http://www.answering-christianity.com/being_like_the_teacher.pdf

Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him was foretold in the Bible:

The sections here are:

1-  In the New Testament.
2-  In the Book of Isaiah.
3-  In other Books in the Bible, and other Biblical Prophets proving Islam.
4-  The "lost people of Israel" are the people of Afghanistan and Kashmir today.  See proofs from the Bible and History.  Cities were mentioned and documented.
5-  Muhammad is mentioned by the exact name in the Gospel of Barnabas.
6-  Rebuttals.



1-  In the New Testament:

Being like the teacher.  An 11-page PDF file above that contains sample proofs from Aramaic showing that the word 'Muslim' was mentioned by Jesus himself.
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Muhammad was predicted to come in the Gospel of John:

Just a quick note, the Arabic word "Muhammad" is an expression which means "The honorable one" or "The glorified one" or "The admirable".  Prophet Muhammad was the first in the Middle East to be named "Muhammad".  Below, you will see how Jesus in today's Gospel of John had called this human Prophet which he predicted his comming "The honorable one".

Jesus in the Greek Bible used the Greek word "Periklytos" which means the admirable or glorified one. He called that predicted human prophet "Periklytos".  This word corresponds exactly to the Arabic word "Muhammad" which also means the "admired one" or "glorified one." In other words, "Periklytos" is "Muhammad" in Greek.

Let us start,

In the Bible we can find the following four passages wherein Jesus (peace be upon him) predicts a great event:

John 14:16 "And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you for ever"

John 15:26 "But when the Comforter is come, whom I will send unto you from the Father, [even] the Spirit of truth, which proceedeth from the Father, he shall testify of me"

John 14:26 "But the Comforter, [which is] the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send in my name, he shall teach you all things, and bring all things to your remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you."

John 16:7-14 "Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you."

In these four verses, the word "comforter" is translated from the word "Paraclete" ("Ho Parakletos" in Greek). Parakletos in Greek is interpreted as "an advocate", one who pleads the cause of another, one who councils or advises another from deep concern for the other's welfare (Beacon Bible commentary volume VII, p.168). In these verses we are told that once Jesus (peace be upon him) departs, a Paraclete will come. He will glorify Jesus (peace be upon him), and he will guide mankind into all truth. This "Paraclete" is identified in John 14:26 as the Holy Ghost.

It must be pointed out that the original Greek manuscripts speak of a "Holy pneuma." The word pneuma {pnyoo'-mah} is the Greek root word for "spirit." There is no separate word for "Ghost" in the Greek manuscripts, of which there are claimed to be over 24,000 today. The translators of the King James Version of the Bible translate this word as "Ghost" to convey their own personal understanding of the text. However, a more accurate translation is "Holy Spirit." More faithful and recent translations of the Bible, such as the New Revised Standard Version (NRSV), do indeed now translate it as "Holy Spirit." This is significant, and will be expounded upon shortly.

All Bibles in existence today are compiled from "ancient manuscripts," the most ancient of which being those of the fourth century C.E. Any scholar of the Bible will tell us that no two ancient manuscripts are exactly identical. All Bibles in our possession today are the result of extensive cutting and pasting from these various manuscripts with no single one being the definitive reference.

What the translators of the Bible have done when presented with such discrepancies is to do their best to choose the correct version. In other words, since they can not know which "ancient manuscript" is the correct one, they must do a little detective work on the text in order to decide which "version" of a given verse to accept. John 14:26 is just such an example of such selection techniques.

John 14:26 is the only verse of the Bible which associates the Parakletos with the Holy Spirit. But if we were to go back to the "ancient manuscripts" themselves, we would find that they are not all in agreement that the "Parakletos" is the Holy Spirit. For instance, in the famous the Codex Syriacus, written around the fifth century C.E., and discovered in 1812 on Mount Sinai by Mrs.Agnes S. Lewis (and Mrs. Bensley), the text of 14:26 reads; "Paraclete, the Spirit"; and not "Paraclete, the Holy Spirit.".



The Human Prophet A "Spirit" in the New Testament is a human Prophet.   Therefore, Jesus had predicted the comming of a human Prophet (spirit) after him and not the Holy Spirit.  Jesus would not have used the word "he" for the Holy Spirit.  He would have used "it" instead in John 14:26 above.   Read 1 John 4:1-3 below:
"Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world," (1 John 4:1-3)

(also see 1 John 4:6), or an inspired human, for example read 1 Corinthians 2:10, 2 Thessalonians 2:2, , etc.




There had been many cases of deliberate modification of the Biblical text by members of the Christian clergy themselves, as well as deliberate large scale projects to "correct" the Bible, and the writings of "the early fathers," (such as the deliberate insertion of the verse of 1 John 5:7 which is now universally discarded) It is, therefore, possible that either:

1) The word "Holy" could have been dropped by a careless copyist., or

2) Someone could have inserted the word "Holy" to convey his personal understanding of the text.

Which was it? In order to arrive at the answer we must follow the same path of detective work the Biblical scholars themselves do. We must study the characteristics of the "Paraclete" and compare them to both the "Holy Spirit" and to a "Spirit." Muslims believe that Muhammad (peace be upon him) was the one intended and not the Holy Ghost. In the Christian's own "Gospel of Barnabas" Muhammad is mentioned by name here. The Trinitarian church, however, has done its utmost to obliterate all existing copies of "The Gospel of Barnabas," and to hide it from the masses or to label it a forgery (see chapter 7). For this reason, it becomes necessary to show that even the Gospels adopted by Paul's church also originally spoke of Muhammad (peace be upon him).



1) Christian scholars see evidence of tampering, especailly with the word "Spirit":  

In the famous "Anchor Bible" we find the following quote: "The word parakletos is peculiar in the NT to the Johnannine literature. In John ii Jesus is a parakletos (not a title), serving as a heavenly intercessor with the Father , Christian tradition has identified this figure (Paraclete) as the Holy Spirit, but scholars like Spitta, Delafosse, Windisch, Sasse, Bultmann, and Betz have doubted whether this identification is true to the original picture and have suggested that the Paraclete was once an independent salvific figure, later confused with the Holy Spirit." (The Anchor Bible, Doubleday & Company, Inc, Garden City, N.Y. 1970, Volume 29A, p. 1135)

We are about to see some of the evidence that goes to prove this position.



2) Does the Holy Spirit "speak" or "inspire":

Important Note:   The Greek word translated as "hear" in the Biblical verses ("whatsoever he shall hear, that shall he speak" is the Greek word "akouo" {ak-oo'-o} meaning to perceive sounds. It has, for instance, given us the word "acoustics," the science of sounds. Similarly the verb "to speak" is the Greek verb "laleo" {lal-eh'-o} which has the general meaning "to emit sounds" and the specific meaning "to speak." This verb occurs very frequently in the Greek text of the Gospels. It designates a solemn declaration by Jesus (peace be upon him) during his preachings (For example Matthew 9:18). Obviously these verbs require hearing and speech organs in order to facilitate them. There is a distinct difference between someone "inspiring" something and him "speaking" something. So the Paraclete will "hear" and "speak," not "inspire."

Muhammad (peace be upon him), as seen above, did indeed fulfill this prophesy. Whatsoever he "HEARD" from Gabriel (The Qur'an), the same did he physically "SPEAK" to his followers. In the Qur'an we read:

"(God swears) By the star when it falls!: Your comrade (Muhammad) errs not, nor is he deceived; Nor does he speak of (his own) desire. It is naught save a revelation that is revealed (unto him)." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Najm(53):1-4)



3) The Holy Ghost was already with them:

In the above verses we read "if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you." The comforter can not be the Holy Ghost because the Holy Ghost (according to the Bible) was "with" them already (and even quite active) long before the coming of Jesus (peace be upon him) himself and then throughout his ministry. Read for example.

Genesis 1:2 "And the earth was without form, and void; and darkness [was] upon the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God moved upon the face of the waters."

1 Samuel 10:10 "And when they came thither to the hill, behold, a company of prophets met him; and the Spirit of God came upon him, and he prophesied among them."

1 Samuel 11:6 "And the Spirit of God came upon Saul when he heard those tidings, and his anger was kindled greatly."

"Then he remembered the days of old, Moses, and his people, saying, Where is he that brought them up out of the sea with the shepherd of his flock? where is he that put his holy Spirit within him?" (Isaiah 63:11)

"For he (John the Baptist) shall be great in the sight of the Lord, and shall drink neither wine nor strong drink; and he shall be filled with the Holy Ghost, even from his mother's womb." (Luke 1:15)

"And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee." (Luke 1:35)

"And it came to pass, that, when Elisabeth heard the salutation of Mary, the babe leaped in her womb; and Elisabeth was filled with the Holy Ghost" (Luke 1:41)

"And his father Zacharias was filled with the Holy Ghost, and prophesied, saying," (Luke 1:67)

"And, behold, there was a man in Jerusalem, whose name was Simeon; and the same man was just and devout, waiting for the consolation of Israel: and the Holy Ghost was upon him." (Luke 2:25)

"And it was revealed unto him by the Holy Ghost (Simeon), that he should not see death, before he had seen the Lord's Christ." (Luke 2:26)

"And the Holy Ghost descended in a bodily shape like a dove upon him (Jesus), and a voice came from heaven, which said, Thou art my beloved Son; in thee I am well pleased." (Luke 3:22)

"Then said Jesus to them again, Peace be unto you: as my Father hath sent me, even so send I you. And when he had said this, he breathed on them, and saith unto them, Receive ye the Holy Ghost." (John 20:21-22)

Did they or did they not already receive the Holy Ghost? Was Jesus (peace be upon him) not still with them when they received the Holy Ghost? Was the Holy Ghost not with Simeon, Mary, Elisabeth and Zacharias before the birth of Jesus (peace be upon him)? Was the Holy Ghost not with Moses (peace be upon him) when he parted the seas? There are many more similar verses to be found in the Bible. In the above verses, we are told that if Jesus (peace be upon him) does not depart then the "parakletos" will not come. Thus, the "Holy Ghost" cannot be the one originally intended since it was already with them. The contradiction is quite obvious.



4) Selective translation: Jesus (peace be upon him) too is a Paraclete:

The word "Paraclete" is applied to Jesus (peace be upon him) himself in 1 John 2:1

"My little children, these things write I unto you, that ye sin not. And if any man sin, we have an advocate(parakletos) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous." (1 John 2:1)

Notice how the translators have managed to translate this exact same word one way (advocate) in reference to Jesus (peace be upon him) and another (comforter) with regard to the coming "parakletos." Why would they want to do such a thing? The reason is that the translators did not want the Christians, after reading

"we have an advocate(parakletos) with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous"

to then read

"And I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another advocate(parakletos)."

Can we see why this would make them nervous?

Well, what was Jesus (peace be upon him)? He was a prophet! Read:

", This is Jesus the prophet of Nazareth of Galilee." (Matthew 21:11) and ", Jesus of Nazareth, which was a prophet mighty in deed and word before God and all the people" (Luke 24:19.

Muhammad (peace be upon him) was also a prophet of God. We have already demonstrate in chapter one how the verses of the Bible themselves prove quite conclusively that Jesus (peace be upon him) was neither a god nor part of God Almighty, but an elect messenger of God. The concept of his divinity was concocted by Paul and his ministry during the first three centuries after the departure of Jesus (peace be upon him) and is explicitly refuted by the Bible itself and Jesus' apostles.



5) "Another" Paraclete:

Now go back to John 14:16 and notice the words "another Paraclete." If the comforter is the Holy Ghost then how many Holy Ghost's are there? The word "another" is significant. We have already seen how this term is applied to Jesus (peace be upon him) himself. In English, "another" may mean "One more of the same kind" or "one more of a different kind." If the latter were the one intended then the current Christian interpretation might bear some merit. However, if "One more of the same kind" was what was intended then this is positive proof that the coming Paraclete would be just like Jesus (peace be upon him), a human being and a prophet, not a ghost. The actual Greek word used was the word "allon" which is the masculine accusative form of "allos" {al'-los}: "Another of the SAME kind." The Greek word for "another of a different kind" is "heteros" {het'-er-os}.

Prof. Abdul-Ahad Dawud (formerly Rev. David Benjamin Keldani, Bishop of Uramia) says:

"The adjective 'another' preceding a foreign noun for the first time announced seems very strange and totally superfluous. There is no doubt that the text has been tampered with and distorted." (Muhammad in the Bible, Prof. Abdul-`Ahad Dawud, p. 211)

"The Paraclete is a parallel figure to Jesus himself; and this conclusion is confirmed in the fact that the title is suitable for both. It is clear from 14:16 that the source thought there were sendings of two Paracletes, Jesus and his successor, the one following the other" (The Gospel of John a Commentary, Rudolf Bultmann, p. 567)



6) "Parakletos" or "Periklytos"?:

VERY IMPORTANT NOTE:  Some scholars believe that what Jesus (peace be upon him) said in his own Aramaic tongue in these verses represents more closely the Greek word "Periklytos" which means the admirable or glorified one. This word corresponds exactly to the Arabic word "Muhammad" which also means the "admired one" or "glorified one." In other words, "Periklytos" is "Muhammad" in Greek. There are several similar documented cases of similar word substitution in the Bible. It is also quite possible that both words were contained in the original text but were dropped by a copyist because of the ancient custom of writing words closely packed, with no spaces in-between them. In such a case the original reading would have been: "and He will give you another comforter(Parakletos), the admirable one(Periklytos)" (See examples of many similar cases in the Biblical text in "The Emphatic Diaglott".

In his book "Muhammed in the Bible", Professor `Abdul-Ahad Dawud, formerly Rev. David Benjamin Keldani, Roman Catholic Bishop of Uramiah, submits a much more eloquent and scholarly presentation in defense of these assertions, far beyond the limited abilities of this humble author. For those who which to read a truly scholarly study of this matter, you may obtain a copy of that book. The following is a very brief quotation from that book:

"The 'Paraclete' does not signify either 'consoler' or 'advocate'; in truth, it is not a classical word at all. The Greek orthography of the word is Paraklytos which in ecclesiastical literature is made to mean 'one called to aid, advocate, intercessor' (Dict. Grec.-Francais, by Alexandre). One need not profess to be a Greek scholar to know that the Greek word for 'comforter or consoler' is not 'Paraclytos' but 'Paracalon'. I have no Greek version of the Septuagint with me, but I remember perfectly well that the Hebrew word for 'comforter' (mnahem) in the Lamentations of Jeremiah (I. 2, 9, 16, 17, 21, etc.) is translated into Parakaloon, from the verb Parakaloo, which means to call to, invite, exhort, console, pray, invoke. It should be noticed that there is a long alpha vowel after the consonant kappa in the 'Paracalon' which does not exist in the 'Paraclytos.' In the phrase (He who consoles us in all our afflictions) 'paracalon' and not 'Paraclytos' is used. (I exhort, or invite, thee to work). Many other examples can be cited here. There is another Greek word for comforter or consoler, i.e. "Parygorytys' from 'I console', The proper Greek term for 'advocate' is Sunegorus and for 'intercessor' or 'mediator' Meditea"  (Muhammad in the Bible, Prof. Abdul-`Ahad Dawud, pp. 208-209)

God Almighty describes His final prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) in the noble Qur'an with the following words:

"And We (God) have not sent you (O Muhammad) but as a mercy to all creation" (The noble Qur'an, Al-Anbiya(21):107)

"Verily, there has come unto you a messenger (Muhammad) from among yourselves. It grieves him that you should endure hardship. [He is] fearful for you. For the believers [he is] full of pity, merciful." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Tawba(9):128)



7) "He" not "It":

Notice the use of "he" when referring to the Paraclete and not "it." If we read John 16:13, we will find no less than SEVEN occurrences of the masculine pronoun "He" and "Himself." There is not another verse in the 66 books of the Protestant Bible or the seventy three books of the Catholic Bible which contains seven masculine pronouns, or seven feminine pronouns, or even seven neuter genders. So many masculine pronouns ill befits a ghost, holy or otherwise. The word "Spirit" (Greek, pneu'ma), is of a neutral gender and is always referred to by the pronoun "it."

Mr. Ahmed Deedat says:

"When this point of seven masculine pronouns was mooted by Muslims in India in their debates with the Christian missionaries, the Urdu (Indian) version of the Bible had the pronouns presently changed to SHE, SHE, SHE! so that the Muslims could not claim that this prophecy referred to Muhammad (peace be upon him) - a man! This Christian deception I have seen in the Bible myself. This is a common trickery by the missionaries, more specially in the vernacular. The very latest ruse I have stumbled across in the Afrikaans Bible, on the very verse under discussion; they have changed the word "Trooster" (Comforter), to "Voorspraak" (Mediator), and interpolated the phrase - "die Heilige Gees" - meaning THE HOLY GHOST, which phrase no Bible scholar has ever dared to interpolate into any of the multifarious English Versions. No, not even the Jehovah's witnesses. This is how the Christians manufacture God's word."

"Muhammad, the natural successor to Christ," Ahmed Deedat, p. 51



He will guide you into all truth:

In the above verses Jesus (peace be upon him) is quoted as saying "I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth." What does Jesus (peace be upon him) mean by "ye cannot bear them now"? If we were to read the Bible, we would find many verses throughout the Bible wherein Jesus (peace be upon him) bemoans the lack of understanding he was constantly greeted with from his disciples throughout his ministry:

"And he(Jesus) saith unto them(the disciples), O ye of little faith." (Matthew 8:26)

", and (Jesus) said unto him(Peter), O thou of little faith." (Matthew 14:31)

"he (Jesus) said unto them(the disciples), O ye of little faith." (Matthew 16:

"And he(Jesus) said unto them(the disciples), Where is your faith?" (Luke 8:25)

Notice that these are not common Jews who he is saying these words to, but his own elect disciples. The Bible vividly illustrates how he is constantly going out of his way to simplify matters for them and to speak to them as one speaks to little children. However, even at that, they still misunderstand. He is finally driven to frustration and made to say:

"And Jesus said, Are ye even yet without understanding?" (Matthew 15:16)

and "And Jesus answering said, O faithless and perverse generation, how long shall I be with you, and suffer you?" (Luke 9:41)



9) We are even told that his own people did not accept him:

"He came unto his own, and his own received him not." (John 1:11)

Jesus (peace be upon him) had "all truth," but he could not give it to them because they were not fit to receive it. Therefore, he told them that another would come after him who shall guide them into "all truth" which they could not receive from him. He tells us that the one who will come will "teach you all things." This one who will guide them into "all truth" is described as "The spirit of truth." We have already seen how the word "spirit" in the Bible is synonymous with the word "Prophet." Muhammad (peace be upon him), even before he became the prophet of Islam was known among his people as "Al-sadik Al-amin," which means "The truthful, the trustworthy." Thus, it becomes apparent that Muhammad was indeed "the spirit of truth." Since the departure of Jesus (peace be upon him) and to this day, the "Holy Ghost" has not taught mankind a single new truth not revealed by Jesus (peace be upon him) himself.

It is important to notice the words "ALL truth" and "MANY things." "Many" and "All" means more than one. What new and innovative teachings has the Holy Ghost given mankind which were not taught by Jesus (peace be upon him)? The Qur'an says:

"O mankind! The messenger (Muhammad) hath come unto you with the truth from your Lord. Therefore believe; (it is) better for you. But if ye disbelieve, still, lo! unto Allah belongeth whatsoever is in the heavens and the earth. Allah is the All-Knower, the All-Wise." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Nissa(4):120)

"We (God) have sent you (O Muhammad) with the Truth, as a bringer of glad tidings and a warner." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Baqarah(2):119)

"Those are the Verses of Allah. We recite them upon you (O Muhammad) in Truth. And verily, you are among the messengers." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Baqarah(2):252)



10) Sin, righteousness, and error:

The coming Paraclete, we are told, will demonstrate the error of the world regarding sin, righteousness, and judgment "he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment." This is indeed what Muhammad (peace be upon him) did. He came to the world to show them how they had been misguided in "sin" by believing that mankind can inherit sin (see last quarter of chapter one, and Ezekiel 18:19-20) and that someone's sin can be forgiven by the sacrifice of others. He also showed them how they had been misguided in "righteousness" by believing that a righteous person is one who has "faith" in the crucifixion and does nothing else (Romans 3:28), or who believes that another man's death will make him a righteous person (Romans 5:19). And they were misguided in "judgment" by believing that they will be judged by "faith" and other people's deeds and not their own deeds (Mark 16:16), or that God's "judgment" was to punish all mankind for the sin of one man (Romans 5:16, 5:18).

Muhammad (peace be upon him) taught that the unscrupulous had altered the words of Jesus (peace be upon him). He taught that no one will be held accountable by God for anyone else's sin. He emphasized that God has made this a life of work and the next life one of reward and no work. He also revealed that mankind will be judged individually according to their own individual faith and actions and no one else's.



11) That he may abide with you for ever:

In these verses, Jesus (peace be upon him) is quoted as saying that the coming Paraclete will "abide with you forever." What does he mean by this? In order to understand this statement, let us read

"Verily, verily, I say unto you, If a man keep my saying, he shall never see death. Then said the Jews unto him, Now we know that thou hast a devil. Abraham is dead, and the prophets; and thou sayest, If a man keep my saying, he shall never taste of death. Art thou greater than our father Abraham, which is dead? and the prophets are dead: whom makest thou thyself? Jesus answered, If I honor myself, my honor is nothing: it is my Father that honoureth me; of whom ye say, that he is your God: Yet ye have not known him; but I know him: and if I should say, I know him not, I shall be a liar like unto you: but I know him, and keep his saying." (John 8:51-55)

and also

"And I (Jesus) give unto them (the believers) eternal life; and they shall never perish, neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand." (John 10:28)

and "and my servant David [shall be] their prince forever." (Ezekiel 37:25).

and "The king shall joy in thy strength, O LORD , He asked life of thee, [and] thou gavest [it] him, [even] length of days for ever and ever." (Psalm 21:1-4)

Jesus (peace be upon him) is quoted many times in the Bible as telling his followers that they will never taste death. However, there is not a single one of them alive to this day. Was he lying? Of course not! As seen above, Jesus' (peace be upon him) was not telling mankind that his followers would never grow old nor die, rather he was speaking about their second life in the hereafter. He was telling them that the life that we hold so dear and spend so much time fretting over and striving to improve is all but insignificant if compared to the true life, the afterlife. So much so that life and death on this earth is unworthy of consideration. Everything in his estimation revolved around an eternal striving for the reward of the afterlife and this was the yardstick by which all matters were to be measured.

In a similar manner, when king David is described as being a prince forever, this did not mean that he would never die but remain immortal for ever and ever as a prince to Israel. Rather, his teachings, name, and guidance shall remain as a shining beacon to mankind even after his death. In this manner, Jesus (peace be upon him) lives among us through his faith and teachings, prophet Abraham (peace be upon him) lives on among them and us through his faith and teachings, and so too, the coming Paraclete will live eternally with us through his faith and teachings.

Very important:  The Paracletos will be the last prophet, because he will "abide with you forever" and "he will guide you into all truth" (Greek "into the whole truth" and "he shall teach you all things," so there will be no need for any further prophets. In the Qur'an we read:

"Muhammad is not the father of any man among you, but he is the messenger of Allah and the Seal of the Prophets; and Allah is Aware of all things." (The noble Qur'an, , al-Ahzab(33):40)

And "This day have I (God) perfected your religion for you (mankind) and completed My favor unto you, and have chosen for you as religion Islam(the submission)." (The noble Qur'an, al-Maidah(5):3)

So the religion of Islam is the last message to mankind and it, as well as the Qur'an, will abide with them forever. To this day, Muhammad (peace be upon him) abides with us through his teachings. Muhammad (peace be upon him) indeed remains alive and well among us in the vast collection of over 9,500 quotations recorded from him during his lifetime in a broad range of topics. This collection of quotations is named the "Hadeeth." To this day, whenever a Muslims wishes to perform any action no matter how trivial, he does not advance a single step before first consulting Allah/God (in the Qur'an), and then prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) (in the Hadeeth). Be it a question on how and what to eat or drink, how to perform marriages, how to pray, what sort of trade or commerce is permissible or prohibited, or what sort of clothes to wear, no Muslim presumes to undertake any action before first obtaining the approval of God then His prophet. Muhammad (peace be upon him) truly is alive and well among us.

Jesus (peace be upon him) had "the whole truth" and had many things he longed to teach his disciples but he could not give it to them because they "cannot bear them now." These matters would only be revealed six centuries later by God through the agency of Muhammad (peace be upon him). What new truths has the Holy Spirit guided us into after the departure of Jesus (peace be upon him) which Jesus (peace be upon him) had no say in?



12) He shall not speak of himself:

"For he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak:" This too is an interesting statement. It reminds us of the verses of Deuteronomy 18:18-19 which shall be discussed soon, specifically:

" I will raise them up a Prophet from among their brethren, like unto thee, and will put my words in his mouth; and he shall speak unto them all that I shall command him. And it shall come to pass, [that] whosoever will not hearken unto my words which he shall speak in my name, I will require [it] of him." (Deuteronomy 18:18-19)

It is also interesting to read the words of the Qur'an:

"Nor does he (Muhammad) speak of his own desire. It is but an Inspiration that is inspired [unto him]" (The noble Qur'an, Al-Najm(53):3-4)



13) He shall bring all things into your remembrance:

The prophesy of this coming Paraclete requires that he shall remind mankind of the words of Jesus. Jesus is speaking here not to those who disbelieved, but to his own followers. He is telling his followers that the Paraclete shall "remind" them of the message of Jesus. However, if the followers of Jesus already know and remember all that Jesus taught then how shall the Paraclete "remind" them of something which they already remember? Obviously, the coming Paraclete shall come in a time when the teachings of Jesus have been forgotten and require one to "remind" Jesus' followers of them. Indeed, the Qur'an does in fact confirm this same situation. We read:

"And from those who said: "We are Christians," We took their covenant, but they forgot a good part of the message which was sent to them. Therefore We have stirred up enmity and hatred among them till the Day of Resurrection, and Allah will inform them of what they used to do. O people of the Scripture! Now has Our messenger (Muhammad) come to you, explaining to you much of that which you used to hide in the Scripture, and forgiving much. Indeed, there has come to you a light from Allah and a plain Scripture. Wherewith Allah guides him who seeks His good pleasure unto paths of peace. He brings them out of darkness by His will into light, and guides them to a straight path." (The noble Qur'an, Al-Maidah(5):14-16)

It is further important to note that one of the names of the Qur'an is "Al-Thikr" (The Reminder). For example:

"Verily, it is We who have sent down 'The Reminder' and it is We who shall preserve it" (The noble Qur'an, Al-Hijr(15):9)

(also see Al-Sajda(41):41, and Al-Qalam(68):51)



14) He will show you things to come:

There were many prophesies made in the Qur'an and in the Sunnah (tradition) of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) himself. For instance, in the opening verses of the chapter of al-Room (The Romans), we read:

"The Romans have been defeated. In the lowest/closest land, and they, after their defeat will be victorious. Within ten years. Allah's is the command in the former case and in the latter and in that day the believers will rejoice. In Allah's support to victory. He helps to victory whom He will. He is the Mighty, the Merciful. It is a promise of Allah. Allah fails not His promise, but most of mankind know not. They know only some appearance of the life of the world, and are heedless of the Hereafter" (The noble Qur'an, Al-Room(30):2-6)

When Islam was still in its infancy and its followers were being severely persecuted, tortured, and killed by the pagan idol worshipers of Arabia (Quraish), there were two "Superpowers" near by. They were the Romans and the Persians. The pagans of Arabia used to like to see the Persians victorious against the Romans because the Persians were pagans like them. However, the Muslims liked to see the Romans victorious because they were "people of the book." About this time, the Romans suffered a resounding defeat to the Persians that seemed to signal the end of the Roman empire. The pagans of Arabia were ecstatic. They went out of their way to hold this defeat over the heads of every Muslim they would encounter. They said: "Just as the Christians in Rome have been crushed by the pagans of Persia, so shall we crush you." This was psychological warfare against the Muslims which they were adding to the physical torture they were subjecting the Muslims to. It was at this time that these verses were revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him) consoling him and the Muslims in general that matters were not as they seemed, and that the Romans would come back and defeat the Persians within "Bidh'u" years. "Bidh'u" is an Arabic word that means "between three and nine." This prophesy did indeed come true and the Romans were once again victorious against the Persians, at the same time, the Muslims achieved their first strategic victory against the pagans of Arabia in the battle of Badr. Mr. Abdullah Yusuf Ali, in his commentary on the Qur'an narrates the following explanation of the above verses:

"The remarkable defeats of the Roman Empire under Heraclius and the straits to which it was reduced are reviewed in Appendix No. 6 (to follow this Sura). It was not merely isolated defeats; the Roman Empire lost most of its Asiatic territory and was hemmed in on all sides at its capital, Constantinople. The defeat, "in a land close by" must refer to Syria and Palestine, Jerusalem was lost in 614-15 AD, shortly before this Sura was revealed.

The Pagan Quraish of Makkah rejoiced at the overthrow of Rome by Persia. They were pro-Persian, and in their heart of hearts they hoped that the nascent movement of Islam, which at that time was, from a worldly point of view, very weak and helpless, would also collapse under their persecution. But they misread the true Signs of the times. They are told here that they would soon be disillusioned in both their calculations, and it actually so happened at the battle of Issus in 622 (the year of Hijrat) and in 624, when Heradius carried his campaign into the heart of Persia (see Appendix No: 6) and the Makkan Quraish were beaten off at Badr.

Bidh'un in the text means a short period-a period of from three to nine years. The period between the loss of Jerusalem (614-15) by the Romans and their victory at Issus (622) was seven years, and that to the penetration of Persia by Heraclius was nine years. See last note.

The battle of Badr (2 A.H. = 624 AD) was a real time of rejoicing for the Believers and a time of disillusionment for the arrogant Quraish, who thought that they could crush the whole movement of Islam in Madinah as they had tried to do in Makkah, but they were singly repulsed."

There were many other prophesies made by the Qur'an which, without exception, all came true. Some Christians whom I have the the pleasure of speaking to on this topic have attempted to trivialize this and other prophesies of prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) which such words as:

"I want a list of [prophet Muhammad's] prophesies and I hope they are not easy prophesies such as a prediction of the outcome of a war which have almost 50-50 chances, but actual supernatural revelation which no man can predict unless he is told by God himself."

Such statements are a result of a general unfamiliarity with the details of these prophesies and the situation surrounding them. For example, regarding the above prophesy, when this verse was first revealed to Muhammad (peace be upon him) by the Almighty, the Roman Empire was at that time believed by everyone to be on the verge of utter collapse before the advancing Persian forces. After the Persian's final crippling moral and physical defeat of the Romans wherein they took from them the very capital of their faith, all onlookers believed it to be the beginning of the end for the Romans. It was at this time that this verse was revealed wherein the whole message of Islam and the truthfulness of prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) were placed in the balance. Not only did this verse directly oppose what everyone else believed, however, it even specified the timeframe when this prophesy was to occur.

Some prophecies from Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him):

This was not the only prophesy made by the final messenger of God, Muhammad (peace be upon him), rather there were many more such as the time when 10,000 of the troops of the pagan army of Quraish were advancing upon his city to utterly destroy him and his followers (in 'The Battle of the Trench' ) and he and about 3000 of his followers were preparing as best they could to stave off this attack by digging a trench. While prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) was digging with them he made a number of prophesies including the Muslim's capture of Al-Yemen, Al-Sham (Jerusalem, Iraq, etc.), Morrocco, Persia, and the Eastern countries. All of this was said by him while many of the Muslims were expecting to be totally destroyed at any minute by the advancing army which vastly outnumbered them and was much better armed.

Another example would be that of Al-Israa(17):7. Then there was also the prophesy made by Muhammad a couple of years before his death that before he would die Makkah, the capital of pagan Arabia, would be captured by the Muslims. This prophesy too came true. On another occation, the prophet was sitting in a garden. Uthmaan ibn Affan walked in and the prophet asked Abu Musa Al-Ashari to give him glad tidings that he shall be of the people of Paradise and to further inform him that the people would mutiny against him. This prophecy was fulfilled many years after the death of the prophet (peace be upon him) when Uthman became the third Caliph and was murdered shortly therafter when a party of the citizens rose against him and slew him.

Ali ibn Abi Talib, the fourth Caliph, had also been informed by the Prophet of his assassination in such detail that he knew the man who was going to kill him, and identified him pointing him out to the people. They asked Ali why he did not kill the man and he replied: "Then who will kill me?" The night preceding his assassination Ali came out, gazed at the sky and said: "By Allah the prophet (peace be upon him) never told a lie, nor was a lie ever told to him." The next day the same man killed Ali, as the prophet had predicted.

Safinah narrated that the Prophet (peace be upon him) said: The Caliphate of Prophecy will last thirty years; then Allah will give the rule of His Kingdom to whomever He wills." (narrated by Abu-Dawood). This was indeed the length of the Caliphate after the death of the prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). After that, the rule of monarchies replaced the rule of the Caliphate.

The Prophet also predicted the division of the Muslims into many sects, and how some people would do to Ali what the Christians did to Jesus. This clearly refers to the Shi'its, who exaggerate the love and praise of Ali to such a degree that one of their sects, Al-Nusaria, actually worship him as the manifestation of Allah.

Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) further predicted the capture of Egypt, and commanded his followers when this were to occur that they should treat the people well. He further prophesied that the Muslims would overthrow the Persian Empire and seize the treasures of the their Emperor Choseros. He also told one of the companions by the name of Suraqa bin Malik that he would be given the bracelets of Caesar. Many years after the death of the prophet, these bracelets fell into the possession of Umar ibn Al-Khattab and he called upon Suraqa and placed the bracelets on his arms, reminding him of the prophet's words.

Awf ibn Malik narrated in Sahih Al-Bukhari:

"I went to the Prophet (peace be upon him) during the battle of Tabuk while he was sitting in a leather tent. He said, 'Count six signs that indicate the approach of the [final] Hour: 1) My death; 2) The conquest of Jerusalem; 3) A plague that will afflict you (and kill you in great numbers) as the plague that afflicts sheep; 4) The increase of wealth to such an extent that even if one is given one-hundred Dinars, he will not be satisfied; 5) Then an affliction which no Arab house will escape; 6) And then a truce between you and Banu al-Asfar (i.e. the Byzantines, or Christians) who will betray you and attack you under eighty flags. Under each flag will be twelve thousand soldiers.'"

The prophesies are many and varied. Some of them deal with what the financial situation of the Muslims shall be after him, some deal with what their moral and religious situation shall be, some deal with upcoming battles, some deal with trials and the anti-Christ and the coming of Gog and Magog. Some deal with the second coming of Jesus (peace be upon him), and many other issues which can not be dealt with here. However, I shall leave it up to the interested student to research this topic in order to verify its authenticity. Two useful references on this topic are:

1.Ashrat Al-Sa'a (The signs of the hour), by Yusuf Al-Wabil, and

2.It'haf Al-Jama'ah Bima Ja'a fi Al-Fitan Wa Al-Malahim Wa Ashrat Al-Sa'a, By Humood Abdullah Al-Tuwaijiri



15) The most knowledgeable Christians recognize the Paraclete as Muhammad:

"And if you (Muhammad) are in doubt concerning that which We have revealed unto you, then ask those who read the Scripture (that was) before you. Verily the Truth has come unto you from your Lord, so do not be among those who waver." (The noble Qur'an, Yunus(10):94)

Throughout history, there have been a number of Christian scholars who have come to recognize the truth of the prophesy of Jesus (peace be upon him) and that it originally referred to prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him). Anselm Turmeda, a priest and Christian scholar was one such person. After recognizing the last prophet of God and embrasing Islam he wrote a famous book titled "Tuhfat al-arib fi al-radd 'ala Ahl al-Salib." In the introduction to this work he relates his history:

"Let it be known to all of you that my origin is from the city of Majorca, which is a great city on the sea, between two mountains and divided by a small valley. It is a commercial city, with two wonderful harbours. Big merchant ships come and anchor in the harbour with different goods. The city is on the island which has the same name - Majorca, and most of its land is populated with fig and olive trees. My father was a well respected man in the city. I was his only son. When I was six, he sent me to a priest who taught me to read the Gospel and logic, which I finished in six years. After that I left Majorca and traveled to the city of Larda, in the region of Castillion, which was the centre of learning for Christians in that region. A thousand to a thousand and a half Christian students gathered there. All were under the administration of the priest who taught them. I studied the Gospel and its language for another four years. After that I left for Bologne in the region of Anbardia. Bologne is a very large city, it being the centre of learning for all the people of that region. Every year, more than two thousand students gather together from different places. They cover themselves with rough cloth which they call the "Hue of God." All of them, whether the son of a workman or the son of a ruler wear this wrap, in order to make the students distinct from others. Only the priest teaches controls and directs them. I lived in the church with an aged priest. He was greatly respected by the people because of his knowledge and religiousness and asceticism, which distinguished him from the other Christian priests. Questions and requests for advice came from everywhere, from Kings and rulers, along with presents and gifts. They hoped that he would accept their presents and grant them his blessings. This priest taught me the principles of Christianity and its rulings. I became very close to him by serving and assisting him with his duties until I became one of his most trusted assistants, so that he trusted me with the keys of his domicile in the church and of the food and the drink stores. He kept for himself only the key of a small room were he used to sleep. I think, and Allah knows best, that he kept his treasure chest in there. I was a student and servant for a period of ten years, then he fell ill and failed to attend the meetings of his fellow priests. During his absence the priests discussed some religious matters, until they came to what was said by the Almighty Allah through his prophet Jesus in the Gospel: "After him will come a Prophet called Paraclete." They argued a great deal about this Prophet and as to who he was among the Prophets. Everyone gave his opinion according to his knowledge and understanding; and they ended without achieving any benefit in that issue. I went to my priest, and as usual he asked about what was discussed in the meeting that day. I mentioned to him the different opinions of priests about the name Paraclete, and how they finished the meeting without clarifying its meaning. He asked me: "What was your answer?" I gave my opinion which was taken from interpretation of a well known exegesis. He said that I was nearly correct like some priests, and the other priests were wrong. "But the truth is different from all of that. This is because the interpretation of that noble name is known only to a small number of well versed scholars. And we posses only a little knowledge." I fell down and kissed his feet, saying: "Sir, you know that I traveled and came to you from a far distant country, I have served you now for more than ten years; and have attained knowledge beyond estimation, so please favour me and tell me the truth about this name." The priest then wept and said: "My son, by God, you are very much dear to me for serving me and devoting yourself to my care. Know the truth about this name, and there is a great benefit, but there is also a great danger. And I fear that when you know this truth, and the Christians discover that, you will be killed immediately." I said: "By God, by the Gospel and He who was sent with it, I shall never speak any word about what you will tell me, I shall keep it in my heart." He said: "My son, when you came here from your country, I asked you if it is near to the Muslims, and whether they made raids against you and if you made raids against them. This was to test your hatred for Islam. Know, my son, that Paraclete is the name of their Prophet Muhammad, to whom was revealed the fourth book as mentioned by Daniel. His way is the clear way which is mentioned in the Gospel." I said: "Then sir, what do you say about the religion of these Christians?" He said: "My son, if these Christians remained on the original religion of Jesus, then they would have been on God's religion, because the religion of Jesus and all the other Prophets is the true religion of God. But they changed it and became unbelievers." I asked him: "Then, sir, what is the salvation from this?" He said "Oh my son, embracing Islam." I asked him: "Will the one who embraces Islam be saved?" He answered: "Yes, in this world and the next." I said: "The prudent chooses for himself; if you know, sir the merit of Islam, then what keeps you from it?" He answered: "My son, the Almighty Allah did not expose me to the truth of Islam and the Prophet of Islam until after I have become old and my body weakened. Yes, there is no excuse for us in this, on the contrary, the proof of Allah has been established against us. If God had guided me to this when I was your age I would have left everything and adopted the religion of truth. Love of this world is the essence of every sin, and look how I am esteemed, glorified and honoured by the Christians, and how I am living in affluence and comfort! In my case, if I show a slight inclination towards Islam they would kill me immediately. Suppose that I was saved from them and succeeded in escaping to the Muslims, they would say, do not count your Islam as a favour upon us, rather you have benefited yourself only by entering the religion of truth, the religion that will save you from the punishment of Allah! So I would live among them as a poor old man of more than ninety years, without knowing their language, and would die among them starving . I am, and all praise is due to Allah, on the religion of Christ and on that which he came with, and Allah knows that from me." So I asked him: "Do you advise me to go to the country of the Muslims and adopt their religion?" He said to me: "If you are wise and hope to save yourself, then race to that which will achieve this life and the hereafter. But my son, none is present with us concerning this matter , it is between you and me only. Exert yourself and keep it a secret. If it is disclosed and the people know about it they will kill you immediately. I will be of no benefit to you against them. Neither will it be of any use to you if you tell them what you heard from me concerning Islam, or that I encouraged you to be a Muslim, for I shall deny it. They trust my testimony against yours. So do not tell a word, whatever happens." I promised him not to do so. He was satisfied and content with my promise. I began to prepare for my journey and bid him farewell. He prayed for me and gave me fifty golden dinars. Then I took a ship to my city Majorca where I stayed with my parents for six months. Then I traveled to Sicily and remained there five months, waiting for a ship bound for the land of the Muslims. Finally a ship arrived bound for Tunis. We departed before sunset and reached the port of Tunis at noon on the second day. When I got off the ship, Christian scholars who heard of my arrival came to greet me and I stayed with them for four months in ease and comfort. After that I asked them if there was a translator. The Sultan in those days was Abu al-Abbas Ahmed. They said there was a virtuous man, the Sultan's physician, who was one of his closest advisors. His name was Yusuf al-Tabeeb. I was greatly pleased to here this, and asked where he lived. They took me there to meet him separately. I told him about my story and the reason of my coming there; which was to embrace Islam. He was immensely pleased because this matter would be completed by his help. We rode to the Sultan's Palace. He met the Sultan and told him about my story and asked his permission for me to meet him. The Sultan accepted, and I presented myself before him. The first question the Sultan asked was about my age. I told him that I was thirty-five years old. He then asked about my learning and the sciences which I had studied. After I told him he said. "Your arrival is the arrival of goodness . Be a Muslim with Allah's blessings." I then said to the doctor, "Tell the honourable Sultan that it always happens that when anyone changes his religion his people defame him and speak evil of him. So, I wish if he kindly sends to bring the Christian priests and merchants of this city to ask them about me and hear what they have to say. Then by Allah's will, I shall accept Islam." He said to me through the translator, "You have asked what Abdullah ibn Salam asked from the Prophet when he-Abdullah came to announce his Islam." He then sent for the priests and some Christian merchants and let me sit in an adjoining room unseen by them. "What do you say about this new priest who arrived by ship?", he asked. They said: "He is a great scholar in our religion. Our bishops say he is the most learned and no one is superior to him in our religious knowledge." After hearing what the Christian said, the Sultan sent for me, and I presented myself before them. I declared the two testimonies that there is no one worthy of worship except Allah and that Muhammad is His Messenger, and when the Christians heard this they crossed themselves and said: "Nothing incited him to do that except his desire to marry, as priests in our religion can not marry." Then they left in distress and grief. The Sultan appointed for me a quarter of a dinar every day from the treasury and let me marry the daughter of Al-Hajj Muhammed al-Saffar. When I decided to consummate the marriage, he gave me a hundred golden dinars and an excellent suit of clothes. I then consummated the marriage and Allah blessed me with a child to whom I gave the name Muhammed as a blessing from the name of the Prophet."

Let us conclude this section with the following quotation from the Gospel of John:

"These things have I spoken unto you, that ye should not be offended. They shall put you out of the synagogues: yea, the time cometh, that whosoever killeth you will think that he doeth God service. And these things will they do unto you, because they have not known the Father, nor me. But these things have I told you, that when the time shall come, ye may remember that I told you of them. And these things I said not unto you at the beginning, because I was with you. But now I go my way to him that sent me; and none of you asketh me, Whither goest thou? But because I have said these things unto you, sorrow hath filled your heart. Nevertheless I tell you the truth; It is expedient for you that I go away: for if I go not away, the Comforter will not come unto you; but if I depart, I will send him unto you. And when he is come, he will reprove the world of sin, and of righteousness, and of judgment: Of sin, because they believe not on me; Of righteousness, because I go to my Father, and ye see me no more; Of judgment, because the prince of this world is judged. I have yet many things to say unto you, but ye cannot bear them now. Howbeit when he, the Spirit of truth, is come, he will guide you into all truth: for he shall not speak of himself; but whatsoever he shall hear, [that] shall he speak: and he will shew you things to come. He shall glorify me: for he shall receive of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you. All things that the Father hath are mine: therefore said I, that he shall take of mine, and shall shew [it] unto you." (John 16:1-15)

Please visit the "Gospel of Barnabas" site, and do a word search on the word "Muhammad" to see how Jesus predicted the comming of Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him.

Opening- True Gospel of Jesus, called Christ, a new prophet sent by God to the world: according to the description of Barnabas his apostle.

Barnabas, apostle of Jesus the Nazarene, called Christ, to all them that dwell upon the earth desireth peace and consolation.

Dearly beloved the great and wonderful God hath during these past days visited us by his prophet Jesus Christ in great mercy of teaching and miracles, by reason whereof many, being deceived of Satan, under presence of piety, are preaching most impious doctrine, calling Jesus son of God, repudiating the circumcision ordained of God for ever, and permitting every unclean meat: among whom also Paul hath been deceived, whereof I speak not without grief; for which cause I am writing that truth which I have seen and heard, in the intercourse that I have had with Jesus, in order that ye may be saved, and not be deceived of Satan and perish in the judgment of God. Therefore beware of every one that preacheth unto you new doctrine contrary to that which I write, that ye may be saved eternally. The great God be with you and guard you from Satan and from every evil. Amen.

Chapter 1 The angel Gabriel visits Virgin Mary concerning the birth of Jesus.

In these last years a virgin called Mary, of the lineage of David, of the tribe of Judah, was visited by the angel Gabriel from God. This virgin, living in all holiness without any offense, being blameless, and abiding in prayer with fastings, being one day alone, there entered into her chamber the angel Gabriel, and he saluted her, saying: 'God be with thee, O Mary'.

The virgin was affrighted at the appearance of the angel; but the angel comforted her, saying: 'Fear not, Mary, for thou hast found favour with God, who hath chosen thee to be mother of a prophet, whom he will send to the people of Israel in order that they may walk in his laws with truth of heart.'

The virgin answered: 'Now how shall I bring forth sons, seeing I know not a man?' The angel answered: 'O Mary, God who made man without a man is able to generate in thee man with- out a man, because with him nothing is impossible.'

Mary answered: 'I know that God is almighty, therefore his will be done.' The angel answered: 'Now be conceived in thee the prophet, whom thou shalt name Jesus: and thou shalt keep him from wine and from strong drink and from every unclean meat, because the child is an holy one of God.' Mary bowed herself with humility, saying:

'Behold the handmaid of God, be it done according to thy word.'

The angel departed, and the virgin glorified God, saying: 'Know, O my soul, the greatness of God, and exult, my spirit, in God my Saviour; for he hath regarded the lowliness of his handmaiden, insomuch that I shall be called blessed by all the nations, for he that is mighty hath made me great, and blessed be his holy name. For his mercy extendeth from generation to generation of them that fear him. Mighty hath he made his hand, and he hath scattered the proud in the imagination of his heart. He hath put down the mighty from their seat, and hath exalted the humble. Him who hath been hungry hath he filled with good things, and the rich he hath sent empty away. For he keepeth in memory the promises made to Abraham and to his son for ever'.

Chapter 2   The warning of the angel Gabriel given to Joseph concerning the conception of the Virgin Mary.

Mary having known the will of God, fearing the people, lest they should take offense at her being great with child, and should stone her as guilty of fornication, chose a companion of her own lineage, a man by name called Joseph, of blameless life: for he as a righteous man feared God and served him with fastings and prayers, living by the works of his hands, for he was a carpenter. Such a man the virgin knowing, chose him for her companion and revealed to him the divine counsel.

Joseph being a righteous man, when he perceived that Mary was great with child, was minded to put her away because he feared God. Behold, whilst he slept, he was rebuked by the angel of God, saying 'O Joseph, why art thou minded to put away Mary thy wife? Know that whatsoever hath been wrought in her hath all been done by the will of God. The virgin shall bring forth a son, whom thou shall call by the name Jesus

@ Abdul Fatah

1. This is a public forum and not a newspaper/magazine, pls make your posts short and let us see your points. It is pointless posting thousands of words because half of them wont even be read.
2. You have quoted sources that cannot be validated, the stories about Paul are so unfounded it is hard to believe that a human wrote those, funny that most of your sources seem to come from muslims seeing they are the most vicious enemies of Christianity.

3. In no account is the foundation of Christianity based on the rejection of circumcision, sabath and the law. It is consumate proof of how little you know about the doctrines of Christ and the truth about genuine Christian living. Do you know what the spiritual symbolism of circumcision is?
God instituted circumcision primarily as a proof of his everlasting covenant with His people, the Jews,
Gen 17:1 And when Abram was ninety years old and nine, the LORD appeared to Abram, and said unto him, I [am] the Almighty God; walk before me, and be thou perfect.
Gen 17:2 And I will make my covenant between me and thee, and will multiply thee exceedingly.
And God said unto Abraham, Thou shalt keep my covenant therefore, thou, and thy seed after thee in their generations.
Gen 17:10 This [is] my covenant, which ye shall keep, between me and you and thy seed after thee; Every man child among you shall be circumcised.
Gen 17:11 And ye shall circumcise the flesh of your foreskin; and it shall be a token of the covenant betwixt me and you.
Gen 17:12 And he that is eight days old shall be circumcised among you, every man child in your generations, he that is born in the house, or bought with money of any stranger, which [is] not of thy seed.
Gen 17:13 He that is born in thy house, and he that is bought with thy money, must needs be circumcised: and my covenant shall be in your flesh for an everlasting covenant.
Gen 17:14 And the uncircumcised man child whose flesh of his foreskin is not circumcised, that soul shall be cut off from his people; he hath broken my covenant.

The circumcision as first instituted by God between Abraham was too be a sign of His special covenant with His people. Note that uncircumcised people were regarded as NOT being part of the nation of Isreal and thus NOT a part of God's people. Note the usage when David refers to Goliath as "you uncircumcised philistine, " in 1 Sam 17.

NEW TESTAMENT. DID JESUS OR THE DISCIPLES BREAK THE RULES BY ABANDONING THE LAW AND CIRCUMCISION?
NO! When Christ came to shed His blood on the cross of calvary for you and me, He came to abolish the law. Once all we had to go on was a tablet of stone sitting in the temple with the ten commandments. But when Christ came and died, the veil of the temple was torn apart and God who once was above us (JEHOVA), GOD with us (JESUS) now became GOD IN US (THE HOLY SPIRIT). Now we no longer live by rules made of men but are led by the Holy Spirit who lives in our hearts and teaches us ALL THINGS.
Rom 3:20 Therefore by the deeds of the law there shall no flesh be justified in his sight: for by the law [is] the knowledge of sin.
The law brought the conviction of sin but unfortunately the law could not save our souls, that was why Christ had to die on the cross THUS ROM 3:24 Being justified freely by his grace through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus:
The law of Moses is no longer written on tables of stone but is written on the tables of OUR HEARTS. Rom 2: 29 But he [is] a Jew, which is one inwardly; and circumcision [is that] of the heart, in the spirit, [and] not in the letter; whose praise [is] not of men, but of God. Christ's death came not to abolish the law but to fulfill it, the circumcision of the new testament is no longer one of the outward (i.e the foreskins) but of the inward where God Himself dwells.
Even in the old testament, God declared to His people, Jeremiah 4: 4 Circumcise yourselves to the LORD, and take away the foreskins of your heart, ye men of Judah and inhabitants of Jerusalem: lest my fury come forth like fire, and burn that none can quench [it], because of the evil of your doings.

Therefore brethren;
Col 2: 11 In whom also ye are circumcised with the circumcision made without hands, in putting off the body of the sins of the flesh by the circumcision of Christ:
Col 2:12 Buried with him in baptism, wherein also ye are risen with [him] through the faith of the operation of God, who hath raised him from the dead.
Col 2:13 And you, being dead in your sins and the uncircumcision of your flesh, hath he quickened together with him, having forgiven you all trespasses;
Col 2:14 Blotting out the handwriting of ordinances that was against us, which was contrary to us, and took it out of the way, nailing it to his cross;

The circumcision is no more a physical act but now a spiritual proof of God's covenant with us as individuals, the covenant of His death and resurrection on the cross.

Lastly:
Christ did not come to abolish the laws of Moses. He knew in our fleshly lusts we could not keep a law written on tables but in His infinite mercy, He came to pay the price for our sins and now we have access to Him personally through prayer and no longer through a mediator, the priest. Now we can come boldly into His presence, He paid the price for sins once for ALL that we no longer have to depend on the blood of bulls and rams. Now we are His epistles written not on tables of stone but written on the tables of our hearts. He lives in us and in Him we live and move and have our being, we are dead in Christ and no longer live of our own but Christ who dwelleth in us. He leads us and keeps our hearts and minds that we no longer live and are dead in sin but are alive through the righteousness of God in Christ!
2 Cor 3:3 [Forasmuch as ye are] manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

Thank you and God bless.

One thing i find most befuddling is most muslims regard the bible as being full of "hoaxes and deceptions", some even say it has been altered over the years. Why then do the same muslims struggle so fanatically to prove that Mohammad was predicted in THE SAME "DECEPTIVE" BIBLE? why has every muslim here struggled to use biblical verses to prove the authenticity of islam and mohammad? Is it that mohammad has no legitimacy aside that supposedly ascribed to him as being the "comforter" or "paraclete"?

Abdul Fatah claims all "knowledgeable" christians know the paraclete as mohammad. Who are these mysterious "knowledgeable" christians? Please be reminded that christianity is not about how "knowledgeable" you are but based solely on faith in the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ! Lazarus was a poor beggar, it is not likely he ever went to school at all yet he died and went to heaven! Real Christians know the truth about the promise of the Holy Spirit BECAUSE THEY HAVE RECIEVED HIM AND ARE BEING LED BY HIM! they know nothing about bogus paracletes.

And the gospel of barnabas? where was that cooked up?

Do you honestly want us to take you serious when all your sources are professors of islam, those whose sole purpose is to "discredit" christianity?

I came here hoping to read some interesting entries from Muslim contributors, but I'm really staggered!! Abdul fata, what Qur'anic school of thought did you receive your training from? You mean a whole 11 pages of a PDF file to "prove" that Muhammad was the one referred to in Jesus' promise of the Holy Spirit in John 14 - 16?? And for all of that, you really believe those chapters were about Muhammad - only when it suits your Islamic stereotype??

Now, I'm beginning to be more convinced that Muhammad's credibility as a prophet/rasool/apostle/messenger or whatever, does not hold substance in the Qur'an or hadith - and by default, Muslims must of necessity frantically appeal to the Bible! The laughable thing about this claim to read Muhammad or Islam "prophesied in the Bible" is that the "scholars" digging the verses for that joke always read them out of context. That is why QuranSearch will see "c[b]o[/b]me/c[b]o[/b]meth" in Jude 14 and translate it as "c[b]a[/b]me"; and in the next verse 15 where he finds "ten thousand[b]s[/b]" (multiples of thousands above and over 10,000), he craftily subsitutes 10,000! Makes me wonder if he was reading those verses with candle light in a whirlwind!

What's the use of 11 pages PDF of cleverly twisted scholarship that say next to nothing? You could even post an entire encyclopedia of 1,111 pages with the same poor reading skills. I'm waiting with my red pen to grade you an "F". It's an understatement to say that I'm highly disappointed!

Abdul Fatah and others have to come back here and do some serious explaning!

In one post you claim christianity was Paul's idea of mixing "mysterious" worship with Judaism. Quransearc claims the bible is filled with "hoaxes and deceptions". Abdul Fatah has gone and dredged up the "gospel according to barnabas" who by all intents can not be refering to any of the bible barnabases.
In another breath, the same guys are using the SAME "DECEPTIVE" bible to prove Mohammad was prophesied and is the second messenger from God after Jesus, the same man they have chosen to malign and disbelieve! How amazing!

I do agree with you guys on one score, Mohammad was indeed prophesied in the bible: if in doubt please read: Mat 7:15 Beware of false prophets, which come to you in sheep's clothing, but inwardly they are ravening wolves.
Mar 13:22 For false Christs and false prophets shall rise, and shall shew signs and wonders, to seduce, if [it were] possible, even the elect.
1Jo 4:1 Beloved, believe not every spirit, but try the spirits whether they are of God: because many false prophets are gone out into the world.
Jer 14:14 Then the LORD said unto me, The prophets prophesy lies in my name: I sent them not, neither have I commanded them, neither spake unto them: they prophesy unto you a false vision and divination, and a thing of nought, and the deceit of their heart.
2Pe 2:1 But there were false prophets also among the people, even as there shall be false teachers among you, who privily shall bring in damnable heresies, even denying the Lord that bought them, and bring upon themselves swift destruction.

Wow! So many prophecies about one man!

I wonder whether you guys are even reading each others post. I suppose this has become just post and I would post in return. Na wa o.

First, many thanks to TayoD, Davidylan, syrup, and others who've helped provide good
answers to some of the issues raised by our Muslim friends. Where necessary, I'll try to
add a few more lines to clarify other matters and strengthen the gist of my arguments
that follow subsequently. The new Muslim entrants have made some surprising yellow-
card posts that require some very important attention, and no "maradona" is going to
be tolerated in this matter, especially because abdul fata has fatalistically introduced a
new wave of twisting the records and posting them as "research". He really needs to
come back and do some serious explanations, as davidylan has said.

As for ajia23, common sense should have returned sanity to your talk, unless you have a
natural gift for blowing hot, empty air. You don't throw words as "hypocrisy" carelessly at
other discussants unless you want them to point out your own rascality. You have a fine
way of advising others without heeding your own advice, such as the line of caution you
gave to QuranSearc:

"I must also advice you to tread carefully because subtle personal attacks are also a trick
employed to get you off track and allow them to avoid the contentious issue and instead
look for appelations that support their stereotypes."

I really applaud that; albeit sadly, you characteristically are first to launch personal attacks
as tricks employed to veer a discourse off track so you can buy a cheap leeway out of the
contentious issues that inform your Islamic stereotype. What you really don't see and can't
come to terms with in your Islamic imbroglio is what informed Christians will continue to
tender at your tuff. You could do either of two things: calm down and engage in dialogue
without the usual sly remarks, derision and/or invectives; or, continue to spin more spider
webs. Like I said, this time around, I refuse to iggy your use of such until you wake up and
act like the gentleman you pretend to persuade your Muslim brethren that you are.

Now, which one is it - abdul fata or QuranSearc? Could I lump both usernames just
incase you forgot your password; or because my response to your reposting of Dr. Gary
Miller's was alarming enough to bring you round to a desperate corner that you had to
device a new user ID? I don't see how ajia23 could be thanking abdul fata, and
QuranSearc could be acknowledging the thanks and taking cheap glory at wasted sweat.

Anyhow, I'll outline a few things that you missed, so dress warm, or remove your shirt to sweat
some more. At any rate, ajia23 has thrown out both a warning and an advice to you; problem is
that he rarely takes his own advice and returns with more desperations than reason allows.

@abdul fata, (or QuranSearc - whichever you choose)

Allow me to walk you through your assumptions and point out where you made a few slips.

Position of Jesus (peace be on him) in Islam:
(iii)
We believe that he was born miraculously, without any male intervention, which many modern day Christians do not believe.
(iv) 
We believe he was the Messiah translated Christ (pbuh).

No true Christian who knows the Bible denies the miraculous conception and birth of Jesus Christ. And if Muslims
actually believe that Jesus was the Messiah (translated "Christ", why then is it such a marvel that you can't trust
Him for whom you acknowledge He is? This is the reason why we are persuaded that the Jesus of Islam is not the
Christ of the Bible as far as Muslims believe that He was the Messiah and still can't see Him as the Saviour of their
souls.

Muhammad got his idea of "Messiah" from Chrisianity as he was familiar with the Ebionites of his day. Even so, the
meaning of Messiah as used of Jesus in the Bible, (especially in the Gospel that the Qur'an "confirmed" as having
been sent down from Allah) is none other than the Saviour. It's a joke for anyone to miss the real essence 'Messiah'
as pointing to no other meaning than 'the Saviour' in the Bible:

"And Jacob begat Joseph the husband of Mary, of whom was born Jesus, who is called Christ." (Matt. 1:16).

"And she shall bring forth a son, and thou shalt call his name JESUS: for he shall save his people from their sins." (Matt. 1:21).

"He first findeth his own brother Simon, and saith unto him, We have found the Messias,  which is, being interpreted,
the Christ." (John 1:41).

Jesus = Christ = Saviour, and if Muslims believe that He is the Messiah, then there should be no problem believing
that He is the Saviour, otherwise that Muslim belief is simply cosmetic.

CONCEPT OF GOD IN CHRISTIANITY:
1.
Jesus Christ (pbuh) never claimed Divinity
 
One may ask, if both Muslims and Christians love and respect Jesus (pbuh), where exactly is the parting of ways? The major difference between Islam and Christianity is the Christians’ insistence on the supposed divinity of Christ (pbuh). A study of the Christian scriptures reveals that Jesus (pbuh) never claimed divinity. In fact there is not a single unequivocal statement in the entire Bible where Jesus (pbuh) himself says, "I am God" or where he says, "worship me". In fact the Bible contains statements attributed to Jesus (pbuh) in which he preached quite the contrary. The following statements in the Bible are attributed to Jesus Christ (pbuh)

You are absolutely correct in your analysis as to the difference between Islam and Christianity; but note well: Christians
are not the ones insisting on the "supposed divinity of Christ." You had offered 'a study of the Christian scriptures', but
you had cleverly avoided some explicit texts in the same scriptures that deflate your denials of Jesus' deity. Note the
following in the Christian Scriptures where the divinity/deity of Jesus are established:

(a) The angel that announced His Conception called Him the Son of God:
"And the angel answered and said unto her, The Holy Ghost shall come upon thee, and the power of the Highest shall
overshadow thee: therefore also that holy thing which shall be born of thee shall be called the Son of God." (Luke 1:35).

(b) The angel who spread the news of His birth called Him 'Lord':
"And the angel said unto them, Fear not: for, behold, I bring you good tidings of great joy, which shall be to all people.
For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Saviour, which is Christ the Lord." (Luke 2:10-11).

(c) The Father called Jesus His Beloved Son
This happened twice: first, at the baptism (Matt. 3:17) and at the transfiguration (Matt. 17:5) "This is my beloved Son,
in whom I am well pleased; hear ye him" is the declaration of the Father (compare with the testimony of Peter who
was an eyewitness of the event in 2 Peter 1:17 - "For he received from God the Father honour and glory, when there
came such a voice to him from the excellent glory, This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased).


Continues shortly.

And so. . .

(d) Jesus explicitly declared He was the Son of God
First, at the discourse on salvation with Nicodemus: "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son,
that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16).

Next, in His encounter with the Jewish leaders of His day: "Say ye of him, whom the Father hath sanctified, and sent
into the world, Thou blasphemest; because I said, I am the Son of God?" (John 10:36).

Then at His trial before the Jewish high priest of His day:  "But he held his peace, and answered nothing. Again the high
priest asked him, and said unto him, Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed? And Jesus said, I am: and ye shall see
the Son of man sitting on the right hand of power, and coming in the clouds of heaven." (Mark 14:61-62).

(e) Even demons whom He cast out cried out in confessing His deity:
"And, behold, they cried out, saying, What have we to do with thee, Jesus, thou Son of God? art thou come hither to torment
us before the time?" (Matt. 8:29). "And devils also came out of many, crying out, and saying, Thou art Christ the Son of God.
And he rebuking them suffered them not to speak: for they knew that he was Christ." (Luke 4:41).

(f) The Disciples Worshipped Jesus and Confessed Him as the Son
Notice Jesus didn't stop the disciples when they offered Him worship - which is clearly a pointer that He wanted them
to discover for themselves that He truly was the divine Son: "Then they that were in the ship came and worshipped him,
saying, Of a truth thou art the Son of God." (Matt. 14:33).

(g) The Jeering Crowd acknowledged that Jesus Called Himself The Son
If Jesus never said He was the Son of God (John 10:36), where did the crowd get this from when they accused Him of having
said that? "He trusted in God; let him deliver him now, if he will have him: for he said, I am the Son of God" (Matt. 27:43).

(h) The Centurion Also Acknowledged His Deity
"Now when the centurion, and they that were with him, watching Jesus, saw the earthquake, and those things that were done,
they feared greatly, saying, Truly this was the Son of God." (Matt. 27:54). Is it just a passing event for a menacing soldier
who stands ready as His own executioner to turn round and confess the very thing for which He hung condemned on the Cross?

I could go on and on to furnish you more than a dozen other texts that you conveniently avoided from the Gospels alone - the
same Gospels that the Qur'an endorsed as having been sent down by Allah - establishing the deity/divinity of Jesus Christ. From
the above so far, the following are obvious: Jesus is both Christ, Son of God, and Lord!

This brings us to a very important question: what then is the meaning of "Son of God" and "Lord" as used for Jesus in the
Scriptures you had purportedly "studied"? There is no other way to see them than that they pointed to His deity! The weakness
of your sloppy treatise is that you concentrated on those texts declaring both the humanity of Christ and His loving subjection to
the Father's will. He is the divine Son who in the full display of divine grace assumed the place of the divine Servant for our sakes;
and as such He was often heard referring to Himself as both the Son of Man and Son of God. At least, if you are happy to
acknowledge His perfect Humanity from the Christian Scriptures, what's your dread in acknowldeging His Divinity from the same
Christian Scriptures you alluded to having studied?

Continuing. . .

The important questions that can help you about the essence of Christ's Person is not whether or not He explicitly said:
"I am God" or "worship me" or any such, as if to put words in His mouth. Rather, it would be more helpful to ask the
following:

   # What is the meaning of "Son of God" and "Lord" as used of Jesus in the Scriptures?

   # Did Jesus ever deny worship, Lordship or deity ascribed to Him in the Bible?

   # Where in the Bible did Jesus place Himself on the same level as God/Divinity?

   # If Jesus therefore declared His divine Sonship, what implications was He pointing to thereby?

The interesting thing is that not one verse indicates that Jesus refuted worship or deity ascribed to Him. In just the same way as
Jesus never uttered explicitly that "I am God", so He [u]never[/] said "I am NOT God!" At least, when John the Baptist was questioned,
he clearly refuted any notion that he was the Christ: "And he confessed, and denied not; but confessed, I am not the Christ." (John 1:20).
If Jesus was not Who the Bible said He was and is, then in a similar way, we could have read this same refutation when He was
asked by the same class of Jewish priests before whom He stood on trial and was condemned in Mark 14 - for openly confessing:
"I am" when He was asked, "Art thou the Christ, the Son of the Blessed" (verses 61-62). We see clearly that by His admittance,
He wanted everyone present to hear it from His lips: He was the Son of God - just as He had openly declared earlier before His
arrest in John 10:36. Nowhere do you read of Jesus refuting or denying His divine Sonship.

In the same vein, He did not deny, reject nor refute worship at anytime. As a matter of fact, we've read in one text referenced
earlier that the disciples came to worship Him and also confessed Him as the 'Son of God' (Matt. 14:33). Notice also that when
Thomas confessed Him as "My Lord and my God", Jesus did not rebuke him for that; rather, he further strengthened his faith all
the more by His response (John 20:28-29). Before even He was crucified, Jesus already declared His Lordship to the disciples in
John 13:13 - "Ye call me Master and Lord: and ye say well; for so I am". Does that sound like He denied Who He was?

Now what do all these point to - what's their conclusive inference? Without prejudice, Jesus wanted to reveal His deity/divinity to
those who were willing to discover it for themselves by faith in Him. This is why He had openly announced that, "All things are
delivered unto me of my Father: and no man knoweth the Son, but the Father; neither knoweth any man the Father, save the Son,
and he to whomsoever the Son will reveal him." (Matt. 11:27). This is the one reason why you don't find Him going about bragging
around that "I am God - worship me!" In fact, if He had done that, He would have contradicted the OT prophecies that declared the
submissive, gentle and meek character of the Messiah, who would not go about raising His voice in the streets or market place with
such bragado (see, for example, Isaiah 42:1-2). If Muslims want to know the Living Saviour - the very Christ that Muhammad missed
- there's only one way to do so: by faith and humility of mind. And I pray they do come to know Him!

All this lead to just one thing: if Jesus Christ is the Son of God and the Lord of the universe, He was clearly claiming deity and inviting
worship of both angels and men. That is why He said with His own mouth that men should ascribe equal honour to Him as they did to
the Father: "The Father judges no one, but has given all judgment to the Son, that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father.
Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him." (John 5:23). Those who say that this honour Jesus was
speaking of just means the honour given to a prophet, should realise that if that were the case, then they are saying that Jesus was
asking people to give the honour of a prophet to the Father as if the Father was a prophet! Please!! Jesus in that verse unequivocally
declared that all men are to honour Him in the same way that they honoured the Father - nothing more and nothing less!

He went further to invite men to have faith in Him in just the same way that they believe in God: "Let not your heart be
troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me." (John 14:1). It resonates with the prophecies of the OT about Him, that
He is the Saviour and infact the divine Son in whom the people would trust (see Psa. 2:12 - "Kiss the Son, lest he be angry,
and ye perish from the way, when his wrath is kindled but a little. Blessed are all they that put their trust in him".

Even in the Revelation, Jesus Himself used the very title that is used by God for Himself: "And, behold, I come quickly; and
my reward is with me, to give every man according as his work shall be. I am Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end,
the first and the last." (Rev. 22:12-13 ).

There's only one way your "study of the Christian Scriptures" could have failed to see all these texts about Jesus' deity/divinity -
you conveniently avoided them for the simple reason that they are the very text that Muslims are trained to avoid, as all your
arguments and attempts to strip Jesus of the essential confession of His deity are deflated and rubbished by them. If Muslims
are really sincere in quoting the Bible to acknowledge what Jesus says about Himself and His mission in some texts, that sincerity
should extend as well to acknowledging that Jesus made those other statements that point to His divinity. Quoting a few texts
here and there in strong belief that Jesus made the statements in those Biblical texts for His Humanity, while ignoring the others
where He made equally valid and explicit statements pointing to His Deity/Divinity, is at best quintessentially sloppy scholarship.

So, your assertion that "Jesus Christ (pbuh) never claimed Divinity" is both bogus and empty as far as you're ignoring the very
texts that show where He verily claimed divinity by Himself.

@abdul fata,

First of all, I asked you a few questions earlier - none of which you addressed in your subsequent posts. The next thing was that
you came back in desperation to post more brouhaha. So, let me continue here with what again you missed in your "study of the
Christian scriptures."

abdul fata:

4.
Jesus Refuted even the Remotest Suggestion of his Divinity
Consider the following incident mentioned in the Bible:

"And behold, one came and said unto him, ‘Good Master, what good thing shall I do, that I may have eternal life?’
And he said unto him, ‘Why callest thou me good? There is none good but one, that is, God: but if thou wilt enter into life, keep the commandments.’ "
[The Bible, Mathew 19:16-17]

Jesus (pbuh) did not say that to have the eternal life of paradise, man should believe in him as Almighty God or worship him as God, or believe that Jesus (pbuh) would die for his sins. On the contrary he said that the path to salvation was through keeping the commandments. It is indeed striking to note the difference between the words of Jesus Christ (pbuh) and the Christian dogma of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus (pbuh).

Pardon me, but it's almost hilarious that your poor scholarship could be so glaring as to make one wonder if you had been reading
another book than the Bible itself. First, Jesus did not "Refute even the Remotest Suggestion of his Divinity" - and I've shown earlier
how that stands in the Bible where you conveniently avoided those texts in which He indeed established His divinity on a number of
occasions. Notice that your complaint about Matthew 19:16-17 does not suggest at all that Jesus was refuting His divinity, for the
man asking the question simply opened with "Good Master." It's interesting that Jesus did not refute His being called "Master" in
those verses, because He had already declared His Lordship as well the fact He was "Master" in John 13:13 - do you deny that?

Jesus was forcing the enquirer to open up to his own assumptions - which is characteristic of His ministry. In effect, He was pointing
out to the man that if he really acknowledged Him as the "Good Master", then He ought to recognise the import of his confession -
that there was none good but God. Therefore, since there was none good but God, was the enquirer equally ready to recognise and
acknowledge Jesus as the "Good Master"? Notice that Jesus did not at all imply that He was refuting His divinity - He did not say, -
"I am NOT God!" Rather, He would leave enquirers in His day to discover, recognize and acknowledge His deity/divinity by faith, and
this was consistent all through His ministry. Let me demonstrate another example of this trait in Jesus' life and ministry:

Earlier, He had asked His disciples, "Who do men say that I the son of man am?" The answers pointed to just one thing: the
crowd saw Him as merely "one of the Prophets!" Then He focused on His own disciples and asked again:  "But whom say
ye that I am?" Peter answered: "Thou art the Christ, the Son of the Living God!" Question: why didn't Jesus refute or deny Peter's confession?
Rather, He went on to acknowledge that very confession as a revelation from only the Father and not from men (Matt. 16:13-17).

Now my dear friend, Peter's confession as the very foundation upon which Jesus would build His Church (verse 18). Then notice
the very next thing that did occur: "Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ"
(verse 20). Question: was Jesus refuting even the 'remotest suggestion' that He was the Christ? If He ever was doing that,
then by admittance of any Muslim, the Qur'an was wrong in referring to Jesus as the Messiah/Christ (see Sura 3:45), and that
would obviously mean the testimony of the Qur'an is not to be trusted.

But if on the other hand, Jesus is actually the Christ, why then would He charge His own disciples not to tell any man that He
was, in fact, the Christ? Again, just as is consistent with His ministry, one may know Him as "Jesus"; but it takes faith and
God-given revelation to see that Jesus is "the Christ, the Son of the Living God." This ties in with His open declaration earlier in
the same  Matthew that "All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father,
and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him." (Matt. 11:27). Follow the
sequence in Matthew's account - you can't miss this point, since your complaint is in the same Matthew, chapter 19. You
can't confess one and leave the other - for Jesus is both Christ and Son of God!

So, to the ordinary man and those who would prefer to base their faith on "logic" (in the grand idea that the Qur'an is
based on 'logic'), the revelation of Jesus as Christ will continue to elude all such until they abandon their 'logic' and come
to Him by faith. That is what the Qur'an and Muhammad missed out, and Islamic scholars have continued to miss this
revelation on the simple premise that the Qur'an lacks a true revelation from God. It's not surprising therefore that modern
Islamic thinking is desperately seeking to "prove" that Muhammad and Islam were "prophesied" in the Bible! We read in
another place when the maddening crowd asked Jesus to tell them if He was the Christ: "Art thou the Christ? tell us. And he
said unto them, If I tell you, ye will not believe" (Luke 22:67). They had eyes but couldn't see, and ears that couldn't hear;
so He let them make a choice - either they acknowledged Him as Christ by faith, or He would not tell them what they already
knew and refused to believe.

It is in this same setting that He quizzed the enquirer in Matt. 19:16-17 - "Why callest thou me good?" This is not to be
misconstrued as a refutation of His divinity at all; and it was not meant to refute that Jesus was actually the "Good Master"!
Rather, He was urging the enquirer to open up to his assumptions and truly acknowledge Him for whom he called Him:
"Good Master." In the same way, if Muslims are saying that Jesus is the Christ, one day He is going to ask them:

"Why callest ye Me the 'Christ' if ye were unwilling to truly acknowledge the meaning of what ye confess?"

Ask yourself a simple question here: what is the purpose of the Qur'an acknowledging that Jesus is the "Messiah" if the
'Allah' of Islam does not want you to believe in Jesus as such? Is such a confession not meaningless and empty Islamic
dogma if Jesus is merely the Messiah by name and not by deeds, words and Person?

@abdul fata,

As concerning the second part of your assertion:

abdul fata:

Jesus (pbuh) did not say that to have the eternal life of paradise, man should believe in him as Almighty God or worship him as God, or believe that Jesus (pbuh) would die for his sins. On the contrary he said that the path to salvation was through keeping the commandments. It is indeed striking to note the difference between the words of Jesus Christ (pbuh) and the Christian dogma of salvation through the sacrifice of Jesus (pbuh).

Did you read a magazine or what? Let me quote you a few texts you again conveniently avoided in your pursuit to hold this
weak allegation:

Question 1: Did Jesus ask people to believe in Him for salvation?

Answer: Yes indeed, He invited His listeners to believe in and have faith in Him in precisely the way anyone would believe
in God for salvation:

(a) "Let not your heart be troubled: ye believe in God, believe also in me". (John 14:1).

(b) "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish,
but have everlasting life." (John 3:16 - that was Jesus speaking in that verse).

(c) "Jesus answered and said unto them, This is the work of God, that ye believe on him whom he hath sent." (John 6:29).
He clearly was referring to Himself as the One in whom men should believe.

(d) "Jesus heard that they had cast him out; and when he had found him, he said unto him, Dost thou believe on the
Son of God? He answered and said, Who is he, Lord, that I might believe on him? And Jesus said unto him, Thou hast
both seen him, and it is he that talketh with thee. And he said, Lord, I believe. And he worshipped him." (John 9:35-38 ).
Notice that this man both believed in and worshipped Jesus, and yet He did not refuse worship in this instance or when
His disciples did so at another time in Matt. 14:33.

So where did you get your information that Jesus specifically did NOT say, or that He even denied/refuted that men should
believe in Him or that He would die for their sins?

Question 2: Did Jesus say He would die for sins?

Answer: Yes, He did also! No less than twice we read of Jesus clearly teaching His disciples beforehand that He would be
condemned by the chief priests and put to death (see Mark 9:31; and 10:32-34) and it happened precisely as He'd forewarned
them (Mark 14:64 and Luke 24:20). This is the very thing that Islam denies because Muhammad had no answers for the sins of
his own heart and conscience. Fact is, no matter how many times anyone wishes him peace and prayers (PBUH, ASW/SAW, etc),
it will avail Muhammad nothing as long as he denied the very sacrifice that was to have cleansed his heart and given him the gift
of eternal life in Jesus Christ. (Sorry, I don't mean to be derisive - but that is as plainly as I can state it).

It was not until after His resurrection that Jesus taught the disciples the implication of His death and resurrection, because up until
before the crucixion, they did not really understand the Scriptures relating to that event, even though some of the OT prophecies
had mentioned it, such as Isaiah 53. So, after He rose from the dead, this is what He told the disciples: "And said unto them, Thus
it is written, and thus it behoved Christ to suffer, and to rise from the dead the third day: And that repentance and remission
of sins should be preached in his name among all nations, beginning at Jerusalem." (Luk 24:46-47 ). Before then, He had indicated
as well in the Supper that His blood would be shed for the remission of sins: "For this is my blood of the new testament, which is
shed for many for the remission of sins." (Matt. 26:28 ).

Not only did Jesus declare His death to be for the remission of sin, but the apostles taught the same thing as He had
instructed them by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit - that Jesus' death was indeed to be preached to the whole world
for remission of sins and for salvation (few examples - John 1:29; 1 Pet. 1:18-19; and Rev. 1:5). Again, Isaiah 53
prophesied centuries earlier that Jesus' suffering and death would be a sacrifice for sin:

"But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities: the chastisement of our peace was
upon him; and with his stripes we are healed. . . for the transgression of my people was he stricken. . . Yet it pleased
the LORD to bruise him; he hath put him to grief: when thou shalt make his soul an offering for sin. . . for he shall
bear their iniquities. . . and he bare the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors"
(see Isa. 53:5, 8,10-12).

Among other things, Jesus' death was to atone for sin and He said so Himself, thus fulfilling the OT Scriptures, just as
He taught His disciples from the Law of Moses, the Prophets, and the Psalms (Luke 24:44). There is an abundance of
texts in the OT and NT showing that Jesus' death was a sacrifice for sins, and I'm baffled at how you could have missed
that at all - unless again, you conveniently adopted the Islamic stereotype of quoting the Bible as cosmetic for your weak
arguments, albeit sadly, you misapplied the texts you quoted.

@abdul fata,

There are other run-away statements you made that I must address, especially those bogus statements of denial of texts in
the Bible; and those about early Church history about Paul and Irenaus. It doesn't matter whether you choose to come in as
"abdul fata" or "QuranSearc" or yet another ID/username. The point is that, even though you don't agree with Christianity at
all, at least I beg you to quote the texts as they appear, and tell history as it is rather than re-casting it. You would not want
to gravely disappoint your brethren as someone representing Muslim apologetics skilled in misrepresenting issues. Following
that, I think you'd have to come back and do some serious explaining about some of the things you posted on this thread, as
Davidylan has suggested - so as to minimise the serious embarrassments you cause your religion.

there is no similarity, dont deceive ur self in the pretence of "we serve one God" cos thats really insane, the difference is too numerous to mention,

abdul fata:

Iranaeus believed in One God and supported the doctrine of the manhood of Jesus. He bitterly criticized Paul for being responsible for injecting the doctrines of the pagan religions and Platonic philosophy into Christianity. (Muhammad Ataur-Raheem, Jesus Prophet of Islam, 1992 edition, p. 77)

It's true that Irenaeus, a student of Polycarp, believed in One God and indeed supported the doctrine of the manhood (humanity?) of Jesus Christ. But in all his five Books Against Heresies, I haven't read where he bitterly criticized Paul for what you stated above. If you're trying to cleverly infer that Irenaeus was against the doctrine of the Trinity or against the deity/divinity of Jesus, then I think you've got issues mixed up by having bought into the misrepresentations in Muhammad Ataur-Raheem's book. Sample a few of what Irenaeus wrote on this subject:

        ", so that He indeed who made all things can alone, together with His Word, properly be termed God and Lord: but the things
         which have been made cannot have this term applied to them, neither should they justly assume that appellation which belongs to the
Creator." - (Against Heresies, Book III, ch. 8, section 3.)

"His Word" is in reference to Jesus who is called "The Word" (John 1:1) and "The Word of God" (Rev. 19:13). Irenaeus in the quote above believed and argued that Jesus (who is 'His Word') can properly be termed 'God and Lord.' He furter had strengthened this in stating -

        "But the Son, eternally co-existing with the Father, from of old, yea, from the beginning,
         always reveals the Father to Angels, Archangels, Powers, Virtues, " (Against Heresies, Book II, ch. 30, section 9).

And further -

         "For I have shown from the scriptures, that no one of the sons of Adam is as to everything, and absolutely, called God, or
named Lord. But that He is Himself in His own right, beyond all men who ever lived, God, and Lord, and King Eternal,
and the Incarnate Word, proclaimed by all the prophets, the apostles, and by the Spirit Himself, may be seen by all who have
attained to even a small portion of the truth. Now, the scriptures would not have testified these things of Him, if, like others,
He had been a mere man. - (Irenaeus Against Heresies, chapter xix.2)

From these and many more that appear in his writings, it would be seen that Irenaeus believed in both the Humanity and Deity of Jesus Christ, as is evident from the chapter title of his Against Heresies, Book III, ch. 16 - "Proofs From The Apostolic Writings, That Jesus Christ Was One And The Same, The Only Begotten Son Of God, Perfect God And Perfect Man."

I don't think that Muhammad Ataur-Raheem was being honest to the point when he argued that Irenaeus bitterly criticized Paul, for as the foregoing show, how could he have criticized what he himself believed in and also defended?

HEllo Abdulfatah.

My candid advice is that you should thread wisely and precisely. I can imagine your urge to the various responses but do it gently and tackle one after the other or you might get stock along the way.
Remember whatever you say does not and would not change their opinion, so please softly softly.

Peace

Good advice, and he sure is going to get stuck along the way if he continues to quote texts out of context and muddle things up as he did in the case with Ireneaus and Paul. Not only do we read of Ireneaus defending the Trinity and the humanity of Jesus Christ, but quite a number of other early Christians defended the doctrine of the Trinity in their apologetical writings. Second, he doesn't need to appeal to some Gnostic Gospels (as the gospel of Barnabas) that he knows only too well do not form part of the Christian Scriptures - that would be like quoting Ibn Warraq in defense of or to support Islam.

@ Gwaine, Syrup, TayoD, and 4get_me

I regret the use of some terms which you found offensive, but you would realise that I only adjusted to the situation I met on ground when I signed on to Nairaland. I have however decided to turn a new leaf, and will instead ignore rsponses I find to be particularly offbeat or offensive. TayoD, I didn't even see your request for me to prove that as you put it, christianity supports necromancy. I have however dealt with that enquiry on another thread, and the conclusion is, I didn't make that statement. You must have inferred wrongly from my post. You are rest assured that I wold not resort to making unsubstantiated claims, talkless of employing escapist tendencies. Syrup, take note.

I have really enjoyed the discussions here, and I know more about christianity than I did before, and certainly improved my knowledge of Islam. And since I have been able to use this forum to express my heartfelt misgivings about christianity without let or hinderance, and I have been inundated with another perspective about the whole thing, I am not so unsure about it anymore, so any fears I held before are probably dispelled by now, consequently, I am able to live charitably with christian brethren including the ones I saw as bigotted in the past. I understand them more now. A thumbs up for the creators of this thread, and the christians who rather uncharacteristically, have shown rare patience to painstakingly address the concerns of a suspicious world about their beliefs.

Silver medal. You're coming closer home.

I've also learnt quite a lot through this medium. Bless up y'all.

Jesus Christ said: "Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. "Therefore by their fruits you will know them." Matthew 7:15-20.

The AntiChrist will even come to you as an angel of light. But the real agenda will soon be made manifest.

please expatiate

Exactly, please expantiate.

they r the 2 most similar religions

I make bold to disagree with you kellorah. They are only superficially similar, a more careful observation will show that Islam is all about morality and it's enforcement, while christianity is about love, grace, etc, while abandoning morality. What am I saying in effect, christianity supports immoral activities by jettisoning God's Law as expoused in the bible claiming it is old-fashioned in an old testament, while asking adherents to hold on to Jesus' love which redeems them inspite of whatever sins they commit. Christianity from my observation, does not support an implementtation of a strict moral code, and has no punitive measures for perpetrators of evil.

This is what continues to amaze me - one malam sits somewhere and lets his imagination run wild, until he comes to his myopic conclusion that "Christianity supports immoral activities." This only shows that you don't know what Christianity is, and you're letting your stereotype blind you further.

Nowhere does Christianity support immorality. Please reference a Bible text that proves Christianity supports that. Again, you're wrong in presupposing that while Christianity is about love, grace, etc., Jesus' love redeems us inspite of whatever sins we 'commit'. First, whoever blasphemes against the Holy Spirit does not have forgiveness (Luke 12:10) - neither in this age nor in that to come (Matt. 12:32), and is in danger of eternal damnation (Mark 3:29).

Second, Christianity does not suppose that just about anyone can be forgiven by the redemptive grace of Jesus Christ and still go on committing sins. So, the question of "whatever sins they [U]commit[/u]" does not arise - and to insist on it simply means you have not read a dot about it in the NT.

Christianity does have a strict moral code - but it is not the same thing as "legalism" or "rigid asceticism", for those would be contrary to grace. Evil offenders and pertrators will be punished by the various civil and political agencies in every country wherever Christians live; and the Bible asks us as Christians to respect those agencies and not take the law into our hands. Ultimately, God will deliver divine justice to all evil doers - and all these warnings are clear in the Bible.

The very important point not to miss is, that our morality does not stem from the weaknesses of the carnal mind of man - for that is why all who continue by their own fleshy strength and wisdom to please God will find a battle in their heart to be just the same thing that they are trying to avoid. God has provided mercy and grace that effectively produces a hunger and the capacity to produce righteous living through the help and ministry of the Holy Spirit.

Christianity is quite distinct from Islam, and most often Muslims make the mistake of trying to judge Christainity and other religions by the standard of Islam. Such an exercise only quite often shows that Muslims arrive at slanted ideas about the religions they scrutinise. So, ajia23, you're dead wrong about your hypothesis of Christianity.

a christian is one as a result of his belief so is a muslim,  in respect to that, a true christian driven by his convictions about Christ Jesus-the truth knows what he is born for and thats far from a muslim's belief.

philppians 3 verse 12 & 14 says
Not as though i had already attained, either were already perfect: but i follow after, if that i may apprehend that for which also i am apprehended of Christ Jesus
I press toward the mark for the the prize of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus

there is no Christianity without Christ, we serve God but not without Christ-He is the way. The person of the Holy spirit is different from Mohamed. The Holy Spirit is the revealer of the Godhead.

its clear that we do not believe the same things-
we (christians) are the justified ones (Romans 8:30)cos we are called and predestined-take it or leave it
we are joint heirs with Christ (romans 8:17)
we are initiated into the body of christ by baptism
we are the new creation that the world is waiting for (Romans 8!19)
we died in christ and was raised together in him to a newness of life ,  these are some of our beliefs

our origin as christians is in christ- a muslim can't come to terms with this,  that is why we are different

Islamisim, just like false christainity are the same ten and ten pence. They have pollutted and smeared God's name and what he represents. Is it the idolatry, kissing the stone of kabba which is a former cave of idols which Mohhammed fought to eradicate?.

The christain candles,holy water or oil, and their crosses of different shapes and sizes and other unknown acts and worship that is strange to all norms from the bible christainity.

Is it the blood shed, Muslim against muslim,Muslim againt hindus, vice versa, proffesed Christains against christains,christain against muslims, the great crusades, the sheer immorality, obsceneness, wantoness and repression of thier fellowers through laity and clergy class, mullahs and imans etc.similarity in belief life after death an unprovable doctrine, immortarlity of soul, eternal punishment in fiery place of fire, idol worship, prayer counting, chanting of mantras, exorcism,magical arts, these and many re common grounds where false christainity and Islam marry each other ten and ten pence.

False christainity have removed their God,s name in their bible, and same way the Islamism removed same God,s name and subsititue it with the name allah, which in english means father, The same koran admitted that Jesus used this sacred name of God to raise the dead.if allah is the name of God what is sacred about it?
What are done in islam and false christainity is far away off course from the laid down principles of their founders

ISLAM EXPOSED!!!

http://answeringPROPHETOFDOOM.net

Exposed:

ISLAM EXPOSED!!!

http://answering[b]PROPHETOFDOOM[/b].net

Em. . . please you guys should be careful what websites you visit and what materials you may be getting your ideas from. Not everything on the PROPHET-OF-DOOM website is TRUE - infact, most of them are sadly false!!

I'm a Christian; but even when we may not agree with Muhammad being a prophet, it will not help people find out the truth by claiming all sorts of things against him.

A good place to start is to read every line and ask yourself the sources of their info. Most of the Qur'anic verses they quoted seem to have been deliberately taken out of context; some have been paraphrased; and some Hadiths have been twisted to say what they did not mean!

I'm not discrediting anybody - but please be careful what you receive before you pass them out as if that is exactly what is true.

Cheers all.

@8oracle: Since you do not know so much about Islam, then I will not fault you. You are basing Islam on Muslims. The truth is that Muslims should be measured for their God consciousness/piety, by The Qur'an and authentic Sunnah/hadith. However my question to you is which of the branches and or churches in christianity is true and the rest being false? please you can not have two completely different churches/branches to be completely true christianity. At best, they could be partially true, but completely true.


@lysaa: You are quoting Phillisian, romans, and the like, to explain Jesus. Oh, I get it, it was after Jesus was raised up by his Lord, that the mission of jesus completed by Paul and his followers. So it seems that Jesus did not complete his mission. Paul, who was never with him as a companion, had to finish the job! Yet, the rule of engagement of Paul is different from that of Jesus, which agrees completely with the prophets of old, eg Moses.

Moreover, if you died and raised up with Jesus, according to your entry above, will you still die in the future and be raised up for judgement before GOD? Please note that the 12 apostles will judge mankind. I ask you this questions: where is God in all of these and who judges the apostles and when and why will Jesus intercedes and before who on behalf of christians? Confusing!


@Gwaine: Tell me the ruling on fornication, adultery, murder, just to name a few, from the instructions of Jesus your Lord and saviour? You call yourself christian, which is derived from CHRIST, right?

@Orikinla: Angels are created from a different source, light. While the evil one is from smokeless fire. The devil can not take the form of an angel. It is not permissable. And thereis nothing called falling angel(s)! You are right, Islam is in essence different from christianity.

@4get_me: Barnabas was acompanion of Jesus, right? Did Jesus ever said anything bad about him as to indicate that one should not believe barnabas after Jesus has been raised up? The companion of your Lord and Saviour should not be drag in the mud like you are doing! As a matter of fact, Jesus, your Lord should have known the state of the affairs of his companions after him. He should have exposed those who needed to be exposed. Afterall, he spoke about the betrayer, Judas, and others who will even deny him at the crucial hour! Why are you not honoring barnabas?


@Mlks_baby:If we take your christian understanding of 'the word', to mean jesus, then you have to explain the below to me.

When Jesus, the word was conceive and was in his mother's womb, developing as a fetus, was God audible in speech to the Angels, eg Gabrael who was still talking to Zacharia,etc?

When Jesus was a child, helpless and suckle his mother, and eats until he could talk, even though he continued to be depending on his mother, what happened to the Speech of God?

When Jesus was now grown and was being baptised (Birmitzpha), and the voice that came from heaven saying this is my son, in whom am well pleased; was that word, because it was heard word of God or what? Remember, Jesus was the word and he is now on earth and not with God anymore! please explain, because it seemed to me that God was able to speak His word was audible!

When Jesus was arrested and went through the trial and finally died for those 3 days, even though it is not completely 3 days, what happened to God's wors/voice: arrested and finally silenced?

You will by carefully examining all of the above and others which i think you are acpable of thinking about, will come to conclusion, which is going to a new source of hope to you.

olabowale:

@lysaa: You are quoting Phillisian, romans, and the like, to explain Jesus. Oh, I get it, it was after Jesus was raised up by his Lord, that the mission of jesus completed by Paul and his followers. So it seems that Jesus did not complete his mission. Paul, who was never with him as a companion, had to finish the job! Yet, the rule of engagement of Paul is different from that of Jesus, which agrees completely with the prophets of old, eg Moses

@Olabowale,

So, just what exactly is your nightmare about quoting from any part of the Bible when your own brethren were busy claiming that the Injil (Gospel) is lost - and yet they have been sweating hard to find Muhammad in the Gospel of John?

Olabowale is simply confused. Paul is a huge thorn in the side of the islamic faith for he completely exposes the falacy of mohammed's claims.
The existence of the new testament books of the apostle completely destroys the desperate attempt of islam to cast mohammed as just another one in a long line of "biblical prophets".

The reason: the older prophets (old testament) that islam copiously borrows from the bible to lend legitimacy to their fraud all talk about retribution, salvation by works and the supremacy of a fearful God - islam's key anchors.
BUT enter acts of the apostles and the books of Paul - now the scenario has changed. No longer is God dealing with us as a supreme unseen being but as a saviour, a friend, a father, a guide - - things that are incompatible with the islamic idea of one fearful, humongous god who has no feelings for his slaves.

Paul and his bunch also talk of salvation by grace and the power of the blood of Jesus Christ cleansing us from sin - Islam has no way of turning this around as the quran totally rejects this hence their penchant for always wanting to borrow from the old testament on one hand and then condemning the new testament and the books of Paul as corrupt.

Sadly it is one more nail in the coffin of islam. However eyes they have but cannot see.