Salvation

The way of salvation according to the Muslim religion

Muslims teach that man is born free from sin and good, like a blank book, and when he reaches the age of maturity he becomes accountable for his deeds and intentions, if his development is normal and if he is sane. Each person must bear his own burden and be responsible for his own actions, because no one can expiate for another’s sin. How can a man attain salvation then, according to the Muslim religion? Every man must work out his salvation through the guidance of God. This means that in order to attain salvation a person must combine Faith and action, belief and practice. The Kuran – which is, according to the Muslim religion, ‘the word of God revealed to Muhammad through the agency of the angel Gabriel’ - affirms: ‘Surely (as for) those who believe and do good, their Lord will guide them by their faith; there shall flow from beneath them rivers in gardens of bliss. Their cry in it shall be: Glory to Thee, O Allah! and their greeting in it shall be: Peace; and the last of their cry shall be: Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the worlds.’ (10:9-10) ‘Surely (as for) those who believe and do good, We do not waste the reward of him who does a good work.’ (18:30) ‘I swear by the time, Most surely man is in loss, Except those who believe and do good, and enjoin on each other truth, and enjoin on each other patience.’ (103:1-3). To have faith, according to Muslim religion, means to believe in ‘one God, Supreme and Eternal, Infinite and Mighty, Merciful and Compassionate, Creator and Provider’, and in all the messengers sent by God. The Kuran mentions the names of twenty-five of them. The names of some of the great messengers are Noah, and Abraham, Ishmael and Moses, Jesus and Muhammad. The message of all the messengers sent by God was basically the same and was called Islam, because it came from One and the Same Source, that is, God. All of them, with the exception of Mohammad, were ‘national’ messengers. Furthermore, among them Mohammad stands as the last messenger.

On the Day of Judgement, then, the dead will rise to stand for their final and fair trial. People with good records will be generously rewarded and warmly welcomed to the heaven of God, and those with bad records will be severely punished and cast into hell.

Confutation

The Bible teaches that man is born evil, for David said: “Behold, I was shapen in iniquity; and in sin did my mother conceive me.” (Psalm 51:5 – The NIV reads: “Surely I have been a sinner from birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me”), and God said about man that “every inclination of his heart is evil from childhood” (Genesis 8:21 – NIV). Therefore, man’s nature is evil and sinful, that is, corrupt, from his birth. That’s why it is written: “There is none righteous, no, not one: There is none that understandeth, there is none that seeketh after God. They are all gone out of the way, they are together become unprofitable; there is none that doeth good, no, not one. Their throat is an open sepulchre; with their tongues they have used deceit; the poison of asps is under their lips: Whose mouth is full of cursing and bitterness: Their feet are swift to shed blood: Destruction and misery are in their ways: And the way of peace have they not known: There is no fear of God before their eyes” (Romans 3:10-18). The reason why men are born evil or sinful is that Adam, the first man, sinned and through him all his descendants have been made sinners (cf. Romans 5:19). Man, therefore, being a sinner, is on the way to perdition.

However, he can be saved. How? The Bible teaches that the only way a man can be saved from perdition is by believing in Jesus Christ, the Son of the only true God, whom was sent by God into the world about two thousand years ago to save the world. It is written: “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life. For God did not send His Son into the world to condemn the world, but that the world through Him might be saved. He who believes in Him is not condemned, but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God” (John 3:16-18 – NKJV). What did Jesus do in order to save men from perdition? He died on the cross for our sins and rose from the dead on the third day. Therefore, eternal life cannot be obtained by good deeds, for it is obtained by faith in Jesus Christ. It is the gift of God.

Remission of sins also is obtained by faith in Jesus Christ, thus it is the gift of God, as it is written: “All the prophets testify about him that everyone who believes in him receives forgiveness of sins through his name” (Acts 10:43 – NIV). The reason why remission of sins is obtained by faith in Jesus, is that Jesus Christ atoned for our sins through His death on the cross. He bore our sins in His own body on the cross, so that we might receive remission of sins.

So, you who are Muslims, know this, that You can’t attain salvation by good works, for salvation is the gift of God, which is given by God to all those who believe in His Son, that is, Jesus Christ. So repent of your sins, and believe that Jesus Christ died on the cross for our sins and rose again for our justification, and you will be immediately be saved from perdition and forgiven by the grace of God.

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