What You May Need to Know About Musl_ms by Dav. K. Irw.

All biblical references are from the Holy Bible: King James Version.   All Qur'_nic references are from The Holy Qur'_n: Translation and Commentary by A. Yusuf Ali (c) 1977, Amana Corporation. [Info only.]    This booklet, written by the late Dav. Irw., has been revised to update the statistics he originally used.   Though Dr. Irw. was killed in an automobile accident in 1984, his God-given burden for reaching out in love to Musl_ms with the gospel has been carried on through [a] Ministry to Musl_ms.    Our prayer is that those reading this booklet will begin to under- stand the vastness of the harvest field of Musl_ms, and that God will open their spiritual eyes to the great needs of these 1 billion souls. May many become burdened and reach out to Musl_ms who live in their communities and around the world.    Additional information can be obtained by writing to: C.M.M. ... U.S.A.

Four thousand years ago Abraham cried out to God, "O that Ishmael might live before thee!"   This heart-rending plea of a father for his son touched God's heart, and He replied, "And as for Ishmael, I have heard thee: Behold, I have blessed him, ..., and I will make him a great nation" (Genesis 17:20,21).    Today the spiritual sons of Ishmael are called Musl_ms--the people of Isl_m.   Over 1 billion Musl_ms are scattered around the world, and they are still outside the Covenant.   They have been blessed in a material sense, but they have not been saved. They have submitted to [All_h], but not to [God's] Son, our Lord Jesus Christ. Musl_ms accept the Lord Jesus as a prophet only.

In l959, the Lord sent me to Egypt to work with Lil. Tra. in the orphanage she had founded in Assiout.   In that city I met Musl_ms, lived among them, and was exposed to their culture.   Since that time, I have carefully nurtured a spiritual burden for the people of Isl_m, wherever they live, work, suffer, and pray.    My heart became increasingly burdened not only by the enormous spiritual need of the 1 billion Musl_ms, but also by the apathy of the my. movement toward them.   Little more than 4 percent of the my. force is endeavoring to reach this vast multitude which comprises 35 percent of all unevangelized peoples of the world.   Unplanted fields bear no harvest.   Isl_m is an unplanted field!    Instead of being evangelized, Musl_ms are evangelizing.   They are sending out thousands of mies. to [t]each the message of their prophet, Muhamm_d.   Saudi Arabia has given millions of dollars to promote Isl_m in America.   Mosques, such as the one in Chicago which cost $15 million, are being built in many major cities.    New Mexico is the site of America's first all-Musl_m com- munity, called Dar al Isl_m.   Situated on 1,280 acres, the ortho- dox Sunni Musl_ms intend to evangelize America from this center.    The soaring growth rate of Isl_m has been highlighted by Al-lsl_m, the "magazine of Musl_ms in Germany."   It reported that Musl_ms are counting on Europe, the birthplace of the Reformation and the modern my. movement, to become completely Isl_mic within the next few decades.

In England more than 300 closed churches have been con- verted into mosques.   Musl_ms expect their religion to have the highest number of adherents worldwide because, they say, Isl_m is "best suited to solve the problems of all areas...if human civilization is to be preserved from destruction, then Isl_m is the only religion for the world tomorrow...Isl_m is the universal message of peace in this world and the next."    The number of Musl_ms has passed the 50 million mark in each of these six countries: Bangladesh, Turkey, India, Indonesia, Pakistan, and China.   Musl_ms are now in a majority in 44 countries of the world.   We must ask ourselves: Why has the church of Jesus Christ not gone into this neglected field? How Isl_m Began Muhamm_d, the originator of Isl_m, was born into the pagan Quraish tribe about 570 A.D. in the city of Mecca, in what is now Saudi Arabia.   The Quraish claimed direct descent from Abraham through Ishmael.   Many of them were traders whose caravans made journeys to Syria and Palestine.    Muhamm_d's father Abdullah died before Muhamm_d was born.   His mother Amina died when he was 6.   His grandfather, who was the chief of Mecca and the keeper of a pagan shrine, cared for him.    During his early teens, Muhamm_d accompanied relatives on trading journeys to Syria.   He may have also gone to Palestine.

When Muhamm_d was 25 years old, he married a wealthy widow named Khadija.   He worked for Khadija as a caravan manager.   When Muhamm_d began receiving "revelations," Khadija used her wealth to help him spread his doctrines.    Through contacts with Christians and Jews in his native area and on trading journeys, Muhamm_d learned about the Jewish and Christian faiths.   It seems that the paganism of his tribe and the many deities they worshipped increasingly repulsed him.   Perhaps he was seeking for something to satisfy his heart's desire and was trying to understand the Jewish and Christian doctrines.   He incorporated some Jewish and Christian practices, such as fasting and regular hours for prayer, into his version of Isl_m.    At about the age of 40, while meditating in a cave, Muhamm_d received his first revelation.   A spiritual being (some say the angel Gabriel) came to him and commanded him to "recite."   Almost all scholars believe that this first revela- tion is chapter 96 of the Qur'_n, the sacred scriptures of the Musl_ms.   It says, "Proclaim! (or Read!) in the name of thy Lord and Cherisher, who created--created man, out of a (mere) clot of congealed blood: Proclaim! and thy Lord is Most Bountiful--He who taught (the use of) the Pen--taught man that which he knew not."   At later dates other revelations provided the material for the rest of the Qur'_n.   Today, Isl_mic teachers in mosques and schools over [many areas of] the world read and recite the Qur'_n. What Musl_ms Believe The Msl_m creed has six articles.   They are about (1) God, (2) the angels of [All_h], (3) the books of [All_h], (4) the prophets of

[All_h], (5) the day of resurrection and judgment, and (6) the pre- destination to do good and evil.   We will explain each of these briefly.    1. What M_slims Believe About God    There are several parts to the Musl_m belief about god.   The first involves his name.   The name All_h refers to god's essen- tial being and is known as the great name of god.   All of his other names are qualities of his divine being.    Musl_ms assign seven principle attributes to [All_h].   They are: a. Life.   His existence has neither beginning nor ending. b. Knowledge.   He knows all things, visible or invisible, past or future.   He never forgets, is never negligent, and never makes an error. c. Power.   All_h is almighty.   If he wills, he can make stones and trees talk. d. Will.   He is able to do what he wills.   Good and evil exist by his will.   If a man is pious, it is because of the will of All_h.   If a man is an unbeliever, it is due to the will of All_h. e. Hearing.   He can hear every sound, whether high or low.   He hears without ears. f. Seeing.   He sees all things, even the steps of a black cat on a black stone at midnight.   He is able to see without eyes. g. Speech.   He speaks, but without a tongue.    The second belief about God that Musl_ms emphasize is his unity.   The Qur'_n 112:1-4 says, "Say: He is All_h, the One and Only; All_h, the Eternal, Absolute; He begetteth not, nor is He begotten; and there is none like Him."   Musl_ms often quote these verses to Christians.   The Musl_m creed, "There is no god but God," expresses their belief in [All_h]'s unity.

To a Musl_m, the association of other gods with All_h is the greatest sin possible.    The third aspect of the Musl_m belief in God is his great- ness.   The Arabic expression Allahu akbar, which means "God is greatest," is recited almost constantly.   To the Musl_m it means that no matter what a man can think of, God is greater than that.    The fourth part of the Musl_m belief about God is his reve- lation of his divine will or law.   It is important for those who want to witness to Musl_ms to understand this.   Musl_ms use the expression tanzil (sending down) to mean the revelation or sending down of [All_h]'s message in the Qur'_n.   Christians say that Christ is the greatest of God's revelations, but Musl_ms say the greatest revelation is his message or the Qur'_n.    The last Musl_m belief about God is his transcendence.   Musl_ms believe that [All_h] is unknowable.   He holds himself aloof from man, and his real self can never be known by man.    2. What Musl_ms Believe About Angels    According to the Qur'_n, the devil was created from fire, men from clay, and angels from light.   Angels have life, speech, and reason.   They have no carnal desire or anger.   It is said that their food is celebrating God's glory; their drink is proclaiming God's holiness; their conversation is commemorating God; their pleasure is worshipping God.    Angels are thought to be inferior to human prophets because they were commanded to prostrate themselves before Adam.   "And behold, We said to the angels: `Bow down to

Adam,' and they bowed down. Not so Iblis. He refused and was haughty" (Qur'_n 2:34).    Musl_ms believe that angels intercede for man and act as his guardians.   Each Musl_m assumes that two recording angels tend him, one to record his good actions and the other his evil actions.   "They know (and understand) all that ye do" (Qur'_n 82:12).    Four archangels are part of the Musl_m belief: Gabriel, the angel of revelation; Michael, the patron of the Israelites; Israfil, who must sound the trumpet at the last day; and Azra'il, the angel of death.   The chief angel in charge of hell is Malik (king), and he has 19 sub-angels or guards. The Musl_m concept of sin and salvation is radically different from that of the New Testament.    3. What Musl_ms Believe About the Books of God    Musl_ms believe that God gave 104 sacred books to mankind.   He gave 100 of these to Adam, Seth, Enoch, and Abraham, but they have been lost.   The four remaining books are the books of Moses, the Psalms of David, the Gospels of Christ, and the Qur'an which All_h gave to Muhamm_d.   It is critical for Christians to realize that Musl_ms claim that we have altered the books in the Bible.   By this, they are attempting to justify the statements in the Qur'_n that differ from the Bible. They say the Qur'_n corrects previous mistakes in revelation because it was revealed last!   "We (also) sent (Our prophets) to peoples before thee...and We sent down the Book to thee for the express purpose, that thou shouldst make clear to them those things in which they differ" (Qur'_n 16:63,64).    4. What Musl_ms Believe About the Prophets of God    Musl_ms generally speak of two classes of prophets of God. Nabi is any prophet who God inspires, and Rasul is a prophet to whom God has entrusted a special message.   Musl_ms accept the Lord Jesus as a prophet only.    Tradition states that Muhamm_d claimed there were 124,000 prophets and 315 apostles or messengers.   It is said that nine of these are "possessors of power or constancy." They are Noah, Abraham, David, Jacob, Joseph, Job, Moses, Jesus, and Muhamm_d.   Six of these have special titles.   Christ's title is Ruh All_h which means the Spirit of God.    5. What Musl_ms Believe About the        Day of Judgment and Resurrection    The last day has several names in the Qur'_n.   Among them are the day of uprising, the day of separation, the day of reck- oning, the day of awakening and sending forth, the day of judg- ment, the last day, the encompassing day, and the hour.    Musl_m teaching about the last day states that it will be pre- ceded by three blasts of a trumpet.   The first blast will terrify all creatures in heaven and earth.   At the second blast, all crea- tures in heaven and earth will die.   And at the last blast, 40 years later, all the dead will be raised again for the judgment.   It will be a general resurrection of men, angels, jinn (spirits), and animals.    The length of the day of judgment will be 1,000 years. Some Isl_mic scholars say it will be 50,000 years.   To support their point they cite "A day the measure whereof is as 50,000 years" (Qur'_n 70:4).    When all the people have been assembled for judgment, the angels will keep them waiting for 40 years (or 50,000 years depending on the commentator).   After this, [All_h] will appear to judge them, and Muhamm_d will intercede on their behalf. Muhamm_d will be the one to intercede because Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, and Jesus will decline as they feel unworthy to do it.    Each person will be examined from his own book of deeds in which all his words and actions are recorded.   [All_h] will weigh all his deeds and words on a balance scale.   "We shall set up scales of justice for the day of Judgment so that not a soul will be dealt with unjustly in the least. And if there be (no more than) the weight of a mustard seed, we will bring it (to account), and enough are We to take account" (Qur'_n 21:47).