Muslims, the Qur'an, and the Injeel #2

Bridges: Christians Connecting with Muslimsis a DVD small group study by
Crescent Project.  Click the image to learn more!

The first post in this series showed verses from the Qur'an that teach that the Injeel (the Arabic name Muslims use for the New Testament) is revelation given to us by Allah and that Muslims are called to believe in it.  There are blatant contradictions between what is taught within the Qur'an and the Injeel (NT).  Muslims handle these contradictions by saying, "The Injeel has been corrupted, and the Qur'an has replaced the Injeel."  There are several responses that a Christian could give to Muslims who say this. 

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Books which Muslims recognize to be from Allah are first the Torah (the books of Moses), the Psalms of David, the Gospel of Jesus (Injeel, NT), and the Qur'an.  For more information on the books that Muslims believe to be revealed from God go to Islam Uncovered, a site written by Muslims.

Muslims believe that Allah sent the Torah (Tawrat, Arabic name), but that the Torah was changed.  Because of this change, Allah sent the Zabur (the Psalms of David).  These were also changed, so God sent Jesus and his Gospel revealed in the Injeel.  The Injeel was also changed, so Allah sent the Qur'an, given to Muhammad by the angel Gabriel.  

Islamic Understanding

Muslims truly believe that Allah's word was handed down in phases to mankind after each revelation had been corrupted.  

Muslims believe that the Qur'an will not be corrupted, since Allah will protect His word.  

Muslims will say that the Injeel has gone through many versions and that the real one cannot be found.  

They say that Christians have changed many of the stories in the Torah, the Psalms of David, and the Injeel. For instance, Muslims say that Jesus never died on the cross.  It was either someone else or an apparition who appeared to be Jesus.  This means that Jesus never died, he just ascended into heaven.  They also say that Ismael was the promised son to Abraham, not Isaac, and that Abraham was asked to sacrifice Ismael. 

Christian Understanding

The Injeel is the word of God.  (2 Timothy 3:16-17)

God will keep his word. 

There are not many versions of the Injeel (NT).  Instead, there are many translations.  Some translations contain the word "version" in their title which helps lead to this confusion.  Scholars have gone to great lengths to study the original Koine Greek to make accurate translations that truly represent the original text and language.  The many translations when compared, maintain the one message.  A problem that arises from this with Muslims is that they believe the only authoritative text of the Qur'an is in Arabic, and when they pray to Allah they must pray in Arabic, even if they don't know or understand Arabic. 

Now that these two different perspectives on the nature of the Injeel have been presented the next posts will share three approaches, or responses, a Christian may take to encourage a Muslim to read the Injeel.  

For more information read:

Is the Injeel Corrupted? My Search for the Truth About the New Testament