Testimony of Desert son: Why I became a Christian

I was born in Saudi Arabia as a member of a Muslim family. We were a very happy family, and I loved my relationship with them. I also felt very happy because I did all the things that God asked me to. I had learned one sixth of the holy Quran by heart and a lot from the Hadith. When I was a teenager, I was an Imam for the mosque.

I was always very serious to do all that God ordered me to do—fasting during Ramadan, praying five times a day or more, Hajj and so on. I was, at that time, very much desiring to meet God at the last day, even when I had no guarantee. But I had always hoped for this. My hope grew when I started to think about fighting in the name of God (Jihad) in Afghanistan. I was sixteen years old. My parents would not let me go because I was too young. So I decided to wait until I was old enough.

I always had love and respect for the Muslim people. There was no love or respect in my heart for the Christians, and the Jews were my first enemy, of course.

Far away from God:

After some time, the devil found his way into our home and our life, and my life became very hard. Slowly I drifted far away from God until the time that I believed in no God at all.

My life became busy. I had a very good job and earned a lot of money. Still, I was not happy because I was afraid for the day that I would die. Sometimes a question came to my mind—will I be with God in heaven or not? And it was very frightening to think about this, even for seconds, that I would not be there. What about my future?

A little prayer

One day I had a big problem in my life. I was in my room looking through the window up to the sky. Then I remembered God, and I wanted to pray to him to ask him for help, but which God should I pray to. Allah? I was sure that he was very angry with me because I had not prayed for a very long time. Or Jesus? I knew He had done a lot of miracles in the lives of other people. Then I said, "Jesus help me!" I don't know why I spoke like this. I sat down on my bed and spoke to myself, "What is this stupid thing you just did?" Anyway, I did not expect anything to happen or the problem to go away. However, one and a half days later, my problem was solved! I decided to find out who this Jesus is. Is he God as the Christian people say, or is he a prophet, as I know from Islam? At this time, I left my country and went to Europe.

The Dream

On the third day, my circumstances became very difficult for me, and I decided to go back to Middle East. During that night I had a dream. I was standing in a cross shape with a low wall around it. In my right hand, I had a big stack of white unwritten papers. I was standing at the cross beam, and I was looking to a small group of people who were standing at the top. They all wore long white clothing, but one of them was different. He was standing at the right side, and with his left hand he was leading the people through a door in the wall. Beyond the door was light, and I could not see what was in there. One moment I was standing in the dream, and the next moment I was seeing the cross from above. It was difficult for me to understand this. When I woke up the next morning, I felt a very beautiful happiness in my heart that I never had before. And I felt a love in my heart and from inside my body a very special feeling. I felt also I just wanted to walk and to walk and to ask every one I met, do you know Jesus? It was more than a great feeling. It was happiness that I had never known before in my life.

After one year of reading the Bible in an honest way, I understand now what happened to me. I found my way to God, the real God, the Lord Jesus Christ.

I hope now for all the people I love, my family, my friends, and everyone else to change also and begin to read the Bible in an honest way. I am sure that God will help them to find their way.

My life now

I feel love in my heart, and I am very happy to know Jesus. When I was a Muslim, I could never imagine that the Christians were right. After that, I found out how much God loves me, and I became a Christian. Yes, He loves me, He loves you, and He loves the whole world. Jesus Christ loved us, and He still does. And don't forget in the last day nobody can save us, only Jesus Christ.

Dear brother/sister,

Come to know Jesus before it is too late.

John 8:12

When Jesus spoke again to the people, he said, "I am the light of the world.
Whoever follows me will never walk in darkness, but will have the light of life."

Feel free to write me at desertson1@yahoo.com.

Desert Son (Testimony in Arabic) - إبن الصحراء

إبن الصحراء

ولدت و نشأت في المملكة العربية السعودية و في أسرة مسلمة متحفظة،كنا عائلة سعيدة جداً أحببت علاقتي الإجتماعية مع أسرتي. و حيث إزداد شعوري بالسعادة و ذلك لأني أقوم بواجباتي تجاه الله التي أمرني بها، أحفظ سدس القرآن الكريم عن ظهر قلب. عندما كنت في ينعاني كنت إمام مسجد، و ذلك في فترة العطلة الصيفية، حتى جاء الوقت ووجد الشيطان و سيلته للدخول في حياتنا.

حيث أصبحت حياتي مملة و صعبة وحيداً، بدون أهل و ابتدأت و بالتدريج الإبتعاد عن الله، حتى جاء اليوم و أصبحت لا أؤمن بالله.

انشغلت في حياتي و أصبحت صاحب مركز وظيفي محترم، و دخل سنوي كبير جداً، و لكن ما زلت أبحث عن السعادة التي أفتقدها. لأني كنت دائماً أفكر باليوم الذي سأموت فيه و موقفي أمام الله.

صلاة مختصرة

وفي يوم من الأيام حصلت لي مشكلة كبيرة جداً عجزت عن إيجاد حل لها، و في يوم كنت واقفاً في غرفتي أنظر إلى السماء من خلال النافذة و حيينها تذكرت الله، و أردت أن أدعوه و أصلي له و لكن لمن الله غاضب مني و لن يتقبل دعائي لأني لم أصلي له من فترة طويلة، أم ليسوع المسيح الذي أسمع عنه أنه يعمل المعجزات و أنقذ حياة الكثيرين و لكن يسوع المسيح رسول كما ذكر عنه في القرآن الكريم.

ثم قلت في لحظه " يسوع ساعدني "

لم أعلم لما قلت ذلك شعرت و كأنها من الداخل و ليست بإرادتي فقط و بعد مرور يوم و نصف المشكلة زالت تماماً و من ثم قررت أن أعرف من هو يسوع فسافرت إلى الخارج و بعد مرور ثلاثة أيام وجدت الوضع ليس ملائم لي هناك و صعب فقررت الرجوع مباشرة.

رؤية رائعة

و في تلك الليلة رأيت منام آخر حيث رأيت نفسي في داخل مبنى عبارة عن صليب و حيث كنت أراه من أعلى تارة ومن الداخل تارة أخرى و أنا واقف قبل تقاطع الصليب على الجهة اليمنى و في يدي كومة من الأوراق البيضاء أرفعها بكلتا يداي إلى الجهة اليمنى من جسدي و أنظر إلى الأمام حيث كانت هناك فتحة في نهاية الصليب كممر صغير و رجل واقف مقابل الفتحة و عدة أشخاص على يساره و هذا الشخص المميز يسمح للبقية بالعبور و بإتجاه الممر و لكن لم أستطع أن أرى ما وراء ذلك. سوى نور رائع كنور الصباح.

هنا قررت الإنتظار و قراءة الإنجيل قراءة منصفة حيث فهمت ما حصل لي و بإيجاد حل لمشكلتي الصعبة و بالرسالة التي أتمنى أن لا تكون الأخيرة المنام الرائع، و بها عرفت الرب الحقيقي الذي أحبني ومات من أجلي على الصليب يسوع المسيح.

و ما أتمناه من كل شخص أن يعطي نفسه الفرصة لقراءة الإنجيل و سيجد طريقه للرب الحقيقي الذي هلك لكي لا يهلك كل من يؤمن به الذي أحبنا و مات من أجلنا و تحمل الخطيئة يسوع المسيح.

أتقبل رسائلكم و بصدر رحب على عنواني

Desertson1@yahoo.com

إبن الصحراء

GERÇEK BABAMI BULDUM (Testimony in Turkish)

Türkiye'nin Erzin kasabasında doğdum. Beş kardeşin en küçüğüyüm. Babam bizi bırakıp gitmişti. Türkiye'de babasız bir çocuk için yaşam çok zordur. Okul çağlarında bile bu yüzden gerçek bir arkadaşım olmadı.

Annem de mutsuz bir kadındı; aynı zamanda da hastaydı, ama günde beş vakit namzını bırakmazdı. Ben ise aradığım sevgiyi insanlarda bulamadığım için Tanrı'ya yöneldim. Onu tanımak istiyordum. Evimizin duvarlarında Kur'an'dan alınma Arapça ayetler asılıydı. Bu ayetlerin karşısına geçer, Tanrı'ya seslenirdim: "Bana güç ver ki, senin isteğin ve sözlerin olan bu ayetleri okuyabileyim". Tanrı'nın gücü her şeye yeterlidir diye çok duymuştum yakınlarımdan; ama böyle bir şey olmadı benim yaşamımda. İşte çocukluk yıllarım. Babasız, arkadaşsız, sevgisiz, oyuncaksız bir yaşam! Bu bunalımlar içinde de okuyamadım.

Ankara'ya taşındık. Maddi durumumuz kötü olduğundan 15 yaşındayken evlendirildim. Ne benim ne de kocamın evlilik ve onun sorunları hakkında bilincimiz vardı. Bu nedenle de evliliğimiz her ikimizin çabasına rağmen başarısızlık örneğiydi. Ben bir türlü kocamı affedemiyordum; çünkü kocam da babam gibi kumar oynuyordu. Bunu benden gizlemek için de yalan söylüyordu.

Ailemiz, arkadaşlarımız diyorlardı ki, bir çocuğunuz olursa mutlu olursunuz. Mutsuzluğumuza bir ad bulmuştuk. Artık bizi mutlu edecek bir oyuncak gözüyle bekliyorduk çocuğumuzu. Camiye yakın bir eve taşındık bu sıralarda. Ben, Allah'ın tüm şartlarını yapıp O'nunla ilişki kurmak istiyordum. Başımı örttüm, siyah çoraplar giydim, tesbih alıp namaz kılmaya başladım.

O kadar özen gösteriyordum ki, bir kere abdest alınacaksa ben iki kere alıyordum. Bir kere el, ağız yıkanacaksa (şarlara göre) ben iki kere yıkardım. Hiç hata yapmak istemiyordum. Tanrı'yı tanımak için oruç tutup, camiye gidip vaaz dinliyordum. Kocama karşı da iyi davranmak, iyi bir eş olmak istiyordum; ama ilişkimiz bir türlü düzelmedi.

ALMANYA'YA

O zamanlar 18 yaşındaydım. Tüm korkularıma rağmen Almanya'ya gelmek zorunda kaldım. Maddi durumum iyi olunca belki mutlu olurum diye düşündüm, buna da epeyce inandım. Berlin kentine geldim, tüm hıncımla çalıştım, Cumartesi, Pazar günleri dahil.

Berlin'de bir akrabamızın yanında kalıyordum. Akrabamız olan bu adamı bir baba gibi seviyor ve ona hürmet ediyordum. Fakat çok geçmeden O adamın kötü niyeti beni hayal kırıklığına uğrattı. Baba aramayı bıraktım. O evde de artık kalamazdım. Bu sırada kocamla binbirinci kez bir araya geldik. O da Berlin'e gelmişti. Durumumuzda değişen bir şey yoktu. Sonra annem de geldi. Eviliğimizden 7 yıl sonra Emrah adını verdiğimiz oğlumuz olmuştu. Kocam artık maddi durumunu değil de çocukla kendini sigorta ettirmişti sanki; çünkü benim çocuğumun babasız olmasını istemediğimi biliyordu.

Yaşamım bir cehennemi andırıyordu. Çok sigara içiyordum sıhhatım öyle bozulmuştu ki, yılda iki üç kez hastaneye yatmak zorunda kalıyordum.

Türkiye'de iki daire aldık, biri bana, diğeri kocama; ama herşey boştu. Annemin de bu olanlardan sabrı taştı. Ben çalışırken, hastanedeyken annem hep çocuğa bakıyordu. Fakat evin sürekli gergin havası onun sevgisini bana karşı soğutmuştu. O da beni hep akılsızlıkla, beceriksizlikle suçlamaya başladı. Eğer akıllı, iyi bir kadın olsaydım vs. vs....

Bıkmıştım yaşamdan. Herşeyden nefret ediyordum. Kocamdan, çocuktan, annemden, kendimden bile. En sonunda eşimden ayrılmak için Türkiye'de avukat olan dayımı tuttum. Anlaştığımız gibi paranın yarısını peşin ödedim, geri kalanını da mahkeme bitince ödeyecektim. Sonra avukat dayım durmadan para istemeye, şantaj yapmaya başladı. Annem de boyuna gönder, gönder diyordu. Sen avukattan iyi mi bileceksin? Bu yüzden de annemle aram açıldı; çünkü o, kardeşim haklıdır diyordu.

Hastaydım. Çalışamıyordum. Evde de duramöyordum. Bir yandan da annem, al çocuğunu, ne halin varsa gör, diyordu. (Gerçek değildi bu. Annem şantaj yapıyordu).

BU ALMAN KADININA GÜVENİLİR Mİ?

Bir gün aile sorunlarıyla uğraşan bir Alman kuruluşuna gittim. Durumumu olduğu gibi anlattım. Görevli bayan beni saygıyla dinledi. Ona dedim: "Şu anda kalbimi bir görebilseniz, o nasıl kanıyor!"

O dedi "İnanıyorum, çünkü insanlar Tanrı sevgisinden yoksun ve uzak yaşarlarsa, böyle olur." Fakat ben, annemin inançlı olduğunu günde beş vakit Namazı bırakmadığını, ve benim Allah'la yaptığım anıları ona anlattım. O anda yıllardan beri sakladığım gözyaşlarım beni dinlemiyordu. Görevli bayan bana dediki: "Sen ve senin bu gözyaşların öyle değerlidir ki....." Ben mi? Keşke gerçek olsa söyledikleriniz. Kadının anlattıkları tatlı bir masal gibi geldi bana. Allah'ın beni çok sevmesi ve İsa Mesih'i benim için göndermesi ve çarmıhta benim için ölmesi........ Hiç olabilir mi? Yok, olamaz. Sonra ben Müslümanım......Kendini kurtaramayan adam beni kurtarabilir miydi? Hayır! Bu kadın da öbürleri gibi benden benim zayıflığımdan yaralanıp bana din propagandası, din politikası yapıyor. Çok iyi bir hanım, ama bir daha oraya gitmemeliyim, dedim; dedim ama, sıkıntılar beni ona gitmeye mecbur ediyordu.

Bir gün bu hanım bana Türkçe bir İncil hediye etti İncil'i okudum, pek bir şey anlamadım; Fakat mantıklı buluyordum. Kiliseye davet edildim ve gittim. Bu arada annem gitti. Çocuğu ise bir öksüzler yurduna verdik. Çünkü iki vardiye çalışıyordum. Bitkin bir durumdaydım.

Bu bayan bana: "Benim çok iyi tanıdığım bir tatil köyü var, oraya git, iki hafta kal" dedi. Bu öneriye sonunda razı oldum. Ondan önce inanlı Türklerle tanıştırıldım. Onlarla şöyle dua ettik: "Ey Rab, Sen eğer İsa Mesih'te gerçeksen, bana kendini açıkla, bana yardım et ve bu kafamdaki soruları yanıtla".

Trende giderken hem bunları düşünüyor, hem de İncil'i okuyordum. Birden kalbimi büyük bir sevinç almıştı. Anlıyordum. Baba Tanrı'nın sevgisi huzuru, kutsallığı, yakınlığı doldurmuştu kompartımanı.

Gittiğim yer inanlıların bir pansıyonuydu. Orada olan bir çağrımı dilimle ikrar ederek İsa'yı Kurtarıcım olarak ebediyete kadar kalbime davet ettim. Seviniyordum, çünkü gerçek BABAMI buldum.

Üç gün sonra çok rahatsız oldum. Sanki şeytan benimle konuşuyordu: "Başaramayacaksın, burada bu inanlılar var, fakat Berlin'e gidince seni hep böyle korkutup deli edeceğim." Sonra kendimi pencereden atmamı emrediyordu. Fakat bir inanlı kardeş İsa Mesih adıyla Şeytanı kovdu. Berlin'e gelince şeytanın dediği gibi olmadı, bana hiçbir şey yapamadı o. Çünkü DAHA GÜÇLÜ BİR BABAM VARDI!

İÇ TEMİZLİĞİ

Rab İsayı yüreğime çağırdım ama içim yine öyle karanlıklara dolu, öyle pislik yuvasıydı ki orayı temizlemeliydim. Bunun için de Tanrı'nın ışığına gereksinmem vardı ve Tanrı'ya üzerimde tüm yetkiyi verdim.

Çok sigara içiyordum ve bunun Tanrı'yı üzdüğünü biliyordum. Ona dedim: "Ey Rab, ben kendi gücüm ile bu sigaradan kurtulamıyorum. Bana yardım et, bana sigaraya karşı bir tiksinti ver." Şükrolsun Rab beni bu kölelikten kurtardı.

İkinci olarak kocamı bağışlayamıyordum. Onun sürekli kötülüğünü istiyor ve kendime acıyordum. Böyle anlarda Tanrı'nın bereketini göremiyordum. O zaman da umutsuzluğa düşerdim. Biliyordum ki, kocamı bağışlamalıyım, ama yapamıyorum kendi gücümle. Birgün ağlayarak bir kardeşe dert yandım: "Ben Tanrı'nın yolundan gitmek istiyorum, fakat yapamıyorum. İçimdeki bu acılık kökleri hep kalkıyor ve Tanrı ile olan ilişkimi koparıyor". Birlikte dua ettik, içimdeki bu acılık köklerinin sökülüp gitmesi için. Fakat şeytan beni mahvetmek istiyordu.

BOŞANMA DAVASİ

Kocamı bu boşanma davası hiç ilgilendirmiyordu. Ayrıldık mı, beraber miyiz, yarın ne olacak? Oğlumuzun annesi babası olduğu halde öksüzler yurdundaydı o. Avukat dayım ise son olarak bana yazdığı mektupta, ya paranın tamını gönder diyordu, ya da boşanma işini yapmayacağım; şimdiye dek aldığım parayı da geri vermeyeceğim.

Kocamı Türkiye'ye gönderdim. Dayıma da beni rahatsız ettiği için avukatlığını istemediğimi yazdım. Nefretim çoğaldıkça da Tanrı'nın benden uzaklaştığını görüyordum. Evet, kocamdan ayrılar iki yıl olmuştu: O, başka kadınlara gayrı meşru yaşıyordu; bir kızı bile olmuştu. Ben ise her gün İncil'i okuyup dua ediyordum. "Artık ağlayış ve gözyaşı olmayacak" (Vah 21:4). Ben tam ters durumdaydım. Öyle perişandım ki! Sabah kahvaltı hazırlarken ağlıyordum. Diz çöküp dedim: "Ey Rab, Senin kayranı bekliyorum, hem de bugün, eğer senin için bu gözyaşlarım bir şey ifade etmiyorsa artık yaşamak istemiyorum" kahvaltı edemedim; çok üzgündüm ve hastaydım. Doktora gitmek için çıktım. Tam o anda postacı taahhütlü bir mektup getirdi. Mektubu açtım, bir de ne göreyim: boşanma kağıtlarım! Hem de Almancaya çevrilmiş. Tarihe baktım ki bir yıl önce olmuş. Sonra dayım ölmüş ve yengem Almancaya çevirttirip bana göndermiş. Çok mutlu oldum ve kardeşlerle Rabbi övdük.

ZAMAN, PARA VE DUAMA CEVAP.

Zamanımı da nasıl değerlendirecegimi bilmiyordum. Televizyonun önüne geçer, saatlerce bakardım. Ama artık biliyordum ki, zamanımı Rabbe vermeliyim. Benim için çarmıhta ölerek günahımı kaldıranı yaşamımda yüceltmek istiyordum. Buna nasıl başlamlıydım? ONA ZAMAN AYIRMAKLA ONU TANIMAKLA!

Televizyonun başında geçireceğim saatleri Tanrı'yı tanımak için ayırabilirdim. Bu düşünce ben çok mutlu etti. Hemen uygulamaya başladım. Televizyonu da hemen çöpe.

Her şeyimi Tanrı'ya verdim, ama paramı da Tanrı'ya vermeliydim. Bu bana çok zor geliyordu; onun esiriydim. Karar vermem gerekti. Kimse beni zorlamıyordu, fakat vicdanım zorluyordu. Rabbin önüne gelip dua ettim beni bu bağlardan kurtarsın diye. Rabbi her şeyde yüceltmek gerekti; çünkü O buna yaraşıktır.

Oğlum Emrah hasta ve mutsuz bir çocuktu sık sık soluk borusu tıkanır, hastaneye yatardı. Bir gece çok hasta oldu. 40 derece ateşi vardı ve nefes alamıyordu. Doktoru çağırmam için en yakın bir kulübeye gitmem gerekti. Evde telefon yoktu, paranın esiriydim çünkü. Fakat Emrah 4 yaşında, gece böyle yalnız kalamazdı. Ağılyordu durmadan. Ne yapmalıydım? Çocuk ölüm derecesine geldi, nefes alamıyordu. Rabbin bir sözü aklıma geldi; "SIKINTI GÜNÜNDE BENİ ÇAĞIR, SANA YANIT VERECEĞİM" (Mezmurlar 50:15 ve 86:7/Nahum 1:7).

Diz çöküp dedim "Ey Rabbim, senin sözün üzerine sana geliyorum. Sen gel, çocuğu iyi et." Evet, çocuğun ateşi düştü yavaş yavaş, nefes alışları düzenleşti ve derin bir uykuya daldı.

BAĞIŞLANMIŞTIM

Bağışlanmıştım ben de bağışlanmalıydım. Oğlumun babasına ve yeni hanımına bir mektup yazarak İsa aracılığıyla tüm günahlarımdan nasıl bağışladığımı bildirdim. Ayrıca daha çok özür dilemek için bu mektubu yazdığımı ve nafaka da istemediğimi söyledim. Çünkü nafaka vermek istemiyordu. İsa kimseyi zorlamadı.

Kayınvalideme de bir mektup yazarak özür diledim. Çünkü büyük bir düşmanlık vardı aramızda. Şimdi, iyidir aramız hamdolsun, mektuplaşıyoruz. Annemden de özür diledim, iş yerimden de; çünkü hiç doğru çalışmazdım.

BİR ALMANLA EVLENMEK Mİ?

Dünyadaki yaşamım beni ve evimi mahvetmişti. Evim, içimin bir aynasıydı sanki. Evimin tüm camları kırık, eski eşyalar, boyasız kapı ve pencereler ve öksüzler yuvasında bir oğlum.

Hafta sonları eve geliyordu oğlum. Tekrar yurda götürdügüm zaman huysuzluk ediyor ve itaatsiz oluyordu. Sanki benden nefret ediyordu. Fakat ben unutmuştum sanki, Rabbin yaşamımda yaptığı bunca mucizeleri, sanki yaşayan bir Rabbim yoktu! Bu problemi kendi gücümle çözmek istiyordum.

İş yerimde bir Almanla evlenmeye karar verdim. Evlenip o kırık dökük evimden kurtulacaktım, çocuğumun da artık öksüzler yuvasında kalmasına gerek kalmayacaktı, çünkü çalışmayacaktım. Fakat içimde hiç huzur yoktu. Son anda Tanrı'ma sığınarak vazgeçtim ve evimi, çocuğumu kurtarıcımın ayakları dibine getirdim ve özür diledim. O'nun huzurundaydım yine.

Evim baştan aşağı yenilendi. Oğlumu yuvadan aldım. Tanrı'ya bir verdim, O bana bin verdi. Bu şeyler için de Tanrı'ya inancı olmayan bir adamla evlenmeme gerek yoktu.

DİŞÇİ PARASI

İş yerinde bir arkadaşla konuşuyordum. Hırsızlığın sadece bir kişinin malını çalmak olmayıp hasta olmadan rapor alarak sigortadan para almanın da hırsızlık olduğunu açıklamaya çalışyordum. O arada içimden bir ses "Hatırlıyor musun 1975 yılında Türkiye'de diş yaptırmış ve 800.-TL'si ödemiştin; fakat doktordan 4 bin liralik makbuz almıştın. Bunun karşılığı olarak 577.-DM Alman hastalık sigortasından almıştım......" O, evet Rab!

Bunu kabul etmek yeterli değildi, hatamı düzeltmeliydim. Gerçek yüzümü göstermeli, maskemi çıkarmalıydım.

Her türlü günahtan nefret etmek istiyordum.

Bunu nasıl yapmalıydım? Bazı arkadaşlara söyledim ki, hastalık sigortasına gidip hırsızlığımı anlatacağım. Hemen atıldılar: "Sakın ha, seni hapse atarlar. Mademki bu parayı vermek istiyorsun, fakirlere ver, sevap kazan." Fakat ben kime vermem gerektiğini biliyordum. Ayrıca Rabbin bunda yüceltilmesini istiyordum-- bir insan tüm dünyayı kazanıp da kendi canını yitirirse ne yarar sağlamış olur?

Hastalık sigortasına gittim ve hırsız olduğumu, fakat Mesih İsa'nın beni nasıl kurtardığını, bana nasıl yeni bir yürek verdiğini anlattım. Cezam her neyse ödemeye hazır olduğumu söyledim. Görevli memur bana bakıyordu. Acaba aklımdan zorum mu vardı! Böyle olmadığını anladı ve bana dedi: Biliyor musunuz, siz kendi kendizi kötülüyorsunuz, kendinize aleyhinize şahitlik yapıyorsunuz. Bunun getireceği şeyleri biliyor musunuz? Ben, evet dedim ve 800.-TL.'sini göz önüne alarak 461.60 DM geri ödedim ve çok mutlu oldum.

"Ey Rab, Senin isteğini yapmak, senin yolundan gitmek istiyorum. Bir kadın olarak bana verdiğin ödevi yapmak, yerine getirmek istiyorum. İyi ve sadık olmak, senin isteğine, dileğine yakışan, sana ait, senin kalbine göre birisi olmak istiyorum. Sözlerimle ve hareketlerimle-- her halımle iyi Haberi müjdelemek istiyorum."

Bahadır (Testimony in Turkish)

Merhaba... Aşağıdaki satırlarda Tanrı ile olan kişisel ilişkimin başlamasına yol açan ruhsal yolculuğumu sizinle paylaşmak istiyorum.

Tanrı konusunda düşünmeye ilk başladığım zamanlar, lisenin son dönemleriydi. Aslında lisedeki yaşantıma bakıldığında Tanrı ve yaşamımın anlamı hakkında düşünmeme neden olacak pek bir şey yok gibi görünüyordu. Çünkü şehirdeki en iyi okullardan birinde, yine çok popüler bir arkadaş grubunun içindeydim. Neredeyse her haftasonu bir parti ya da eğlenilecek bir fırsat vardı yaşamımda. Arkadaşlarla ve eğlenceyle geçen günler, kısaca her gencin yaşamaktan zevk alacağı mutlu ve sorunsuz bir yaşam.

Oysa yüreğimde hissettiklerim dışarıdan görünenin aksine bir kaosu yansıtıyordu. Yaşamımın tüm zevklerine rağmen her gece uyumak üzere yastığa başımı koyduğumda düşünürdüm: "Nereye gidiyorum bu yaşamda? Dünyadaki varlığım ne anlama geliyor?" Bu sorularin cevaplarının Tanrı'da olduğunu düşünmeye başladim ve Tanrı'yı daha fazla tanımak istedim. Bunun sonucunda doğal olarak bir Kur'an edinip okumaya başladım.

Kur'an'ı okumaktaki tek amacım Tanrı'nın kim olduğunu ve yarattığı biz insanlarla olan ilişkisini anlamaya çalışmaktı. Oysa bir süre geçip de kitabin neredeyse sonuna geldigim halde başlangıçta sorduğum soruların hiçbirine bir cevap bulamadığımı farkettim. Tanrı'nın kim olduğu, yaşamımın ne anlama geldiği, Tanrı'ya nasıl ulaşabileceğim... Bu soruların hiçbirine tatmin edici bir yanıt bulamamıştım.

Bunun yerine buldugum, yarattığı insanları yukarıda bir yerlerden - ya da her yerden - seyreden ve onlar hataya düştüğünde cezalandıran bir Tanrı idi. Kendi kendime "ne yapabilirim?" diye sordum; büyük bir hayal kırıklığı yaşıyordum çünkü... Ve düşündüğüm şu oldu: "Bir Tanrı vardır mutlaka, ama bu Tanrı her kim ise bana ve benim yaşamima çok uzak bir yerlerden seyrediyor beni. Ve benim ile Tanrı arasında hiçbir ilişki mümkün olamaz. Sonuçta ben O'nu tanımıyorum, o da benim için hiçbir şey yapmiş değil.

Bu şekilde düşünerek geçen yaklaşik 6 ayın üzerinden bir gün bir incil edinme şansım oldu. Merak duyuyordum ancak incil'i elime aldığım ilk andan itibaren emin olduğum bir gerçek vardı: "İncil değişti, ve papazlar onu kendi çıkarlari doğrultusunda kullanırlar.

Buna rağmen içimdeki merakı yenemedim ve bu kitabı okumaya başladım. Öncelikle dikkatimi çeken, daha önce okuduğum hiçbir öğretide görmediğim karşılıksız ve menfaatsiz sevgi anlayışıydı. Tüm kitap, İsa adındaki o garip adamdan bahsediyordu ve bu İsa gerçekten dünyada yaşamış herkesten çok farklıydı! İncil'in insan yaşamı ve ilişkileri konusunda anlattığı hiçbir şeyde katılamayacağım bir nokta yoktu. Beni, bir insan olarak kişiliğimi yine bana o kadar iyi anlatıyordu ki şaşırıp kalmıştım. Buna ek olarak incil'de okuduklarım, "tanrı benim için hiç bir şey yapmadı" şeklindeki kararima karşın çok farklı bir şey söylüyordu :

Senin şimdiye kadar düşündüğünün aksine Tanrı sana çok yakın. Hatta yaklaşık 2000 yıl önce Tanrı bu dünyaya bir insan bedeninde ( İsa Mesih ) geldi. Sana o kadar yakın ki, tüm görkemini bırakarak dünyada tıpkı seninki gibi bir beden içinde yaşadı. Üstelik, senin şimdiye kadar işlediğin tüm günahlarından, sorunlarından kurtulman için kendisi sana bir kurtuluş sağladı. Çarmıh üzerine kendi isteğiyle giderek orada senin günahlarının bedelini ödemek üzere senin yerine öldü. Ve tüm görkemiyle 3. gün ölümden dirilerek sana sonsuz yaşam vereceğini kanıtladi. Tabi ki eğer bunu istersen.

O güne kadar okuduğum, duyduğum ya da gördüğüm hiçbir sevgi ve fedakarlık tanımı, bundan daha anlamlı değildi. Tanrı'nin beni aslında ne kadar çok sevdiğini, ve kendisiyle kişisel bir ilişki kurmaya çağırdığını ilk defa o zaman duymuştum. Tüm bu yaptıklarının karşılığında Tanrı'nın benden istediği İsa Mesih'i yaşamıma Rab ve Kurtarıcı olarak çağırarak yaşamımın yönetimini O'na bırakmamdı. Bunun ardından Tanrı bana sonsuz yaşam verecek, üstelik her an benimle olan bir "Baba" olacaktı bana.

1995 yılının yaz aylarında İsa Mesih'i yaşamıma "Efendi" olarak çağırdım. O günden bu yana yaşamımda gerçekten çok büyük değişiklikler yaşadım, çünkü İsa söz verdiği gibi yaşamıma girdi ve bana yepyeni bir yürek verdi.

Artık "Tanrı kimdir?" diye sormuyorum, çünkü O'nu bizzat tanıyorum ve O'nunla kişisel bir ilişkim var! Yaşamımın anlamı konusunda hiçbir merakım kalmadı, çünkü yine Tanrı yaşamımın yönetimini eline aldı ve her şey O'nunla çok dolu ve anlamlı. Daha önceleri bir sıkıntıyla karşılaştığımda ne yapacağımı şaşırırdım. Şimdi ise Tanrı, her anımda benimle beraber ve her sıkıntımı O'nun gösterdiği yolları kullanarak aşabilirim. Tanrı'ya olan sevgim, insanlarla olan ilişkimi de doğrudan etkiledi: Artık nefret ve kin yerine her insanı olduğu gibi sevmeyi öğrendim. Tıpkı Tanrı beni olduğum gibi, tüm değersizliğime rağmen sevdiği gibi.

Ve belki de hepsinden önemlisi, Tanrı bana hiçbir öğreti ya da peygamberin veremeyeceği bir "söz" verdi : "İsa Mesih'e iman edersen, kurtulacaksın ve Ben'i göreceksin!" Bu güvence için Tanrı'ya şükrediyorum ve O'nu övüyorum, çünkü eminim ki artık ben Tanri ile birlikte sonsuza kadar yaşayacağım!

Artık bu dünyadaki yaşamımı da O'na hizmet ederek büyük bir sevinçle sürdürüyorum. Yukarıdaki satırları yazmaktaki amacim da bu sevinci sizlerle paylaşmaktır. Size söylemek istediğim şudur ki eğer yüreğinizi İsa Mesih'e açarsanız siz de böylesine bol bir yaşama ve asla bitmeyecek bir sevince kavuşacaksınız.

Umarım yazdıklarım sizin için anlamlıdır ve sizi daha fazla araştırmaya yöneltir.

Her türlü sorularınız ve yorumlarınız için bana yazabilirsiniz.

THE TITLES OF JESUS: WORD OF GOD AND SPIRIT OF GOD

1. Jesus as the Word of God in the Qur'an.

The Qur'an has much to say about the Christian faith, speaking at times favourably and at others unfavourably, but perhaps the most interesting verse of all on the whole subject of Christians and their beliefs is this one:

O People of the Book! Commit no excesses in your religion: nor say of God aught but the truth. Christ Jesus the son of Mary was (no more than) an apostle of God, and His Word, which he bestowed on Mary, and a Spirit proceeding from him: so believe in God and His apostles. Say not "Trinity": desist: it will be better for you: for God is One God: 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 God as a Disposer of affairs. Surah 4.171

The passage contains typical Qur'anic dogmas in opposition to Christianity and we find here the divinity of Jesus as emphatically rejected as anywhere else in the book. The dogmas are these: Jesus was only a messenger, God is not Triune, he is only one God and has no son. A Muslim seeking proof texts in the Qur'an to confront Christians with a denial of their belief in Jesus as the Son of God will not have to venture beyond this verse. The fascinating feature of this verse, however, is its attribution of three titles to Jesus, each one of which strongly implies that he was far more than a prophet and seems to be more consistent with Christian belief in him as Lord and Saviour of all men than the Muslim belief that he was no different to the other messengers God had sent. The key words containing all three titles are Innamaal-Masiihu Iisaabnu Maryama rasuulullaahi wa kalimatuhuu al-qaahaa ilaa Maryama wa ruuhum-minhu.

We have already considered the first at some length, namely Al-Masih, "the Messiah", and saw that no attempt is made in the Qur'an to explain the title. The other two that : appear in the text we shall consider in this section, namely Kalimah, meaning "Word", and Ruh, meaning "Spirit". Let us begin with the first as it is written in the verse, namely kalimatuhuu - "His Word". The construction makes it plain that Jesus is, in some unique way, God's own Word. The title; appears in two other places in the Qur'an in much the same context. In Surah 3.39 an angel announces to Zachariah that his son John (Yahya) will witness to a kalimatim-minallaah, "a Word from God", and in Surah 3.45 the angels, in announcing the conception of Jesus to Mary, speak of him as a kalimatim-minhu, "a Word from Him". The title, thus applied on no less than three occasions to Jesus, is not applied to anyone else in the Qur'an yet, as with the title Messiah, no attempt is made to explain it.

As usual Muslim writers are at pains to explain away yet another unique title applied to Jesus in the Qur'an without seriously attempting to consider its implications. Yusuf Ali, commenting on Surah 3.39, says:

Notice: "a Word from God", not "the Word of God", the epithet that mystical Christianity uses for Jesus. As stated in iii.59 below, Jesus was created by a miracle, by God's word "Be", and he was. (Yusuf Ali, The Holy Qur'an, p. 132).

Many Muslim writers follow the same pattern, arguing that Jesus is called a Word from God solely because he was created by the Word of God, kun - "be", just as Adam was created (Surah 3.59). "Thus Imam Razi, followed by some modern writers, would have us believe that the term 'Word of God' means no more than that, 'Jesus was created by the command or word of God"' (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 14). Another argument occasionally used to explain away the title, is that the words of God were revealed to Jesus and that in this sense alone he can be called a Word from God. An Ahmadlyya writer uses this line:

Speaking of Mary the Book says that "she accepted the truth of the words of her Lord". Thus Mary is here the verifier and not Jesus. The only meaning that can be given to the word Kalimah in the verse is the prophetic words of her Lord, i.e., the divine inspiration which she received from God relating to the birth of Jesus. It is noteworthy that the inspiration is breathed into him, i.e., Jesus. (Ahmad, Jesus in Heaven on Earth, p. 164).

The common argument, however, is the first one, namely that Jesus was created in an unusual way simply by divine command just as Adam was created. This argument, with all the others, falls to the ground on closer analysis. A Christian writer assesses it in the following quote and in doing so gives a clear hint as to why it can only be regarded as an inadequate explanation of the unique title given to Jesus we are here considering, namely a Word from God.

Al Baidhawi says that the expression "Word from God" refers to Jesus Christ who is so called because He was conceived by the word of the command of God, without a father (Sale, Koran, p. 48, n.4). Using this interesting logic, Adam too should be called "the Word from God" because he also was created out of dust by a word of the command of God (see Sura 3.59). But nowhere does the Qur'an mention him by that designation. It is an expression uniquely used of Jesus Christ. (Abdul-Haqq, Sharing Your Faith with a Muslim, p. 84).

There are two key factors that the Muslims are only too inclined to overlook - the application of the title to Jesus alone and the fact that he is clearly described in Surah 4.171 as "His Word", meaning not a Word from God alone but the Word of God. Abdul-Haqq states the first factor quite plainly - the title is "an expression uniquely used of Jesus Christ". The Qur'an, in Surah 3.59, states that "the likeness of Jesus with God is as the likeness of Adam" and promptly defines that likeness. God simply said "Be", and he came to be (kun fayakuun), implying that both were made by the single word of God in the same way. If Jesus is called the Word of God purely as a result of the manner of his conception, then Adam too must be the Word of God for according to the Qur'an they were both created in the same manner. Now a real difficulty arises because Adam is not called the Word of God in the Qur'an. Nor are the angels, nor is any other creature so called in the Qur'an. Jesus alone is called the Word of God.

The very uniqueness of the title in the Qur'an as applied to Jesus begs the suggestion that there must be something about the person of Jesus himself that makes him the Word of God in a way that no other man has ever been or ever will be. We must surely seek for some other meaning and significance behind the title, especially when we consider that the Bible also applies the title uniquely to Jesus - "the name by which he is called is The Word of God" (Revelation 19.13). It is perhaps in consideration of the second factor that we will find the real implications of the title.

In Surah 4.171 Jesus is called God's Word, not just a Word from God as in the two passages we quoted from the third Surah. This clearly implies, not that the Word was revealed to Jesus or that he was created by the Word, but rather that he himself is the Word of God. The title relates to his person and not to any feature or circumstance of his life. A Christian writer, speaking of Surah 3.45, makes the same point about the form of the words in the text:

Further, in the verse from the Qur'an which we have quoted, Christ is called 'His Word', that is, 'God's Word'. The Arabic shows that it means 'The Word of God', not merely 'a Word of God'. (Kalimatullaah, not kalimatimmin kalimaatullaah). Thus we see that Jesus is the word or expression of God, so that by Him alone can we understand the mind and will of God. No other prophet has been given this title, because none other is, in this sense, the special revelation of God's mind and will. (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 15).

The clear implication is that Jesus is, himself, in a unique way the revelation of God himself to men, the communication of God to his creation. The Word did not come to Jesus from above, rather he himself is that very Word which came from heaven to earth.

Jesus is the word of God, not (as Muslims generally teach) in the sense that he was created by divine fiat, by the word of God, but in the sense that he is the one who expresses the mind and will of God most fully to men. Through Jesus, God has spoken and acted in a unique way. (Chapman, You Go and Do the Same, p. 81).

If Christ were a Word of God, it would be clear that He was only one expression of God's will; but since God Himself calls Him "the Word of God", it is clear that He must be the one and only perfect expression of God's will, and the only perfect manifestation of God. (Zwemer, The Muslim Christ, p. 37).

The Qur'an says no more of Adam than that "he learnt from his Lord words of inspiration" (Surah 2.37), that is, the kalimaat were sent down mir-rabbihi, "from his Lord", but in the case of Jesus it is said that he himself is the kalimatullah, the "Word of God". As there is, nonetheless, no explanation of the title in the Qur'an, we shall have to turn, as we did with the title Al-Masih, to the Christian Bible to find its real meaning and see how it can be used as a typical point of agreement between Christians and Muslims upon which a Gospel witness can be based.

2. The Implications of Jesus' Deity in the Title.

We have already seen that the title Word implies that Jesus himself is the communication and revelation, in his own person, of God to men. The second thing to consider is that the Word is from God. He is one who is actively the real manifestation of God to men. To know him is to know God. In the prologue to John's Gospel we have the meanings implied in the title brought to the fore:

In the beginning was the Word. And the Word was with God. And the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through him and without him was not anything made that was made. John 1.1-2.

We see here that Jesus existed as the Word of God before God ever began to create and that he is therefore not of the created order by nature but enjoys the fulness of deity. It was this Word himself which took human form - the Word did not come to him as a man:

And the Word became flesh, and dwelt among us, full of grace and truth. John 1.14

The Qur'an plainly calls Jesus God's Word and a Word from God, and in the emphasis on the divine origin of the Word is it not logical to see the spirit of divinity in the person of the Word himself? It is hardly surprising that even from early times Christians saw in this unique title of Jesus in the Qur'an a clear hint to his deity.

In the opinion of several Christian writers who have commented on Mohammed's use of "word" to indicate Christ, the Prophet, indeliberately perhaps, but implicitly, admits our Saviour's divinity. (O'Shaughnessy, The Koranic Concept of the Word of God, p. 56).

One writer perhaps sums it up when he says: "The fact is that this title of the Lord Jesus can only be understood by a reference to the Gospel wherein it is clearly stated that Jesus the Word of God is divine, and existed with God before His birth into the world" (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 14), and even a Muslim writer is constrained to admit that the title carries a heavenly character with it:

Naturally one who bore the title of Ruhullah (Spirit of Allah) and Kalimatullah (Allah's Word) and was created from the puffing (sic) of Hazrat Gibriel was attracted towards the heavens and the other who was called abdullah (Allah's bondman) was inclined to stay within the earthly domain. (slam, Nuxul-e-Esa: Descension of Jesus Christ, p. 86).

The writer draws a remarkable comparison between Jesus as the Word of God and Spirit of God, and Muhammad who is only called the servant of God in the Qur'an. He clearly acknowledges that the unique titles given to Jesus lift him into a heavenly realm and give some idea why he was taken up there, while Muhammad's ordinary status as nothing more than a servant of God explains why he returned to dust whence he had come. (A Muslim cannot suggest that Muhammad enjoyed a uniqueness as God's servant in comparison with Jesus' uniqueness as God's Word and Spirit - Jesus himself is called abdullah, "servant of God", in the Qur'an in Surah 19.30. On the contrary Muhammad is nowhere called a Word or Spirit from God in the book).

Christians need to emphasize the unique character of this title Word of God. Muslims need to realise that Jesus alone bears the honour in the Qur'an and the Bible. One Christian writer, while tending to the Muslim idea that the title only relates to the creative word of God in bringing Jesus into being of a mother only, nonetheless gets to the heart of the matter when he says it celebrates "a unique status belonging to Jesus - albeit for the purposes of prophecy - which gives him a significance altogether his own as 'God's Word"' (Cragg, Jesus and the Muslim, p. 32).

The other aspect requiring emphasis is the divine implication in the title. Short of acknowledging that Jesus is the Son of God one will struggle to truly interpret this title and realise the full implications behind the fact that the origin of its bearer is none other than God himself. Another Christian writer, commenting on Surah 3.45, says the form of the title in that verse "necessitates the meaning that this is the soul of the Word, uncreated and eternally, in the mind of God, and one with the essence of God" (Harris, How to Lead Moslems to Christ, p. 74). Another writer likewise brings out the obvious meaning of the title and its relevance to Jesus as the Son of God when he says:

Both titles, "The Word of God" and "The Son of God", are used in the New Testament with the same meaning; i.e. they express the fact of Christ's essential Deity, His oneness with the Father (John x.30). (Pfander, The Mizanu'l Haqq (Balance of Truth), p. 165).

The title Son of God at least implies some limitation and submission on the part of its bearer - a son is subject to his father - but the title Word of God implies no such limitation. By itself it clearly implies that its bearer is the express image of the invisible God and only the latter title Son of God implies some submission on his part to the Father. The Qur'an denounces Christians for believing that Jesus is the Son of God and yet, in the very same breath, gives him the title Word of God which is as indicative of deity as the title Son of God. There is really no meaningful difference between the titles.

There is no doubt as to the identity of the Word from God whom John came to announce to Israel. In the expression "Word from Him", the participle (from) "min" signifies a generic relationship between the noun and pronou linked together by it. Therefore it means that "the Word" is of the same divine essence as Him (hu) - God. (Abdul-Haqq, Sharing Your Faith with a Muslim, p. 68).

Quite where we Christians are exaggerating in our religion, as the Qur'an suggests in Surah 4.171, is not at all clear to us. Our study of the first two titles in that verse that are applied uniquely to Jesus, namely "the Messiah" and "the Word of God", has led to the inevitable conclusion that Jesus must be far more than a prophet, indeed nothing less than the divine Son of God. In both titles Christians have tremendous scope for witness to Muslims. Once again, from the Muslim's own background, from the teaching of his own Scripture, Christians can lead to an effective witness to the Gospel of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ.

Does the Muslim designation of Jesus as the Word of God help us bridge the gap which exists between the Muslim and Christian understanding of Jesus' Person and his relation to God? Can Christians at least help Muslims better understand the Christian understanding of Jesus through this designation? There is no doubt that Christians, in the past and present, have found this designation more helpful than some other exclusively Christian titles of Jesus (such as Son of God, Lamb of God, etc.) to introduce the New Testament picture of Jesus to the Muslim. (Hahn, Jesus in Islam, p. 36).

Let us close by considering the third unique title given to Jesus in Surah 4.171, namely a Spirit from God.

3. Ruhullah - Jesus the Spirit of God.

This third title is very little different to the second one for once again the title belongs to Jesus alone and God again is the source of the Spirit as he was the source of the Word. In Surah 3.45 we read that Jesus was a kalimatim-minhu, "a Word from him". Now we read in Surah 4.171 that he was also a ruhun minhu, "a Spirit from him". On both occasions it is clearly stated that the source of the man who bears these titles is God himself. Jesus is his Word and his Spirit. Once again no attempt is made to explain the title in the Qur'an, yet it frankly supports the Christian belief that Jesus was not a creature made out of dust but an eternal spirit who took on human form. It is the closest the Qur'an comes to admitting the pre-existence of Jesus before his conception on earth. The lack of any explanation of its meaning, however, or why it should be applied uniquely to Jesus just as the other two titles are, suggests that Muhammad once again heard and adopted Christian teachings and titles applying to Jesus without understanding them or seeing their ominous implications for his dogma that Jesus was only a prophet like all the other prophets.

Precisely in the passage already mentioned, where Muhammad uses the epithets 'Logos' and 'Spirit' with reference to Jesus and seems to approach the concept of trinity, it can be clearly understood that Muhammad did not realise the implication of these Christian expressions which he had acquired from hearsay. (Frieling, Christianity and Islam, p. 71).

In this case, however, we do find some evidence in the Qur'an that helps us to identify the meaning of this title. Elsewhere in the Qur'an we read of the "Holy Spirit" (Rubul-Quds - cf. Surahs 2.85, 2.253, 16.103) and it is presumed that the Holy Spirit is the angel Gabriel. Whoever it is, it is generally agreed that the Holy Spirit is greater than man and comes from heaven and is purely a spirit.

Jesus, however, is now called "a Spirit from him" (ruhun minhu) from which he has received the title in Islamic traditions, "Spirit of God". Whereas David is called Khalifatullah ("Vicegerent of God") and Abraham Khalilullah ("Friend of God") as we have already seen, so now we find that the express title for Jesus in Islam is Ruhullah ("Spirit of God"). Throughout the works of Hadith where purported sayings and anecdotes relating to Jesus are recorded, we find him always being addressed Ya Ruhullah (''O Spirit of Allah"). It is a very common title in many works. In one place his disciples are found saying to him:

"O Spirit of God, describe to us the friends of God (Exalted is He!) upon whom there is no fear, and who do not grieve". (Robson, Christ in Islam, p. 86).

Indeed, when one examines the other titles applied to the other prophets, one finds them all typical of the kind of status that ordinary human messengers might enjoy before God. In fact the title applied especially to Muhammad, Rasulullah ("Messenger of God"), carries with it no uniqueness at all for all the prophets are called rusulih in the verse under consideration (Surah 4.171) and indeed, in this very verse, Jesus himself is called a rasulullah. The title "Spirit of God", however, carries with it divine implications.

The titles given to other prophets, such as 'Friend of God', 'Chosen of God', 'Prophet of God' may be applied to frail beings like ourselves, but the name 'Spirit of God' given to Christ by Muslims clearly hints at a higher station and a nobler dignity, and witnesses with no uncertain sound to His superiority over all other prophets. Such a person may well be called the 'Son of God', and Christians often wonder why their Muhammadan brethren so object to the latter title, when they themselves have given Jesus a title not less high. (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 21).

The author, quoting such distinguished commentators as Imam Razi and Baidawi, continues: "Candid Muhammadan writers freely admit that this title 'Spirit of God' carries with it some speciality such as can be predicated of no other prophet" (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 21). It is very interesting to note that the very expression applied to Jesus in Surah 4.171, ruhun minhu, appears in exactly the same form in Surah 58.22 where we read that God strengthens true believers with "a spirit from him". The Muslim translator Yusuf Ali appends the following comment to this verse:

Here we learn that all good and righteous men are strengthened by God with the holy spirit. If anything the phrase used here is stronger, "a spirit from Himself". Whenever anyone offers his heart in faith and purity to God, God accepts it, engraves that Faith on the seeker's heart, and further fortifies him with the divine spirit which we can no more define adequately than we can define in human language the nature and attributes of God. (Yusuf Ali, The Holy Qur'an, p. 1518).

This is a remarkable comment which clearly contains a veiled implication that the ruhun minhuthe Spirit from God is clearly believed by him to be from the realm of deity and not from the created order. He is, according to this interpretation, practically synonymous with the Holy Spirit in the Christian Bible. is the very Spirit of the living God, uncreated and eternal in essence. Yusuf Ali says it is "the divine spirit" and that it is as incomprehensible as God himself. The language he uses is unambiguous -

Now this is the very title that the Qur'an gives to Jesus in Surah 4.171. The exact same words are used - he is the ruhun minhu, "a Spirit from God". If we merely apply Yusuf Ali's interpretation of the expression in Surah 58.22 to the very same expression given as a title to Jesus in Surah 4.171, we can only conclude that Jesus is the "divine spirit", which we can no more adequately define than we can define in human language "the nature and attributes of God". He is, therefore, God in essence and nature. Because of the simultaneous denial in Surah 4.171 that Jesus is the Son of God, Yusuf Ali is constrained to deny that the title ruhun minhuruhun minhu is indeed a divine spirit possessing the nature and attributes of God and is as incomprehensible as God as well. Once again we find the dogmas of the Qur'an somewhat contradicted by its own teachings regarding the uniqueness of Jesus over all the other prophets. when applied to Jesus implies deity, but he is hardly consistent in his exposition of the Qur'an when he teaches in another place that

For our part we believe that, as with the titles Messiah and Word of God, this title Spirit of God also strongly supports the Christian belief that Jesus is indeed the Son of God and that, not in any metaphorical sense, but in an eternal one which is based on the fact that he is very deity himself. The only way Yusuf Ali could avoid this admission when commenting on Surah 4.171 was to frankly contradict what he said in his commentary on Surah 58.22.(In his comments on Surah 4.171 he denies the divinity of Jesus, his sonship, and his unity with the Father).

There can be little doubt that the title here applied to Jesus, like the titles Messiah and Word of God, contains a special meaning not immediately apparent in the Qur'an which fails to attempt any explanation of it, but which nevertheless must place him above the prophets. Ultimately all three titles are only consistent with Christian belief in him as the Son of God and this title "Spirit of God" therefore also gives Christians an open door in their witness to Muslims.

As Goldsack says in his excellent booklet on Jesus in Islam, "When we see that to Jesus alone Muslims give this high title 'Spirit of God', then it is evident that he is the Spirit of God in a special sense, and it is only a step from this to the fuller teaching of the Injil that He is the eternal Son of God" (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 23). The same author fitly concludes: "Thus we re-affirm that the term 'Spirit of God', applied to Christ by Muslims, places Him high above all other prophets, and hints at the great doctrine of His divinity which is so clearly taught in the Injil" (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 24). Another writer also does not hesitate to see in this title clear evidence that Jesus was unique among men and above them all, and not merely one of the prophets of God:

Apart from this, moreover, it is a most significant fact that Jesus is so intimately connected with the Spirit in the Qur'an. This one fact puts Christ above the level of all other prophets and brings us very near to the Christian conception about the nature of Christ. (Mylrea, The Holy Spirit in Qur'an and Bible, p. 6).

We have now considered three unique titles that are applied to Jesus in the Qur'an and, along with the three unique features of his life that we considered in the first section, we have found an abundance of material in the Qur'an itself that Christians can use to show Muslims that only the Bible reveals the true Jesus - the Son of God who came to save us from our sins. It is quite remarkable to find all three titles in just one verse which also contains a threefold denial of Jesus' deity! The very titles Messiah, Word and Spirit of God, when analysed against the background of the implications as to their meanings and the Qur'anic silence in this respect, can only lead to the very conclusion that the Qur'an is at pains to pre-empt - that Jesus is the Son of God.

Thus the Qur'an gives precious glimpses of the Messiah's greatness, but stops short of unveiling his glorious perfections and divine majesty. It leads to the portal, but fails to open the door : it kindles the flame, but leaves it in the heart a longing and unsatisfied desire. (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 42).

In closing let us consider yet one more feature in the life of Jesus which the Qur'an applies to him as uniquely as it does the others we have considered, namely the power and authority to give life to the dead, and see how this too can be used as a very effective bridge for the communication of the Gospel to Muslims against the background of their own beliefs.

AL-MASIHU ISA: GOD'S ANOINTED MESSIAH

1. Al-Masih: The Messiah in the Qur'an.

We have already examined three of the unique features in Jesus' life which, by implication, place him far above all the prophets. In the following two sections we shall in the same manner consider three titles applied to him in the Qur'an which also make him unique among the prophets and in this section shall examine perhaps the most significant of these titles, namely the Messiah.

Muslims often confront Christians with the suggestion that it is only in Islam that Jesus obtains proper reverence, as no true Muslim will mention his name without some qualification of respect, whereas Christians are charged with a far too-easy familiarity with him, speaking of him simply as Jesus. "We do not speak simply of Isa", a Muslim will say, "we will always give him a title of respect, such as Hazrat Isa (His Eminence, Jesus), or Isa alayhis-salaam (Jesus, on whom be peace). Why do you Christians always speak of him only as Jesus without showing him some measure of respect?"

In reply I always say that we appreciate the gestures of respect that accompany the name of Jesus in Islam, except to add that we cannot find any of them in the Qur'an. "What is the full Qur'anic name for Jesus?", I respond, or alternatively, "What is the one title of respect given to Jesus in the Qur'an?" The Muslims do not often provide the obvious answer, probably because the meaning of the title is almost completely glossed over in Islam. The answer is simply this: the full Qur'anic name for Jesus is Al-Masihu Isa - "the Messiah Jesus" (cf. Surah 4.157, 4.171).

Jesus is nowhere called Hazrat Isa or Isa alayhis-salaam in the Qur'an. These qualifying titles of respect have been applied to him in Muslim tradition. The only Qur'anic name for Jesus that embodies a respectful title is Al-Masihu Isa - "the Messiah Jesus". In fact we even read that when the angels first appeared to Mary they said of the holy child they had been sent to announce: Ismuhul Masihu Isabnu Maryam - "his name shall be the Messiah Jesus, son of Mary" (Surah 3.45). Even before the conception of Jesus, therefore, the angels gave him the one title that is applied to him on no less than eleven occasions in the Qur'an, namely Al-Masih - "the Messiah". The strange thing is that, whereas the Qur'an unflinchingly attributes to Jesus the one title claimed for him by the Christians and rejected by the Jews, it attempts no explanation of it. The following quote hints at the three anomalies surrounding the use of this title in the book:

Jesus receives the title Messiah (Christ) eleven times in the Qur'an, all in Medinan suras . . . While no explanation is offered of the title Messiah, and it is applied to Jesus at all periods of his life from birth to exaltation, yet it appears to have a particular sense. (Parrinder, Jesus in the Qur'an, p. 30).

The first of the three intriguing features that strikes us is that Jesus only receives this title after Muhammad had completed his twelve years of preaching at Mecca and had migrated to Medina. In none of the Meccan surahs is the name of Jesus qualified by the title Al-Masih. A Christian writer advances the probable reason for this phenomenon in saying:

It is important to mention that the title "Al-Masih" only occurs in the late chapters of the Koran at a time when the prophet's knowledge about the people of the Book was much advanced. (Abdul-Haqq, Sharing Your Faith with a Muslim, p. 82).

The most plausible explanation is that Muhammad was unaware of the title until he moved to Medina and, as his contacts with Christians and Jews increased, so he came to learn of the unique appellation given to Jesus and, being unaware of its meaning but seeing no reason to reject it, simply adopted it himself and included it in the Qur'an without any further ado.

It was very well known that the Christians worshipped al-Masih. This name is attested in Arabia before Mohammed's time, all the way from Nejran in the south to Ghassan in the north (Horovitz, pp. 129f.); and he eventually employs it frequently in the Koran. (Torrey, The Jewish Foundation of Islam, p. 76).

The second feature that draws our attention is the lack of any explanation of its meaning in the Qur'an. Islam only accepts Jesus as a prophet like all the other prophets. In one passage he is joined with Abraham, Ishmael, Isaac, Jacob and Moses as simply one of the prophets (an-nabiyyin) between whom no distinction of any kind is made (Surah 2.136). In another verse he is said to have been no more than a servant (abd - Surah 43.59) and in yet another as nothing more than a messenger (rasul - Surah 5.78). One would therefore expect to find the Qur'an denying that Jesus was the Messiah, especially as the Jews and Christians have always regarded the title as signifying more than prophethood. When Jesus on one Occasion asked his disciples who the people thought he was, they answered that it was generally believed that he was one of the prophets (Mark 8.28). But when he asked them the same question, Peter replied: "You are the Messiah" (Mark 8.29). His answer was clearly intended to be in contrast with the general opinion that Jesus was just one of the prophets.

The Qur'an's acknowledgement that Jesus was indeed the Messiah comes, therefore, as something of a surprise. He is not only called Al-Masihu Isa but on some occasions the title Al-Masih appears by itself (Surah 4.172), and on others he is called Al-Masibuhnu Maryam - "the Messiah, son of Mary" (Surah 9.31). What is most significant is that the title is applied solely to Jesus in the Qur'an and that its definitive quality is carefully defined by the use of the article - Al-Masih, namely, the Messiah. Indeed the title is never used in the Qur'an without the definite article. This rules out any possibility that the title can be applied to anyone else. No one else in the Qur'an is, or accordingly possibly could be, the Messiah. Jesus is not a messiah or one of the messiahs, he is Al-Masih - the Messiah. This leads to the third feature that must occupy the attention of all who seriously consider the use of this title in the Qur'an, namely that it is obviously used, as Parrinder says, "in a particular sense". We shall have to examine this subject in the light of Jewish and Christian expectations and proclamations respectively to discover what that sense is, but in the meantime can take note of its use in an exclusive context in the Qur'an.

Nevertheless, as said before, the Qur'an's acknowledgement that Jesus was indeed the Messiah comes as a surprise, for it denies that Jesus was anything more than a prophet, whereas the promises of God about the coming Messiah had made it plain that he would be far greater than just a prophet. The Christian confession that Jesus is the Lord and Saviour of all men is thus consistent with the teachings of the former prophets that the coming Messiah would be the supreme man of history, far above all the prophets (2 Samuel 7.12-14). The Qur'an, on the other hand, declares Maal Masihubnu Maryama illa rasul - "The Messiah, son of Mary, was no more than an apostle" - like the other apostles who had passed away before him (Surah 5.78). Why, then, does the Qur'an also acknowledge that Jesus was the Messiah if it denies that he was anything more than a prophet' It seems hard to avoid the conclusion that the Qur'an is contradicting itself here, especially when it offers no alternative explanation of the title.

The Biblical title of 'Messiah' (masih) is accepted and applied to Jesus, but there appears to be little realization of its original significance. (Watt, Bell's Introduction to the Qur'an, p. 158).

The Qur'an again and again speaks of Jesus as the 'Messiah', and thus tacitly admits his superiority over all other prophets. It gives him the title, but fails to give any reason for the honour thus put upon Jesus; but in thee Bible we learn more fully who this great one was who was thus honoured by God. (Goldsack, Christ in Islam, p. 12).

Furthermore one struggles to find in Arabic any roots for the title which might give some indication of its meaning. It is true that its three consonants, mim, sin and hah, are also the root letters of the word masaha meaning "to rub, wipe or stroke", which appears four times in the Qur'an. There is no hint, however, that the title as applied to Jesus carries any meaning remotely connected with this word which appears only as a verb in the Qur'an. Some Muslim authorities have even sought other words with similar roots (not identical, as in masaha) to explain its meaning, yet we find that the greatest Muslim scholars, such as Zamakhshari and Baidawi, "rejected these theories and admitted that it was a borrowed word" (Jeffery, The Foreign Vocabulary of the Qur'an, p. 265).

The average Muslim will be hard-pressed to venture a plausible explanation of this supreme title given to Jesus, Al-Masih, based on the use of the word in the Qur'an, and consistent with the claim that he was in no way different to the other prophets who went before him. We are bound to conclude that the Qur'an unwittingly gives Jesus a title which has momentous implications when studied in the light of its use in both the Jewish and Christian Scriptures, but which otherwise has no meaning when considered solely in the light of its use in the book. As we press on to study the third feature we have mentioned, namely the "particular sense" in which the title is used in the Bible, we shall see what a wonderful opportunity we have to present the Gospel to Muslims through this title against the background of its unexplained use in the Qur'an.

2. The Biblical Concept of the Messiah.

The common word used for Messiah in the Christian Scriptures, in the original Greek texts, is ho Christos. Twice it is said to be a translation of the word Messias (John 1.41, 4.25) and, as in the Qur'an, no attempt is made to define or explain the meaning of the title. Nevertheless, just as the Qur'an uses the definite article al to apply the title to Jesus alone, so in the Christian Scriptures he is constantly called ho Christos, that is, the Messiah. (We shall use the word 'Messiah" here in our quotes from the Christian Scriptures rather than "Christ" as the title corresponds more readily to the Qur'anic Al-Masih).

We have to turn to the Jewish Scriptures to find the real meaning of the title. It derives chiefly from the following prophecy:

"Know therefore and understand that from the going forth of the word to restore and build Jerusalem to the coming of an anointed one, a prince, there shall be seven weeks. Then for sixty-two weeks it shall be built again with squares and moat, but in a troubled time. And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off, and shall have nothing; and the people of the prince who is to come shall destroy the city and the sanctuary". Daniel 9.25-26.

Twice in this passage we read of a mashiah, "an anointed one", a prince who would appear, but who would suddenly be cut off. Right throughout the prophetic writings of the Old Testament one finds predictions of a coming one, a supreme deliverer, God's chosen servant, who would rule over his kingdom for ever. The use of the word mashiah in Daniel 9.25-26 led the Jews to coin a title for the coming Prince - ha Mashiah, "the Anointed One", the Messiah. A typical prophecy of his greatness and the extent of his dominion is found in this passage:

There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him, the spirit of wisdom and understanding, the spirit of counsel and might, the spirit of knowledge and the fear of the Lord. And his delight shall be in the fear of the Lord. Be shall not judge by what his eyes see, or decide by what his ears hear; but with righteousness he shall judge the poor, and decide with equity for the meek of the earth; and he shall smite the earth with the rod of his mouth, and with the breath of his lips he shall slay the wicked. Righteousness shall be the girdle of his waist, and faithfulness the girdle of his loins. Isaiah 11.1-5.

The prophet Isaiah went on to say of him: "In that day the root of Jesse shall stand as an ensign to the peoples; him shall the nations seek, and his dwellings shall be glorious" (Isaiah 11.10). The prophecy clearly could not be applied to any of the prophets who were appearing at times among the people. It spoke of one man alone who would rule the whole earth and who, by the breath of his mouth alone, would slay the wicked. In another passage of the same prophecy we read that God himself said of this coming ruler:

"Behold my servant, whom I uphold, my chosen, in whom my soul delights; I have put my Spirit upon him, he will bring forth justice to the nations". Isaiah 42.1

One after the other the prophets of Israel foretold the coming of this supreme representative of God on earth who would bring the justice of God to the whole world and rule over it. Through another prophet God also spoke of the coming Anointed One and described his glory in these words:

"Behold the man whose name is the Branch: for he shall grow up in his place, and he shall build the temple of the Lord. It is he who shall build the temple of the Lord, and shall bear royal honour, and shall sit and rule upon his throne". Zechariah 6.12-13.

The Jews began to realise that, whereas prophets arose at fairly regular intervals to declare the will of God, one great figure was to follow them all who would be far above all the prophets of God in honour and majesty. This supreme ruler was destined to be God's own chosen representative who would establish his kingdom and rule upon his throne. Through yet another prophet God foretold where he would be born:

But you, O Bethlehem Ephrathah, who are little to be among the clans of Judah, from you shall come forth for me one who is to be ruler in Israel, whose origin is from of old, from ancient days. Micah 5.2

As the predictions increased, so the outstanding features of the coming chosen one of God became more apparent. In this prophecy it was plainly stated that the coming ruler, although yet to be born, had in fact existed in the heavens from the beginning of time. Daniel the prophet gave a climactic review of his coming glory and authority when he described a vision he had seen during his time of exile in Babylon. As he gazed into heaven and saw millions of people gathered before the throne of God, he exclaimed:

"Behold, with the clouds of heaven there came one like a son of man, and he came to the Ancient of Days and was presented before him. And to him was given dominion and glory and kingdom, that all peoples, nations, and languages should serve him; his dominion is an everlasting dominion, which shall not pass away, and his kingdom one that shall not be destroyed". Daniel 7.13-14.

It was little wonder that the Jews concluded that the Ruler of God's own kingdom, whose origin was from of old, and whose dominion would last for ever, was to be far greater than a prophet. When Daniel spoke of him as God's "Anointed One" (Daniel 9.25), the title Mashiah stuck and became the common title to describe him. "The Messiah" became their long-awaited Deliverer and Ruler.

We see therefore that the title "the Messiah" clearly means, not just a prophet among many prophets, but God's Supremely Anointed One, whose origin was from of old and whose rule over the whole universe would last for ever. It was an apocalyptic figure they awaited, the climax of God's revelations to the world. Ha Mashiah he was called - the one and only supremely anointed, chosen one of God to rule over all his dominions.

This brief survey of the real meaning of the title Al-Masih, that is, "the Supremely Anointed One", shows how inappropriate the Qur'anic statement Maal-Masihubnu Maryama illa rasul - "the Messiah, son of Mary, was no more than an apostle" (Surah 5.78) - really is. The whole meaning of the title Al-Masih, as considered in its original Hebrew context, totally negates the suggestion that the one bearing this title was, after all, only an apostle like others who had gone before him. One can only presume that Muhammad did not know the meaning of the title Al-Masih and, hearing it freely applied to Jesus by the Christians, unquestioningly adopted it without realising that it completely undermined his belief that Jesus was only one of a long line of prophets.

We see ultimately that the coming Messiah was to tower over all the prophets and, by comparing the teachings of the Jewish Scriptures regarding his glory with the admission in the Qur'an that Jesus was indeed the Messiah, Christians have a golden opportunity to witness meaningfully to Muslims. The Qur'an attempts no explanation of the title, yet its very inclusion in the book, the sacred Scripture of Islam, opens a wide door for effective witness. The common testimony of both the Christian and the Muslim Scriptures to Jesus as the long awaited Supremely Anointed One provides a platform on which Christians can build the message of the Gospel and show Muslims the real meaning and implications of the title. We shall close this section by seeing just how this can be done.

3. Jesus of Nazareth : God's Anointed Messiah.

There are two supreme implications behind the title Messiah - the identity of its subject and the work he was to perform. He was to be far greater than the prophets who had preceded him and accordingly was sent to the earth for a more profound purpose. He did not come purely to prophesy and to draw his people back to God, he came to redeem the world and prepare the way for the coming kingdom of God. The Scriptures show quite plainly wherein the greater character of the Messiah consisted - he was the Son of God - and also set forth, both prophetically by way of anticipation and thereafter historically through a factual record, the exalted nature of the work he was sent to do - to save men from their sins by dying on the cross and rising from the dead on the third day.

We shall consider these two great themes in order and shall begin by considering the revelations in the Jewish Scriptures that he was to be the Son of God who would establish and rule over God's eternal kingdom. Among the many predictions of his coming, many of which foretold that he would come from David's line (Jeremiah 23.5, Ezekiel 34.24), was this direct prophecy to David himself when God spoke through the prophet Nathan at the time when David sought to build a house for the ark of the covenant, a temple to God's glory. After stopping him from doing so God declared:

"Moreover I declare to you that the Lord will build you a house. When your days are fulfilled to go to be with your fathers, I will raise up your offspring after you, one of your own sons, and I will establish his kingdom. He shall build a house for me, and I will establish his throne for ever. I will be his father, and he shall be my son; I will not take my steadfast love from him, as I took it from him who was before you, but I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom for ever and his throne shall be established for ever. 1 Chronicles 17.10-14.

When Solomon, David's son, duly built a great temple for God (known in Islam as baitul-muqaddas, "the Holy House", and spoken of in Surah 17.7 as al-masjid - "the Temple"), it seemed that the prophecy had been fulfilled. Nevertheless, not long after Solomon's death the kingdom of Israel was split in two and within three hundred years fell away completely, Solomon's temple being destroyed in the process.

The Jews then realised that God had, in fact, been speaking ultimately of the Messiah as the prophecy had been couched in eternal language - "I will establish his throne for ever . . . I will confirm him in my house and in my kingdom for ever and his throne shall be established for ever" (1 Chronicles 17.12,14). God had clearly spoken of his Supremely Anointed One who would establish his kingdom and rule it for ever. Solomon and his temple were clearly only shadows and types of the Messiah and his kingdom to come. "One of your own sons", therefore, was to be applied ultimately to David's "greater son" yet to come, the Messiah, who would be descended from David's line. As a result the Jews coined the expression "Son of David" as a title for their coming Messiah and often used it of him to identify the line of offspring from which he would rise. "Has not the scripture said that the Messiah is descended from David, and comes from Bethlehem, the village where David was?" (John 7.42), was the constant belief of the Jews, a belief Jesus duly fulfilled when he was born of David's line in Bethlehem (Matthew 2.1).

It is recorded in the Gospel of Matthew that about two days before his crucifixion, Jesus engaged in lengthy debate with the Jewish leaders. Firstly the Pharisees and then the Sadduccees tried by every verbal twist and trick to trap him in his talk. At the end of the day, when their efforts were exhausted and they were all standing before him, he finally put a question to them. It was to be the last time he would engage in debate with them. He said to the Pharisees:

"What do you think of the Messiah? Whose son is he?" Matthew 22.42

They promptly answered: "the Son of David", in accordance with the prophecies in their holy scriptures. Jesus replied to them in these words:

"How is it then that David, inspired by the Spirit, calls him Lord, saying, 'The Lord said to my Lord, Sit at my right hand, till I put thy enemies under thy feet'? If David thus calls him Lord, how is he his son?" Matthew 22.43-45

David, said Jesus, called the Messiah his Lord and Master, how then could he be David's son? What man looks on his son as his lord and master? We read that "no one was able to answer him a word, nor from that day did any one dare to ask him any more questions" (Matthew 22.46). This momentous question ended all debate between Jesus and the Jews.

Any Jew in the crowd who had been awake, however, could have given a very complete answer to the question. Let us go back to the prophecy Nathan gave David that one of his sons would establish his throne for ever and ever. We have read it already, but now let us repeat the key words of God to David. He said of the Messiah who would be descended from him:

"I will be his father, and he shall be my son" 1 Chronicles 17.13

I will be his Father and he shall be my Son, God said to David - a prophecy contained to this day in the Jewish Scriptures, those of a people who no more believe that Jesus is the Son of God than Muslims do. Yet there it is, right in their Scripture. Any discerning Jew, in answer to Jesus' question, "What do you think of the Messiah, whose son is he?", could have replied, "he is the Son of God", for so God had spoken to David. This is why David called the Messiah his Lord, for he knew that although he would be descended from him, God would be his true Father and he would be God's Son. He might well have said, as John did, "After me comes a man who ranks before me, for he was before me" (John 1.30).

David knew that the Messiah would be the Son of God and therefore openly called him his Lord and Master. "The Lord says to my Lord" to David meant simply "The Father says to his Son, sit at my right hand till I put thy enemies under thy feet". In another of the prophetic passages in the Psalms God spoke of the coming glory of the Son of David at his second advent at the end of time:

"He shall cry to me, 'Thou art my Father, my God, and the Rock of my salvation'. And I will make him the firstborn, the highest of the kings of the earth. My steadfast love I will keep for him for ever, and my covenant will stand firm for him. I will establish his line for ever and his throne as the days of the heavens . . . Once for all I have sworn by my holiness; I will not lie to David. His line shall endure for ever, his throne as long as the sun before me". Psalm 89.26-29, 35-36.

No one but the Son of God could so boldly address the Lord of heaven and earth. Bedded into the glorious predictions of the coming Messiah, who would rule over the kingdom of God for ever and ever, are clear statements that he would be God's own Son. The promises to this effect came directly from God himself. The Messiah, God's Supremely Anointed One, would far surpass the prophets in glory and majesty because he would be no less than the Son of God himself.

Jesus himself gave the answer to his own question how the Messiah could be both the Lord and the son of David at one and the same time. He declared:

"I am the root and the offspring of David, the bright morning star". Revelation 22.16

Because he was David's offspring he could indeed be called his son, but he was also his root as "the world was made through him" (John 1.10) and was therefore rightly called his Lord. "All things were created through him and for him", the Scripture continues (Colossians 1.16), and he could accordingly truly be said to be the Root of David (Revelation 5.5), his ultimate Lord and Master. "What do you think of the Messiah, whose son is he?", was the climactic charge Jesus set before the Jews as his long public confrontation with them finally came to an end. It is the very charge that Christians must set before the Muslims they meet - "What do you think of Al-Masih, whose son was he really?"

It is useful both to note and to point out to Muslims that the titles Messiah and Son of God are used interchangeably in the Christian Scriptures. Jewish believers in Jesus used both titles for him simultaneously, Simon Peter being the first to do so when he declared to Jesus:

"You are the Messiah, the Son of the living God". Matthew 16.16

When Martha was challenged about the death of her brother Lazarus and was asked by Jesus whether she believed that he was the Resurrection and the Life, she replied:

"I believe that you are the Messiah, the Son of God, he who is coming into the world". John 11.27

The High Priest Caiaphas used the titles simultaneously when putting Jesus on oath to declare who he really was:

"I adjure you, by the living God, tell us if you are the Messiah, the Son of God". Matthew 26.63

Mark began his Gospel by describing it as the gospel of "Jesus the Messiah, the Son of God" (Mark 1.1) and John, in like manner, summed up all that he had written in his Gospel as having been set down so that his readers might believe "that Jesus is the Messiah, the Son of God" (John 20.31). Even the demons regarded the two titles as synonymous with each other:

And demons also came out of many, crying, "You are the Son of God!" But he rebuked them, and would not allow them to speak, because they knew that he was the Messiah. Luke 4.41

In the title Al-Masih, "the Messiah" as it appears in the Qur'an, being freely applied to Jesus exclusively without any explanation of its meaning, we find a tremendous channel by which to show Muslims who Jesus really was. He was not just one of the prophets, he was the Supremely Anointed One, with whom no one else could compare, the eternal Son of the living God.

This brings us in closing to the work the Messiah was to perform. Although he was plainly identified as a figure of great glory and although many of the predictions of his coming heralded his ultimate glory, it was clearly foretold that he would come the first time in relative obscurity and would be a man of sorrows and great suffering. Indeed, in the very prophecy in which he is called mashiah, from which the title "Messiah" came, there is a plain statement that he would be struck down in the middle of his course:

And after the sixty-two weeks, an anointed one shall be cut off, and shall have nothing. Daniel 9.26

The prediction was quite clear: "mashiah shall be cut off, and shall have nothing". This was a direct warning that the Anointed One of God would suddenly be struck down and killed - a clear reference to the death of Jesus the Messiah on the cross which came quite unexpectedly on his disciples.

There are numerous passages in the Old Testament foreshadowing the sufferings of the Messiah and his subsequent glory, such as Psalms 22 and 69, but perhaps the most significant is found in the prophecy of Isaiah which begins:

Behold my servant shall prosper, he shall be exalted and lifted up, and shall be very high. As many were astonished at him - his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance, and his form beyond that of the sons of men - so shall he startle many nations; kings shall shut their mouths because of him; for that which has not been told them they shall see, and that which they have not heard they shall understand. Isaiah 52.13-15.

The text contains clear predictions of the coming glory of the Messiah at his second advent, but in between these promises of his ultimate exaltation comes a clear warning of his rejection and suffering at his first advent - "his appearance was so marred, beyond human semblance". The prophecy contains an unambiguous declaration that he would have no apparent honour at his first coming and would generally be overlooked and rejected by his people:

He had no form or comeliness that we should look at him, and no beauty that we should desire him. He was despised and rejected by men; a man of sorrows and acquainted with grief. Isaiah 53.2-3.

Almost immediately after this, however, comes a clear prediction of the atoning character of his sufferings. In this Jewish scripture written some six centuries before the coming of Jesus we find his crucifixion foreshadowed, not as a defeat, but as the means by which many would be saved:

Surely he has borne our griefs and carried our sorrows; yet we esteemed him stricken, smitten by God, and afflicted. But he was wounded for our transgressions, he was bruised for our iniquities; upon him was the chastisement that made us whole, and with 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. Isaiah 53.4-6.

These words clearly show that the great servant of God, the long-awaited Messiah, would have the sins of the world placed on him in his hour of trial and that he would die that others might live. "Stricken for the transgression of my people" (Isaiah 53.8) he would be, dying for the sins of those he was suffering to save. Furthermore we not only find the sufferings of the Messiah foretold but also the attendant events which were fulfilled to the letter. The prophecy is remarkable for its plain and unambiguous details and the degree to which it foreshadows the cross. The next verse reads:

And they made his grave with the wicked and with a rich man in his death. Isaiah 53.9

Here we have what appears to be a riddle - how could a man be buried with honour among the wealthy if his grave was prepared among the wicked? In the crucifixion of Jesus we have a perfect answer. All Jews put to death by crucifixion were, upon their demise, cast into a large pit reserved only for criminals. But when Jesus died, a rich man named Joseph of Arimathea came and took the body of Jesus and buried it in his own tomb which he had hewn out of a rock (Matthew 27.60). The prophecy continues with a similar detail: "he poured out his sout to death and was numbered with the transgressors" (Isaiah 53.12). Jesus directly applied this prediction (and thus the whole prophecy) to himself the night before he was crucified, saying to his disciples:

"For I tell you that this scripture must be fulfilled in me, 'And he was reckoned with transgressors'; for what is written about me has its fulfilment". Luke 22.37

Once again the prophecy was fulfilled. We read that when Jesus was taken out to be crucified, "Two others also, who were criminals, were led away to be put to death with him" (Luke 23.32). When Jesus was duly crucified between these two men who were both thieves the prophecy had once again been fulfilled even in its finest details, for he was duly put to death with them and was thus "numbered with the transgressors". We see yet again how detailed the predictions of the suffering of the Messiah were in the writings of the prophets who preceded him.

By quoting such passages Christians can show Muslims that the suffering of the Messiah was foretold centuries before it happened, and that the travail predicted was quite plainly nothing other than the crucifixion, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. Indeed no Christian witness should ever stop at the death of Jesus after his sufferings but should press on immediately to show that the resurrection was foretold as well. The prophecy we have been considering from Isaiah contains obvious prophecies of the resurrection of the Messiah after his death through which he wrought salvation for all those who were to become his own by faith in him. The prophecy contains this wonderful promise that his lonely death would not be in vain:

When he makes himself an offering for sin, he shall see his offspring, he shall prolong his days; the will of the Lord shall prosper in his hand; he shall see the fruit of the travail of his soul and be satisfied. Isaiah 53.10-11.

Although he would die for the sins of the world, he would yet see the heirs of his salvation, he would yet look in triumph on the immense benefits of his redeeming work, and the fulness of God's saving grace would yet be brought to light in his own hands. "He poured out his soul to death", the prophecy continues (Isaiah 53.12), yet the Lord God of heaven himself left him with the assurance that he would still, in good time, obtain the fruits of his victory. Thus we find the whole crucifixion scene, with the subsequent resurrection of the Messiah, foretold in this prophecy.

We have only briefly treated the subject of Jesus as the long-awaited Messiah of Israel, yet I am sure all Christians can see just how effectively this title can be used as a means to preach the Gospel to Muslims. The Qur'an, in frankly acknowledging Jesus as Al-Masih, yet without any attempt to explain the title, opens the way for Christians to witness of his glorious identity and the sufferings he was first to endure before receiving eternal glory. By presenting Jesus as God's Anointed Saviour and Deliverer whose coming was foretold by the prophets, Christians can once again set the Gospel right against the background of the Muslims' own beliefs about him and very meaningfully outline the implications behind this title.

Muslim masuk Kristen (Zahid-Pakistan)

"Saat kalian menangkap para kafir itu, pukuli mereka! Allah akan senang," Zahid memberi mereka semangat. Kerumunan yang terdiri dari pria-pria muda, kaum muda dari rumah ibadahnya, mengayunkan tongkat dan pipa besi dan bersorak dalam kesepakatan. Ia merasa dalam keadaan baik-baik saja sebagai seorang petinggi agama yang masih muda.