Lesson from Butterfly...Sent to Me From a Local Muslim Imam

This was sent to me from a local Imam who has become very close friends with one of my good friends. He is a very gentle man who very much loves God and desires to worship him in all aspects of his life. I thought you would enjoy this and think about how conversations about the different faiths could spring from a story like this one.

About Struggling...

A man found a cocoon of a butterfly. One day a small opening appeared. He sat and watched the butterfly for several hours as it struggled to force its body through that little hole. Then it seemed to stop making any progress. It appeared as if it had gotten as far as it could, and it could go no further. So the man decided to help the butterfly. He took a pair of scissors and snipped off the remaining bit of the cocoon. The butterfly then emerged easily. But it had a swollen body and small, shriveled wings. The man continued to watch the butterfly because he expected that, at any moment, the wings would enlarge and expand to be able to support the body, which would contract in time.

Neither happened! In fact, the butterfly spent the rest of its life crawling around with a swollen body and shriveled wings. It never was able to fly. What the man, in his kindness and haste, did not understand was that the restricting cocoon and the struggle required for the butterfly to get through the tiny opening were Allah's way of forcing fluid from the body of the butterfly into its wings so that it would be ready for flight once it achieved its freedom from the cocoon.

Sometimes struggles are exactly what we need in our lives. If Allah allowed us to go through our lives without any obstacles, it would cripple us. We would not be as strong as what we could have been. We could never "fly"!

I asked for Strength.........
And Allah gave me Difficulties to make me strong.

I asked for Wisdom.........
And Allah gave me Problems to solve.

I asked for Prosperity.........
And Allah gave me Brain and Brawn to work.

I asked for Courage.........
And Allah gave me Danger to overcome.

I asked for Love..........
And Allah gave me Troubled people to help.

I asked for Favors.........
And Allah gave me Opportunities.

I received nothing I wanted .......
I received everything I needed!

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Evangelicals Extend a Hand to Muslims

The Seattle Times did a story on a close friend of mine, Michael Ly. Check it out...

Evangelicals extend a hand to Muslims
Some of the latest local efforts to build relationships between Muslims and Christians come from evangelical Christians, led, in particular, by 28-year-old Michael Ly.

By Janet I. Tu
Seattle Times staff reporter

Even in these days of increased vitriol toward Muslims, and heated rhetoric over whether a mosque should be built near Ground Zero, it's not surprising to find people in the metropolitan Seattle area reaching out to Muslims.

This is the place, after all, where members of various churches stood guard outside a Northgate-area mosque in the days after Sept. 11, watching for any suspicious anti-Muslim activities.

It's the area where, for years, Muslims, Jews and Christians on the Eastside have been building houses for low-income residents through Habitat for Humanity.

And it's the city of The Interfaith Amigos — a pastor, a rabbi and a sheik (who calls himself a Sufi Muslim minister) — whose longtime friendship resulted in a book and a measure of fame. Most of the Christians involved in such efforts have been mainline Protestants or Catholics.

What's unusual about some of the latest efforts to build relationships with local Muslims is that it's coming from evangelical Christians — and led, in particular, by Michael Ly, a young, self-described Chinese Cambodian American evangelical Christian.

Ly, 29, is a pastor at Soma — Renton, a nondenominational church formerly called Harambee Church. An accountant by day, his aim to build better understanding between evangelical Christians and Muslims is purely a grass-roots effort.

And it's an effort he thinks is growing nationwide, especially among those his age and younger.

"There's a part of the evangelical Christian church that believes the rhetoric out there about Muslims is ignorant," he says. That part of the church "is saying: 'This is not the way Jesus would want us to respond to the Muslim community.' "

So far, Ly has organized a panel discussion on who Jesus is, attended by some 150 Muslims and 150 Christians from local evangelical churches. He's led workshops on what Muslims and Christians believe.

At a recent iftar at Redmond's Muslim Association of Puget Sound (MAPS), Ly's manner is open and friendly, talking easily with MAPS members about everything from sports to what Ramadan means to them.

Ly's next big project is to work with the director of the local Council on American Islamic Relations (CAIR) to organize a dinner this fall, inviting 20 imams and other Muslim leaders, and 20 pastors and other Christian leaders mainly from conservative evangelical churches. He's planning to send invitations to individuals at Mars Hill Church, Overlake Christian Church and Westminster Chapel, among others; and to mosques including those in Kent, Redmond and Olympia.

Meeting resistance

"It's the more conservative churches, I'm finding, that tends to be the part [of the Christian community] that doesn't interact with the Muslim community," Ly said.

He's faced some resistance.

There's the theological barrier: Many evangelicals view Muslims as people who have rejected the teachings and messages of Jesus. Some also believe Muhammad was a false prophet and that Islam is therefore based on a false premise. Or they feel Islam is antagonistic toward Christianity.

There's also suspicion about why Muslims would want to take part in such interfaith efforts, or simply fear that something bad might happen if Muslims came to their church, Ly said.

And some churches don't want to be associated publicly with this sort of work.

Pastor Joseph Fuiten, of Cedar Park Assembly of God Church, in Bothell has been outspoken in his hard-line stance against Islam.

He says Ly's efforts are noble. But "I wouldn't personally find it terribly useful," Fuiten said. "If dialogue is knowing more about the other, then it's not the things I don't know about Islam that trouble me. It's the things I do know."

None of that bothers Ly, who says he's not looking for church endorsements but rather, individual changes of heart: to help evangelicals better understand who Muslims are, and to present to Muslims a face of evangelical Christianity that is representative of who Jesus is.

Ly was born in the U.S. to parents who fled Cambodia as refugees. His parents were Buddhists; his mother later converted to Christianity, and Ly grew up attending a big, mostly Caucasian evangelical church.

It's this mix of cultures and identities that led him to explore what people from his own culture were doing in different faiths. He wanted to know more about Southeast Asian Muslims. But in Tempe, Ariz., where he lived, there weren't many of them.

So three years ago, he and his wife, Shannon Ly, director of a faith-based dance company, moved to Seattle simply because he felt called to bring together evangelicals and Muslims.

Neighbors and friends

As it turned out, the first church the couple went to here — Soma — Renton — had been hoping to start doing that sort of work, since its neighborhood included a growing number of Muslims.

"Jesus said to love your enemy, and love your neighbor as yourself," said Lead Pastor John Prince of Soma — Renton. "In this country, Muslims have become our neighbors."

There's definitely suspicion on both sides that each wants to convert the other, Prince said.

Prince says that's not his goal. And Ly believes it's up to God whether people change their faith.

But there's a spectrum of views on conversion among those involved in the effort. Senior Pastor Harvey Drake Jr., of Seattle's Emerald City Bible Fellowship, says he's had conversations with Muslims where each person was absolutely clear he wanted to convert the other.

"We chuckle about it," says Drake, who feels he has a mandate from Jesus to share who Christ is, and to try to get Muslims to see Jesus as he does. "I don't apologize for that."

At the same time, "even if we don't come together on this religion thing, we're still neighbors, still friends."

Some local Muslims say Ly's efforts — including the planned joint dinner this fall — yield concrete results.

"Instead of looking at something theoretical, you're looking at the actual person," said Kabir Jeddy, treasurer of MAPS. "That gives you a different perspective right there.

S. Arsalan Bukhari, executive director of the state chapter of CAIR, says he's been linking mosques CAIR works with and churches that Ly works with, resulting in social gatherings and tours of each other's places of worship.

"Locally, we've seen more evangelical Christians interested in this [interfaith work] because of Michael's efforts," he said.

Janet I. Tu:

206-464-2272

206-464-2272

jtu@seattletimes.com

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Why Islam is Growing and How Christians Should Respond

If you read anything about Islam and engage the people at any level, you know two things: Islam is growing rapidly and Christians don't like it and seem to do anything to stop it. I find this odd, especially in light of the fact that the New Testament would never support the hatred and vilifying of a people group the way that I have seen many Christians responding to Islam. The Ground Zero mosque debate is just another in a long line of weird responses from Christian groups. Many have written and come up with badly formulated demographic reasons on why Islam is growing around the world. But, as I continue to have friends that are Muslim and as I continue to engage Muslims at their events and religious venues, I find something totally different on why they are growing so rapidly. Now, what I am going to put out there is why I believe Islam is growing up here in the Seattle area as I have no experience with Islam worldwide, besides what I hear from my friends around the world.

1. Their relenting submission to Allah (God)

Muslim means "one who submits to God" and I cannot come up with a better definition for my friends that are Muslim than this. They have an honor, love and obedient heart when it comes to Allah. One of the things that Westerners always focus on is the radicals within Islam that are terrorists, which we believe about 95% are NON-extremists. But, even if you want to lump the terrorists in with Islam (which I don't think is fair) the reason these people are willing to sacrifice their lives is because they truly believe Allah is calling them to do so. I am not saying this is correct, and neither would my Muslim friends, but the Muslim should be known as someone who is truly submitted to God. It exudes from who they are. They will not waver and even while they are in prayer, they will not even look at you or what is happening around them, because they are so focused on Allah and their time of prayer with Him. The true Muslim is truly submitted to Allah.

2. Their relenting submission to the Qur'an

People want truth in Seattle. People in the Western world desire people with conviction. The people of Islam, the Muslim, doesn't waiver from their love and admiration for what the Qur'an says. They don't care what is popular opinion, they care what Allah has said in the Qur'an. This is a great draw for people who are looking for leadership, looking for conviction, looking for direction. Muslims believe in the Qur'an and will not water it down for Western culture. They do so many things that are counter cultural to the Western world. They wear head coverings, they pray 5 times a day, they give a ton of money away, they help the poor, the are truly a close knit family. This is so much counter to what Westerners think that they are actually drawn to it when they see it lived out.

3. Their relenting love and hospitality

Muslims are known for hospitality and love for a reason...they truly live this out. I am embarrassed how much my Muslim friends show hospitality and love compared to my own life. It is humbling to have people bring you food when you are at their Mosque after they find out you are not Muslim, but a follower of Jesus. It is humbling to have Muslims engage you wherever, whenever and willing to invite you to become a part of their families. I cannot tell you enough how much I feel loved and accepted by my friends who are Muslims. It is easy to get to know them and they truly desire to get to know you, something I cannot say enough about and a way that is far superior to the way that most followers of Jesus live.

4. Take it or leave it

Muslims pray five times a day, they celebrate Ramadan, some wear head coverings, they give to the poor, they're hospitable, etc. etc. etc. They don't ask what the culture believes and then bend their beliefs to look like their culture. They go to the culture and live out their Muslim identity within and they don't bend it for anyone. They know they are bad at contextualization and they don't care. I can't imagine how successful they would be if they were to contextualize their religion. The point is, they have a take it or leave it attitude with their religion. They don't bend over for the culture they are in, but they ask those within the culture to submit to Allah within their religion. They believe that Allah knows best, not the precepts of man.

These are the four reasons I see why Islam is growing. I don't believe they are growing Islam through fear, but through truly living what they preach. So, how should Christians respond? If you look around on the internet, what you'll see is much hatred, fear and lying going on to try and stop Islam. The problem (I say this tongue in cheek) is that Muslims suffer very well and grow from that suffering. Here is how I think we should respond as followers of Jesus.

1. Engage our Muslim friends to learn from them

A lot of the Muslims that I personally know are from a different culture than the West. A lot of them are closer to the culture of Jesus than I am. I can learn a lot about Jesus from learning about their culture and understanding of what they see as a persons rights verses their freedoms because of living in America. We can learn a deeper understanding of our own texts by listening and watching the Muslims up close. We can learn true community, we can learn hospitality, we can learn devotion, we can learn conviction.

2. Engage for Peace

Jesus tells us, blessed are peacemakers. By engaging our Muslims friends for peace, we are helping to restore our world from war and hatred and that is part of the good news of Jesus. Our Muslim friends are vilified and shown so much prejudice that we have no clue on. If we believe that all people have the Imago Dei, we should care when Muslims are treated unfairly. We should care when people lie about them, we should care when people treat them unfairly, we should care when people hate them. We should care, because Jesus cares and loves us and Jesus loves and cares for them. We need to engage our Muslims friends for peace because that is exactly what Jesus calls us to and would be doing if he was living amongst us now.

3. Pray for, Love and Bless our Muslim Friends

I have said this many times on this blog and it needs to continually be said. We are to pray for, love and bless our neighbors. By burning Qur'ans, picketing Mosques, and lying about them we are doing anything but loving them. We need to show Muslims that Christians can actually be like Jesus and love them. We need to show that we aren't like every other bigot, but we are transformed by the love of Jesus.

Islam is growing rapidly. Should we fear? No. Why would we? Should we scare other people because of the "Islamization of America"? Why? What is there to be scared of? Muslims are the nicest people I have run across and have taught me so much. I think there is much to gain if Islam continues to grow. I think there is a better way to engage the Muslim than on a picket line or in a debate. I think the better way is to invite them into our homes and invite them into our lives and to love them, pray for them, bless them and truly engage them as friends.

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Jon Stewart on the Ground Zero Mosque...Funny.

Municipal Land-Use Hearing Update

The Daily Show With Jon Stewart	Mon - Thurs 11p / 10c
www.thedailyshow.com
Daily Show Full Episodes Political Humor Tea Party

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Ground Zero Mosque

This kind of stuff really saddens me to see the kind of fear and hatred that is being spread. To still associate what happened on 9/11 to all of Islam is just plain near sighted and ignorant. I say that we allow the masjid (or mosque) to open and then we open a church right next to it and start the conversation and dialogue through peacemaking initiatives. That would seem more productive and more like Jesus.

Blessed are the peacemakers.

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Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR-WA) Annual Banquet...Wanna Come?

This Friday night, CAIR-WA is having their annual banquet and awards night. Some of my friends and I will be attending to build more friendships with Muslim leaders in the area to promote peace and build bridges between those within Christianity and Islam (around 600 people will be at this event). This particular event is one where we are going to really be there to support some of our Muslim friends. We pray that God blesses this event and that his grace is continually evident amongst both Muslims and Christians. If you would like to attend with us, we still have a few seats left at our tables. Please let me know ASAP if you would like to join us.

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The Anatomy of A Murder

"What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions are at war within you? You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel. You do not have, because you do not ask. You ask and do not receive, because you ask wrongly, to spend it on your passions. You adulterous people! Do you not know that friendship with the world is enmity with God? Therefore whoever wishes to be a friend of the world makes himself an enemy of God. Or do you suppose it is to no purpose that the Scripture says, “He yearns jealously over the spirit that he has made to dwell in us”? But he gives more grace. Therefore it says, “God opposes the proud, but gives grace to the humble.”Submit yourselves therefore to God. Resist the devil, and he will flee from you. Draw near to God, and he will draw near to you."

James 4:1-8a

My friend and his brother were murdered by radicals yesterday morning (See accompanying article. Warning the Pakistan Christian Post doesn't soften the blow by failing to tell the truth through pictures like our American press does. The site contains graphic pictures).

Pakistani Christian Post

That alone is enough to cause despair, but it is exacerbated by the reality that this kind of thing happens everyday in the world. As a matter of fact, as I kept perusing the internet for stories in regards to my imprisoned friends, I kept getting the headline story of a girl that was raped and tossed out of the window of her apartment building in Islamabad for being a Christian. My reaction was “That’s horrible; I can’t believe that! Now where is the information about my friends?” I kept wondering why they weren’t “Headline News?” Yesterday they became just that, and it’s all I have been able to think about!

As humans we are guarded with self-preservation mechanisms that allow us to filter the horror of everyday existence, yet ironically, scripture doesn’t let us do that. I have been reading through the horrific battles in the book of Joshua, and the Psalms and Lamentations (To name a few) that continually remind me of the reality of this world, and the suffering that always exists around us; but “Enlightened” thinkers changed all that by “Getting rid” of human suffering by selling us a version of the world that is progressing rather nicely. The funny thing about it is our churches are marching in step with the same sanitized message of “Progress,” because that’s the reality in a world run by humans. Aren’t we progressing? Isn’t the world becoming a better place? I suppose that’s up for debate, but I suggest holding your opinion until you weigh all the facts. Biblically we are told that the gospel is advancing at the same time Satan and sin vie for the hearts and minds of God’s creation. There is a spiritual war being fought rather fiercely, or did our soft sermonettes that espouse a blessed “Christian” life cloud our thinking (See Ephesians 6:10-18). Biblical eschatology dominated by either flying away Christians or victorious warriors ushering in an age of utopia are either too simplistic or were shaped in a post enlightenment idealistic elixir. There is no doubt Jesus is coming back to usher in His kingdom, but until that time there is suffering this side of paradise until that kingdom is realized, and Christians are not exempt from this tribulation.

Oh, of course we can just blame these little glitches in the Truman Show the way Christopher Hitchens and his band of “new Atheists” do; “This is just the work of religion, and once we rid the world of these nut jobs, then the world will be the way it’s supposed to be!” In one sense I firmly agree, religion most often is the bane to humanity, but isn’t this banter just exchanging one human mistake for another? Is humanity really the answer if it was humanity that created religion? Why would we suppose Chris and his boys have it right this time? Sure, we Christians should get on board that blame game and say it’s not “All” religions that are to blame, just those evil ones that don’t fit our ideas of God. "It's those Muslim folk that are really to blame.!" Of course to do so, wouldn’t we need to forget a long lined of inquisitions, burnings at the stake, abortion doctor murders, etc…? Oh, yeah, those weren't really “Christians!?” How convenient!

Or maybe the real anatomy of a murder lies in the heart of every human, who “desires” more than we can have, so our jealousies cause us to participate in a multitude of sins? Isn’t this what our text in James expresses? “What causes quarrels and what causes fights among you? Is it not this, that your passions You desire and do not have, so you murder. You covet and cannot obtain, so you fight and quarrel” When do we stop blaming that tribe "Over there" in our attempts to conjure up solutions to the world's "Glitches" and realize this is what sin really looks like 24/7! Maybe it's time to stop trying to make ourselves look better, and realize the problem is within, and that we are all sinners in the need of God’s grace; but when we set up the "us vs. them" mentality that many Christians are as guilty of as Hitchens et al., we mitigate the power of the gospel, and create a hatred that continues this cycle of violence and hate that only the gospel (Both proclaimed and lived) can destroy! Let's stop acting as the world acts, which is a blame game for our world's toughest problems, and stop vilifying cultures that are different, and start living a bit like that Gospel ethic Jesus talked about in Matthew 5-7? Oh yeah, that's an ethic for the future, not now though!!

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Is Our God Holy or Loving?

I have been reading through the book of Joshua, which would to even the devout western reader, cause a series of faith spasms. It is easy to judge the Quran and other religious literature for its violent content, but it would be a case work in cognitive dissonance to deny the violence of the Jewish/Christian text.

Christians seem to have a way to "Forget" the justice of God in the name of His love. Such an imbalance not only distorts the nature of God, but it distorts His story and mitigates its necessity. The other day we were at the ruins in Carthage with a group of young Christians ministering here in Tunisia, and we stopped at a place that had ancient grave-stones of children sacrificed to Baal-Humon, and those with us were commenting on how awful it was to believe in a god who could demand such a thing of his people and I was immediately reminded of Isaiah 53:10, where we are told that God was "Pleased to crush Him (His Son)...as a guilt offering." How easy is it to forget that at the heart of the gospel is an atoning sacrifice. God's love includes these "Dark Passages" that we all try to forget, but lie at the heart of the gospel! The bloodshed of the cross will always be an "Offense" and "Foolishness" to those that are perishing (1 Corinthians 1:18, 23), as it is to our contemporaries in the west, and many Muslims in the world who also believe that Allah could never do such a thing to one of His prophets! It appears as senseless as the killings in the Palestinian conquests in ancient Israel as they are in modern Israel.

We struggle to believe this is possible for a loving God, because we have neutered His justice, and denied Him His glory. Our man-centered opinions about God have created a western deity tame enough for us to handle, and now we are paying the penalty of having no answers to a savvy attack on the God of the bible, because our gospel has lost its connection with God's holiness and justice.

I was in a bookstore the other day in Tunis talking to an atheist who had spent 16 years in the church (Not the Mosque), and left because the church had no answers for these questions, and he became incredulous to think that a god had any right to be zealous for His own glory! Unfortunately too many people in the church feel the same way, so we have left the God of Joshua off our flannel graphs, created a god (An idol) that appeases the 21st century western mind, and then put our heads in the sand of ignorance and wonder why our kids are leaving the faith, and how come no one is coming to our churches?

It is not surprising that those churches that are growing are not backing down from the truth of the atonement, and preaching the "Whole Counsel" of God's word, so that people can be exposed to God's holiness and our sin, and turn to the only name under heaven by which man can be saved, by God's great grace and mercy; Jesus the Messiah. This message will always be both a scandalous stumbling block to some, and absolute foolishness to others, "but to us who are being saved, it is the power of God" (1 Corinthians 1:18). We can't back down from that message, but must be looking for ways that contextualizes that message so it can be heard, which includes knowing God's story, and how it fits into other stories like those we find in the Quran, or in the history of Baal-Humon. They may be appalling, but they provide a great avenue to talk about the one sacrifice that ends all sacrifices!

Below is an excerpt from a press release for an upcoming book called Dark Passages: How Religions Learn to Forget Their Bloody Origins by Phil Jenkins that may be pretty cool on the subject.

"Western observers often express concern about the violent nature of passages within the Quran, and ask whether fanaticism is somehow hard-wired into the faith of Islam. Absent though from such discussions is any sense of the still more violent and unforgiving passages that litter the Hebrew Bible, which is also the Christian Old Testament. To take just one example of many, when God orders the conquest of Canaan, he supposedly commands his followers to exterminate the native inhabitants: “you must destroy them totally. Make no treaty with them, and show them no mercy” (Deuteronomy 7.1-2). The book of Joshua offers an abundance of such texts. The most striking fact here is not that such passages exist, but that they have been so utterly forgotten by the vast majority of Christians and Jews, including among devoted Bible-readers. This in itself is a significant comment on the relationship between the scriptures on which a religion is founded and the ways in which that faith develops through history. The fact that such a gap exists constitutes a real challenge to fundamentalist assumptions, and raises profound questions about many prognoses that are currently offered for the future of Islam. It would be easy, if pointless, to assemble these disturbing Biblical texts in order to show the bloody roots of Western religion, and the apparent contradictions within those faiths. Much more significant is understanding the role that these texts play within the holistic reality of the scripture, and how successive generations of believers have come to terms with these difficulties."

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What Might A "Muslim" Gospel Culture Look LIke

Since I have been living in a Muslim culture for the last month, I started to think how would the gospel penetrate this place? It had surely penetrated this very culture 2000 years ago, certainly it could do it again. And I am positive that this is a job for the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit, but the fact remains, we (The Church) are sent into the culture as Jesus was (John 20:21) to help penetrate every culture with the gospel of the kingdom of God (Mark 1:14, 15; Matthew 28:19-20; Acts 1:8); so what's it take? I have been "Contending" for a gospel that is shaped by the cultural language in order to clearly communicate the message of Jesus Christ. Others of course have vehemently argued that this is an anathema and a compromise of Gospel truth. I will continue to contend though, that every presentation of the gospel is shaped by the cultural paradigm of the messenger. This is why there was a similar vehement argument in the first century, and the reason Paul had to write such glorious works as Romans and Galatians; to correct error, define the gospel, and exhort the church to be gracious in these culturally different movements (Romans 14:13-20).

The Jewish believers struggled greatly with the gentile believers who didn't adhere to their "Religious" traditions (Even traditions commanded by God in scripture), but the gospel spread when it was ripped from Jewish control, and was formed in pagan centers of asia-minor, Rome, North Africa, etc. There is no doubt that some syncretism resulted, but if the gospel is going to continue to move outward, it needs to be released by those that feel they own it, and trust that the Holy Spirit is still on duty (John 16:7-15; 1 John 2:27-29; 1 Corinthians 2:15-16).

Today we face similar challenges from many inside the church who believe they are the gate keepers of "truth," and foist their own culture on the gospel in the guise of gospel purity making missions to those outside their culture nearly impossible. Just the other day I was reading where a man was criticizing Rick Warren for praying to a "Merciful and compassionate God," during a prayer breakfast, because that prayer was Muslim, and catered to Islam; and although he acknowledged (Thankfully) that our God is "Merciful and Compassionate" he said it did not represent the gospel well. This is utter ridiculousness. Apart from apologetic sites trying to deny this reality, there are a plethora of verses in the bible that have been co-opted from pagan texts, and applied to Yahweh, the one true God. Like Psalm 29, which is clearly a Canaanite, or Phonecian ode to Baal. According to theologian H.L. Ginsberg, "This psalm is a Yahwistic adaptation of an older Canaanite hymn to the storm-god Baal...” has been “...corroborated by the subsequent discovery of tablets at Ras Shamra and by progress in the interpretation of these texts” (1966, 1:175). Paul himself indicates in Acts 17:28 that he quoted their poets when he wrote, "For in Him we live and move and exist...for we also are his offspring" (This was written at first about the pagan Greek god Zeus). If something is true, it is true no matter what the source is that says it, which should remind us that the culture's religions, and poets, and artists can and do speak the truth as they perceive it through general revelation. To this Calvin writes:

“In reading profane authors, the admirable light of truth displayed in them should remind us, that the human mind, however much fallen and perverted from its original integrity, is still adorned and invested with admirable gifts from the creator...Whenever we meet heathen writers, let us learn from the light of truth which is admirably displayed in their works, that the human mind, fallen as it is, and corrupted from its integrity, is yet invested and adorned by God with excellent talents. If we believe that the Spirit of God is the only fountain of truth itself, we shall not reject or despise the truth itself, wherever it shall appear, unless we wish to insult the Spirit of God.”

It amazes me that many who are quick to quote Calvin, Luther, etc. don't seem to have the intellectual integrity to think like these men. If we continue to ride into culture with our arrogant, white hats to spew our learned doctrine at the poor pagans who know no truth, we will continue to alienate billions of people from the truth of the gospel, all in the name of "Purity!"

It is quite possible that the gospel that transforms Muslim culture is going to do it as it has in any other culture and era, by the power of the Spirit regenerating hearts to respond to Jesus, and then creating the "Church" (Ecclesia) in that culture that will borrow from the sublime in the culture while discarding the chaff.

I heard a story the other day of a Muslim woman who converted to be a follower of Isa Al-Masih (Jesus the Messiah) through a series of dreams she had, and as she was meeting with a local missionary for discipleship, the Muslim woman asked, "What should I think and do about Mohamed?" The missionary woman, thought about it and said nothing, just pray to God, and let Him tell you, so the woman went home and prayed, and had a dream where she saw Mohamed in a coffin, beautifully adorned, and looking restful, and the Muslim woman concluded that God was showing her that Jesus is alive and Mohamed is in the grave. Can we still trust the Spirit of God to defend Himself, and to teach His people (Whom He loves more than we do) the truth about Himself, or are we obligated in wiping out every vestige of culture in order to replace it with our own "learned" thinking? This just makes us 'Functional Saviors" guarding the gates of our tribal god who is too weak to fend for himself.

Maybe a Muslim cultural version of the new believer may include praying five times a day, celebrating Ramadan and giving of alms, etc. but with a renewed sense of grace leading the way. Most Christians celebrate Easter and Christmas, and it is clearly known that those celebrations were very pagan; yet that's ok, since it's what "Christians" do. The way toward penetrating the diverse cultures of this world is through their own cultural stories that align in pointing to the gospel, which is as C.S. Lewis says:

“Now as myth transcends thought, incarnation transcends myth. The heart of Christianity is a myth, which is also fact (emphasis mine). The old myth of the Dying God, without ceasing to be myth, comes down from heaven of legend and imagination to earth of history. It happens-at a particular date, in a particular place, followed by definable historical consequences. We pass from a Balder or Osiris, dying nobody knows when or where, to a historical Person crucified under Pontius Pilate. By becoming fact it does not cease to be myth: that is the miracle."

Our gospel is the meta-narrative, the story of stories; the culmination of all stories which aim at the truth but fall a bit short because they lack the "Word of God" in the flesh, the direct revelation of the one true God, Jesus Christ. I pray that we work hard at presenting Jesus, and leaving the Christian religion where it belongs, in a history book.

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Caner, Evangelicals, Muslims and the Media: Bearing False Witness

I have been asked many times on my opinion about the Ergun Caner fiasco. I have decided to not write on it because I don't feel qualified to write on it. But, Rick Love, an international recognized peacemaker between Christians and Muslims has written on the subject. Although Rick is a close friend of one of my close friends, I am just starting to get to know him. I would say this...his articles are very well written and I have had his site linked on my side bar for a while now. I highly recommend you to read his thoughts as he hits major heart issues and gets through cultural Christianity and cultural Islam. Here is his article on Ergun Caner, enjoy.

Caner, Evangelicals, Muslims and the Media: Bearing False Witness
By Rick Love

Liberty University recently demoted Ergun Caner from his role as Dean of Liberty Baptist Theological Seminary. “Factual statements that are self-contradictory” regarding his past (especially his purported involvement as a terrorist) were the reasons given for the demotion of this famous Muslim convert to Christ. (See Liberty Univ. Demotes Ergun Caner After Investigation and Liberty U. removing Ergun Caner as seminary dean over contradictory statements)

What are we to make of this fall from grace? I will leave it to others to evaluate the facts of the case. I have two larger concerns: why did Dr. Caner find such a receptive audience? How should followers of Christ relate to Muslims?

The media has bombarded us with sound bites and stereotypes about Muslims. Sometimes we are told that Islam is a religion of peace. Yet the more disturbing and frequent picture painted is of militant Islam. Many articles, books and websites about Muslims and terrorism present an alarmist and fear-inducing approach. These authors focus mainly on negative elements of Islam and the threat posed by radical Islam. They tend to project onto all Muslims a radical agenda espoused by only a few. The result: fear and alienation. (See an excellent critique of this in Why Do You Fear Me? and The Myth of Modern Jihad).

This is the context that made Dr. Caner a celebrity among many fundamentalists and some evangelicals. Here was a man who was the “real deal.” As a former Muslim and terrorist, he was an authority that demanded our attention and deserved our devotion. So now it’s easy to point our finger at Dr. Caner when we realize he has not been truthful about his background.

I am more concerned, however, about pointing the finger at evangelicals (and journalists of all types) who frequently exaggerate or make misstatements about Muslims. While this kind of commentary sells books and appeals to our fears, the Bible calls this bearing false witness. In fact, overstatement, exaggeration and words taken out of context should not be found among followers of Jesus. Scripture calls us to be careful about the words we speak:

•You shall not bear false witness against your neighbor (Exodus 20:16 NASB)

•Every careless word that people speak, they shall give an accounting for it in the day of judgment (Matthew 12:36 NASB)

•In everything, therefore, treat people the same way you want them to treat you, for this is the Law and the Prophets (Matthew 7:12 NASB)

Thus we should strive to speak truthfully about Muslims, to respect Muslims’ own interpretation of themselves, and “not to compare the best of Christianity with the worst of Islam.” The lack of nuance, the negative stereo-typing of Muslims and the spread of Islamophobia among evangelicals is flat out wrong. There are far too many “Christians” who gulp down this potion of error.

How followers of Christ speak about others should be marked by grace and truth (Eph 4:25, 29; Col 4:6; John 1:14). The content of our message is important. But so is our motive and manner. (See “the Grace and Truth Project” for an example of how a large global network of evangelicals seeks to do this).

In addition, Jesus calls us to be peacemakers – to go beyond our comfort zones and outside the walls of our churches (Matthew 5:9, 44-45; Luke 6:27-36). No borders. No boundaries. Everyone. Including Muslims!

•If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone (Romans 12:18)

•Make every effort to live in peace with all men … (Hebrews 12:14).

Check out the realism of Romans 12:18: “if it is possible.” Peace isn’t always possible. We are called to be peacemakers but we will not always be peace achievers! Note, however, that the onus is on us to do everything in our power to make peace (“as far as it depends on you”). Hebrews 12:14 adds a further dimension. We are commanded to “make every effort” towards peace with everyone, indicating intensity of effort on our part. In a world of conflict, peace just doesn’t happen. It takes work! And a big part of this work is bridge-building communication. (For a good example of this see Yale Center for Faith and Culture).

Does this mean that we cannot engage in serious theological debate or that we cannot say anything negative about Muslims or terrorism? Of course not. Peacemaking and grace-and-truth communication does not imply naiveté or silence about troublesome issues. We are called to speak the truth in love and speaking the truth, even graciously, will offend some people.

But our focus should be on building bridges and positive witness. Lift up Christ, don’t tear down Islam. We should not attack the other. Respectful witness has nothing to do with being politically correct. It is a matter of being biblical: “In your hearts set apart Christ as Lord. Always be prepared to give an answer to everyone who asks you to give the reason for the hope that you have. But do this with gentleness and respect” (1 Peter 3:15 NIV). Anything less than this is bearing false witness!

Dr. Rick Love
President, Peace Catalyst International
ricklove@peace-catalyst.net
http://www.peace-catalyst.net/
http://www.ricklove.net/

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A Muslim Writes on Islamic and American Hypocrisy

'Pandemic of hypocrisy' dominating Muslim faith and American life

By MUQTEDAR KHAN

Yes, we Muslims are hypocritical. We demand equality under the law wherever we live as minorities and practice systematic inequality wherever we are in power. In most Muslim societies men and women, Muslims and non-Muslims, are treated unequally by law. Sometimes culture and sometimes religion is used as cover to privilege the rights of Muslim men over all others. Even in societies where there is no democracy and absence of rights is a chronic condition, Muslim men still suffer less than others.

We thought we could get away with it. But, unfortunately, the age of globalization and its pervasive media has exposed us. In the West, we say Islam is a religion of equality, but in the Muslim lands, we say equality is not justice. Justice is to give (or withhold) rights to others as determined by God. So, in Egypt, Baha'is are denied their religious identity. In Malaysia, men can divorce but women cannot. In Pakistan, Muslims can preach but others cannot. In Saudi Arabia -- the Mecca of Islam -- no one except Muslims can publicly worship.

Today, we are engaged in a battle to define Islam. Islamophobes are trying to paint it as a creed of intolerance and hatred and as an ideology of terror. Muslim extremists are defining it as an exclusivist and narrow ethos that has no tolerance for difference and no appetite for self-criticism. But even in this battle, we are hypocritical.

We talk of rights when we speak for Palestinians, we indeed scream in agony for justice for Gaza, but we are relatively silent -- as if our consciences are dead -- when the houses of worship of Ahmediyas (a Muslim sect) are blown up. We hear of Muslim youth going from New Jersey to Israel to struggle for Gaza, from Virginia to Pakistan to fight against the Americans, from Minnesota to Somalia to fight against God knows who, but no one ever goes to fight against al-Qaeda.

When we talk of Islam, we are quick to assert that God made Muslims the best of communities for the rest of the world (See Quran 3:110). But we live our lives as if we are a community against the rest of the world.
So, that is that. We Muslims are hypocrites, but what about Americans? What about the city on the hill?

Buses in New York City today are carrying hateful advertisements promising to help Muslims who leave Islam. Six hundred residents of Rutherford County in Tennessee came out to object to the proposed construction of a mosque. They want no mosques in their state. A woman in Oklahoma places a yard sign opposing a Muslim neighbor she never met. GOP congressional candidate Lou Ann Zelenik sees Muslim places of worship as a threat to Tennessee's moral and political fiber. Sen. Jeff Sessions displayed his latent Islamophobia on the Senate floor while criticizing candidate for the Supreme Court, Elena Kagan as a Sharia sympathizer. And the state of Oklahoma, where Muslims are less than 1 percent of the population, wants to pass a law forbidding the implementation of Sharia.

This is just a sample of the Islamophobia manifest in the past two weeks in America as Muslims increasingly become targets of rising prejudice in American society.

When Muslims object to mockery of Islamic symbols, we scream freedom of speech. We call it an important institution of our culture and of democracy itself. But when Helen Thomas expresses her opinion, we destroy her career and her legacy.

We preach to Muslims the virtue of democracy and peaceful opposition. But when the Muslim students of the University of California try it by demonstrating at a speech of the Israeli Ambassador, they are promptly punished.

We take pride in our democracy. We are especially proud of our protection of freedom of religion. But when it comes to living up to our values with regards to Muslims, we are falling woefully short.

If we cannot practice our values when Muslims are involved, then we also do not have the moral ground to lecture them. We wage wars abroad to defend "American values" and wage campaigns at home to eviscerate them.

Today, Muslims and Americans stand united as victims of this pandemic of hypocrisy.
Muslims are inheritors of one of the greatest value systems of human civilization, Islam, but we are losing it by not practicing what we preach. Americans have developed one of the greatest systems of governance, democracy, and now we are jeopardizing it by allowing our prejudice to overwhelm our decency.

I would rather we compete in realizing our values in real life than racing to become the champion of hypocrisy.

Dr. Muqtedar Khan is Associate Professor in the department of political science at the University of Delaware and a Fellow of the Institute for Social Policy and Understanding.

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Liberal Christians Are Far Superior to Us in Loving Muslims

One of the hardest things I have to deal with, along with my close friends who have Muslim friends, is the backlash we receive from the conservative Christian community. You would not believe what sorts of emails we receive, lies that are spread and just plain ignorance that is put forth in Christian circles about our Muslim friends and our friendships and dialogues that we have with them. What saddens me is that there are almost no voices from the conservative Christian (speaking conservative in theological terms) crowd who are seeking to establish relationships with Muslim communities. What we DO see is many relationships being formed between Muslims and liberal Christianity, whether it be from someone like Brian McLaren, or local Unitarian churches in our area. But, when you think of it, how can our Muslim friends have any idea what the Bible really teaches about Jesus if those they are able to interact with and befriend have very little faith in the words that are spoken in the Bible? What we do see is that because we are conservative in our theology and "run in those circles" we get smashed for even thinking of walking in a Mosque to make friendships with our Muslim neighbors.

People, speaking local leaders/pastors love to throw stones at us from their ivory towers but won't even think about actually meeting with Muslims themselves to reach out in the name of loving our neighbors for the sake of Christ. Why? I really don't understand this. I don't understand why people don't want to reach out to seek reconciliation with those many conceive to be our enemies (which I do not believe...every Muslim I have met has turned into a friend). These same people preach week in and week out, yet show nothing but hatred for their enemies/neighbors. Now, what they do like to say is they are speaking the truth in love. But, just because you say that is what you are doing, doesn't make it true. How does drawing up straw men and spreading fear and lies about another count as love?

What is even more amazing is that if you talk to Muslims, they desire to speak to those who love and follow Jesus and have hard lines about their faiths. They are growing tired of just meeting up with those who don't believe in the virgin birth, the atonement of Jesus and the word of God. They want to meet with people who actually believe that they are correct, but are willing to discuss. I'm getting tired of this kind of Christianity. The attacking of another's belief system for the sake of word play and headlines. One of my favorite pastors recently called Muhammad a "pedophile" just for the sake of saying it. Honestly, what the hell was that for? How does this help? Especially when it isn't true both historically and culturally. Why don't these pastors actually get off their asses and start engaging those they "speak the truth in love about" instead of reaching for local headlines? What if I were to call their next door neighbor out by name a whore, just for the headlines, because I heard something from someone else about them? That would be unloving and unnecessary, but when you say it about Muhammad you are a hero and "standing for the faith." Give me a break.

Let me give you some food for thought: Sometimes, pagans don't hate you because of your holiness, they hate you because you hate them and you have only shown hatred. This post came about because of watching this video below and realizing, again, that most of the time Muslims can only quote liberal Christians, because frankly, those are the only ones who are actually following Jesus in understanding how to love your neighbor. Sad. Those of us who are conservative in theology and trying to live out this understanding only get yelled at from our brothers for doing so. Again, sad.

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The Holy Spirit Calls God...Allah

Yeah...I know I know...back to my old tricks again. But, check this out. I was emailed this thought and it very much intrigued me. This is in no way to say that followers of Jesus and Muslims have no differences, but what this is an attempt to do is to get rid of basic misunderstandings in regards to each other. The name "Allah" invokes a lot of weird emotions within Western Christians. Most of the time, people speak out of ignorance on basic linguistics. This following thought was sent to me yesterday and I found it very helpful. Wondering what my readers' thoughts are on this.

Question posed:

This is for all of ourcritics who say using the word Allah for God of the Bible is blasphemy or wrong. at Pentecost in Acts, when the apostles and disciples are given the Holy Spirit and are speaking in the native tongues of everyone, the last language is Arabic. So, when these Arabic speaking Jews (or Jewish converts) are hearing Arabic, what words for God and Jesus do they hear?

At this point, one of my friends, who has been a linguist for 25 years added this to this question:

Arabic speaking believers at the time of Pentecost were using the term Allah, which is related to Aramaic Eloi, Jesus' term for God, which originally came from Abraham's use of the Canninite work Il, for pagan god. Of course our English "God" is from a Norse term for their pagan God, so I guess we are all blasphemers.

　
When the day of Pentecost had come, they were all together in one place. And suddenly there came from heaven a noise like a violent rushing wind, and it filled the whole house where they were sitting. And there appeared to them tongues as of fire distributing themselves, and they rested on each one of them. And they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues, as the Spirit was giving them utterance. Now there were Jews living in Jerusalem, devout men from every nation under heaven. And when this sound occurred, the crowd came together, and were bewildered because each one of them was hearing them speak in his own language. They were amazed and astonished, saying, "Why, are not all these who are speaking Galileans? "And how is it that we each hear them in our own language to which we were born? "Parthians and Medes and Elamites, and residents of Mesopotamia, Judea and Cappadocia, Pontus and Asia, Phrygia and Pamphylia, Egypt and the districts of Libya around Cyrene, and visitors from Rome, both Jews and proselytes, Cretans and Arabs—we hear them in our own tongues speaking of the mighty deeds of God." And they all continued in amazement and great perplexity, saying to one another, "What does this mean?"
Acts 2:1-12

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Why I love my Muslim neighbors - Part One

"25 And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” 26 He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” 27 And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” 28 And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”

29 But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” 30 Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. 31 Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. 32 So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. 33 But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. 34 He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. 35 And the next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ 36 Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” 37 He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.”"
Luke 10:25-34

Now we all understand that Jesus basically raises the bar on what it means to be ones neighbor. I want to look at the second part of the Great commandment in verse 27. Jesus said:

• "Love your neighbor" - I have thousands of neighbors in my city that are American citizens, international students or refugees. They also happen to be Muslims. They pay taxes (even international students pay sales tax when they buy good and services in America), take the bus, work normal jobs, drive cars, have families, and watch television...just to name a few every day things. The same types of things I do on a regular basis. They are my neighbors. Just like the retired couples that live on my street, my coworkers, the grocery store clerk, and the waitress at my favorite restaurant. Muslims are my neighbors. And because they are my neighbors, Jesus commands me to love them.

• "As yourself" - This is the part that gets me every time. I definitely love myself, no doubts about that. That comes natural. I wake up every morning, wash myself for the day, eat a good breakfast, drive my comfortable car to my wonderful job, make sure I eat a good lunch, come home to have dinner with my family, spend time throwing my son on the couch and tickling him, and stay up with my wife after we put him to bed...to name a few things I do on a regular basis. Basically, most of these things I mentioned are natural ways I love myself. So Jesus commands that I have this same type of love for my neighbors (including my Muslim neighbors). So this would mean, I actually care for their natural well being. I care about whether or not my neighbor has something to eat or not. Can he/she get to work. Are they happy in general and can I add to that happiness in any way, shape or form. Etc. Etc. Great examples of being a neighbor are my neighbors John and Lois (who are normal, homegrown, Caucasian Americans). John is a delivery driver and drives all day long. We have been their neighbors for about a year now. Every once in a while, John stops by our house with some extra goodies to fill our fridge...things like juice, cheese, tortillas, etc. We are never out of extras in our fridge because of John. One day before winter, John came and dropped off wood for our fireplace. We never asked him to do this, he just did it. He did it because the last winter was rough here in the Seattle area, so John wanted to make sure me, my wife and our young son would have a warm home. WOW! This is one of the very few ways John and Lois has loved us just like they love themselves.

So, before I elaborate on why a specific, focused love for my Muslim neighbors, let me ask you:

1) Who are your neighbors? Focus on a few for the sake of these questions.
2) Are you going out of your way to love them as you love yourself?
3) Why is this so unnatural for us, especially if Jesus commanded it?
4) Who/what can give you the power and ability to accomplish this task?
5) What next steps can you take to love your specific neighbors as yourself?

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Mike Gunn's Response to Crosstalk and Ingrid Schlueter

Recently, the infamous Ingrid Schlueter got wind of our (Harambee) dialogue with a local Muslim community (MAPS) about "Who is Jesus?", and instead of calling us to speak to us she decided, along with many of her readers, to slander us on the internet calling us many names. I wrote a post on my response in regards to being called "dumb so-called Christians", "heretics", "a reprobate church", "denying Sola Scriptura", "Christian dupes", "den of thieves", "false teachers" and now, most recently, useless idiots. They say that this is just to warn others about what we are doing, although I am not sure how we are affecting them (like God needs to be defended?) nor did they ever actually call us or contact us to try and understand what the dialogue was all about.

Below, is Pastor Mike Gunn's full response to Ingrid's blog post and accusations. I want everyone to know my immense respect for Pastor Mike and how much he has taught me about the true understanding of the gospel and how it/we should interact with culture for the glory of God. If I were to give you a list of all the things he does locally and globally, and how much God has used him in ministering the word of God, it would sound like I was exagerrating and a little vain, since he is a friend of mine. Yesterday, we spent some time at lunch and spoke even more deeply about this subject of culture and the gospel (he has also written a book on the subject) and how much this type of attack does nothing but harm the gospel. This is why he felt it necessary to at least write a rebuttal of what was said, so that we could return to the most important part: The Gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. Enjoy the post and ask any questions you might have.

Living In the World, But Not Of It!
By Pastor Michael Gunn

It saddens me that I have to write a rebuttal letter to those that have taken liberty to judge Harambee Church, Mark Driscoll and Acts 29 because Harambee hosted a forum for Muslims and Christians to get together to discuss the person of Jesus Christ from the two different perspectives.

First, I want to say that Mark Driscoll, Mars Hill nor Acts 29 had anything to do with this event. This event was born out of relationships and ministry in and among Muslims in the Seattle area. The fact is there are 30,000 Somali Muslims alone in the King County region, and there are 1.3 Billion Muslims in the world; many of who have never heard of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Secondly, it’s important to state that Harambee Church has always promulgated a clear, Christ-Centered gospel that is Reformed in its roots, and has never backed down from the hard theological entanglements that come with it. We have lost many people that do not agree with our theology, and our desire is not to “water down” the gospel so people will stay. These are major assumptions of our detractors. We do believe however that it is both prudent and biblical to preach a clear gospel that the people can understand. This tradition is taken from men like Peter, Paul and Jesus. When Paul was confronted with pagan believers in Athens (Acts 17), he departed from his normal strategy of “reasoning from the scriptures,” to utilizing pagan poetry to clearly communicate his message (Acts 17: 27-28). Gospel authors, such as John, used pagan terms, like logos, in redemptive ways in order to better explain Jesus to a pagan audience. The words the bible uses for God (Elohim/Theos) have pagan roots, yet they are redefined in Jesus Christ (Hebrews 1: 1-3). Subsequently, using a biblical form of contextualization is true to the tradition of the biblical writers, and needed in order for the gospel to be understood by each subsequent generation and culture. Therefore using words like Allah (which is the Arabic word for God) is not any different than using the words Elohim or Theos. So many want to argue the fact that the root of Allah is from a moon god, whose name was Sin, but whose title was Al-Ilah (ie. Allah). While there are many linguists who would argue a different root for the name Allah, why does this matter? Our own Hebrew term for God is a plural, pagan term El – Elohim? Jesus’ words on the cross were “Eli, Eli, lama sabachthani, which is similar to Al-Ilah. Why is this an issue? If we were in Germany we would use “Gott,” which has its own pagan history, or if we were in Andra Pradesh India, we would be forced to use “Deywadu,” which is fraught with all kinds of pagan ideas. Yet, we would be forced to use these terms to communicate a clear understanding of the truth of the gospel. It is a biblical contextualization that takes these pagan terms and redeems them with the fuller truth of the gospel (See John 1:17).

Thirdly, it appears that many of those that hate Mark Driscoll and Acts 29, and decry dialogues, such as the one we hosted at Harambee, feel that if you aren’t immediately persecuted when you proclaim the truth of the “Good News” then you must not be preaching a true gospel. There’s an heir of self-righteousness that accompanies their assumptions, because not all of Jesus’ or Paul’s encounters with sinners and pagans ended in derision and persecution. In Jesus’ encounter with the woman at the well (John 4), we see a somewhat muted story that the Holy Spirit uses for her conversion. While I believe Jesus was confrontive, it was done in a gracious manner, and was received well by the Samaritan woman. Jesus’ tact with the men on the road to Emmaus was explaining the story line from Moses, through the prophets to the present time, which is exactly what Mike Ly did when he explained the clear gospel of Jesus Christ to the non-believers who were present at the dialogue. But, it seems, that some think that the message of the gospel isn’t truly there unless persecution and hatred is the result. I believe Acts 17: 32-34 gives us insight into the reality when the clear gospel is heard clearly; “Some began to sneer, but others said, ‘We shall hear you again concerning this’…but some men joined them and believed.” Isn’t this the goal? To tell you the truth, there were definitely men, at our dialogue, who “sneered” and some that got a bit testy during the panel at the end, because we answered every question very clearly, and biblically. However, we also believe that we won an audience with many Muslims that night that have emailed Michael and stated that they never heard a presentation about Jesus in this way. It was counter to their understanding, and they literally want to “hear us again concerning this.”

There is no doubt that persecution will be a result of the gospel. I personally have been screamed at, spit on and punched, but not every encounter of the gospel results in people hating you. Jesus Himself, “kept increasing in wisdom and stature, and in favor with God and men” (Luke 2:52). In order to cut through some cultural and political garbage, the gospel often needs to be heard well, many times. Our goal is to love our enemies, as we are clearly commanded in scripture, and to gain an ongoing relationship for the sake of the gospel, so we could:

“Speak forth the mystery of Christ…in order that we may make it clear in the way we ought to speak. Conduct yourselves with wisdom toward outsiders, making the most of the opportunity. Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned as it were, with salt so that you may know how you should respond to each person.”

Colossians 4:3-6

Christ and Christ crucified will always be the central focus of the preaching here at Harambee, as it was that night in March, but our goal is to “season our speech” with the grace and love of Jesus, and then allow God to work in the hearts of the people regardless of the consequences to our own lives.

Fourthly, the claim that MAPS (The group we worked with) has ties to CAIR, which has Hamas ties is irrelevant. Jesus commands us to love our enemies (Matthew 5: 43-44), and Paul exhorts us to “bless those who persecute you” (Romans 12:14). Even if all 150 Muslims in that room were Hamas (and that’s what I say is absurd, because they aren’t), so what! Aren’t we supposed to face our enemies, love them, and even bless them? Shouldn’t preaching to them Jesus be our goal? Aren’t we commanded to take the gospel to the “nations?” It seems as though many Christians are more interested in preserving their national identity than they are their identity in Christ. Their God has become a politically driven (Democrat/Republican, depending on which political side you choose), white American, which allows them to demonize those that don’t look and act like we do. Is that what Christianity has become? Isn’t our allegiance to Jesus, to live like Him, and not endorsing everything our political persuasion or our nation demands? Weren’t the early Christians persecuted (not for their message of the cross) for calling Jesus Lord, and not giving that title to the emperor? Yet, by all accounts, they lived exemplary lives and were loved by many in the culture.

So many comments in some of these blogs make claims that Muslims are the “antichrist,” thus justifying a lack of hospitality to over one billion people in this world. They use texts like 2 John 9-11 as their “proof text” for such a response. It amazes me that people who claim to be the guardians of the “truth,” can be so callous with the scriptures they claim to love. It was poor exegesis like this (not “Postmodern” relativity) that justified slavery and genocide by the church in the past. This verse has nothing to do with reaching non-believers and having them in your house, and it is contradicted by many actions of both Jesus and His disciples. This verse is speaking of false teachers within the church, not outside non-believers. Paul iterates a similar idea in 1 Corinthians 5:9-13.

This kind of legalistic nonsense reminds me of a quote from Westminster Professor, Michael Horton who said,

Christians are supposed to be in the world but not of it, but the problem is many of them are of the world, but not in it.

Unfortunately, I find this all too true. While they wear a badge of separation, they act no differently than the world. They use human effort and methodology to effect change, political power, division, slander, and lack of love for all people, which seems to color their repertoire. They act as the older prodigal son, who bitterly opposed his father because of his own claims to the throne. It’s easy to vilify the “enemy” as antichrists when you see yourself as “righteous.” It is only when the gospel penetrates your heart and reveals the ugliness of your own righteousness, that are we able to act in grace toward others, as Christ has done to us.

Our intent for the Muslim dialogue was not to water down the gospel. As a matter of fact, the leader of MAPS told our pastor that we are the first church they have dealt with to present a gospel that is clearly contradictory to the Muslim idea of truth. But the aim of MAPS, and the reason they felt it was a “success,” was that we both could state those differences, with reverence and grace, and though we vehemently disagreed with one another, we will continue to discuss Jesus. We will continually work out our disagreements with love and respect for one another, and I just don’t see how that is contrary to the gospel of Jesus Christ.

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Relating to Muslims

Interesting video from Carl Medearis. Enjoy.

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Interfaith Dialogue a "Tremendous Success"

Most of the readers know of the dialogue that happened at Harambee last month. I thought I would share the press release put out by CAIR Seattle in regards to the dialogue. Many friendships were made and more dialogues and get togethers are being put together for the future. It is truly exciting to see what God is doing.

Interfaith Dialogue of Evangelicals, Muslims a 'Tremendous Success'

Some 300 Participants Explore Similarities, Differences in Perspectives on Jesus

Some 300 members of a Renton area Evangelical church, a Redmond area mosque, and other local mosques and churches participated in a dialogue on the Islamic and Christian perspectives on Jesus on Saturday, March 27th at the Harambee Church in Renton, WA.

The Council on American-Islamic Relations of WA (CAIR-WA), Muslim Association of Puget Sound (MAPS) and Harambee Church, partnered to organize the event "Jesus, Who is He?" The event included a reception, presentations by leaders on the basics of each faith, readings and table discussions of relevant passages from the Bible and Qur'an, and a question and answer session.

Participants read verses from the Qur'an as well as verses from the Bible, comparing each book's accounts of Jesus' birth, descriptions of the Virgin Mary, and attributes of Jesus.

Michael Ly, a Pastor at Harambee and Vice President of Peace Catalyst International, has been a major part of interfaith work with CAIR-WA and local mosques. Ly started bringing together leaders of both faith communities through small gatherings and mosque visits, leading up to large dialogues between entire congregations. "It is truly an honor to be part of an effort to build bridges of understanding between Evangelicals and Muslims," said Ly. "I believe this is the first of many future religious and social interactions between these two faith communities."

Arsalan Bukhari, Executive Director of CAIR-WA participated in the event. "A gathering like this brings forward issues of interest to both Muslims and Christians" he said. "It is our goal to build interfaith communities through dialogue and mutual respect."

Imam Mohamad Joban, Imam (Muslim religious leader) at MAPS commented on the success of the event. "What happened this past Saturday night at Harambee Church was a bounty of our Lord," he said. It was a combination of thoughtful preparation, generous efforts by the organizers, and our trust in Allah."

Gina Mahmoud, Secretary of the Interfaith and Outreach Committee at MAPS viewed the event as a 'tremendous success.' "The event was a tremendous success and exceeded all expectations in attendance, organization and impact," said Mahmoud. "I am also very proud of the many young people of both faiths who attended."

Many future events are planned. Those interested in having their faith community involved in an interfaith endeavor are encouraged to contact CAIR-WA or Pastor Michael Ly.

CAIR-WA is the local chapter of CAIR, America's largest Muslim civil liberties and advocacy organization. Its mission is to enhance the understanding of Islam, encourage dialogue, protect civil liberties, empower American Muslims, and build coalitions that promote justice and mutual understanding.

Muslim Association of Puget Sound, MAPS, is an Islamic organization founded in 2006 with the intent of serving the Muslims of Puget Sound. Its mission is to provide Islamic educational, social and cultural services to the Muslim community in the region and to promote the teachings of Islam to the inquiring non-Muslim. MAPS strives to build links between Muslim families, businesses and organizations, provides year-round activities and religious services and is committed to helping the needy.

Peace Catalyst International exists to stimulate peacemaking between individuals and between peoples. Our mission is to catalyze peacemaking initiatives for multi-dimensional reconciliation in the way of Jesus. Two of the greatest areas of conflict in the world today are between Christians and Muslims and between the West and the Muslim world. Thus, we give special priority to these relationships.

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Audio from Muslim and Christian Dialogue

Here is the audio from the dialogue we had at Harambee this past Saturday. If you have any questions in what was said, let me know. I can also make the powerpoint that was used for Michael's part available if you want it. Just let me know. Thanks to MAPS Redmond for the following photoraphs. If you would like to see the full flikr stream, click here.

Michael's Presentation on "Who is Jesus?"

Imam Joban’s Presentation on Islam and Jesus in the Qur'an

Q&A Panel




Muslim Prayers

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My Reaction to the Muslim & Christian Dialogue

:::If you want to see more pictures of the dialogue, click here...blogger is having issues right now in uploading photos:::

Saturday night we had a dialogue at Harambee between Muslims and Christians called, "Who is Jesus?". We were not sure how popular this type of thing would be. I spoke to my friend, who is the President of Seattle CAIR, and he told me this was the first of such dialogues he has heard of between Muslims and Christians with a conservative theology church in the Northwest. There has been many dialogues or meetings between liberal churches and Muslims, but none to his knowledge with those of the historical orthodox Christian faith.

What happened was nothing short of the providence of our God. Over 250 Muslims and Christians showed up for the event. Not only that, but one of the concerns was that if we did have a big showing, that one "side" might be overwhelming in attendance with the other having little to show for. But, it felt that it was about 50/50 between Muslims and Christians. As far as the congregations from the Muslims, I know that there were at least 5 Masjids/Islamic Centers represented from the Islamic Center of Kent, Olympia, Eastside, Seattle and Muslim Association of Puget Sound. There might have been more, but these were the ones I know of. As far as churches, I know that at least 6 different churches were in attendance. There was Harambee, First Presbyterian Church of Bellevue, Oikos Fellowship, Highlands Community Church, Northshore Baptist Church and Spring of Life Slavic Baptist Church.

The evening started with Christians seeing the hospitality of our Muslim friends. As they showed up, food and more food showed up as well. There was a wedding that some attended beforehand, and they brought what seemed like all the leftover food from the wedding. My wife was with me and she was a little nervous just because she desired to be culturally sensitive and didn't want to offend those we were hosting. After helping setting up the food with some of the Muslim women, my wife's demeanor completely changed. She was very excited to be able to speak with these women, share some laughs, frustration (because of the amount of food and confusing menu items) and even made some new friendships with these women.

The fellowship beforehand was awesome, as I pretty much expected. I met many new Muslim friends, introduced many to others and saw many of my Christian and Muslim friends sharing stories and lives together. Two of the men that I met beforehand work right around the corner from me, so we are going to try and get together for lunch or coffee to extend our conversations from the evening.

After fellowship, and adding many chairs, sofas and tables for the event to house all the guests, the night continued.

Michael Ly stood up and told a couple of stories of his interactions with Muslims and how his view of Muslims changed drastically when his wife had their first baby. One of their neighbors, being a Muslim, came over and said that they knew that Michael and Shannon didn't have any family in the area and in their culture when a woman has a baby the new mother does nothing besides care for the mother for 40 days. Knowing she was in a different culture, the Muslim woman asked if she could care for her for the next week, allowing Shannon to just concentrate on the baby. This love and hospitality from the Muslim woman struck a cord with Michael and Shannon and the understanding of them challenged the Lys.

Michael went on to give his presentation on "Who is Jesus?" from the Christian perspective. The presentation was one that involved showing our understanding that whether one is a Christian, Muslim, or whatever, it didn't matter, everyone needs to know the straight path to the Kingdom of God. He then went to show how through Adam, Noah, Abraham, Moses, David, Jonah and John the Baptist, God was always giving us a sign pointing to the greatest sign that was to come in the sacrifice of Jesus the Messiah. It was a clear presentation and one that was highly focused on showing more than just our beliefs, but showed how we see Jesus as the clear sign given by God from the Old Testament.

After Michael was done presenting, it was time for the Maghrib, or the prayer (salah or salat) at sunset. We cleared the bottom tier of Harambee and the Muslims prayed. It was pretty awesome to have Christians have the opportunity to see the Muslim prayers up close. Not only that, but one of the Muslim leaders gave a quick explanation of what happened afterwards and so did Imam Joban during his presentation.

After the Maghrib, it was time for Imam Joban's presentation of Islam's view of "Who is Jesus?" I have to be honest, Imam Joban's presentation, for the first 30 minutues wasn't "Who is Jesus?" but could have been titled, "What is Islam and Why Should You Trust in the Qur'an?" It was a little odd, but even so, Imam Joban was a great presenter and very funny. When he got through the first 30 minutes of trying to convince us to trust in the Qur'an (which I actually didn't mind hearing at all, just wondered if if should have been done at a different time) Imam Joban gave us some information of who Jesus is in the Islamic understanding. I felt like Imam Joban was very clear and didn't pull any punches. As one who follows Jesus, it is hard to hear what others think of Jesus, but this is always the tension in a dialogue. I am sure it was difficult for some of the Muslims to hear what Michael Ly presented as well. But, I believe the tension is fine as long as loving our God and neighbor is supreme.

After the presentations were completed, it was time for the tables to discuss what was presented or just anything of interest between the two faiths. I loved this time. Our table was one to where we were able to have conversation of our two convictions and just some questions from each faith. One of the Muslims that I met beforehand was at our table and one of the women Stacy met was at our table as well. We went through John 9 and I was able to give a quick history lesson that led to this discussion between Jesus and his disciples.

We also spoke about:

Do Christians believe Adam was forgiven? (which was because of the difference of convictions of imputation of Adam's guilt)

Do you have to be Muslim to go to heaven?

Why 5 prayers?

What is the Injeel?

What do the Muslims and Christians believe is the written word of God?

There was even an interesting discussion between a Muslim man and a Muslim woman on whether one can tell if someone loves God because of external actions. The man was trying to say he could tell, while the woman disagreed and said it is not for her to judge whether someone loved and worshiped God based on external actions that are supposed to be "common" for Muslim believers. It was interesting to hear, but was never at a point of anger in any way.

I honestly wish we could have continued, but I believe that my new friendships will allow it to continue at a later date.

Lastly came the Q&A panel. There was 4 Muslims (one a woman convert from Christianity) and 4 followers of Jesus. The questions were written on note cards, so that Michael and Imam Joban could control the content a little. Some of the questions that were answered were:

Is Jesus the Lamb of God and is He God?

Did Mohammad travel to Jerusalem and is that where he could have received his information on who Jesus is and on the information from the Bible?

How can we continue to develop friendships from other faiths?

Do those on the panel have long developed friendships from other faiths?

In Islam we don't have the idea of inherited sin. How is it fair that we have inherited sin from Adam when we weren't there?

There were other questions that I can't remember, but these were the main ones that impacted the evening. I think whether one is a Muslim or a Christian, we can all say that God/Allah was glorified and worshiped together. It was a night of peace, of new friendships and very good dialogue to help bridge the gap that stands between the two faiths. What we also found out, as a reminder, is that we definitely have points of difference in theology between us that are not to be overshadowed or forgotten. What we did show is that even with these, we can still be friends and love each other instead of being fearful or at war with one another.

This is what is important. To truly understand each other so that we can love each other. We don't have to agree on everything to call each other "friend."

I pray that each side will come away with this:

“Teacher, which is the great commandment in the Law?”
And He said to him, “ ‘You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind.’
“This is the great and foremost commandment.
“The second is like it, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’
“On these two commandments depend the whole Law and the Prophets.”

Matthew 22:36-40

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