked him what
was going on. 'Your brother has come,' he replied, 'and your father has killed
the fattened calf because he has him back safe and sound.' The older brother
became angry and refused to go in. So his father went out and pleaded with him.
But he answered his father, 'Look! All these years I've been slaving for you
and never disobeyed your orders. Yet you never gave me even a young goat so I
could celebrate with my friends. But when this son of yours who has squandered
your property with prostitutes comes home, you kill the fattened calf for him!'
'My son,' the father said, 'you are always with me, and everything I have is
yours. But we had to celebrate and be glad, because this brother of yours was
dead and is alive again; he was lost and is found.' (Luke 15:11-32)
In this mysterious but marevellous story the father stands for God, the elder
brother for the Pharisees, the religious people in Jesus' day, and the younger
son represents obvious sinners. From a middle eastern
perspective into which it was spoken, some very strange things happened indeed.
The male head of a family would not disgrace himself by the undignified
action of running towards his rebellious son. Nor would he have
disrupted his son's words before a full display of repentance. It is
unthinkable for him to command such a luxurious outpouring of affection for a
son who shamed him in full view of the community. The father's behaviour
illustrates God's amazing patience and love for his ungrateful children. The
robe, ring, shoes, and fatted calf which await the son's return all highlight
the extent of his restoration. But it came at the expense of his father's
honour. We learn four major lessons from the story:
Firsty, as the lost son always had the option of
returning home, so also every sinner, however wicked, may confess and leave
their sins and turn to God.
Secondly, as the father went to elaborate
lengths to offer forgiveness to the son, so also God offers all people, however
undeserving, lavish forgiveness if they are willing to accept it.
Thirdly, as the older brother should not
have resented his brothers reinstatement, those who claim to be God's people
should be glad that his grace is available for even the most undeserving.
Fourthly, and perhaps most importantly, the
shame brought upon the family through the sinful son, was profoundly carried by
his father. Why would he do such an outrageous thing? The Old Testament, known
as the Torah by Muslims, tells an equally intriguing story of how God created
Adam and Eve and later the Israelites to be his people. We learn how he loved
them like a father loves his children. Time and time again, however, we read
with great sadness how his chosen ones break his commandments, how they become
guilty of lawlessness. Even more disturbing is the fact that their rebellion is
only a fruit of a conscious rejection of the Almighty God. His own people spit
in his face and bring shame upon him before the very nations they were
supposed to be witnessing of his honour and glory. To make matters even
worse, they were not ashamed of themselves:
'Therefore the showers
have been withheld, and no spring rains have fallen. Yet you have the brazen
look of a prostitute; you refuse to blush with shame. Have you not just
called to me (God): 'My Father, my friend from my youth, will you always be angry? Will your wrath continue for ever?' This is how
you talk, but you do all the evil you can.' (Jer
3:3-5)
The people of old did as
they pleased because they had lost a sense of shame. While their
mechanical, outward ritual acts may still have been in place they were not
concerned about God's honour at all. Repentance, the turning round from
one's evil ways, was later expressed in terms of recognition of shame and
disgrace. (Jer 31:19) Likewise, our disloyalty to
God, our resistance against his work among us is known and is
exceedingly shameful. We too deserve to be punished ever so severely. Since
God is pure, completely removed from all evil, man's sin has cut off,
effectively killed, the relationship between the two. The warning given to Adam
and Eve became a frightening reality:
And the LORD God
commanded the man, 'You are free to eat from any tree in the garden; but you
must not eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, for when you
eat of it you will surely die.' (Gen 2:16-17)
'For the wages of sin
is death,...'(Rom
Only through death God's
honour will be restored. Consequently God introduced an elaborate sacrificial system to the
Israelites through Moses. Shame could be removed by getting forgiveness for
sins, but only if an animal would die in their place.
'...without the
shedding of blood there is no forgiveness.' (Heb 9:22)
This all important truth is
also reflected in 'Qisas' the Islamic law of
retaliation. (Surah 2, Al Baqarah,
verses 178-179) It consists in doing to the person who has committed a crime
the very same thing they have done. The life of someone who is wilfully killed
demands the murderer's life in retaliation. However, the next of kin can accept
a financial compensation instead. According to Surah
5, Al Maida, verse 45, retaliation for inflicted wounds is also necessary. A nose for a nose and so on. If a member of the body which
is to be cut off in revenge is defective, a compensation
will be accepted.
From God's perfect
perspective animal and all other sacrifices are defective. They can not take
away sins but were only serving as a cover and a shadow of Jesus, the
Messiah, the perfect sacrifice to come (Heb 10:1-18). He took our shame
upon himself through his death on the cross. Through the crucifixion Jesus,
our perfect, sinless mediator, restored the honour of God in a most
profound and just way.
'Moreover, the Father
judges no-one, but has entrusted all judgement to the Son, that all may
honour the Son just as they honour the Father. He who does not honour
the Son does not honour the Father, who sent him. I (Jesus) tell you the
truth, whoever hears my word and believes him who sent me has eternal life
and will not be condemned; he has crossed over from death to life.' (Joh 5:22-24)
'Your attitude should be
the same as that of Christ Jesus: Who, being in very nature God, did not
consider equality with God something to be grasped, but made himself
nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.
And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became
obedient to death - even death on a cross! Therefore God exalted him
to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, that at
the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the
earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of
God the Father.' (Phil 2:5-11)
6. CONCLUSION
Among many things Islam and
Christianity have in common is the belief that ultimately only God can save us
from sin and hell.
'And those who believe
and do good works will be admitted into gardens through which rivers flow,
wherein they will abide by the command of their Lord.' (Surah
Ibrahim,
To an inquiry of 'Aisha whether even in Muhammad's case good actions would
not establish the right of salvation, the Holy Prophet is reported to have
replied that even his salvation depended on the grace of God (Bukhari, Kitab al-Tafsir)'
The Bible agrees with this
view when it says in Eph 2:8-9:
'For by grace you
have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing; it is the gift
of God- not the result of works, so that no one may boast.'
Both religions agree that
to believe in God is much more important than doing good works when it comes to
salvation, the deliverance from guilt and pollution. However, only Christianity
gives a satisfactory answer to the question 'How can a pure God allow sinners
to go to heaven?' Only Jesus met the requirements of God's love and justice
through his death on the cross. Only Jesus restored the honour of God by taking
away our shame. God raised Jesus, the perfect mediator, from the dead
confirming his authority, loyalty blessedness and blamelessness. Those who
deny the cross refuse to accept God's generosity, his blessing. They dishonour
the giver. Will you accept therefore God's invitation through Jesus and come to
him in prayer? Will you confess your sins to him and ask him for forgiveness?
Your eternal life in heaven depends on it!
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