The Greatest Falsehood of the Koran

By Wendell Hutchins

[all Bible verses from NASB]

I have been thinking about buying a copy of the Koran for my library. I have books in my library written by many who teach error, and since I know there are Muslims where I live (and a mosque just up the highway!) I think it might be useful to have a Koran for my study.

I may not, however, because I already know the greatest problem with this book; bigger than calling God Allah instead of Jehovah, bigger than its teachings on worship and salvation and holy war and treatment of women. The biggest problem with Islam, the greatest falsehood of the Koran, is what it says about Jesus Christ.

In John 3:14-18 Jesus says, “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up; so that whoever believes will in Him have eternal life. For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life. For God did not send the Son into the world to judge the world, but that the world might be saved through Him. He who believes in Him is not judged; he who does not believe has been judged already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.” Here we see that Jesus calls Himself the Son of God and declares that He will be lifted up (a reference to the cross) and that saving faith is based on Jesus as the Son of God.

Jesus says this in John 8:23-24; “You are from below, I am from above; you are of this world, I am not of this world. Therefore I said to you that you will die in your sins; for unless you believe that I am He, you will die in your sins." Jesus here says that saving faith depends on believing that He is the I AM ; if your translation has “I am He” or “I am the one I claim to be” it dilutes the point Jesus is making; John 8:57-59 “The Jews said to Him, "You are not yet fifty years old, and have You seen Abraham?" Jesus said to them, "Truly, truly, I say to you, before Abraham was born, I am." Therefore they picked up stones to throw at Him…” The Jews wanted to kill Jesus because they understood EXACTLY what Jesus meant, and we must too; Jesus says He is I AM just as God the Father tells Moses His name is I AM in Ex. 3:14. You will not be saved if you do not understand that Jesus is God in the flesh, as much God as the God of heaven.

Peter says the following while defending the miraculous healing of a lame man; Acts 4:8-12 "Rulers and elders of the people, if we are on trial today for a benefit done to a sick man, as to how this man has been made well, let it be known to all of you and to all the people of Israel, that by the name of Jesus Christ the Nazarene, whom you crucified, whom God raised from the dead--by this name this man stands here before you in good health. He is the STONE WHICH WAS REJECTED by you, THE BUILDERS, but WHICH BECAME THE CHIEF CORNER stone. And there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved." Here we see that Peter declares by the power of the Holy Spirit that Jesus Christ, the same Jesus speaking in John 3 and John 8, has been CRUCIFIED AND RAISED FROM THE DEAD BY GOD. Peter also declares that there is no other saving Person, no other saving name, than the name of Jesus Christ.

So to sum up our discussion so far; Jesus Christ, the Son of God, is just as much God as God in heaven. He died on a cross and was raised to life again by the power of God, and if you don’t believe Jesus is Who He said He is, if you do not believe He died and was resurrected, and if you do not call on HIS name and no other, YOU WILL NOT BE SAVED!!!

Does the Koran agree with this?  Does Islam teach this? Quoting from the Wikipedia article on Muhammad; “Following the attestation to the oneness of God, the belief in Muhammad's prophethood is the main aspect of the Islamic faith. The Shahadah is the basic creed or tenet of Islam. Every Muslim proclaims in the Shahadah that "I testify that there is no God but Allah, and I testify that Muhammad is a messenger of Allah". Ideally, it is the first words a newborn will hear, and children are taught as soon as they are able to understand it and it will be recited when they die. Muslims must repeat the shahadah in the call to prayer (adhan) and the prayer itself. Non-Muslims wishing to convert to Islam are required to recite the creed.”

Do you notice that Jesus does not matter in Islam compared to Muhammad? Did you notice that Jesus is not even a minor figure in the Shahadah?

Hear now what the Koran says about Jesus and the cross; from Sura (chapter) 4, entitled “The Women;” [4.157] And their saying: “Surely we have killed the Messiah, Isa son of Marium, the apostle of Allah;” and they did not kill him nor did they crucify him, but it appeared to them so (like Isa) and most surely those who differ therein are only in a doubt about it; they have no knowledge respecting it, but only follow a conjecture, and they killed him not for sure.
[4.158] Nay! Allah took him up to Himself; and Allah is Mighty, Wise.
[4.159] And there is not one of the followers of the Book but most certainly believes in this before his death, and on the day of resurrection he (Isa) shall be a witness against them.

The Koran here teaches that Jesus on the cross was an illusion, that God took Jesus (Isa) to heaven without Him dying, and that Jesus Himself will testify to this! But John said in John 19:31-37 “Then the Jews, because it was the day of preparation, so that the bodies would not remain on the cross on the Sabbath (for that Sabbath was a high day), asked Pilate that their legs might be broken, and that they might be taken away. So the soldiers came, and broke the legs of the first man and of the other who was crucified with Him; but coming to Jesus, when they saw that He was already dead, they did not break His legs. But one of the soldiers pierced His side with a spear, and immediately blood and water came out. And he who has seen has testified, and his testimony is true; and he knows that he is telling the truth, so that you also may believe. For these things came to pass to fulfill the Scripture, "NOT A BONE OF HIM SHALL BE BROKEN." And again another Scripture says, "THEY SHALL LOOK ON HIM WHOM THEY PIERCED."

in Acts 2:22-24 Peter said “Jesus the Nazarene, a man attested to you by God with miracles and wonders and signs which God performed through Him in your midst, just as you yourselves know-- this Man, delivered over by the predetermined plan and foreknowledge of God, you nailed to a cross by the hands of godless men and put Him to death. But God raised Him up again, putting an end to the agony of death, since it was impossible for Him to be held in its power;” V.32 “This Jesus God raised up again, to which we are all witnesses;” V.36 "Therefore let all the house of Israel know for certain that God has made Him both Lord and Christ--this Jesus whom you crucified."

Paul said in 1 Cor. 2:1-2 “When I came to you, brethren, I did not come with superiority of speech or of wisdom, proclaiming to you the testimony of God. I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ, and Him crucified.” In v.8 there Paul calls this message “the wisdom which none of the rulers of this age has understood; for if they had understood it they would not have crucified the Lord of glory.” And in 1 Cor. 15:1-4 Paul says “Now I make known to you, brethren, the gospel which I preached to you, which also you received, in which also you stand, by which also you are saved, if you hold fast the word which I preached to you, unless you believed in vain. For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received, that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.”

If Jesus did not die, He was not resurrected, and 1 Cor. 15:14 says “if Christ has not been raised, then our preaching is vain, your faith also is vain.” Do you grasp that? Jesus must have DIED in order to be RAISED; and even if Jesus died (which He did) He must have been RAISED or else He was no different than Moses or Elijah or any mere man, and Christianity is as vain as worshiping a golden calf! This is why Islam and any other religion born of man attacks the resurrection of Christ; and this is why God chose the resurrection as the most powerful testimony that God was at work in Christ and by Christ to offer salvation!

There is no harmony between the Bible and the Koran concerning Jesus and the cross and His death. You must choose one! It is a heaven or hell decision!!

Now, from the same chapter of the Koran, hear what it says about the deity and Sonship of Jesus Christ; “[4.171] O followers of the Book! do not exceed the limits in your religion, and do not speak (lies) against Allah, but (speak) the truth; the Messiah, Isa son of Marium is only an apostle of Allah and His Word which He communicated to Marium and a spirit from Him; believe therefore in Allah and His apostles, and say not, Three. Desist, it is better for you; Allah is only one God; far be It from His glory that He should have a son, whatever is in the heavens and whatever is in the earth is His, and Allah is sufficient for a Protector.”

The Koran here teaches that Jesus is NOT the Son of God, ONLY an apostle, and that Jesus is NOT God in the flesh and equal with God in heaven! But Col. 2:9 says “in Christ all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form” and Phil. 2:68 says this about Jesus; “who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. Being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross.” Heb. 1:8 says “Of the Son He (God) says, "YOUR THRONE, O GOD, IS FOREVER AND EVER, AND THE RIGHTEOUS SCEPTER IS THE SCEPTER OF HIS KINGDOM.”

If God calls Jesus GOD, who am I (and who is Muhammad) to say Jesus is NOT GOD? You must choose! There is no harmony between the Koran and the Bible! This is a heaven or hell decision!!

If you have ever considered Islam and Christianity as having any possibility of harmony, and of the Koran being another book sent by God I hope you see this is as wrong an idea as an idea can be!

May I remind you of three statements we have already read? John 3:16 “God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him shall not perish, but have eternal life.” John 8:24 “Unless you believe that I am, you will die in your sins." Acts 4:12 “There is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved."

What is your choice?