The Gospel For Muslims
Witnessing to a Muslim is intimidating. Not only do worldview’s clash, Muslim’s derive their truth from a different sacred source, of which, I’m unfamiliar. How can I persuade someone who has a sacred text, just like me, that my truth is true and there’s isn’t. I don’t know all the answers about the Bible, much less the Quran, so where do i start?
Thabiti Anyabwile in, The Gospel for Muslims, addresses the Christian who feels ill-equipped to effectively witness to a Muslim. First, He reminds us that the Gospel doesn’t change for muslims; the same gospel that saved you, saves your muslim friend. Throughout the book, Anyabwile recounts his own conversion from Islam and testifies to the power of the gospel.
In a popular colloquialism “sometimes our best defense is a good offense.”
For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes, to the Jew first and also to the Greek. (Romans 1:16 ESV)?
The book is sectioned off into two main parts; The Gospel and As You Witness. He starts by reminding the reader that both Christianity and Islam are revealed religions and ultimate truth comes from a higher being; therefore, our main “focus should be on helping our muslim friends understand why they should humbly accept the bible” and believe its message. In fact, your Muslim friend has every reason to believe that the Bible is trustworthy because the Quran teaches that the Gospels, the Psalms and the Pentateuch are truth, and Allah even preserved the Quran’s transmission so that it is without errors so we have every reason to suggest the Bible to our Muslim friend.
Once the discussion comes to the Bible, we should make a be-line to Jesus. This is where the Quran and the Bible are mutually exclusive and Jesus claims to be God. Jesus’ divine proclamation and the unfolding revelation of the trinity call the Quran to terms.
The triune God is the only God who can redeem. Anywabwile works out the implications of the Gospel according to the Truine God as opposed to Islam’s Allah. One crucial aspect I noticed with Anywabwile’s tactic was the importance he placed on the trinity because many Muslim’s want to suggest that Christian’s and Muslim’s worship the same God, but this is not the case. Apart from God the Father designing salvation, the Son working out salvation, and the Spirit applying salvation, there is no reconciliation.
After Anywabwile applies the gospel to Muslims, he briefs the reader what on what remember while witnessing.
Here are a few:
Use the Local Church. Allow our muslim friend to experience Christian love and community.
Trust the Bible. A common accusation against christianity is that the Bible is full of contradictions, however, this is usually a vague accusation and when the supposed “contradictions” are read in context, an easy answer is usually available.
Be Hospitable. Use hospitality to witness to your muslim friend.
I’m really glad I read The Gospel for Muslims because most of the “world religion” classes that I have taken offer overviews of Islam, but never highlight the implications of the truth of the Gospel. This short little book reassures our confidence in the gospel’s power to save Muslims. We don’t need to be a “super-saint” in order to witness to Muslims, we just need to know our own gospel.
I think the best approach I’ve heard is the “spring board” approach (as opposed to the “bridge approach”). Start with something common to all Muslims or Muslim culture, then use that to jump/dive right into the Gospel and stay there. I’ve read so many Muslim testimonies of how they wished Christians would just come out and say why they were having the conversation with them. The Bridging method can often lead to detrimental consequences. Dialogue can be somewhat acceptable, but it can’t be a means to an end. Just my thoughts on the issue.
Justin – Do you know where this book’s methods would best fit in Scott Woods ‘Scale of Contextualization’?
A friend of mine, Cassie, from my church went to Africa to do ‘True Love Waits’ this past week and was in a heavily populated muslim area. Very hostile to the gospel as well. She and a team went to go visit two missionaries who are in this part of Africa. These two missionaries are probably the only known Christians in that entire area. Though she didn’t get to say a lot about where she was for security reasons, it was SO amazing to hear how the gospel really stirred a lot of the muslim women into deep thought and wanting to know more about this gospel of Jesus Christ
Thabiti Anyabwile definitely stresses the importance of trusting in the gospel, which is exactly what my friend, Cassie, prayed and was given the strength to do. We forget so much that His Word does not return void (Isaiah 55:11).
Definitely plan to check out this book by Thabiti Anyabwile and praying for places like Fremont/Hayward, CA where the muslim community there is the largest in the entire United States.
@Arron. Thabiti’s approach is more springboard because he begins the conversation with Christianity and Islam’s posture toward truth – as in, both religions have a humble and open posture toward ultimate truth; both know that ultimate truth must be received and we’re both dependent on that.
I’m not really sure where it would fit on Scott Woods Scale of Contextualization. This is an “on your own turf” book.- It’s an encouragement to share christ with confidence, so there’s not too much contextualization going on. He just works out the gospel implications of SIn, Jesus the God man, Substitutional atonement, and the trinity. – For the most part, it just reminds us of what we stand on, Christ.
@Venchenza – that is great about your friends.
are your friends back now?
Yeah, my friend is back now