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But sanctify the Lord God in your hearts: and be ready always
to give an answer to every man that asketh you a reason of the
hope that is in you with meekness and fear (1Peter 3:15).
Whether in a coffee
shop with friends in the evening or visiting in one of their
homes, this Scripture has been very applicable
to our lives here. In these conversations, we are often
asked certain questions, such as:
-
“You
are a Christian, right?”
-
“How
do you worship?”
-
“How
often and what do you pray?”
-
“What
is the name of your church?”
These questions are all very important to people here,
as we are living in a predominantly Muslim culture.
As soon as our
friends get comfortable with us they invariably ask
some or all of these questions. One thing I have realized
recently is that
our response to these questions could make the difference
of a lifetime, and may determine that soul's eternal
destiny.
These questions
cause me to stop and think about who I really am and what
I represent to people here. For
many of the people
here, I may be the only follower of Christ that
they will ever have significant contact with. As I have
pondered this, the Lord
is teaching me how to give an answer for the
hope that
lies within me, and I want to share with you
what the Lord has shown me.
“You
are a Christian, right?”
At first glance
this question seems innocent enough, but as you realize
what people here “know” about Christians
you have second thoughts. Many of us would be horrified if we
knew what being a Christian means to a typical Muslim person.
If I were to respond to this question with an eager “yes,” I
would unwittingly confirm in their minds that:
-
I
worship three gods, namely the Creator God,
Mary (mother of Jesus), and her son
Jesus. According
to
Muslims, Christians
believe that God became flesh and
had a physical relationship with Mary, who then gave
birth
to Jesus.
In reality, I do not worship three gods
and I believe that God is one and there
is none
beside
Him. The
oneness of
God is confirmed
by the words of Jesus, “I and my Father are one” (John
10: 30).
-
I
hate peace and love war. From a Muslim's perspective, the “Cross
Wars” (Crusades) are express
proof of this concept. The United
States’ involvement in the
Middle East conflict and the thousands
of troops deployed on
Middle Eastern
soil in the last few years is further
confirmation of this mentality.
I want my friends to know that my ancestors
were imprisoned for refusing to take
up arms and fight
in these wars.
Furthermore,
I believe that it is sin to commit murder,
whether in the name of religion or our
country.
-
I
believe it is OK to live an immoral lifestyle, and for our women
to
dress
immodestly in public.
Hollywood, as they see it
on TV, is Christian in their
eyes. This belief is reinforced by the way that
many Christians
here dress immodestly.
When people here first notice that
our dress is different from other Americans
they know,
they talk about it
and respect us
for it. These discussions often lead
to deeper, more meaningful sharing
about
matters
of
the heart and true
righteousness.
Because of these
issues, we often refrain from calling ourselves Christians,
simply because
we do not want
to be associated
with ungodliness in the name of Christ.
Instead, we often refer to
ourselves as followers of “Isa” (Jesus), whom they
know as “Al Masih” (The Messiah). See
(Deut. 18: 15 and Acts 11:26).
“ How
do you worship?”
Muslims believe
that ritual prayers are the truest form of worship. I often
tell Muslims that Isa did
not command us to pray in a certain manner, i.e. facing Jerusalem, or
using certain
positions. I teach them that according to Scriptures we
especially
need to pay attention to three things when we pray:
-
When we
speak to God we need to admit our failures and sins and
to take
responsibility
for them (1 John 1:8-9). We need to
be truthful with who
we are before Him (Luke 18:13-14).
-
In order
for our prayers to be heard, we must first be reconciled
with
anyone who has anything against
us (Matthew 5:23-24).
-
We need
to speak to Him with the confidence
that
He is there,
that
He knows our hearts,
and that He
can hear
what we are saying.
He is ever present.
We need to speak to Him
with the
language of our
hearts (Heb.
11:6
and Jn.
4:23).
 Sometimes my friends
ask me, “Can you pray like we pray?” I
tell them, “If my heart has been transformed and made clean
from sin, my posture in prayer is immaterial. If I pray from
my heart then God hears my prayers” (James
5:16). I often follow up with some testimonies of
answered prayer,
healings,
etc.
“ How
often, and what do you pray?”
Muslims pray ritual
prayers five times a day. Often this is a sincere question
that
is asked in response to conversation about the real purpose of prayer.
Here are some
thoughts
I share
with
my friends:
-
We are commanded
in our
scriptures to pray
without
ceasing.
In simple language, I tell
my friends
that we can pray about
anything
and everything.
For example, I
call
a friend on the phone
if I
have
a request or message
or if I simply want
to
chat.
In the
same way we can call upon
God and
He
will
converse
with
us.
-
Isa taught
His
followers to refrain
from
repetitious prayers,
as
these prayers are
not
heard by God (Matthew
6:7).
God
hears
original prayers that
come
from our heart and is
not
interested
in
recitation when
it
comes to prayers.
“ What
is the name of your church?”
-
Whenever
friends ask this question, I let them know that I am
neither
Catholic nor Protestant, but a follower of Isa, and then we launch
into a discussion on
the
true meaning of
church.
-
Church is
not a building, as most people believe, but rather is
an assembly of believers. I
point
out the words of Isa, “Where
two or three are gathered together in my Name, there
am I in the midst of them” (Matthew 18:20).
Having said this, I am not afraid to invite them
to my house if they want to see
for themselves how we conduct our prayers, worship
God, and “have
church.” Meeting in a home for Bible study
and prayer is probably much more culturally acceptable
for them than going to a formal church service
on Sunday morning.
I
have been
surprised more
than once
at the
responses that
I have
gotten as
I have
discussed some
of these
issues at
length. Among
them are:
“
I think that your people are the true “people of the book” whom
we read about in the Quran.”
“ I think if you had been born into my culture, you would be some
great Muslim teacher.”
“ Please pray for me so that I could have this heart change you
are talking about.”
“ I think if you would become a Muslim, you would actually be better
than I am, because I have not had this heart change.”
These
are wonderful
confirmations to
our hearts
here. We
see these
as indications
that the
Life of
Christ is
shining through
us and
that we
are able
to make
a difference.
Luke
11:33 says, “No man, when he hath lighted
a candle, putteth it in a secret place, neither under
a bushel, but
on a candlestick, that they which come in may see the
light.”
Before
we came
here I
thought that
we might
have a
hard time
talking to
people about
things that
really matter.
After getting
to know
some people
and making
friends I
realize that
the opposite
is true.
Because of
the vacuum
of truth
here people
are often
quick to
ask deep
questions, and
start conversations
about matters
of the
heart.
Blessings:
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