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A. Muhammad by his own profession firmly believed in the authenticity of the Bible as it existed in his day.

Sura 5:71. "Say people of the book! Ye have no ground to stand upon unless you stand fast by the law, the gospel and all the revelation that has come to you from the Lord.

Sura 21:7. "Before Thee, also, the apostles we sent were but men, whom we granted inspiration. If ye realize this not, ask of those who possess the message."

Many early doctors of Islam and many other scholars after them hold that the Qua'ran teaches that the words of the Bible are the unchangeable words of God.

Sura 10:64. "The words of the Lord are perfect in truth and justice; there is none who can change His words."

Sura 10:64. "No change can there be in the Words of God. This is indeed the supreme felicity."

Question 1 -- If Muhammad believed in the authenticity of the Bible and if early Muslim scholars did not question it, then when was the Bible corrupted? Was it before or after Muhammad lived? If before, then Muhammad was in error. If after the time of Muhammad, then the ancient manuscripts should give witness of gross changes made in the Bible. But see Section B below.

B. Muhammad lived from 570? to 632 A.D. There are over 5000 ancient manuscripts of the Greek New Testament and also many quotations from the New Testament that are found in the writings of early Christian scholars. In addition, there are ancient translations of the New Testament into other languages. Large numbers of these New Testament manuscripts and quotations are dated before the time of Muhammad, as early as the second century A.D and perhaps even the first century. These ancient manuscripts predating Muhammad teach exactly the same things about Jesus Christ and the Christian faith as do those dated after Muhammad's time. And our modern Bibles are simply translations of the ancient manuscripts.

Question 2 -- Where, then, is the documentary proof that the message of the Bible about Jesus Christ has been changed or corrupted?

C. Jesus Christ claimed that he is eternal God. The Jewish religious leaders got his point and wanted to stone him to death for blasphemy.

John 8:58-59 Jesus said to them, "Most assuredly, I say to you, before Abraham was, I AM." [I AM is Jehovah. Exodus 3:14]

59 Then they took up stones to throw at him; but Jesus hid himself and went out of the temple, going through the midst of them, and so passed by."

John 10:30-33 "I and my Father are one."

31 Then the Jews took up stones again to stone him.

32 Jesus answered them, "Many good works I have shown you from My Father. For which of those works do you stone Me?"

33 The Jews answered him, saying, "For a good work we do not stone you, but for blasphemy, and because you, being a man, make yourself God."

Question 3 -- Since Muhammad said the Bible is the true word of God, and since Jesus plainly claimed to be God, God the Son, equal to the Father and to the Holy Spirit, why should not the people of Islam accept Jesus Christ's claim about himself?

D. The Qua'ran teaches that Muhammad committed sin and had to ask forgiveness (Sura 40:55, 47:19, 48:1-2, 49:1-3). God told Adam in Genesis 2:17 that if he disobeyed (sinned), he would "surely die." and afterwards suffer physical death (Genesis 3:19). The prophet tells us, "The soul who sins shall die" (Ezekiel 18:4b). The prophet Jeremiah tells us that our human hearts are innately sinful, "The heart is deceitful above things, and desperately wicked; who can know it?" In the New Testament we are told, "...For there is no difference; for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God" (Romans 3:22b-23). And the New Testament agrees with the Old Testament, "For the wages of sin is death..." (Romans 6:23a).

Question 4 -- How can a guilty sinner like you or me, or Muhammad, be forgiven by a holy God whose eternal righteous Law demands death for the sinner? How can we whose souls are made unclean, filthy, by our sins, be made clean in the sight of a perfectly holy God who cannot have fellowship with sin? Does Islam have a way for God to forgive the sinner without violating His own holy Law that demands death for the sinner? Is it possible for God to violate His own righteous, eternal Law?

E. God's prophet Moses instructed Israel to sacrifice an innocent substitute to die for the sins of the people. The substitute was a carefully chosen male lamb that had no imperfections (Exodus 12). The prophet Isaiah in about 700 B.C. predicted the coming of the suffering Servant of God who would die for our sins (Isaiah 53:1-12). In verses 5 and 6 Isaiah says, "But He was wounded for our transgressions, He was bruised for our iniquities; the chastisement for our peace was upon Him, and by His stripes we are healed. All we like sheep have gone astray; we have turned, every one, to his own way; and the LORD has laid on Him the iniquity of us all." The New Testament tells us that Jesus Christ is the Lamb of God (John 1:29, 35). Thus the sacrificial lambs of the Jews were a picture of the "Lamb of God." Sadly, the Jews today repudiate Jesus Christ, their Messiah.

Question 5 -- Does Islam have a perfect divine/human sacrifice who could be the substitute for sinners, to suffer their death in their place, so that they can be delivered from the righteous judgment of God against their sins?

F. Since the people of Islam do not have a perfect divine/human substitute to take upon Himself the punishment they deserve for their sins, their only hope is that in the Day of Judgment each Muslim can offer to God his or her record of good deeds. They can hope that somehow their good deeds can cancel out their sins. But their record will still be a mixture of their sins with their good deeds.

Question 6 -- Since God is absolutely holy and cannot have any fellowship with sin, and since nothing sinful can be admitted into heaven, how good would a person have to be in order to be admitted into heaven? Is it not clear that the answer to this question is that only a perfectly sinless, pure, holy person deserves to enter heaven?

G. The Scriptures of both the Old Testament and the New Testament tell us that the only perfectly holy and sinless human being is Jesus Christ, the God-Man. The Lord Jesus stood before his worst enemies, the leaders of the Jews, and asked them, "Which of you convicts me of sin? And if I tell the truth, why do you not believe me?" (John 8:46)

Question 7  -- Can any religious leader or founder, in the presence of his enemies, make the claim of being sinless, other than Jesus Christ?

Question 8 -- Did Muhammad perform the mighty miracles that Jesus Christ did while he was here on earth?

Question 9 -- Did Muhammad perform the miracles that the prophet Moses did? How, then, can it be claimed that Muhammad carried on the tradition of the prophet Moses?

H. All of the religions of the world, except for the Bible Christian faith, tell us sinful humans that we can work our way to salvation or heaven or eternal life by being good people and doing some kind of good works or religious exercises.

Question 10 -- Do our human efforts of any kind really give us firm hope for our eternal future? The Lord Jesus gave us this promise: "Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears my voice and believes in Him who sent Me, has everlasting life and will not come into condemnation, but has passed from death unto life." (John 5:24)

I. The substitute who died for the sins of the world had to be true man and have no sin, no guilt of his own to die for. Since sin is an offense against God who is infinite and absolutely holy, the man who died to redeem us from our sins must likewise be infinite and absolutely holy. Therefore, our Redeemer must Himself be God and man.

J. In Genesis 1:26 God said, "Let us make man in Our image, according to Our likeness..." To whom was God speaking? Does this not agree with the teaching of three Persons in the Godhead?

K. Jesus Christ of Nazareth and his death on the cross are recorded in secular history. The Roman historian Tacitus (A.D. 55-120) wrote: "Christus...suffered the extreme penalty during the reign of Tiberius at the hands of one of our procurators, Pontius Pilatus" (Annals 15:44).

Jewish historian Josephus (A.D. 37-97) states in his Antiquities of the Jews, "Pilate condemned him to be crucified and to die" (18.3.3). [Note: The authenticity of this quote from Josephus has been questioned.]

The Talmud of the Jewish nation compiled about A.D. 135 states, "On the eve of the Passover, Yeshu [Jesus] was hanged."

Question 11 -- Is there any really good reason for rejecting the claims of Jesus Christ in the Bible? He said, "This is the will of Him that sent Me, that everyone who sees the Son, and believes on Him, may have everlasting life; and I will raise him up at the last day." (John 6:40)