How To Witness To Muslims 1

Mark 16:15: And he said unto them, Go ye into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature.

Every creature would certainly include Muslims. The suggestions I make in these articles will apply mainly to nations with freedom of speech. Witnessing to Muslims in nations where they are the controlling majority, Christianity is illegal and where Christians are killed would certainly require more and different wisdom than I can provide. See the related article entitled Persecution. I would appreciate any suggestions by those of you who have had success in winning Muslims to Christ. I would also appreciate being informed of any misinformation I may unintentionally provide.

I have had very limited personal exposure to Muslims. I attempted to befriend of a young Muslim gentleman a few years ago. We seemed to be hitting it off. He expressed repeatedly the idea that Muslims were not evil as the terrorists are. He shared a few things with me about their beliefs. I shared a few things about my Christian beliefs. I asked him how I might obtain a Quran. I told him I was willing to pay for one. He insisted that he could get me one free from his Imam and would bring it to me the next Monday. I believe that particular conversation took place on a Thursday or Friday. He never returned to work and I never saw him again. I learned that he was a good worker and was not fired. He simply didn*t show up for work anymore. I will always wonder if the Imam forbade him from contact with me or providing me with a Quran.

I have an interest in winning Muslims to Christ. I obtained the majority of the information I will provide in this article from Dan Gillette who is a missionary to India. He recommended two books that can probably be obtained on the internet through Amazon or book sellers. One book is Son of Hamas. I do not know the name of the author. I understand that he is a Muslim who was converted to Christianity. The other book is Winning Muslims to Christ by Dr. Mark Bachman. What I have learned:

Islam is a works based religion and they never know if they have done enough good works. Therefore they do not have assurance. A Muslim who comes to Christ will have heard the gospel an average of 200 times before receiving Christ. Persevere. Many Muslims are open to the gospel. Our job is to find the ones who are open just as we should do with other people groups. The ones who are not open to the gospel will avoid us. We really don*t need to fear them, particularly if we are obeying the Lord in witnessing to them. Dealing with them one on one is prudent. Dealing with groups of them would be unwise. They might become antagonistic to impress one another.

Dreams, miracles and the Bible are often elements that bring them to Christ. One Muslim found a discarded Bible, began reading it and came to faith in Christ. One was attracted to the red letter sayings of Christ in a Bible he obtained, read them and was saved. The events leading Muslims to Christ might appear to be coincidental but a converted Muslim will express the idea that they were miracles.

The Quran encourages Bible reading. That is in conflict with today*s Muslim leaders who discourage it. Most Muslims don*t read the Quran just as most Christians don*t read the Bible. It can be helpful if you are open to reading the Quran. It can be most helpful if they are willing to read the Bible.

Romans 10:17: So then faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God.

They are lonely, which is perfectly logical for someone who does not know the Lord. Be their friend and love them. Be open about your Christian faith from the beginning. It is not wise to use friendship evangelism with them. If you befriend them for a few months and then spring the gospel on them it probably won*t go well. They might believe that you have hidden your Christianity from them and thereafter they will not trust you. Be just as vigorous in giving them truth as they are in telling you what they believe. Don*t retreat. Keep in mind you want to win a soul, not an argument. They won*t be offended by it. They often have vigorous debate among themselves.

Do not criticize Muhammad or the Quran. Do not discuss politics. Sometimes they make threats that they don*t follow through on. One Christian had shared the gospel with a Muslim several times. The Muslim told the Christian if he ever came back to the Muslim*s home he would kill him. The Christian felt led by the Lord to return. When he did return the Muslim tearfully received Jesus and then told the Christian that he intended the threat to see if the Christian really loved him.

Don*t humiliate them. Expect them to take you down rabbit trails. Graciously get back to the gospel. Dress modestly. One thing Christians have in common with Muslims is modesty. Muslims are more strict about that than Christians. No shorts, no miniskirts. No revealing clothing.

Christian men should not deal with Muslim women. Men are a threat. Women are not. A Muslim man might believe you are trying to steal his wife. It should be men with men and women with women. A Muslim woman converted to Christ can often win her husband. Most Muslims respect the Bible. Treat yours with respect in their presence. They also highly esteem the Quran.

Muslims believe that all Americans are Christians. They associate Christianity with all the evils in America. We must acknowledge that there are evil-doers in America and distinguish ourselves from them. They watch our movies. They know about the evil that goes on here. They attach Christianity to all the murders of Muslims committed in Christ*s name during the Crusades. They attach Christianity to the murders of Muslims during the Spanish Inquisition by the (alleged) church.

They believe the Bible is corrupt and has errors. They will try to avoid decisions. Most of them are ecumenical. That is they believe their religion is ok and your religion is ok. It is very important to tell them at some point about Jesus* Diety. It is also important to tell them about the Triune God and the virgin birth. They believe that God had relations with Mary and thus fathered Jesus. Strangely they believe that Mary was still a virgin even though they believe God had relations with her.

They are much like other religions who are able to see the evil in other religions but not in their own. They have multiple wives. They have two-hour marriages. They have ways to legalize and legitimize that. They do not understand that is legalized prostitution and adultery.

Care to discuss How To Witness To Muslims 1 with Ron?

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