Some years ago, I was talking with my Muslim neighbor, Ibrahim, when he shared something I will never forget: “I have put my trust in Jesus as Savior, and I feel like a new man.” Ibrahim’s experience beautifully reflects the words of the apostle Paul: Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has gone and the new has come! All this is from God, who reconciled us to himself through Christ and gave us the ministry of reconciliation.”—2 Corinthians 5:17–18

Muslims, and especially Muslim religious leaders, can strongly identify with the dilemma faced by Nicodemus. They, too, are parts of religious systems which largely reject Jesus as being Lord and Savior. Receiving Jesus as Lord triggers apostasy status in Islam and typically a lot of persecution as well.

As Muslims begin a new year on July 7, consider the significant differences between the Islamic and Christian concepts of new beginnings.