Kingdom Come

“I am the voice of one crying in the wilderness, Make straight the way of the Lord.” (John 1:23)

And Moses said unto the LORD, See, thou sayest unto me, Bring up this people: and thou hast not let me know whom thou wilt send with me. Yet thou hast said, I know thee by name, and thou hast also found grace in my sight. Now therefore, I pray thee, if I have found grace in thy sight, shew me now thy way, that I may know thee, that I may find grace in thy sight...And the LORD descended in the cloud, and stood with him there, and proclaimed the name / attributes / way of the LORD.

• The LORD / Singularity / Creator
• The LORD God / Authority
• merciful and gracious, longsuffering, and abundant in goodness and truth
• Keeping mercy for thousands,
• forgiving iniquity and transgression and sin,
• and that will by no means clear the guilty.” (Exodus 33:12-13, 34:5-7)

Bear in mind the spiritual backdrop to the transformation of Rome from a publicly pagan to a publicly Christian Empire which was in reality just a new face on the old Mithraism.

The believers in One True God are being wiped out by the Roman Empire’s eradication of Judaism and corruption of Christianity. 

Is God going to stand by and do nothing? Not according to his word, he’s not.

And what to my wondering eyes should appear, but Muhammad c. 570 CE – 8 June 632 CE), the founder of Islam. He claimed to be God’s Messenger, the final prophet of God sent to restore orthodox monotheism previously preached by Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses and Jesus.

Bible believers should totally expect this.

“Behold, I will send my messenger, and he shall prepare the way before me: and the LORD, whom ye seek, shall suddenly come to his temple, even the messenger of the covenant, whom ye delight in: behold, he shall come, saith the LORD of hosts…And I will come near to you to judgment; and I will be a swift witness against the sorcerers, and against the adulterers, and against false swearers, and against those that oppress the hireling in his wages, the widow, and the fatherless, and that turn aside the stranger from his right, and fear not me, saith the LORD of hosts. For I am the LORD, I change not…Then they that feared the LORD spake often one to another: and the LORD hearkened, and heard it, and a book of remembrance was written before him for them that feared the LORD / YHVH, and that thought upon his name / attributes of Singularity and righteousness.

• And they shall be mine, saith the LORD of hosts, in that day when I make up my jewels; and I will spare them, as a man spareth his own son that serveth him.
• Then shall YE / Hebrews return, and discern between the righteous and the wicked, between him that serveth God and him that serveth him not.” (Malachi 3)

Muslims believe the Qur’an is the word of God, spoken by the angel Gabriel to Muhammad. This is 100% consistent with the word of God spoken by the angel Gabriel to Daniel and provides validation for Muhammad’s claim.

Like Muhammad, Daniel was not part of the Jewish religious entourage. In Daniel’s case, it was impossible because he was a eunuch, but still he was certainly a prophet to the Jews as well as the Gentiles under the non-Jewish world ruler set up by God.

So Islam cannot be discredited on the basis of being established on revelation from the angel Gabriel. The test of truth is the message itself.

What is the essence of Muhammed’s revelation? 

“Islam” means “submission,” specifically in this context, submission or obedience to God. 

“And God spake all these words, saying, I am the LORD thy God

• Thou shalt have no other gods before me.
• Thou shalt not make unto thee any graven image, or any likeness of any thing that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth.
• Thou shalt not bow down thyself to them, nor serve them: for I the LORD thy God am a jealous God, visiting the iniquity of the fathers upon the children unto the third and fourth generation of them that hate me;
• And shewing mercy unto thousands of them that love me, and keep my commandments.” (Exodus 20:1-6)

The Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him) declared, “The faith is righteousness…”

“Abraham believed God, and it was imputed unto him for righteousness: and he was called the Friend of God.” (James 2:23)

Righteousness, as far as Islam is concerned, comprises both faith and practice. Righteous Muslims should have faith in Allah, His angels, Books, Prophets, etc. They, also, should translate their faith into practice by observing morality, truthfulness, honesty, fairness, etc.

This is 100% consistent with the faith of Abraham passed to his seed blessing all the nations of the world.

“And the angel of the LORD called unto Abraham out of heaven the second time, And said, By myself have I sworn, saith the LORD, for because thou hast done this thing…That in blessing I will bless thee, and in multiplying I will multiply thy seed as the stars of the heaven, and as the sand which is upon the sea shore; and thy seed shall possess the gate of his enemies; And in thy seed shall all the nations of the earth be blessed; because thou hast obeyed my voice.” (Genesis 22:15-19)

Christianity narrows “Abraham’s seed” exclusively down to Jesus Christ and therefore those who join identity with him as “Christians”. But that is not a biblical concept.

Yes, Paul makes the point that ” Now to Abraham and his seed were the promises made… to thy seed, which is Christ…” But this is in the context of an argument opposing the claims of Jews that Gentiles cannot remain Gentiles while identifying with Abraham’s seed the Christ: “the law, which was four hundred and thirty years after, cannot disannul, that it should make the promise of none effect.” (Galatians 3:16-170.

But Paul’s main point in this passage is that “Abraham believed God, and it was accounted to him for righteousness. Know ye therefore that they which are of faith, the same are the children of Abraham.”

In other words, also one with the special Seed the Christ. “And the scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the heathen through faith, preached before the gospel unto Abraham, saying, In thee shall all nations be blessed. So then they which be of faith are blessed with faithful Abraham.” (Galatians 3)

These include the branch of Abraham through Ishmael – Genesis 21

• “in Isaac shall thy seed be called”, i.e. YHVH’s Savior
• And also of Ishmael the son of the bondwoman will I make a nation, because he is thy seed – following through on the change of the name Abram / father of a people to Abraham / father of many nations.

Ishmael proved to have the faith of Abraham when he submitted to, obeyed, acted on the word of God – interestingly – in the exact same way that his father Abraham did when he left the security of his homeland and traveled into the wilderness, depending on God for his daily bread and safety from a host of dangers.

^“And Abraham rose up early in the morning, and took bread, and a bottle of water, and gave it unto Hagar, putting it on her shoulder, and the child, and sent her away: and she departed, and wandered in the wilderness of Beersheba. And the water was spent in the bottle, and she cast the child under one of the shrubs…And she sat over against him, and lift up her voice, and wept. And God heard the voice of the lad; and the angel of God called to Hagar out of heaven, and said unto her, What aileth thee, Hagar? fear not; for God hath heard the voice of the lad where he is. Arise, lift up the lad, and hold him in thine hand; for I will make him a great nation…And God was with the lad; and he grew, and dwelt in the wilderness, and became an archer. And he dwelt in the wilderness of Paran.” (Genesis 21)

Dr. Muzammil Siddiqi, president of the Fiqh Council of North America, states the following: In Psalms 31:1 God is called “righteous” and in Romans 1:17 the expression “righteousness of faith” is used. According to Islam, both of these expressions are correct and acceptable. We believe in the righteousness of Allah. The Qur’an says, (He is Righteous and Merciful) (At-Tur 52:28). The Prophet (peace be upon him) also said, “The faith is righteousness (al-birr).” Among Muslims the problem is not in these expressions; the real difference is in the understanding of “righteousness.” In Islam, the righteousness of Allah means that He would not punish anyone unjustly. The righteousness of believers means that they believe and live their lives according to their faith; while Christian theology generally emphasizes righteousness by faith alone without any action. It is often said, especially in the writings of St. Paul, that salvation is by faith alone, and many Christians take this to mean that ethics and morality, then are not necessary for salvation. This idea is not accepted in Islam.
Read More on islamonline : https://fiqh.islamonline.net/en/righteousness-in-islam-and-christianity/

 ^“Thou believest that there is one God / in monotheism; thou doest well: the devils also believe, and tremble. But wilt thou know, O vain man, that faith without works is dead? Was not Abraham our father justified by works, when he had offered Isaac his son upon the altar? Seest thou how faith wrought with his works, and by works was faith made perfect?” (James 2:19-22)

Moslems categorize themselves, Jews and Christians on the basis of God’s word. That is a value judgment if ever there was one. So before denouncing Islam out of hand, we need to examine the basic tenants of the faith.

• The Six Articles of Faith
  • Belief in monotheism
  • Belief in angels
  • Belief in Prophets and Messengers
  • Belief in the Holy Books
  • Belief in Resurrection to face a Day of Judgment – the life of a human being does not end at death, but, in fact, continues afterward towards a new life. The Quran calls this life the “true life.”
    • a person will be judged according to his or her life’s actions. 
      • While denounced by Christianity’s “for by grace are saved…not of works”, this is actually validated by Jesus Christ and the apostolic writings.
    • Repentance is the giving up of sin and it is the best way of expressing regret for having committed one. It involves sincerely regretting a particular sin and then resolving never to do it again. Repentance is the source of and way to success. The Quran says, “Turn to Allah, O Believers, that you may be successful” (24:31).
      • When thou art in tribulation, and all these things are come upon thee, even in the latter days, if thou turn to the LORD thy God, and shalt be obedient unto his voice;  (For the Lord thy God is a merciful God;) he will not forsake thee, neither destroy thee” (Deuteronomy 4:30-31)
    • No matter how grievous a person’s sin may be, God’s forgiveness is much greater. No one should be ashamed to turn toward God in repentance. God can erase the sins of whomever He pleases.
    • People can establish a direct link to Allah while seeking repentance without the necessity of a third person [priest] interfering.
      • call no man your father upon the earth: for one is your Father, which is in heaven…if any man sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous:” (Matthew 23:9, I John 2:1)
    • God loves a person who sincerely repents his or her sin; hence, the repented sin will be considered as if he or she had never committed that sin. However, repentance must be sincere. God knows who sincerely regrets misdeeds and who is just speaking empty words…Forgiveness is a word that stands on six supports.
      1. The first is to repent over the past.
      2. The second is to make a firm determination never to revert to it.
      3. The third is to discharge all the rights of people so that you may meet God quite clean with nothing which to account for.
      4. The fourth is to fulfill every obligation which you ignored in the past so that you may now be just with it.
      5. The fifth is to aim at the flesh grown as a result of unlawful earning so that you may melt it by grief of repentance till the skin touches the bone and a new flesh grows between them.
      6. And the sixth is to make the body taste the pain of obedience as you previously made it taste the sweetness of disobedience.
      7. On such an occasion, you may say, “I seek God’s forgiveness.”8
  • Belief in Predestination since God is All Knowing
    • One of the issues which is directly related to the issue of the justice of the Creator is the question of predestination or free will. According to the fatalists (those who believe in predestination), a human being has no choice whatsoever in his or her actions, behaviour or words…Their belief in predestination is a denial of justice…no one can deny the role played by the environment, culture and economics in the thoughts and acts of a human being…with all of these motives, the final decision still remains with us…What is important is that we know human beings have freedom of choice and free will at the same time we know God to be the Ruler over all persons and deeds…The fact is that we can accept His Justice and Rule over the entire universe of existence as well as freedom and responsibility of His servants.

Prophethood is a concept that is common to all three Abrahamic religions. Significant portions of the Qur’an, the Jewish Bible and the Christian Bible are dedicated to the words of the Jewish Prophets. Prophets who are given a divine book with a separate [laws to maintain purity] Shari’ah for Muslims or Halakah for Jews, are called “messengers”. So, every messenger is a prophet, but the great majority of prophets are not messengers.

God, who is the Creator and Sustainer of all peoples, sends prophets to every nation without making any discrimination in race, language or nationality. As is clearly stated in the Quran:

“And of His signs is the creation of the heavens and the earth, and the diversity of your languages and your colors. Indeed in that are signs for those of knowledge. (30:22) Also “There never was a people, without a warner having lived among them” (35:24); and “To every people (was sent) an apostle.” (10:47)

This is consistent with:

“that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath shewed it unto them. For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse…when they knew God, they glorified him not as God,” (Romans 1:19-21)

“for the same Lord over all is rich unto all that call upon him. For whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. How then shall they call on him in whom they have not believed? and how shall they believe in him of whom they have not heard? and how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach, except they be sent? as it is written, How beautiful are the feet of them that preach the gospel of peace, and bring glad tidings of good things!

But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Esaias saith, Lord, who hath believed our report? So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

But I say, Have they not heard? Yes verily, their sound went into all the earth, and their words unto the ends of the world.” (Romans 10:12-18)

With this in mind, Islam’s appearance is not automatically not of God.

All prophets are special and devoted servants of God, but each prophet has a different personality and was chosen by God for a diversity of purposes to fulfill a specific duty and to convey to their people the divine decrees revealed to them…

However, all God’s prophets are the same in one specific way: they all have made a covenant with the One and Only God who created the universe. “When We took from (all) the Prophets their covenant, and from you (Muhammad), and from Noah, Ibrahim, Musa, and `Isa son of Maryam. We took from (the five of) them a (very) strong covenant. (33:7)

Islam is not limited to the revelation that was sent to the Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him, but was also the message of previous Prophets. The Qur’ān teaches that previous religions, such as Christianity and Judaism, in their original forms were based on the oneness of God. Each Prophet conveyed the consistent divine message of worshiping one God and living a morally upright life. Moses, like other Prophets, called his people to worship only one God and foretold of a final Messenger.

Jews were categorized by Islam…like Christians…as “people of the book,” possessors of a prior revelation from God that was written down. People of the book acquired a tolerated status, that of “protected people” (ahlal‑dhimma, or dhimmis), who were permitted to live among Muslims, undisturbed, and to observe their faith without interference.

However, the original message of Moses was lost, abandoned, or changed over time and only parts of the original message remained intact…

Is this true? According to Judaism itself, yes.

Judaism traces its origins to the covenant God made with Abraham and his lineage…Judaism, Christianity, and Islam share this Abrahamic heritage and are often referred to as being Abrahamic religions…The primary figures of Israelite culture include the patriarchs Abraham, Isaac, Jacob, and the prophet Moses, who received God’s Torah at Mount Sinai.

Historically, Judaism…evolved from a religion centered in religious practice in the two great temples, to rabbinic Judaism and religious worship and education in synagogues.

Rabbinic Judaism has been the mainstream form of Judaism since the 1st century. It is based on the belief that Moses received God’s Torah in two forms; the Written Torah (Pentateuch) and an oral explanation, known as the Oral Torah, that Moses transmitted to the people.

Rabbinic Judaism contrasts with Sadducees, Karaite Judaism, and Samaritanism, which do not recognize the oral law as a divine authority nor the rabbinic procedures used to interpret Jewish scripture.

Judaism is a tradition grounded in the religious, ethical, and social laws as they are articulated in the Torah—the first five books of the Hebrew Bible. Jews refer to the Bible as the Tanakh, an acronym for the texts of the Torah, Prophets, and Writings. Other sacred texts include the Talmud and Midrash: the rabbinic, legal, and narrative interpretations of the Torah.

Rabbinic Judaism is also based on the emergence of rabbi’s as leaders.

Known as the sacred scriptures of the three Abrahamic Faiths, the Torah, the Bible, and the Quran are all universally linked. They are all revealed from the one God of Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. The Quran is the culmination of revelation as prophesied in the preceding two books.

Nevertheless, Muslims have a different understanding of the Torah. For Jews and Christians, the Torah is believed to be the first five books of the Bible beginning with Genesis. However, when examined carefully, these books do not represent revelation given to Moses but are instead biographies…

This is undoubtedly true, as detailed in a previous post. Adam’s experience with God would certainly have been written down and left as his legacy, Noah would have compiled records to be carried through the flood, etc. There is no question that the rest of the Old Testament and the New Testament consist of memoirs personally experienced by their authors.

Moses is honored and revered in the Qur’ān…He is not only a Prophet among others in the chain of Prophets, but he is one of the five greatest Prophets, the others being Noah, Abraham, Jesus, and Muhammad peace be upon them. Each of these Prophets delivered the same message, to worship God alone and follow His teachings. Islam is considered one religion from Adam to Jacob to Moses, to Muhammad. Therefore, Muslims believe that Prophet Muhammad peace be upon him did not start Islam, but completed it.

This is consistent with “The LORD thy God will raise up unto thee a Prophet from the midst of thee, of thy brethren, like unto me; unto him ye shall hearken;” (Deuteronomy 18:15) and Jesus’ accreditation of himself by Moses “And beginning at Moses and all the prophets, he expounded unto them in all the scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27