Jesus in the Quran

Jesus in the Qur'an is called the Spirit of God. The Bible teaches that Gods spirit is God himself Jn.4:24 “God is Spirit.” Surely a Muslim would agree with this. However if you are the Spirit of God, then you are God, since that is his essential nature, Spirit. At least according to the Bible.

When one reads the Qur'an what comes apparent is that it does not advocate anything the Bible does in reference to God’s personhood.

Sura 19:20,34, Jesus praised his birth and then said, “I am the servant of Allah.” And Allah teaches, “It is not for God to take a son unto Him.” Here we have Jesus speaking denying everything he said in the Bible.

In Sura 10:68-70 They say: “God hath begotten a son!” - Glory be to Him! He is self- sufficient! His are all things in the heavens and on earth! No warrant have ye for this! say ye about God what ye know not? Say: “Those who invent a lie against God will never prosper.” A little enjoyment in this world!- and then, to Us will be their return, then shall We make them taste the severest penalty for their blasphemies.”

What we have is a revelation of Mohammad that came after 550 years of the last revelation by Jesus and his appointed apostles.

To the Hebrews chapter 1:vs.1-2 “God, who at various times and in various ways spoke in time past to the fathers by the prophets, has in these last days spoken to us by His Son, whom He has appointed heir of all things, through whom also He made the worlds”

The last revelation encompasses over 1,500 years of writings from various prophets and the personal revelation in the New Testament of those who knew Jesus and heard what he said. This is ignored and discarded for one mans non-eyewitness testimony who was telling everyone in the Middle East, that Jews and Christians are wrong and their Bible is wrong.

Sura 5, section 16, verse 119, reads: “And behold! God will say: “O Jesus the son of Mary! Didst thou say unto men, “Worship me and my mother as gods in derogation of God”? He will say: “Glory to thee! Never could I say what I had no right (to say). Had I said such a thing, thou wouldst indeed have known it. Thou knowest what is in my heart, though I have not known what is in thine. For thou knowest in full all that is hidden.”

The only time the trinity is mentioned in the Qur'an is to bring disbelief or mock the nature of the one God.

Sura 5:72-73, 5:75 “They do blaspheme who say: “God is Christ the son of Mary.” They do blaspheme who say: God is one of three in a trinity: for there is no God except one God Allah. If they do not desist from their word of blasphemy, verily a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them. Christ the son of Mary was no more than a Messenger; many were the Messengers that passed away before him.

”

Sura 4:169 “Believe in God and his apostles and say not three..”

Now it needs to be pointed out that the word Trinity is never mentioned in the Bible yet it is explained by examination on the nature of God in the Scriptures. The Christians that lived in Mohammad's area did not believe in the trinity nor that God has a son, they were considered non Christian by those who held the historic Christian teachings. These were the Nestoriams and the others were the Monophysites who Mohammad would encounter on his trading journeys to Syria and elsewhere.

It is not unlikely that Mohammad had come to this same conclusion from his own environment. Sura 3:59: “The similitude of Jesus before Allah is as that of Adam; He created him from dust, then said to him: “Be.” And he was.”

So it is interpreted the Jesus is a human being that is a no different than any other except that he had a virgin birth. He is a prophet as there are other prophets, and that is all that He is. If Jesus was created just as Adam was created, why is Jesus called the Spirit of God and Adam is not?

Any Muslim who believes Christ is God has committed the unforgivable sin, that will send him to hell. Sura 43:59 states “Jesus was no more than a mortal whom Allah favored and made an example to the Israelites. They are unbelievers who say God is Messiah, Mary’s son.”

The Bible-speaking of the son that will be born “His name will be called wonderful, counselor, mighty God, Father of eternity, prince of peace.” (Isa.9:6).

These are all names attributed to God alone and more than a few Scriptures that have never change state of the messiah, THE SON AND BRANCH…Jeremiah 23:5-6 “Behold, the days are coming," says the LORD, "That I will raise to David a Branch of righteousness; a King shall reign and prosper, and execute judgment and righteousness in the earth. In His days Judah will be saved, and Israel will dwell safely; now this is His name by which He will be called: THE LORD OUR RIGHTEOUSNESS.”

They claim to believe all the prophets of the Bible, but what is written are denials of all what the prophets said about the Messiah and Jesus.

Qur'an Sura 4:171: “O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: Nor say of Allah aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) an apostle of Allah, and His Word, which He bestowed on Mary, and a spirit proceeding from Him: so believe in Allah and His apostles. Say not “Trinity” :desist: it will be better for you: for Allah is one Allah. Glory be to Him: (far exalted is He) above having a son.

To Him belong all things in the heavens and on earth. And enough is Allah as a Disposer of affairs.”

Another translation says, “O people of the Scripture! Do not exaggerate in your religion nor utter aught concerning Allah save the truth. The Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was only a messenger of Allah, and His word which he conveyed unto Mary, and a spirit [sic.] from Him. So believe in Allah and His messengers and say not 'Three' - Cease! (it is better for you! - Allah is only one God. Far is it removed from His transcendent majesty that He should have a son...The Messiah will never scorn to be a slave unto Allah.”

Mohammad was well aware what Christians believed. The question is did he understand it? He was so zealous to change the pagans of his day to have only one God, that he seemed to have ignored what the one God revealed about Himself in the Holy Scriptures, the Bible. This constricted dogmatism is felt today as Muslims are not allowed to intellectually challenge themselves to understand or pursue what Christians (the people of the book) actually believe.

What about The Son of God?

The Bible states well over 20 times that God is One! (The Torah, Psalms, Prophets and Gospel ­ Deut.6:4; Ps.86:10; Is.44:6-8.)

The Qur’an agrees with this, but this is where the agreement stops, as the Bible also speaks of God's Son in the Old Testament and in prophecy of God becoming a man. Certainly if God is all-powerful it is possible for him to do this. If one is to say he cannot then logically they must admit He is not all-powerful. So that is not what is to be questioned. The real question to be answered is did He do this? The New Testament apostles all agree He did and use the Old Testament to prove it.

When a Muslim is asked to consider Christianity, they can’t, because of the misrepresentation they have already accepted. They don’t really know what we believe. The Qur’an agrees with the Bible that there is only one God. Islam thinks we believe in three gods, the father, the mother and the son. They believe Jesus is literally the son of God, that he was conceived by sex. To be a Son of God means having sex with God and having a offspring. That is just as offensive to us as it is to them. The only church that claims to be Christians who hold to this are the Mormons; we do NOT believe they are Christians because of this and many other doctrines such as many gods. Nowhere in the Bible does it say that God had sexual relations with a woman to produce a literal son. Christianity has never taught a son was produced through any physical act of God. What Muslims need to do to arrive at the true meaning is to as ask what does that term mean in the Bible, and not bring their own interpretation to the Biblical term.

If you pursue what the Bible means by this term and you will arrive at the context found throughout the Scriptures.

The Qur'an depicts that there is no son, as they interpret it to mean that He (the son) is an literal offspring; we agree with their rejection of this because this is not the Bibles meaning of Son, the Bible does not say God has a wife or son in this manner.

Sura 6:102 “The originator of heavens and earth! How can He have a child, when there is for Him no consort?”

Sura 72:3 “We believe that He - exalted be the glory of our Lord - hath taken neither wife nor son.”

Sura 112:1-4 “Proclaim, 'He is the One and only GOD. The Absolute GOD. Never did He beget. Nor was He begotten. None equals Him.”

Sura 25:2-3 “He to whom belongs the dominion of the heavens and the earth: no son has He begotten, nor has He a partner in His dominion: it is He who created all things, and ordered them in due proportions. Yet have they taken, besides him, gods that can create nothing but are themselves created; that have no control of hurt or good to themselves; nor can they control death nor life nor resurrection.”

This is from Sura 19:88-92 They say: “(God) Most Gracious has begotten a son!” Indeed ye have put forth a thing most monstrous! At it the skies are ready to burst, the earth to split asunder, and the mountains to fall down in utter ruin, That they should invoke a son for (God) Most Gracious. For it is not consonant with the majesty of (God) Most Gracious that He should beget a son.”

“They say, `God has taken to Him a son' .... Say: `Those who forge against God falsehood shall not prosper.” (Arberry, Interpreted, p. 233) “Praise belongs to God [Allah], who has not taken to Him a son” (Arberry, Interpreted p. 315) “Warn those who say, `God has taken to Himself a son'; ... a monstrous word it is, issuing out of their mouths; they say nothing but a lie.” (Arberry, Interpreted p. 316)

Sura 18:4-5 “Further, that He may warn those (also) who say, “God hath begotten a son”: No knowledge have they of such a thing, nor had their fathers. It is a grievous thing that issues from their mouths as a saying what they say is nothing but falsehood!”

In the time of Muhammad the pagan Meccan's believed that God had daughters. Also, according to Ibn Ishaq, there were Christians who believed that the virgin Mary was God's mother and that Christ was the physical son of God. This is probably why, in the Qur'an, there are verses such as these.

Muslims believe that words like father and son necessarily mean that the father must have a wife in order to have a son. How could Jesus be the son of God when God has no wife? Can God have a wife? The Bible nowhere speaks of God having a wife; there is not the least suggestion of a sexual relationship between God and any of His creatures.

It is Mormonism, a distortion of Christianity that believes this. This idea is just as repulsive to Catholics and Christians just as it is to Muslims for different reasons. Obviously there has been a misunderstanding. Some Muslims do not understand that a Christian does not believe in this type of sonship regarding Christ Jesus.

Quran Sura 5:17-18: “In blasphemy indeed are those that say that Allah is Christ the son of Mary. Say: “Who then hath the least power against Allah, if His will were to destroy Christ the son of Mary, his mother, and all every - one that is on the earth? For to Allah belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all that is between. He createth what He pleaseth. For Allah hath power over all things.” (Both) the Jews and the Christians say: “We are sons of Allah, and his beloved.” Say: “Why then doth He punish you for your sins? Nay, ye are but men,- of the men he hath created: He forgiveth whom He pleaseth, and He punisheth whom He pleaseth: and to Allah belongeth the dominion of the heavens and the earth, and all that is between: and unto Him is the final goal (of all)” O People of the Book! Now hath come unto you, making (things) clear unto you, Our Messenger, after the break in (the series of) our apostles, lest ye should say: “There came unto us no bringer of glad tidings and no warner (from evil)”: But now hath come unto you a bringer of glad tidings and a warner (from evil).

And Allah hath power over all things.

Here Mohammad states that not only is blasphemy to Christ the Son, but that anyone who calls themselves a son. Because of a misunderstanding of son meaning strictly offspring this erroneous conclusion is promoted. Although this sometimes used as it would be in the normal sense for anyone who is born into a human family.

In Matt 1:1 The book of the genealogy of Jesus Christ, the Son of David, the Son of Abraham” Matt 21:9 “Then the multitudes who went before and those who followed cried out, saying: “Hosanna to the Son of David! 'Blessed is He who comes in the name of the Lord!' Hosanna in the highest!” Rom 1:3-6 “concerning His Son Jesus Christ our Lord, who was born of the seed of David according to the flesh, and declared to be the Son of God with power according to the Spirit of holiness, by the resurrection from the dead. Through Him we have received grace and apostleship for obedience to the faith among all nations for His name, among whom you also are the called of Jesus Christ”

It is not the intent to mean offspring when he is called the only- begotten son.

John 1:18 “No one has seen God at any time. The only begotten Son, who is in the bosom of the Father, He has declared Him.” This in Greek means he alone is in a unique relationship with God, unlike any other person.

Qur’an Sura 37:152-53 “God has begotten children”? but they are liars! Did He (then) choose daughters rather than sons?

It means for those who are believers that they are adopted by God, accepted as part of being in his family, as enjoined to him by being on his side because of their faith in God. John 1:12 “But as many as received Him, to them He gave the right to become children (sons) of God, to those who believe in His name”

“For you did not receive the spirit of bondage again to fear, but you received the Spirit of adoption by whom we cry out, “Abba, Father.” (Rom. 8:15) “to redeem those who were under the law, that we might receive the adoption as sons.” (Gal. 4:5) “having predestined us to adoption as sons by Jesus Christ to Himself, according to the good pleasure of His will, (Eph. 1:5) All these Scriptures explain how we were bought by Christ’s death out of being slaves to Satan to serve God.

This is meaning of adoption.

The Father and the Son

“The Jews call 'Uzair a son of Allah, and the Christians call Christ the son of Allah. That is a saying from their mouth; (in this) they but imitate what the unbelievers of old used to say. Allah's curse be on them: how they are deluded away from the Truth!” (Sura 9:30)

Jesus told us to pray 'Our Father who is in heaven' Can a Muslim pray this prayer with his heart? According to Islam not only is there no Son, but God is not Father. Did Jesus tell us the truth?

Jesus said to his disciples, “Who do you say I am?” Simon Peter answered, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus' response was, “Blessed are you, Simon son of Jonah, for this was not revealed to you by man, but by my Father in heaven. Jesus attributes this revelation to God, to God-- not to man.

The son of the father can take on a similar meaning found in their own Qur'an. Muhammad had an uncle whose name was Abdul Uza, but in the Qur'an he is called Abu Lahab - the father of a flame. This does not mean that he gave birth to a flame? (Qur'an Sura 111:1) Excuse me if any Arabic is not said right.

A wayfarer is called, Ibn as-sabeel - son of the road.

This does not mean that the road has a wife and conceived a road even to a Muslim. (Qur'an Sura 2:177). Just as the Bible teaches God is the Father of lights, he did not beget light.

Om ul-Kitab - means the mother of the book (Qur'an Sura 3:7; 13:39; 43:3). This does not mean she gave birth to the book. We want Muslims to understand what “son of” actually means in the Bible. It does not mean an offspring or in having sex with God. Son of God is used in a spiritual sense implying a unique relationship with God that no one else has. We call him the Son of God because the Bible states he is the Son of God, Jesus said He is the Son. To say he is not the Son of God when God says he is to deny God’s revelation! If this has Christ's own approval would it not be prudent to determine what He meant by this?

The Bible does use both Son and Father in a spiritual manner in Hebrew.

God is called Abi-Ad the Father of eternity. Among the ancient Hebrews the term Father of, was always used to indicate Him who possessed the thing that followed. God the Father is called the Father of Spirits (Heb.12:9) and the Father of lights (James.1:17). This again does not mean a literal begetting of light or Spirits. It shows God being the source of life as the Father of Spirits, the Father of lights means He is the source of the moon, the sun and stars.

The Old Testament has said in Malachi 2:10 “Have we not all one Father? Has not one God created us? Why do we deal treacherously with one another by profaning the covenant of the fathers?

Malachi 1:6 “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am the Father, where is My honor? And if I am a Master, where is My reverence? Says the LORD of hosts to you priests who despise My name. Yet you say, 'In what way have we despised Your name?”

God's Word is God Himself; he is not a second God. Muslims believe, God is all-powerful, there is nothing he cannot do. So God can certainly become a human being like us if he wanted to, can He not? The Qur'an does imply that Allah can appear in other forms, Sura 53:2-18, 81:19-24, so cannot God can take the form of man even temporarily?

Jn.1:1 “and the Word was God” Mt.1:23 says His name will be called Immanuel (with us is God) the fulfillment of Isa.7:14. Luke 1:35 states, He will be called “The Son of God.” Mark begins his Gospel under Peters direction by saying, "The beginning of the gospel of Jesus Christ, the Son of God." (Mark 1:1)

The Bible says,“do you say of Him whom the Father sanctified and sent into the world, 'You are blaspheming,' because I said, 'I am the Son of God'?” (John 10:36)“for He said, ‘I am the Son of God.” (Matthew 27:43).

Consider that the Qur’an says, “In blasphemy indeed are those that say that God is Christ the son of Mary” (Sura 5:17) or Sura 10:68-70 They say: “God hath begotten a son!” “Those who invent a lie against God will never prosper.”

The Bible says, “but these are written that you may believe that Jesus is the Christ, the Son of God, and that believing you may have life in His name.” (John 20:31).

Paul a Jew was converted by seeing the risen Christ on the road as he was going to kill Christians for following Jesus the Messiah. After his conversion “Immediately he preached the Christ (Messiah) in the synagogues, that He is the Son of God.” (Acts 9:20).

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, and we beheld His glory, glory as of the only begotten from the Father, full of grace and truth” (John 1:14) The eternal nature and purpose of Christ is challenged by Islam.

For even God who is the Father said, “The Father loves the Son, and has given all things into His hand.” (John 3:35)

“For the Father loves the Son, and shows Him all things that He Himself does; and He will show Him greater works than these, that you may marvel.” (John 5:20);

Jesus said “As the Father loved Me, I also have loved you; abide in My love” (John 15:9-10)

For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish, but have eternal life” (John 3:16) The essence of the Gospel is denied without a Son of God.

The Qur’an says, “In blasphemy indeed are those that say that God is Christ the son of Mary” (Sura 5:17)

Is it? We have the evidence from Scriptural manuscripts that are close to the originals, and those that predate the apostles.

Along with this Jesus saying God does indeed call another His ONLY Son. Not an offspring but a term of relationship.

It was the same apostle John who taught Jesus was the son and was eternal that also said; we should keep ourselves from idols (1 John 5:21). This would be a calculated contradiction if Jesus being the Son was worshipped by the apostles and were a mere human, that would be an idol, as only God is to be worshipped.

1 Jn.4:15 “Whosoever shall confess that Jesus is THE SON OF GOD, God dwelleth in him and he in God.” Here is the difference of religion to relationship.

John who knew Jesus personally explains that God who is able to do all things, where nothing is impossible with God took up residence by his spirit in those who believe in Jesus as the Bible teaches.

Paul the apostle says in Galatians 4:6 “And because you are sons, God has sent forth the Spirit of His Son into your hearts, crying out, “Abba, Father!” V:7 “Therefore you are no longer a slave but a son, and if a son, then an heir of God through Christ.” We have a relationship change when one believes in Christ as God’s only son, we are not slaves any longer but friends and will inherit what God has for us. No slave enjoyed what his master owned. We know this by God’s word and by experience. Psalm 89:26 “He shall cry to Me, 'You are my Father, my God, and the rock of my salvation.”

This all takes place because of the Injil (the Gospel of the apostles and Christ) by Jesus’ death for sin he has shown the invisible God’s love. Col. 1:13-14 “He has delivered us from the power of darkness and conveyed us into the kingdom of the Son of His love, in whom we have redemption through His blood, the forgiveness of sins.”

God prophesying through the prophet Zechariah Zech. 12:10 “And I will pour on the house of David and on the inhabitants of Jerusalem the Spirit of grace and supplication; then they will look on Me whom they have pierced; they will mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son, and grieve for Him as one grieves for a firstborn.”

You may not want to accept this, at least not now. But the point being made here is that this is the revelation of Jesus to the apostles and God can surely watch over his word. As He said not one jot or tittle are to be changed. God has always been the same and His word is proof, as it never changes and God does not lie. If Muslims and other religions would look at the history of the Bible and see the evidence of it not being corrupted, they may not speak so loosely about the prophets they are supposed to esteem.