Answering Islam’s five main objections to Christianity
“Love is patient, love is kind.” (1 Corinthians 13:4a). Sharing the Good News (Injil) effectively with Muslims simply involves knowing the Gospel and understanding the way that many passages in the Qur’an actually support biblical truth.
These five misunderstandings blind many Muslims to Jesus, but they are not difficult to refute using the Qur’an itself.
1. The Bible is Corrupted
Background: The Qur’an mentions three different parts of the Judeo-Christian Scriptures. It asserts that God gave them all.
• Torah/Taurat, or Law: “It was We who revealed the Law (to Moses); therein was Guidance and Light” (Q. 5:44; see also Q. 6:91; 21:48).
• Zabur, or Psalms: “…We did bestow on some Prophets more (and other) gifts than on others: and We gave to David (the gift of) the Psalms” (Q. 17:55; see also Q. 21:105).
• Injil, or Gospel: “It is He who sent down to thee (step by step), in truth, the Book, confirming what went before it; and He sent down the Law (of Moses) and the Gospel (of Jesus) before this, as a guide to mankind” (Q. 3:3; see also Q. 21:7).
Conclusion: Muslims generally believe, therefore, that the Scriptures came originally from God.
Objection to Christianity:
Because of discrepancies between the Judeo-Christian scriptures and Qur’an, most Muslims believe our Book has been altered.
Response:
The Qur’an, however, says that
• The Book is a reliable record: “And if you, Muhammad, are in doubt concerning that which We have revealed unto thee, then ask those who have been reading the Book (that was) before thee” (Q. 10:94).
If the Bible was changed, <When did it happen?> <Where did it happen?> <How did it happen> <Who did it?>
Remember it had to be still accurate and intact in the 7th century AD when Muhammad received this command to consult the Book. There are thousands of biblical manuscripts already existed, scattered throughout Asia, Europe, and Northern Africa hundreds of years before Muhammad. If someone had indeed attemted to alter the Books after Muhammad’s time, changing all copies located, hidden and stored everywhere, by that point in time—and altering them in exactly the same way—would have taken a great miracle!
• Allah’s Word cannot be changed: “There is none that can alter the Words (and Decrees) of Allah” (Q. 6:34; see also Q. 5:48; 10:64; 15:9; 18:27).
2. ‘Trinity’ Means Three Gods
Objection to Christianity:
Most Muslims mistakenly believe that Christians worship three gods. Many even think the Christian Trinity consists of Father, Son, and Mary. (This idea comes from the Quan itself; see 5:116)
Response:
• While seeking to refute the Trinity, the Qur’an affirms that <God is both ‘Word’ and ‘Spirit’>: “Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) an apostle of God, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in God and His apostles. Say not ‘Trinity’” (Q. 4:171).
• <God is awesome and complex>. His three-ness and His one-ness describe different aspects of Him—much as a triangle has both three-ness (points) and one-ness (as a single shape). This does not mean there are three triangles!
• <God is all-powerful and unlimited by human constraints> (Q. 2:20, 189). Analogies do not come close to explaining Him adequately. But they help reveal how something can simultaneously be one and three, without contradiction, in different ways.
3. God Cannot Have a Son
Objection to Christianity:
Having a Son would entail physical procreation and would violate God’s <Tawheed>, or oneness. “Say: ‘He is God, the One and Only; God, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like unto Him” (Q. 112:1-4; see also Q. 19:35; 23:91).
Response:
“Son of God” is a metaphor that describes a unique relationship between two aspects (Father and Son) of God’s single essence. Son of God is NOT a biological description. It is a TITLE of Messiah.
• “Son of Egypt,” similarly, means “from Egypt”—not a man begotten from sex between Turkey and Iran.
• <The Qur’an itself uses metaphorical language for Jesus>, calling Him a “Word” from God. “Behold! The angels said: ‘O Mary! God giveth thee glad tidings of a Word from Him: his name will be Christ Jesus, the son of Mary, held in honour in this world and the Hereafter and of (the company of) those nearest to God” (Q. 3:45). And nowhere does the Quran address or deny what the Bible teaches.
• <The Qur’an affirms that God could have a biological son from the sex hooris, if desired>: Hilali & Khan, Quran 21:17: Had We intended to take a pastime (i.e. a wife or a son, etc.), We could surely have taken it from Us, if We were going to do (that).“Had Allah wished to take to Himself a son, He could have chosen whom He pleased out of those He doth create” (Q. 39:4). Though Q. 6:101 appears contradictory—implying that it would be impossible for God to have a son—Q. 39:4 remains.
4. Jesus is Not God
Objection to Christianity:
Saying that Jesus is God is blasphemy. Jesus was merely a prophet equal to Muhammad.
Response:
Islam asserts that
• Jesus was born of a virgin (Q. 3:47; 19:16-21)
• Jesus was righteous (Q. 3:46; 6:85)
• Jesus was sinless (Hadiths : Bukhari and Muslim)
• Jesus performed miracles (Q. 3:49; 5:110)
• Jesus spoke during infancy (Q. 19:29-31)
• Jesus was strengthened/supported by the Holy Spirit (Q. 2:87)
• Jesus was God’s Word (Q. 4:171)
• Jesus was a Spirit from God (Q. 4:171)
The Qur’an and Hadiths do not make any such claims about Muhammad. It seems, then, that Jesus reflected God’s perfect character and love in a way Muhammad never did. If the two were equal, why did Muhammad not experience, do, and be such?
5. Jesus was Not Crucified, and Atonement is Not Necessary
Objection to Christianity:
• Atonement is not needed, because salvation comes by works. “To those who believe and do deeds of righteousness hath God promised forgiveness and a great reward” (Q. 5:9; see also Q. 11:114; 29:7).
• One person’s sin cannot be transferred to another. “Who receiveth guidance, receiveth it for his own benefit: who goeth astray doth so to his own loss: No bearer of burdens can bear the burden of another” (Q. 17:15).
Response:
• The Qur’an is inconsistent, claiming once that Jesus’ crucifixion was only a trick (Q. 4:157) and elsewhere that He really did die and be raised (Q. 3:55, M. Asad translation).
• The Qur’an affirms that Jesus Himself knew He would die and be resurrected: “‘So Peace is on me the day I was born, the day that I die, and the day that I shall be raised up to life (again)’!” (Q. 19:33). Why would Jesus make this claim if He wasn’t going to do so? If He did die and rise again, <Why?> <For what purpose?>
• The Qur’an affirms substitutionary atonement when it recounts Abraham’s near-sacrifice of his son. “We called out to him, ‘O Abraham!’ … And We ransomed him with a momentous sacrifice” (Q. 37:104-107). If God cannot accept a sinless sacrifice as a ransom in place of a sinful person, why did He do so in Abraham’s case?
Source: Open The Gates Ministries