Muslim PR push

The Dominion newspaper, 4 January 2002, reads thus:
"Indonesia's two biggest Muslim organisations, Nahdlatul Ulama and the
Muhammadiyah, would join forces to promote Islam as a peaceful, protective
religion and counter its image as fierce and cruel, media reports said
yesterday."

This author recently had the opportunity to read an English
version of the Koran, and as a result, came to various conclusions about the
authorship and usefulness of that book.

Having studied the Word of God, the Bible, for many, many
years, I have discovered that it is a book, although written by 40 different
authors over a period of 1500 years in many different countries of the world, it
comes to a common conclusion: that God's plan for mankind is salvation
through the precious blood of His Son, Jesus Christ.

I was therefore amazed upon reading the Koran to discover
that it seemed to be a book without any purpose, and thus did not come to any
final conclusions. In my opinion, the god it referred to was certainly not the
God that I understand to be the Creator of Heaven and earth, and certainly not
the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, for the god referred to as Allah, never
claimed to have a son. Even the Old Testament recognises, and this, the Jews
should know, that God Himself would have a Son, who was of course, originally
called, the Word of God.

In Proverbs 30:4, we read: "Who hath ascended up into
heaven, or descended? who hath gathered the wind in his fists? who hath bound
the waters in a garment? who hath established all the ends of the earth? What
is his name, and what is his son's name, if thou canst tell?"
(emphasis added).

And again, Isaiah 9:6 - "For unto us a child is born, unto
us a son is given: and the government shall be upon his shoulder: and his name
shall be called Wonderful, Counsellor, The mighty God, The everlasting Father,
The Prince of Peace."

Now as one who is interested in spending eternity in Heaven
and not in hell, I am very interested in making the right decisions regarding my
spiritual foundations

I was very glad to pick up a book recently, entitled Ten
Muslims Meet Christ, written by William McElwee Miller, 1969, by Wn. B.
Eerdmans Pub Co., Grand Rapids, Michigan, USA., where I read the story of a
young man called Nozad, Newborn in Christ.

This man tells the story of how he came across an elderly man
over the age of 70 years of age, who told him that the book to which he paid the
most respect was the New Testament.

Without any malice whatsoever, he finally agreed to
explain to Nozad why Christ was the answer to his spiritual needs.

I quote: "I believe in God, who is the Maker of all the
worlds; in that I have no difficulties, because this creation cannot exist
without a powerful and able Maker whose existence and being are eternal. But I
have no belief in any of the persons who have made pretensions to being prophets
except Jesus. He withstands me most disconcertingly! For a long time I have
tried to resist Him, but I cannot prevail." (emphasis added).

Later on, we read: "I inquired, 'With regard to the
prophet Mohammed and the Koran, what do you say?'

He answered, 'Neither in the Koran or in Mohammed do I see
anything that I consider to be from God. Islam is founded on the sword, pillage,
blasphemy, obstinacy, selfishness, power mania and sensuality. There are to be
found in it, some sayings and precepts which were extracted Torat (SIC) (Old
Testament) and the Gospel. What we see and hear today in Islam was made up later
and written into the Book under the guise of traditions and sayings. They were
not there in the beginning. On the contrary, the purpose was world conquest,
burning of books, spreading the Arabic language, destroying the civilization of
Persia and Rome (Byzantium), plundering treasuries, raping the young women and
killing the young men, banishing the old men and silencing people, and
compelling the acknowledgement that there is no god but Allah, and Mohammed is
his Prophet -– but the essential intent was that Mohammed was the Prophet of
Allah.'

I said, 'Sir, the Koran with its greatness, is there not
something to be found in it that you acknowledge as the word of God? Perhaps you
have not studied it with care.'

He smiled and answered, 'The greater part of my life has
been spent in the study of Islamic learning; in Islam I am a religious leader
competent to practice religious jurisprudence. There is nothing in the Koran or
Islam that is hidden from me. Whatever of the verses of the Koran you wish I
will repeat from memory. I know all the traditions of the Shi'ites and the
Sunnites and the interpretations of the commentators with regard to these verses...

'Had there been any truth in Islam I would never have given
it up. I am not demented, and I am not an enemy of my own salvation. Know
this, that any person who has knowledge one-tenth as profound as mine concerning
Islam would turn from it, excepting three classes who cling to Islam:

'First, those who gain their livelihood from carrying out
its religious rituals; second, those who use religion as a means of furthering
their own ambitions, and by this means have found preferment and advancement, or
have the hope of finding them through it; third, the common people who have no
learning and who accept piously whatever they hear in their own environment
without proof or questioning. Without these three classes, Islam would not
exist.

'The Koran is a book without beginning or end, hopelessly
incoherent and bewildering. In it is the story of Solomon and Belghis (Queen
of Sheba); in it is the story of the ant and the wind, who are the emissaries of
Solomon; in it is the story of the unfortunate Zaid and his faithful wife, who
became unlawful for him, but was lawful for Mohammed; in it is the story of
Maryam the Copt who was first lawful, then unlawful, then lawful, to add to his
(Mohammed's) numerous wives; in it is the cursing of Abu Lahab; in it are
commands inculcating murder and plunder; in it are hundreds of stories devoid of
truth, unrecorded in history, contrary to logic, contrary to science, contrary
to reason, contrary to justice.

'These few points I mention as examples. You may accept it
or not as you please!'" (emphases added).

The young man, Nozad, who listened to this old teacher of the
Koran, went on to say, "I cannot describe what happened to me upon hearing
these remarks. But I knew I considered it my duty to kill him...

"After two years I became certain that his statements were
not defamatory and malicious, but were all true...

"Finally, the lamp of Islam in my heart was extinguished;
no matter how much I sought to improve the oil and trim the wick it was to no
avail...

"I had no belief in anything...

"There was nothing and nobody, and I saw myself wandering
solitary and alone in that desolate place. In a state of complete distraction I
raised my hands and said, 'O God, if thou dost exist and Jesus is from thee
and the Gospel is the remedy for the sickness of the world, guide thou me, for I
am in great perplexity! If thou art not, then I have spoken to the wind.'

Suddenly I saw above my head two spiritual forms whose
countenances and clothing were like the color of the sky, who said in loud
tones, 'God is, and Jesus is true. Of that rest assured, and come!'
Immediately they disappeared...

"All at once dejection, gloom and resentment, desperation
and hopelessness fled from me, and a new happiness full of joy and deep
tranquility took their place. In truth, I beheld myself a new man, possessing a
new life...

"From that day the Bible became, and still is, my treasury,
my riches, my library, my recreation, my joy, the remedy for my hopeless
spiritual pains, and the solution of all my difficulties. My hope, my pride, my
life, the confidence of my heart, my salvation, my faith, my absolute certainty.
My King, my Lord is Jesus Christ, who was crucified, buried, and who rose on the
third day, and sits in authority on the right hand of God, who was and is and
shall be from the beginning to the end possessed of glory, power, and might...

"This new life washed away all my tears, and took away
all my sorrows. Only one cause of grief remains in my heart: why are my fellow
countrymen without the knowledge of this grace and joy? My prayer is that God
will reveal his light to their hearts so that, putting aside their ignorance and
fanaticism, they will come to the blessing, love, and salvation that is given
freely and gratuitously to every person who seeks it, in order that all may be
the possessors of eternal life...

"O fellow creatures! Be aware that the salvation of God is
free and eternal. Do not sell it cheaply. Do not barter it for things of the
world. Do not be negligent.

Life is like a swift-winged dove darting to its final resting
place...

"Ask yourself one question: Where are you going, toward
death or toward life?

One thing I will say: the wellspring of life and salvation is
Christ; you may accept it, or you may reject it.

My prayer is that God will direct the rays of his
enlightenment into your heart. Amen." (emphasis added).

Rajab Ali Nozad died in 1944, trusting in Christ.

Having read the Koran and the history of the Moslem religion,
I am now convinced that very few Moslem people actually read the book and
therefore know little about it, just as many who claim to be Christians never
read the Bible and also know very little about it.

The writer of this article holds no malice in his heart
toward any person or religion but longs that all may come to know Jesus Christ
and His salvation.

I then turn to the words of Jesus in John 6:40 and read the
following:

"And this is the will of him that sent me, that every one
which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have everlasting life: and I will
raise him up at the last day." (emphasis added).