Tag: Koran

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Teachings of Mohammad and Jesus Christ

Teachings of Mohammad and Jesus Christ - Bible and Quran

One of the ongoing struggles in the world today is the conflict between the followers of Mohammad and the followers of Jesus Christ. When science forced me to realize there is a God, I had no compelling reason to believe that the God who created time, space, and matter/energy was the God of the Bible. Looking for answers, I examined the teachings of Mohammad and Jesus Christ.

I got a copy of the Koran translated into English by N. J. Dawood, a Muslim, and published by Penguin classics. My Muslim friends have told me that no English translation is valid, but recent events in Pakistan have shown that my reading was the same as the mobs in Pakistan.

In addition to some scientific errors, the Koran has teachings that denigrate women. (See Women 4:34 and the Confederate Tribes 33:51-52.) It also commands violence. For example, The Spoils 8:37-41 commands Muslims to “make war on the Christians and Jews.” In Repentance 9:4-7, 9:14, and 9:122-125, Mohammad says to “make war on the Christians and Jews who dwell among you.” Let me hasten to say that my Muslim acquaintances are as disturbed as I am with these teachings and would never participate in them. The problem is with the teachings of Mohammad, not what all Muslims do.

However, recent events in Pakistan have shown that Muslims in that part of the world follow those teachings of Mohammad. On February 14, 2022, the Associated Press reported that a mob stoned a man named Mushtaq Ahmed, whom the accused of burning a Koran. When police tried to intervene, they were stoned and injured, and Amed was killed.

In a separate incident, a couple with four children in Punjab, Pakistan, were accused of sending written text messages criticizing Mohammad. Neither of them can read or write, but the mob tortured the husband and threatened his wife with sexual assault. They put the couple in prison for seven years and gave their four children to relatives.

As a man convinced that God exists, I could not embrace a book that taught things I knew were destructive and untrue. When I read the teachings of Jesus Christ, I saw a plea for peace, love, and non-violence. He elevated women and refused to return evil for evil. I saw the striking contrast between the teachings of Mohammad and Jesus Christ.

If you have doubts about the teachings of Christ and Mohammad, I would encourage you to get a copy of the Koran and read all of it. Then read Matthew through at least chapter seven. Compare the teachings of Mohammad and Jesus Christ. I am thankful that most Muslims I know do not accept Mohammad’s call for violence, his embracing of polygamy, or the abuse of women. Although there are many good things in the Koran, it also calls for a cultural dependence on violence and servitude. It fails to deal with what can change the world and make it a better place.

We have a chart listing difficult passages in the Koran, which you can read or download HERE.

— John N. Clayton © 2022

Reference: Associated Press for 2/14/22 reported in the South Bend Tribune, page 8 A.

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Is Muhammad the Comforter?

The Quran
The Quran

As Islam becomes more dominant in America, Muslims have begun to attack Christianity and the Bible with increasing frequency. There are several videos on the web that claim that the Comforter mentioned in John 14:26 is Muhammad. The word Muhammad means “praised one” and the claim is that the original word in the Greek was “perikleitos” which means “famous everywhere” or “renowned,” but that it was corrupted into “parakletos” meaning “counselor.” So how do you and I, not being experts in Greek, answer this question?

The answer is to look at the context of the passage. You don’t have to be a Greek expert to see that this passage is not dealing with a physical human who was a military leader. In John 14:23 Jesus talks about his disciples loving God and promising that the Godhead would dwell with those who love God. He then in verse 26 tells them that He would be sending “the Comforter, which is the Holy Spirit” who would teach them all things. This statement is right after Judas had left and before Jesus was arrested. The reference is not to a claimed prophet who would live some 600 years later. (Islamic teaching is that Muhammed began getting messages from Gabriel in A.D. 610.) Verse 26 also tells us that the Comforter would come in the name of Jesus, and no Muslim would agree that Muhammad came in the name of Jesus.

Another issue is the Muslim claim that the biblical documents have been corrupted. The problem with that claim is that all of these documents were written before Muhammad was born, and copies of the manuscripts exist that are much older than A.D. 610. Complete manuscripts of John 14 dating from the third or fourth century exist. The question would have to be, “At what time were the documents corrupted?” It would have to be before the third century and yet the Quran dates to the seventh century.

It is easy for anyone to take a passage in the Bible out of context and make it say whatever they want it to say. Assaults that attempt to undo the work of Christ are all around us in the world today, but that was also true when the New Testament was written. (See Galatians 1:6-9; 2 Peter 3:1-3; 1 John 4:1).
–John N. Clayton © 2017