English Intercede

I was about twelve years old when I first saw the saint whom the Murids of Senegal call master, savior, and even god. I was just a city block away from our house, on my way to school, when out of nowhere a crowd of Muslims rushed toward the Murid mosque near by. I learned later that word had gotten out that the spiritual leader of the Murid Muslims had unexpectedly come there for prayer.

Within minutes, I witnessed a scene that is nearly as vivid in my mind today as it was then. Amidst shouting and shoving, people pushed past me; some even leaped over me in their attempt to get closer to an old man being hurriedly escorted to a waiting car.

For the Muslim, end-time events and life after death are clear and understandable. There are similarities to biblical teaching, but there are also distinct differences. In Sura 3:185, the Qur'an states: "Every soul shall have a taste of death; And only on the Day of Judgment shall you be paid your full recompense." There is a popular view in our Western society today that everyone who dies automatically goes to heaven. The Muslim view of these important matters, based on the teaching of the Qur'an, is much closer to biblical teaching than these popular Western ideas.

The television camera panned the crowd of lively concert goers, all of whom were chanting and waving banners as they waited for their idols to appear on stage. I searched my screen for a female face. All ages, from 10-year-olds to their grandfathers, were represented at this particular concert--but they wee almost all male. If you go out to dinner in that same city, or to a ball game, you will find almost the same situation: it is the men and boys who go out in public. The women and girls gather at home for their entertainment.

In this fallen world, adversity is part of our everyday lives. Sickness, floods, accidents, untimely deaths--all means to be part of human existence. Not only do these adversarial situations tax our strength, they also challenge our sense of order, of right and wrong, and of justice. They compel us to try to protect ourselves from their grievous assaults. They demand an explanation. It is human to want to know why we face such trying situations. But how do we even begin to understand adversities in our lives?

When we meet a Muslim woman we should regard her first as a human beings, second as a woman, and third as a Muslim. Whoever she is, her perception of herself may be vastly different from this. Many Muslim women accept, without questions, the state in which they were born. They do not think of life as offering any alternatives.
The following three profiles illustrate the way that the world looks at a world renowned Muslim woman and how it views her illiterate unknown village neighbors.

My friend, Dr. Ali, is a dedicated, moral, and gracious Muslim. This Bangladeshi has excellent academic credentials, and his professional expertise was recognized through his appointment as principal of a significant government college in Bangladesh.
Ali, however, would not want his primary identity in life to be focused on his educational attainments. Rather, he would like to be recognized as a man whose whole life has been centered on God-awareness. Submitting every aspect of his being to Allah is his consuming passion.

Doctors base their prescriptions for cures on their diagnoses of the problems they observe. Traditionally, Muslims have not diagnosed the problem of human nature as being as critical as have Christians. Consequently, they have not seen the need for as radical a solution.
The East African Muslims, Dadru Kateregga, notes that "Muslims believe that man is fundamentally a good and dignified creature. He is not a fallen being."

To better understand what Muslims think and feel about the Qur'an and the Bible, we need to first understand how Muslims communicate.
Christians believe that the supreme purpose of the Bible is to enable God to communicate with man. In most Muslim cultures, communication is primarily oral, not written. That is why stories are effective means of communications in the Muslim world and are very popular among the common people.

"We believe in Jesus more than you do!" was a shocking statement made to me by a zealous Muslim some years ago. As I questioned him as to his meaning, I found that what he was actually saying was, "We Muslims believe in all the prophets, and we especially respect Jesus as one of the greatest. You Christians, however, blaspheme by saying He is 'the Son of God' and dishonor Him by saying He was crucified by evil men!"

The view of God through Muslim eyes is obscure. God has not revealed himself; therefore, He cannot be perceived. Their view of God is also double edged. He is perceived to be utterly distant, yet the Qur'an states the God Most High is closer than one's juggler vein. God knows all things, but is, himself, totally unknowable. Only God can know God. Our Muslim friends accept that God is Almighty, having spoken the worlds into existence by His infinite power, but He is not Heavenly Father.

My name is Adbud Mutallib. I was born in Mecca in the year 592 to a very wealthy family. My family was wealthy for two reasons. First, my father was on of the leading business men in town. The caravans coming from the seaport of Aden to the ancient city of Damascus passed right through our city. They had to pay duties to our tribe on all their goods and they always spent a few days resting in one of our numerous caravan-sarais (inns where you could stable camels, too).

The indigenous church principles is alive and well across Central and Latin America! The Lord has been preparing the Latin church to embrace missions, and now many Latins are serving as missionaries in Muslim-majority nations. Jose Ardon, the Latin American representative for Global Initiative, shares his story and how it fit into the bigger plan of what God was already doing!