July 17, 2022
As he stared at the sky that night, he knew it would probably be the last time he would look on that sky. Tomorrow would certainly bring his death, and the end of all he held dear. He had looked at that sky more days than he could now count, and he did not fear what tomorrow would bring his way. But he did fear what tomorrow would bring to the lives of all those that surrounded him. Those who filled his thoughts, now filled his fears.
If only he had followed the words of the Lord, the writings and warnings of his ancestors. If he had seen the threat that the one who claimed to be a prophet had brought to his people, and to his city. If he had only prayed that his eyes would be opened to the truth of this man, and to the lies and horrors this man would soon bring into the lives of those he loved.
As he looked up into the stars that night, he began to reflect back on how all this had come about. "Five years before this 'prophet' had come to the gates of my beloved city, Yathrib. He rode in proclaiming peace, saying he wished to live in serenity with us, all the Jewish tribes that made up this town. At first, he talked to us about our beliefs, about our God. He talked to us about his god, proclaiming to us they were one and the same. He told us that the same God who sent down the Torah, had also sent His angel to speak to him. He ordered his followers observe our most holy of days. Even instructed them to look to Jerusalem when they prayed. But when we would not recognize him as a spokesman of the Lord, and we did not accept the message that he taught, his words of peace soon turned to words of wrath. The treaties he had made with us, soon became nothing more than scraps of paper."
"Word soon began to spread that he sought our death, the complete elimination of our faith. Despite all the rumors that we heard, we continued to honor our treaty and the promises of peace we had made with him. Even as past enemies came for him and his followers, we did not get involved, closing the gates of our section of the city, not allowing them entrance to attack him. But as he put those enemies behind him, the rumors became real. His words soon accused us, and his troops soon surrounded us. For fourteen days his troops have besieged us, until there is nothing left of us. As daylight comes, we have nothing left to do but surrender, and face the horrors that now await that the morning will bring."
Many know the name of Muhammad, but few have ever heard of the name of a city called Yathrib. In Muhammad’s time, Yathrib was a prosperous trade town in Arabia, that was made up of a large Jewish population. When Muhammad and his followers were chased out of Mecca, it was Yathrib where they settled. And when the Jewish people of the city would not recognize and follow Muhammad, they were beheaded and enslaved. Soon after, the city of Yathrib had its’ name changed to a name most will recognize today, the city of Medina.
As we look at the world today, we see just how little this world has changed. We watch today as Muhammad and his followers ride to the gates of our churches, and we watch as we open those gates and continue to invite him in. As he makes his way through those gates, he proclaims to come in the name of peace, in the name of compromise, and in the name of unity. The words so effortlessly roll from his lips as he tells us we are one, that after all, we both worship the same God. And as we reach for his hand and again pick up our pen to sign his treaty, we do not look closely at the words we accept. Words that will soon rapidly disappear from the page.
Much of the Church today looks to sign this treaty of interfaith, and I am fearful those looking to add their signature will continue to rise. A treaty proclaiming that all roads lead to God, that all religions point to the Lord. A treaty whose words pridefully declare a religious pluralism, and announce a movement toward interfaith. A treaty that hides the fork in the tongue of the one who wrote it, whose words seek the same outcome as it did in Yathrib. A treaty that seeks to lead the world and this Church down a road that will bring them to a place far away from our Lord.
We watch today as so many of our Church leaders and pastors embrace this religious pluralism. One of the world’s most famous pastors said, "The future of the world is not secularism, it's religious pluralism." Though many of us see the danger of the words these pastors speak, and see how these words are far from the ones spoken by Christ(John 14:6, 1 Timothy 2:5), I am afraid that his statement is actually true. This “pastor” and I would come to this statement from the most opposite of places. He would embrace it, and see it as unifying the world. I would see it as a warning, an attempt at inclusiveness that will actually tear the world apart. A second attempt to build the Tower of Babel(Genesis 11:1-9), bringing only destruction and confusion.
So why do these pastors look to hold hands with Islam? Why do they seek to bring the religions together as one? What do they hope to gain by doing so? And just what do they give up in the name of religious pluralism? To understand the dangers of this, we only need to look at Muhammad, and then to look at Christ. Who were each? And what message did they bring this world?
No divide could be greater than the lives that Muhammad and Christ lived. Muhammad led and called men to plunder, rape, and murder. The Quran and the writings of Islam are filled with many such examples given by those who followed Muhammad, and by Muhammad himself. Muhammad taught and commanded his followers to enslave people, claiming that slaves were nothing more than objects that could be sold and abused(Sura 33, 23:5, 70:30, and the Hadith volume 2). Muhammad taught and believed that women were half of men, seen as nothing more than possessions to be mortgaged, and claimed that the majority in hell would be women(Hadith 1:301, 2:541, 3:826, 7:124, Bukhari 1:28).
Jesus, lived His life on this earth in a very different way. Christ was sinless(1 Peter 2:22). He never killed a fellow man, never stole from another, and respected and honored women with the same love He felt for all those who surrounded Him. Christ brought a message of salvation and grace to all men, seeking to free the heart of every man. He preached a message that all are equal, telling all who would hear, to do unto others as you would have them do to you(Matthew 7:12). Although Muhammad never fulfilled a word that the Lord had given man through the prophets, Christ fulfilled over four hundred such promises, proving He alone was the Son of God.
Of all the differences their lives would show us, one of the greatest differences can be found in their last words. Muhammad left this earth cursing both Jews and Christians(Bukhari 1:427), wanting nothing more than to see the deaths of both. As Christ hung on the Cross, He looked at those who stood around Him, and asked God to forgive those who had falsely persecuted Him(Luke 23:34). Both claiming to speak for God. One who sought the ruination and annihilation of all those who disagreed with and rejected him. The other who sought forgiveness for all those who tearfully did not recognize Him.
Men who are far wiser than I have laid out the case for the lives of Jesus and Muhammad with greater detail than I would ever be capable of doing, But in the mind of this simple man, no greater evidence can be found than in the mention of just one word. Reflections! The Bible calls us to reflect Christ(2 Corinthians 3:18), and the more we turn our lives over to Christ, the more we see Him in us. The more we reflect Him, the more we find that we love the Lord with all our heart, our soul, our strength, and with all our mind. And the more He is seen in us, the more love we have for all those around us(Luke 10:27). From the first words of Genesis to the last words of Revelation, we see the love that the Lord had for all of us(Psalm 86:15, Jeremiah 29:11, John 3:16). We see how He desires nothing more than for us to know that love, to experience that love. A love so great, He gave His life for us. But sadly, this is a love that Muhammad never came to know. A love that never drove him, a love that could not change the heart in him. A love that his god did not possess( Quran 30:45, 3:32, 22:38), a love that is absent in the heart of Islam. Muslims teach that over ninety words are used to describe Islam, but absent from that list is the word “love”.
It was from that love that the Lord came to this earth, and gave His life for us. Through the years, many have tried to complicate the message of Christ, and why He came. But if we look at it honestly, that message and purpose is quite simple. Christ came to bring us back to the Garden, to lead us back to the forever loving folds of Eden, and the personal relationship the Lord once had with each who walked this earth. Christ came to reopen the gates of that Garden, to restore the heart of man so we could again forever walk hand and hand with Him.
Christ longed for nothing more than to also bring Muhammad back to the path that leads to that Garden. But sadly, Muhammad rejected that path, and turned toward another path. A path of dismay, a path of destruction. And Muhammad was not content to walk that path alone, he looked to bring as many as he could down that path with him.
Christ and Muhammad. Two who came to lead men down a path. Two paths that lead men in the most opposite of directions. One who came to lead men on a path back to the Garden, back to the loving arms of our Lord. Another, who marched men down a path of chaos, a path that ends in a burning rage. How so many today can look at both these paths and not see they lead in opposite directions is beyond me. How they can turn to the path Muhammad constructed, and not see Eden fading in the distance is something I will never begin to understand. But to these men and women who try to combine these paths, I have but one question. When you look in the mirror, who’s reflection do you see?Praying that each day as you look in the mirror, you see Christ a little more!
