Series: Uncovering Religion

1. Text: Galatians 1:8-9 Series: Uncovering Religion

2. Acknowledgements • The Popular Encyclopedia of Apologetics by Ed Hindson and Ergun Caner • The Facts on World Religions by John Ankerberg and John Weldon • As well as a few websites as quoted

3. Why This Series • One of the issues we have as Christians is the thought and challenge of “Do we have it right?” “Are we believing the right thing, or are we deceived also?” • Are we right in holding to our faith when there are so many conflicting religious views in the world? • How can we be so prideful to think we have it right and the other faiths and beliefs of the world have it wrong?

4. Reasons for Uncovering Religion • Studying these religions and belief systems will help us in a number of ways.  • 1. To be able to accurately discern truth from lies. • 2. To get a deeper appreciation for our faith in the Living Christ, in comparison to these other religions and belief systems. • 3. It will also help us in witnessing to people who are in bondage to these beliefs.

5. Islam • Islam is known as the fastest growing religion on earth at present, but I think Ravi Zacharias put it best when he said, “Islam is the fastest growing forced Religion on earth at present.” • Before we look at the belief system of Islam and the implications of Islam on the world today, we should look at its origins.

6. History of Islam • The religion of Islam is explicitly linked to its founder a Saudi tradesman name Muhammad.  • Muhammad was born in A.D. 570 in Saudi Arabia.

7. History of Islam • He had a tragic upbringing, his father Abdullah died before he was born, his mother Amina died when he was only 6 years old.  • His grandfather Abd al-Muttalib looked after him for the next two years and then he died as well. • Orphaned by the age of ten, his uncle Abu Talib took custody of him. • His uncle was a tradesman and Muhammad worked alongside his uncle.

8. History of Islam • Muhammad became a successful trader and led caravan trips to neighboring regions purchasing and selling goods to be sold in Mecca. • He was considered a skilled entrepreneur of some means.  • In A.D. 595, at age 25, on a trip to Syria, Muhammad met a wealthy widow named Khadijah. • She was 15 years older than him, yet the relationship blossomed and they married. • They produced 6 children, 2 sons who died in infancy, and 4 daughters, 2 of whom married future caliphs (Islamic Leaders).

9. History of Islam • Khadijah was Muhammad’s first convert and greatest advocate. • At that time it was unique to have only one wife, yet for some time Muhammad was devoted to only her, yet he soon took 11 other woman as either wives and concubines. • His last bride rose to prominence in Islam’s nascent (coming into existence) even though she was just 6 years of age when she married the 50 year old Muhammad.

10. History of Islam • On Muhammad’s 40th birthday in A.D. 610, Muhammad received a vision supposedly from the Angel Gabriel. • He believed the angel visited him and brought him a solemn message as recorded in Surah 96:1-5 • Muhammad was told that the world had abandoned true worship and that he was chosen by god, as a prophet, to bring the final message to the world.

11. The Message • This was the essence of the message: • 1) All religions on earth are now corrupt. • 2) He was to proclaim the worship of the true god named Allah. • 3) He was to receive the true words of Allah, record them and bring people back to the “straight path.” • Eventually the day of this visitation would be marked by Ramadan, the most sacred month in Islam.

12. The History of Islam • In these early years Muhammad had relatively few converts other than his wife and a wealthy business man named Abu Bakr. • The movement was further stalled by the fact that Muhammad was illiterate and could not record the messages he was receiving. • In the hadith, which is a multivolume set of the life and teachings of Muhammad, it states that Muhammad would go into a trance, often rolling on the ground and roaring, as if in seizure.

13. The Heavenly Journey • Toward the end of this first Meccan period he claimed to be taken on a night journey into heaven. • He claimed to have been introduced to all the prophets of Islam including Moses and Jesus. • It was on this journey that he received the details for the ritualistic daily prayer and the core message of the Islamic faith.

14. How Islam Spread • While Muhammad lived in Mecca A.D. 619-622 he began to teach a proprietary (meaning owner) message of heritage to those who listened in Medina. • Saudi Arabia was filled with idol worshippers and he told them they must be brought back to one true faith. • He claimed that this message was the original message given to Moses and Abraham and that even Jesus was one of the prophets.

15. How Islam Spread • He told them that Muslims were sons of Ishmael, the older son of Abraham. • What he then announced is where he, as a single, illiterate prophet sent the Muslim world into error and then into absolute fierce rage against all Jews and Christian. • He claimed that Ishmael was offered as a sacrifice by Abraham, not Isaac. • Therefore, the Holy Land of the Jews and Christians was actually the rightful land of inheritance for Muslims.

16. How Islam Spread • The compelling nature of this message cannot be underestimated in history. • By claiming that much of the disputed lands of the Middle East were in fact the birthright of Muslims, Muhammad united countless Arabic tribes that had spent many years at war and gave them all a common enemy, The Jews, The Christians, Zoroastrians and any other squatters in their rightful land. • By A.D. 628 he was clearly the most powerful man in the entire Middle East.

17. The Double Meaning of Islam • Islam does not mean peace in the classic sense of the term.  • It means “surrender.” • The term Islam carries a significant double meaning. • FIRST MEANING: To the Muslim “surrender” means: the evidence of his position in the religion, that he is willingly surrendered to the rights, rituals and practices of the religion.

18. The Double Meaning of Islam • The Five Pillars of Islam summarize this First meaning of Islam: • 1) The creed (kalima) must be recited by the convert, “There is no God but Allah, and Muhammad is his final prophet.” • 2) Prayers (salat) must be offered 5 times a day while facing Mecca. • 3) Alms (zakat) equivalent to one-fortieth of one’s income must be given to the cause • 4) Regular Fasting (sawn) must take place, especially during the month of Ramadan. • 5) A pilgrimage to Mecca (hajj) must be made once during the lifetime of a Muslim.

19. The Double Meaning of Islam • This surrender comprises the first meaning of the word jihad, implying an inner struggle. • jihad may be interpreted as internal (a spiritual struggle) or external (defending Islam).

20. The Double Meaning of Islam • SECOND MEANING: The term Islam (surrender) carries a profoundly different meaning when applied to the unbeliever.  • Central to Muhammad’s message was the subjugation of the kafir (unbelievers) under Islamic Law. • Subjugation means to bring under domination or control by conquest. • So jihad in reference to the unbeliever means an armed struggle for Islam against infidels and apostates.

21. Jihad • The Qur’an describes jihad: • Sura 9:5 says, "Fight and slay the pagans wherever you find them, and seize them, beleaguer them, and lie in wait for them in every stratagem.” • Sura 9:123 says "O ye who believe! Fight the unbelievers who gird you about, and let them find firmness in you; and know that Allah is with those who fear Him.” • Sura 9:73 says "Prophet, make war on the unbelievers and the hypocrites and deal rigorously with them. Hell shall be their home: and evil fate.”

22. A World System • Muhammad established Islam as a complete and total world system. • This system dictates one’s belief’s, diet, dress, work, home, politics and allegiances. • Islam is totally theocratic, a system of government in which priests rule in the name of God or a god. • Islam and democracy are mutually contradictory. • Thus the reason why Muslims do not blend very well into our democratic societies, and to the most part they despise our system and have a declared intention to destroy democracy from the planet.

23. A World System • In Islamic lands, the kafir(unbeliever) is forced to surrender to Islam in every way.  • In the ‘Pact of Umar’ found in the hadith, Unbelievers in Muslim lands were to become second class inhabitants and pay a special tax called the jizyat. • They were not allowed to marry Muslim women and must allow their daughters to marry Muslim men.

24. A World System • They could not hold public office, and Christian churches existing in Muslim lands could never expand their land and buildings and they were prohibited in converting Muslims. • Actually Christian Churches are not tolerated in most Muslim Lands, and are burned to the ground and many Christians are savagely beaten and killed. • Christians in these lands must allow their families to be converted to Islam, by force.

25. A World System – Dr. Hammond • In Dr. Peter Hammond's book: Slavery, Terrorism And Islam he writes: • Islam is not a religion, nor is it a cult. In its fullest form, it is a Complete, total, 100% system of life. • Islam has religious, legal, political, economic, social, and military Components. • The religious component is a beard for all of the other Components.

26. A World System – Dr. Hammond • Islamization begins when there are sufficient Muslims in a country to Agitate for their religious privileges.   • When politically correct, tolerant, and culturally diverse societies Agree to Muslim demands for their religious privileges, some of the other Components tend to creep in as well. 

27. A World System – Dr. Hammond • Here's how it works:  As long as the Muslim population remains around or under 2% in any given Country, they will be for the most part regarded as a peace-loving minority, and not as a threat to other citizens. • This is The case in: • United States -- Muslim 0..6% • Canada -- Muslim 1.9% • China -- Muslim 1.8% • Italy -- Muslim 1.5% • Norway -- Muslim 1.8%

28. A World System – Dr. Hammond • At 2% to 5%, they begin to proselytize from other ethnic minorities and disaffected groups, often with major recruiting from the jails and among street gangs. • This is happening in: • Australia – Muslim 2.25% • Denmark -- Muslim 2% • Germany -- Muslim 3.7% • United Kingdom -- Muslim 2.7% • Spain -- Muslim 4% • Thailand -- Muslim 4.6%

29. From 5% on, they exercise an inordinate influence in proportion to their percentage of the population. For example, they will push for the introduction of halal (clean by Islamic standards) food, thereby securing Food preparation jobs for  Muslims. They will increase pressure on Supermarket chains to feature halal on their shelves -- along with threats for failure to comply. • This is occurring in: • France -- Muslim 8% • Philippines -- 5% • Sweden -- Muslim 5% • Switzerland -- Muslim 4.3% • The Netherlands -- Muslim 5.5% • Trinidad & Tobago -- Muslim 5.8%   • At this point, they will work to get the ruling government to allow them to rule themselves (within their ghettos) under Sharia, the Islamic Law. The ultimate goal of Islamists is to establish Sharia law over the entire world.  

30. A World System – Dr. Hammond • When Muslims approach 10% of the population, they tend to increase lawlessness as a means of complaint about their conditions. In Paris , we are already seeing car-burnings. Any non-Muslim action offends Islam, and results in uprisings and threats, such as in Amsterdam , with opposition to Mohammed cartoons and films about Islam. • Such tensions are seen daily, Particularly in Muslim sections, in: • Guyana -- Muslim 10% • India -- Muslim 13.4% • Israel -- Muslim 16% • Kenya -- Muslim 10% • Russia -- Muslim 15%

31. A World System – Dr. Hammond • After reaching 20%, nations can expect hair-trigger rioting, jihad militia formations, sporadic killings, and the burnings of Christian Churches and Jewish synagogues, such as in: • Ethiopia -- Muslim 32.8% • At 40%, nations experience widespread massacres, chronic terror attacks, and ongoing militia warfare, such as in: • Bosnia -- Muslim 40% • Chad -- Muslim 53.1% • Lebanon -- Muslim 59.7%  

32. A World System – Dr. Hammond • From 60%, nations experience unfettered persecution of non-believers of all other religions (including non-conforming Muslims), sporadic ethnic Cleansing (genocide), use of Sharia Law as a weapon, and Jizyat, the tax Placed on infidels, such as in: • Albania -- Muslim 70% • Malaysia -- Muslim 60.4% • Qatar -- Muslim 77.5% • Sudan -- Muslim 70%

33. After 80%, expect daily intimidation and violent jihad, some State-run Ethnic cleansing, and even some genocide, as these nations drive out the Infidels, and move toward 100% Muslim, such as has been experienced and in some ways is on-going in: • Bangladesh -- Muslim 83% • Egypt -- Muslim 90% • Gaza -- Muslim 98.7% • Indonesia -- Muslim 86.1% • Iran -- Muslim 98% • Iraq -- Muslim 97% • Jordan -- Muslim 92% • Morocco -- Muslim 98.7% • Pakistan -- Muslim 97% • Palestine -- Muslim 99% • Syria -- Muslim 90% • Tajikistan -- Muslim 90% • Turkey -- Muslim 99.8% • United Arab Emirates -- Muslim 96%

34. 100% will usher in the peace of 'Dar-es-Salaam' -- the Islamic House of Peace.. Here there's supposed to be peace, because everybody is a Muslim, the Madrasses are the only schools, and the Koran is the only word, such as in: Afghanistan – Muslim 100% Saudi Arabia -- Muslim 100% Somalia -- Muslim 100% Yemen -- Muslim 100%   Unfortunately, peace is never achieved, as in these 100% states the most radical Muslims intimidate and spew hatred, and satisfy their blood lust by killing less radical Muslims, for a variety of reasons.

35. A World System – Dr. Hammond • It is important to understand that in some countries, with well under 100% Muslim populations, such as France, the minority Muslim populations live in ghettos, within which they are 100% Muslim, and within which they live by Sharia Law. The national police do not even enter these ghettos. There are no national courts, nor schools, nor non-Muslim religious facilities. In such situations, Muslims do not integrate into the community at large.

36. A World System – Dr. Hammond • The children attend madrasses. They learn only the Koran. To even associate with an infidel is a crime punishable with death. Therefore, in some areas of certain nations, Muslim Imams and extremists exercise more power than the national average would indicate.  Today's 1.5 billion Muslims make up 22% of the world's population. But their birth rates dwarf the birth rates of Christians, Hindus, Buddhists, Jews, and all other believers. Muslims will exceed 50% of the world's population by the end of this century.

37. Comparisons Jesus/Mohammed • Peter Hammond reveals: • Jesus called us to love our enemies, Mohammed taught Moslems to cripple and enslave their enemies. • Jesus never engaged in massacres where Mohammed had 600-900 Jews slaughtered in cold blood. • Jesus healed the sick, Mohammed healed nobody. • Jesus walked on the water Mohammed rode a camel. • Jesus could make the blind see, but Mohammed could only make the seeing people blind by putting out their eyes.

38. Comparisons Jesus/Mohammed • Jesus could make the crippled man walk, Mohammed could only make walking men crippled. • Jesus could make a dead man alive, Mohammed could only make a live men dead. • There is an empty tomb in Jerusalem but there is a tomb in Medina with Mohammed in it. • One religion is built on Jesus Christ who is the resurrection and the life and another one is built on a deceased slave trader.

39. Which Book Would You Trust? • The Qur’an, written by one illiterate man over a period of around 22 years, full of historical inconsistencies and Gnostic beliefs and a cultish world view of subjugation.   • Or our Bible, written over a period of approximately 2,000 years by some 40 different men with an integrated design; historically accurate, with 100’s of fulfilled prophecies and the most sublime moral code yet conceived by man, with a flawless Messiah who laid His life down for our sins and is now alive?

40. We Must Pray • We must pray firstly for the lost souls of Islam, that they would find the Lord. • We should also pray that God would thwart the plans of the Imams of Islam in their quest for world domination. • We should also pray that God gives many Christians around the planet the gift of evangelizing Moslems.