So, what is Islam? Is it like Christianity? Do they have the same God?
What are some similarities and what, more importantly, are their differences.
I have had a few Muslims friends over the years, and we have had conversations about how we are similar and how we differ.
I have learned why many feel that Christianity and Islam are similar.
My hope for you as you read through this post is to learn some things that I have learned in my journey to know, understand and love the One true God better on my journey to seek and discern truth as God's word lays it out for us all.
In my conversations I have heard some say, "Well what really matters is that we serve the same god."
But do we?
Yes, Islam has some similarities to Christianity but the differences between the two are what we really need to take note of and analyze - and to understand the weight of those differences in ones eternal destiny.
Like Christianity, Islam is monotheistic. However, Muslims reject the Trinity:
Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
So, if we follow the same god- then we must believe in the Trinity since God's word tells us He is three in one.
This point of difference is crucial and will have drastic differences from here on out in this post.
Another crucial point of difference is that Muslims believe that Jesus was one of the most important prophets - (Isa - the Islamic word for "Jesus") just not the Son of God.
Muslims believe that Jesus was created like Adam - even though the Bible has a very clear account of the life of Jesus - that Jesus was born of the virgin Mary.
Muslims also do not believe that Jesus died on the cross. They do not believe that Allah would allow Jesus to die a torturous death.
Yet once again, the Bible clearly tells us of how this was God's plan from the beginning of time and that Jesus’ the death was necessary to make a way for salvation for all - the perfect Son of God had to pay for the sins of the world (Isaiah 53:5-6; John 3:16; 14:6; 1 Peter 2:24)
So even though Islam and Christianity may sound like they are similar - the differences are clear enough for anyone to see that Christians do not worship the same god as Muslims do - even though they both have core beliefs, rules, and standards - only Islam's regulations must be mastered in order to achieve a desired end in eternity with Allah - whereas in Christianity - God came down in human flesh to take our place knowing we could never meet the standards necessary to spend eternity with God.
The follow are The Five Pillars of the Qur’an that Muslims strive to keep to reach their eternal destiny: 1. The testimony of faith: “There is no god but Allah. Muhammad is the messenger of Allah.”
2. Prayer: Five ritual prayers must be performed every day. 3. Giving: This almsgiving is a certain percentage given once a year. 4. Fasting: Muslims fast during Ramadan in the ninth month of the Islamic calendar. They must not eat or drink from dawn until sunset. 5. Pilgrimage: If physically and financially possible, a Muslim must make the pilgrimage to Mecca in Saudi Arabia at least once. This is performed in the twelfth month of the Islamic calendar.
Thankfully God's word tells us
"That it is "by grace you have been saved, through faith—and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God— 9 not by works, so that no one can boast." Ephesians 2:8-9
And that "If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness." 1 John 1:9