Learning about different religions can be quite an interesting study. I find it fascinating how people of different religions can think they believe similar things when they really don’t. They may use the same word “god”, but it means entirely different things to each group. Even within different faiths, people may have different interpretations of the same scripture and have different views about what is true and what is false. This is something that has always interested me, but I’ve never truly taken the time to study each religion in-depth.

This past Sunday, I was visiting The Rock Church in San Diego. The pastor, Miles McPherson, is going through series called “True Religion?”, where he looks at different faiths and compares them to Christianity. This past Sunday, he took a look at Islam. From my travels to Egypt, I have discovered that Islam and the Arabic language are very well meshed together. The Arabic word for god is allah. Now, the name of the Muslim god is Allah. Yet, I met Christians who believe in God and Jesus. They still used the word “Allah” for God even though the Christian God and Muslim god are not the same. It can be a bit confusing for people who don’t speak Arabic and frustrating for Christians that do. One Christian man our group met was frustrated that Americans say that Allah is bad. Yet, Allah is Jehovah God for Christians in Egypt. People need to realize what the difference is between the word allah.

What I learned about the Muslim god, Allah, and the Christian God, Jehovah, was quite eye opening. Some things that really stood out to me were:

1. Many years ago, Allah was one god of many supposed gods. Mohammed chose Allah as the one god of Islam. Yet, Allah was a pagan god before Mohammed chose him. Allah was the Moon God. It is also interesting that the Islamic symbol is a moon.Islamic symbol

2. Allah is one god while Lord God, Jehovah, is a Trinity. Miles said that Muslims think that the fact that Christians have the Trinity causes them to believe that Christianity is a polytheistic religion (the belief in more than one god). The Quran states “God has not taken to Himself any son, nor is there any god with Him: For then each god would have taken of that which he created and some of them would have risen up over others.” That is far from the truth, to those of us who are Christians. God is the Father, Son and Holy Spirit in one. Each part of the Trinity has a different function, but they are one in the same.

3. Then, there are the differences between the Muslim Allah and Jehovah God. Jesus came to Earth and died for us. He was tempted in all the things that we are tempted in, yet He did not give in to those temptations. Thus, he can relate to what we’re going through, but is our ultimate example of not giving into sin. Yet, Allah in the Muslim faith is so high above people that he cannot relate to his followers. He is not sympathetic to them because he has never come to Earth and does not suffer for them. Instead, Muslims suffer for Allah. Even though Allah is referred to in the Quran, “In the name of God, the Merciful, the Compassionate.”, there is at least one thing which Allah cannot ever forgive. It is stated that “Islam considers associating any deity or personality with God as a deadly sin which God will never forgive, despite the fact He may forgive all other sins.” Jehovah God will always forgive every sin, if the person truly comes to Him, repents and ask for forgiveness. God knows our hearts, minds and souls. He knows when we truly mean what we say and He will forgive those who truly want His forgiveness, no matter what they have done.

4. Muslims are servants to Allah and Christians are God’s children. Muslims are there to submit to Allah and to do what he says. Even getting into Heaven is a difficult task for Muslims. Where Christians follow God, believe in God and Jesus’ sacrifice, love Him and leave their old lives of sin for God in order to have eternal life in Heaven, Muslims must have more good deeds in life in order to outweigh the bad. They believe that once they die, they are judged and if they have performed more good deeds than bad, they can get into heaven. If there are more bad deeds, they cannot. To me, that’s a scary thought. I am far from perfect and am so glad that Jesus died on the cross and took upon Himself the punishment for all of the sins I have committed and will commit in my life. God doesn’t want His children to suffer. He loves us so much that He cannot bear to see people not coming to Him. That is why His invitation is always open to us to come to Him. If we come to Him, believe that God, Jesus and the Holy Spirit are who they say they are, and leave our old, sinful lives behind, we’re on our way to Heaven. We only need to do that once and we’re in. Our salvation cannot be taken away from us. We are all ultimately judged after death and pastors are held to a higher standard because they are leading the Christian “flock”, but those of us who are Christians will all be in Heaven together and worshipping God. There is no fear involved if you are a true believer. Romans 10:9-13 says

“That if you confess with your mouth, “Jesus is Lord,” and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved. For it is with your heart that you believe and are justified, and it is with your mouth that you confess and are saved. As the Scripture says, anyone who trusts in him will never be put to shame. For there is no difference between Jew and Gentile—the same Lord is Lord of all and richly blesses all who call on him, for everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.”

5. Knowledge of God is a wonderful part of the Christian faith. To know God is to be in relationship with Him. Jehovah God already knows us intimately and loves us greatly. He knows what we’re thinking and saying even before it is thought or said. He also wants us to know Him intimately. In order to do that, He gives us the Holy Bible, which reveals who He is and what His will is for us. It also tells us about the life of Jesus, whom we look to as our perfect example. We also have prayer, where we talk to God and He can also speak to us if we are willing to listen. We also have other Christian believers to point us to the Truth of God’s Word. It is so wonderful to know other, wiser Christians. We can learn so much from one another because some of us have experienced different things in life and we can share with eachother. On the flip side, Allah is unknowable. All that is really known is “That you may know that Allah is able to do all things, and that Allah knows all things.” It is believed that Allah is seated on his throne above the Earth and is looking down on everything. Thus, he knows it all, but it’s hard to know about him.

6. Allah’s love is earned while Jehovah’s love is received. Allah loves those who obey him and hates the sinner. Jehovah God loves the sinner. Since the fall of Adam and Eve, there is no way for us to be perfect, so we are all sinners. Yet, Jesus still came to Earth to die for sinners because God loves us. Since God loves us, He wants us to love Him as well. Yet, our love must be genuine. We cannot love God because we want something from Him or want to avoid going to Hell. It doesn’t work that way. He knows what we’re thinking and we can’t trick Him. Love for God is a mutual thing. He always loved us, even before we were created because we are His children. God gives us the opportunity to love Him in return and we are never prevented from doing so. Romans 5:8 says

“But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were yet sinners, Christ died for us.”

Jesus’ death gave us the greatest gift we could ever ask for. He gave us eternal life and prevented us from obtaining the wrath that our sin deserves.

I find this all quite fascinating. I want to look into this a bit more, when I have the time. I also want to check out other religions to see what they believe. I think it’s important for Christians to know what they believe themselves, but also know what other religions believe. That way, we can know where we differ instead of believing that we believe altered versions of the same thing. There’s a great book called What Christians Believe by David Hocking. It’s focuses on the basics of Christianity. The 6 chapters cover how we know the Bible is Truth, who God is , who Jesus is, the Holy Spirit, what salvation is, and the second coming of Christ. Of course, nothing can ever cover those truths better than the Bible. So, getting into the Word on a regular basis is key. I need to do the same myself, perhaps right now.