Do Christians and Muslims Believe in the Same God? – Southampton Evangelism

After being away from Southampton for a couple of weeks, it was good to get back. The weather was hot and sunny, so lots of people were out and about in the city centre.

Ben started the preaching by speaking on "Has Science Disproved the Bible?" He did a good job engaging with evolutionary ideas and showing how science and Christianity are friends. Better still, he made sure the gospel was clearly explained. 

A lady who listened to part of Ben's message spoke with Mike. She has recently started thinking about Jesus and has many questions. Mike was able to share the gospel with her, and she received a New Testament, gospel booklets, and a recommendation for a local church.

Next up was Mike, who preached on "Where Are They Now?" As he proclaimed the gospel, a man stopped to listen. After listening for a while, he walked away, so I followed him to offer a tract. The man accepted it, then said, "I agree with much of what that preacher said. I am a Muslim. You and I worship the same God!" 

This is a common argument made by nominal Muslims. A true Qur'an-believing Muslim would never make this claim, but many of those who live in the West don't really know what the Qur'an teaches.

I was a bit cheeky in my response. As soon as the Muslim man made his statement, I held out my hand and said, "Let me shake your hand!" He shook my hand, and as he did I said, "I am so happy to hear that after nearly 1,400 years, Islam has finally come to believe in the only true God. The One who is Trinity: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. I am so happy to hear you say that you believe Jesus is truly God and truly man!" The man sputtered a little and quickly told me he didn't believe that. So I replied, "But you just told me we believe in the same God. Christianity teaches all those things about God!" 

The man back-pedalled and admitted that we don't believe in the same Deity. He then began attacking Christianity in an attempt to disprove it. He said, "Jesus can't be God, as it is impossible for God to enter into creation." I replied by asking whether he believed the Qur'an. He told me he did, so I opened the Qur'an on my phone and took him to Qur'an 20:11-14. I then showed him that, in his own book, Allah claimed to be in the burning bush speaking to Moses. I asked, "If Allah can enter a bush, why would it be impossible for God to enter human existence to rescue us?"

The man told me he had never noticed that passage in the Qur'an before, so he didn't know how to answer. However, he was adamant that even if God could enter creation, it would be impossible for Him to die on a cross. He then cited Qur'an 4:157 to prove his point. This is a common argument, so before answering, I asked him to read Qur'an 19:33, where it says Jesus was born, will die, and will rise again. I then asked, "When did Jesus die and rise again?" The man assured me that this hadn't happened and that Jesus would never die. As he said that, he saw the internal contradiction in the Qur'an.

I then took him back to Qur'an 4:157 and asked whether Allah deceived people by making someone else appear to be Jesus on the cross. The man admitted that this was the case, so I asked, "How then do you know you're not deceived by Allah?" and "Why would I give up the God of the Bible, who cannot lie, for the god of Islam, who lies and deceives?"

The man didn't know whether he had been deceived or not, but he had one final attempt at disproving Christianity. He asked, "If Jesus died on the cross, and He is God, then who controlled the universe while He was here in creation?" I pointed out that when we die we don't cease to exist, so Jesus still existed after He died on the cross. Then I turned the question back on him. I said, "Remember, Qur'an 20:11-14 tells us Allah entered creation. Who controlled the universe while he was here?" The man answered, "God is powerful. He can be here and control all things." I smiled and said, "The same is true of Jesus!"

At that point the man wanted to leave, but he did accept a tract before going, and he heard the biblical gospel. My prayer is that this apologetic discussion will stay with him, causing him to think carefully and consider the truth of God's Word, the Bible.

As Christians, we shouldn't be afraid of Muslims. We should love them enough to challenge their beliefs and then faithfully proclaim the biblical gospel to them. They need Jesus, just like everyone else.

After this, it was my turn to preach. As I was about to start, a large group of Africans walked past. They were in the city for a university graduation, but they all stopped to look at the literature table and then listened to the gospel being proclaimed. At the end of the message, three other people (not connected with the group) received John's Gospels, and a few members of the group also took literature from the table.

The rest of my day was spent in another long conversation, this time with a young lady who was well read and highly educated. She wanted to discuss textual criticism, feminism, worldviews, cultural Christianity, and what I think is coming next in society. 

As we spoke, both Mike and Jeremy preached, but I didn't hear a word of it. Instead, I was engrossed in what proved to be a very interesting and intellectually stimulating discussion. We talked about the impact of the Bible on Western civilisation and how we cannot have Christianity without Christ. The gospel was shared, and her questions were answered. At the end of our conversation, she took several booklets and said how much she had enjoyed our discussion. It isn't every day that you meet a well-read person who is willing to spend so long discussing these things.

Overall, it was a great day in Southampton. Many people heard the good news. Please pray that they will come to know Jesus.

SDG!

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Josh Williamson is a full-time evangelist with The Open-Air Mission. Since 1853, OAM has been sharing the good news on the streets of the United Kingdom. To stay updated about the work of the Mission, please sign up for the free quarterly magazine and monthly prayer notes.SUBSCRIBE TO OUR MAGAZINE AND PRAYER NOTES