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3. The Realization of Salvation in the Church of Jesus Christ
The Koran Denies the Deity of the Holy Spirit: In the book of Muslims there are 29 verses that speak of a “Spirit from Allah”, or a “Spirit of the Holy”. Primarily understood thereby, is the angel, Gabriel, who supposedly revealed the Torah, the New Testament, and the Koran. The Spirit of Allah appears at the creation of Adam, at the conception of Jesus in the Virgin Mary, at the miracles of Jesus, and at the so-called reception of revelation by Mohammed. In every case the Spirit of Allah is a created Spirit, possessing no divine or eternal nature (Suras Bani Isra'il 17:85; al-Schura 42:52; al-Qadr 97:4). Entire contents of the third article of faith, thereby, fall away in Islam. The impact of this denial is devastating. In this desert religion there can be no spiritual life. The Holy Spirit did not dwell in Mohammed, and neither in his followers. Allah alone is Lord in Islam. Beside him there can be no divine Spirit, and no Son. The recognition of God, the Father, and of God, the Son, is rejected as blasphemy, which cannot be forgiven. A salvation by faith is unthinkable in Islam (Suras Fatir 35:29-30; al-Tawba 9:11). The Fruit of the Spirit, or spontaneous prayer in conversation with the Father, do not exist in this religion. In Islam, spiritually speaking, “death is in the pot” (2 Kings 4:40).
The Lack of Renewal in Practical Life in Islam: The piety of Muslims, their fanaticism and their ritual prayers, have nothing to do with the Spirit of Jesus. They are remnants of a fallen creation. Sanctification of the believer into the likeness of God is rejected as error in Islam. In contrast, there is the pursuit of money and loot (Suras al-Anfal 8:41, 67, 70; al-Fath 48:20), or the sanctioned right of men to practice polygamy. The goal of a Muslim's striving is the gaining of affluence, power, and honor in a religious state. He knows of no certain hope of eternal life in Christ. He hopes that Allah will be positively inclined toward his good deeds, so that his bad deeds will thereby be wiped away (Sura Hud 11:114).
In Islam there is no Spirit of Comfort, who speaks justification to the Muslim on the basis of Christ's atoning sacrifice. The spirit of law and revenge drive away the Spirit of forgiveness and love. The spirit who spoke from Mohammed is no holy spirit, but a spirit of antichrist and impurity.
4. Completion of Salvation in Eternity
Any religion or philosophy that has no answer for death is worthless. In this, Jesus revealed to us weighty words: “Most assuredly, I say to you, he who hears my word and believes in Him who sent Me has everlasting life, and shall not come into judgment, but has passed from death into life.” (John 5:24; 3:16,18) Jesus reinforced this testimony of a victory over death with a word of consolation: “I am the resurrection and the life. He who believes in Me, though he may die, he shall live. And whoever lives and believes in Me shall never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26)
The Certain Hope of Eternal Life: In view of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit in the followers of Christ, Paul wrote: “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). The Holy Spirit is the down payment on the glory that will be revealed to all who believe in Christ (2 Corinthians 1:22; 5:5; Ephesians 1:14). John wrote: “Behold what manner of love the Father has bestowed on us, that we should be called children of God - and we are! …And it has not yet been revealed what we shall be, but we know that when He is revealed, we shall be like Him, for we shall see Him as He is” (1 John 3:1-2; Revelation 1:13-18). Previously Paul had testified: “For whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son, that He might be the firstborn among many brethren” (Romans 8:29). We worship the Father and the Son, because by grace they draw us to be with them in eternity.
Christians bear the steadfast hope of eternal life in them, for the Holy Spirit in them is eternal life (John 6:63; 17:3; Romans 6:23; 8:10; Galatians 6:8; 1 Peter 4:6; Revelation 11:11). He who has this hope purifies himself, and expectantly waits for the return of Christ in glory. He will complete His glorious work (Romans 13:11; 1 Peter 1:5-9; Hebrews 9:28).
The Return of Jesus Christ: Jesus testified to His judges in the religious court in Jerusalem that they, from the realm of the dead, would see Him sitting at the right hand of the Power, and coming on the clouds of heaven (Matthew 26:64). In this testimony, He combined the Messianic promises of Psalm 110:1 and Daniel 7:13-14. The return of Christ is the most important event of the future. Everything which we experience or do should be directed at this goal. Even Moslems know that Jesus Christ is coming again – in their opinion, to kill the antichrists, to destroy the crosses on churches and graves, to marry, and to convert mankind to Islam. What a distortion, what a perverted picture of reality!
The return of Christ in glory brings decisive events with it. In our confession of faith we profess that He will come again, to judge the living and the dead. At the arrival of Christ all of the dead will be resurrected to judgment – one of the colossal events of world history (Romans 14:10; Acts 17:31; 2 Corinthians 5:10).
The Judgment of Jesus Christ: The account in Matthew 25:31-46 should move every thoughtful person to deep unrest: The Lord of Glory will sit on His throne, gather all of the nations before Him, and separate man from man, like a shepherd separates the sheep from the rams. He will praise His followers at His right hand, and address them as the “Blessed of His Father”, because they provided for the needy. They will not even be aware of their service, because it was natural to them that they should help. But Jesus judged their ministry as if they had served Him personally. He speaks to them as heirs of the Kingdom of God. The Judge will then ask those standing at His left, why they, in not ministering to the needy, had not ministered to Him. They will answer Him that they had not encountered any needy. Their hearts were hard. They had only seen themselves and their own selfish interests. Jesus will say to them: You who are cursed! Enter into the fire of the one who inspired you, the devil, for ever!
There arises here a difficult question. Have the “Blessed of the Father” always done only good, or also, frequently done bad? In addition, have not the followers of evil also sometimes done good? Certainly! But the followers of Jesus have confessed to Him all of their known sins, and by faith in His word and in His substitutionary death received His forgiveness. There remained nothing negative in their lives. Furthermore, through knowledge of the love and suffering of Jesus, their hearts were made merciful. With the followers of Satan it was just the opposite. They did not recognize and confess their sin, and did not receive the forgiveness of Christ. They locked themselves out of the salvation that had also been prepared for them. Money, power, sex and honor became the themes of their lives. They fell deep into depravity.
We should carefully consider and pray over the questions and answers that will come from our future Judge in advance. We should be concerned to intercede for Muslims and Jews, who have rejected the salvation sacrifice of the Son of God. Can the love of Christ transform us into men and women who will offer ourselves in love, prayer, faith, sacrifice, witness and service, as the Spirit of Christ leads? The salvation of God authorizes us to serve.
The Goal of Our Hope: The Lord Jesus, as a sign of His omnipotence, performed numerous miracles (John 21:25). He healed all the sick that came to Him, drove demons out of those possessed, and reigned as Lord over the elements of nature. His coming overcame destructive forces in our existence. It served as a down payment for His future kingly rule in the new heaven and the new earth, a kingdom which will be built upon His righteousness (Isaiah 65:17; 66:22; 2 Peter 3:13; Revelation 21:1, 27).
Jesus' rising from the dead also revealed to us our future manner of existence. With His Spirit-body He passed through the stone sealing His grave. Unhindered and quietly He passed through closed doors (John 20:19; Luke 24:36-43). We will receive an incorruptible spirit-body without wrinkles or blemish (1 Corinthians 15:42-44; 1 Peter 1:4-9). There will be no more marriage between men and women (Matthew 22:29-33; Galatians 3:28). We will worship God and His Lamb in the holy garments of His justification, and serve Him with joyous gratitude (Revelation 7:15; 22:3-5). It will be visible: “If anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.” (2 Corinthians 5:17; Galatians 6:15)
We do not look toward eating, drinking and other earthly pleasures in heaven. We want to “return home” and see our Father! (Luke 15:17-24). Fellowship with the Father and the Son is the mystery, and the content, of our salvation (Jeremiah 7:3; Revelation 21:3). We cannot grasp the greatness of this promise with our understanding. But we can give thanks for it in advance. His peace and love will encompass and transform us. There will be no suffering, no anguish, and no pain; death will no longer exist. The Father will be like a mother, and wipe away all tears from our eyes. He will make everything new, pure and holy (Revelation 21:3-5; Leviticus 11:44; 19:5; Matthew 5:48). The Beatitudes of Jesus will show themselves to be true (Matthew 5:3-12). We will discover what it means to be God's children, His family, and His temple (Ephesians 2:19-22).
The Lamb that was sacrificed has redeemed us, He has drawn us into His salvation and strengthened us therein (Revelation 7:10,17; 21:22-23). Our Savior is our Salvation. He is our hope, our life, our peace (John 14:6, 27; Ephesians 2:14), just as the songwriter, Krummacher, wrote: Nothing have I to bring- you, Lord, are everything!
PRAYER: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, One God, we magnify You and love You because You loved us first, and saved us by the atoning death of Your Anointed One and for the dwelling of Your love Spirit in us. Who are we, and who are You? Your are the true Holy One, who chose us, reprobates, cleansed us, adopted us, and gave second birth to us of the Spirit of Your life by Your grace. We cannot but give thanks and praise and commit ourselves to You with all those who have been sanctified and are living forever.
The teaching of Islam Regarding Judgment, Hell and Paradise: The resurrection from the dead is the theme of the sixth article of faith in Islam. Muslims await certain events that will signal in advance the resurrection. Belonging to these signs is the appearance of Gog of Magog, who will be held back by Alexander the Great (the two-horned) (Sura al-Kahf 18:83-98)! The antichrist (Dajjal) will be killed, along with all swine, by the returning Christ. After Isa will have converted the godless world to Islam, He will die. His burial in Medina in the grave of Mohammed will then trigger the final judgment (Sura al-Zukhruf 43:61)!
The last judgment, with twelve different names, is mentioned 148 times in the Koran. It will last 50,000 earth years (Sura al-Ma'aridj 70:4). At the final judgment there will be a loud resounding, as the angel blows the first trumpet, following which all living things will either die or fall into unconsciousness. At the sounding of the second trumpet, the heaven will split open, the mountains disintegrate, and all the dead be resurrected (Suras al-An'am 6:73; al-Kahf 18:99; Ta Ha 20:102; al-Mu'minun 23:101; al-Naml 27:87; Ya Sin 36:51; al-Zumar 39:68; al-Haqqa 69:13; al-Muddaththir 74:8; al-Naba' 78:18; al-Infitar 82:1-5; al-Qari'a 101:4-7). All creatures, including the archangels and the Spirit, shall stand in long lines and remain quiet, until they are questioned (Sura al-Naba' 78:38).
Eight angels will carry the throne of Allah, which will oversee the judgment of mankind (Suras al-Fatiha 1:2-4; al-Haqqa 69:17). Books will be opening in which every deed stands written. A great scale with two pans will weigh the good deeds against the bad (Suras al-A'raf 7:8-9; al-Mu'minun 23:102-103; al-Shura 42:17). The justified will receive the written judgment in their right hand, the condemned in the left hand.
Above the raging fire of hell stands a bridge. In crossing this bridge the damned will fall headfirst into the sea of flames, while the light-footed righteous ones will quickly scurry across it into paradise.
Hell, “Djahannam” or “Djahim”, is dramatically described 103 times in the Koran. “Paradise”, too, as a garden, double-garden, or many gardens, appears 103 times. Earthly pleasures await justified ones in paradise. But Muslims are not said to be residents of the seven heavens, which float high above the gardens of paradise.
The Unbridgeable Difference: Insurmountable contrasts arise when comparing the future expectations of the Koran with the promises of the Bible:
In Islamic judgment, the judge will not be Jesus, our Savior, but Allah, the arbitrary ruler, who misleads who he will, and rightly guides who he will.
Muslims possess no Biblical recognition of sin. They don't know that they are corrupt, guilty and lost, like all other people. They hope their faith and good works will be enough for their justification at the time of judgment.
Muslims are convinced they need no atoning sacrifice, and no mediator. They conscientiously reject the One crucified (Sura al-Nisa' 4:157). Their hatred against the Son of God rises from time to time to a curse (Suras Al 'Imran 3:61; al-Tauba 9:29). They fight their Savior and their Judge.
In Islam there is no new spiritual creation (Revelation 21:5). Much more, Muslims expect a detailed restoration or an exact replication of the old creation, so that the skin grooves of their new thumbs line up with those of their earlier thumbs. Pleasure and suffering will be multiplied in paradise and in hell. Since there is no Holy Spirit in Islam, there occurs no spiritual renewal for Muslims in paradise.
According to a tradition of Mohammed, 90 percent of the residents in paradise will be men, and 90 percent of the residents of hell will be women, because these were not always submissive and compliant to their husbands. For this reason, Allah has created for Muslim men numerous virgins in paradise (up to 70 per man), and given to the justified a greatly increased sexual potential (Suras Ya Sin 36:55-58; al-Saffat 37:49; al-Rahman 55:56, 74; al-Waqi'a 56:35-37; al-Naba' 78:33).
At the very least these Koran verses should convince even the best friend of Muslims that Islam is a false teaching, long ago uncovered and judged by Jesus. He said: “You are mistaken, not knowing the Scriptures nor the power of God. For in the resurrection they neither marry nor are given in marriage, but are like the angels of God in heaven” (Matthew 22:23-33; Mark 12:18-27; Luke 20:27-38).
Allah himself will not be present in the paradise of the Muslims, but floats high above the seven heavens. He remains the great, distant, unreachable God, who seeks no company with Muslims, and offers them no sanctification and no salvation. Islamic mystics have, to be sure, tried to read Allah's presence into certain verses of the Koran. This, however, is rejected by renowned Islamic exegetes.
In the Koran there also stands the shocking sentence, that all Muslims go to hell, except the martyrs killed in holy war (Suras Maryam 19:71,72; al-Sajda 32:13; al-Tauba 9:111). Following that, Allah will only deliver the super-pious out of the flames. In this Koran verse there appears the infrequent concept of “delivery” (Sura Maryam 19:72). But the majority of Muslims, including all animists, Jews and Christians, will be roasted in eternal agony. Here again, Islam shows itself to be built upon an unrealistic righteousness of works.
No Muslim finds certainty of salvation in his religion of law. Muslims hope, to be sure, that Allah will forgive their sins in judgment. After all, in the Koran he is designated more than 100 times as “the forgiving”. But no one knows if he truly wants to forgive their sin, or, if so, all of it, or just a part. Jesus said: “Son, be of good cheer; your sins are forgiven you.” (Matthew 9:2; Psalm 103:3; Luke 7:48). An authoritative word such as this cannot stand in Islam, since only after a long judicial process on the Day of Judgment can Allah's decision be rendered.
Muslims know no Father-God, reject reconciliation with God through Christ, and have no idea of life in the Holy Spirit. In Islam spiritual death reigns all the way to paradise.
5. Summary of the Supplement: The Salvation of God in the Old and New Testament
The Revelation of Jesus expressly reports of the martyrs who suffered through the great tribulation of the last days. Their victory cry in heaven is: “Salvation belongs to our God who sits on the throne, and to the lamb!” (Revelation 7:10; 11:15; 12:10). These who suffered martyrdom will see just what they believed in. They know that completed salvation will also be fulfilled in us, and that all the promises of the New Testament will be realized. “So Christ was offered once to bear the sins of many. To those who eagerly wait for Him He will appear a second time, apart from sin, for salvation” (Hebrews 9:29).
Peter further writes: “…who are kept by the power of God through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. Though now you do not see Him, yet believing, you rejoice with joy inexpressible and full of glory, receiving the end of your faith – the salvation of your souls” (1 Peter 1:5, 8-9).
“Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ. He who calls you is faithful, who also will do it” (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).
Whoever considers this great and holy salvation, and recognizes what the Lord Jesus, in unity with the Father and with the Holy Spirit, did for us, will sense the depth of God's righteousness, and foresee the all penetrating holiness of God in His coming judgments. But where people, world views or religion consequently reject or blaspheme His salvation, the Holy God can do nothing else than to give them up to mutually destroy each other.
PRAYER: O Christ, Holy Lamb of God, we thank You for shedding Your precious blood for us, we rejoice for the outpouring of Your Holy Spirit on us, we become glad for sharing us in Your everlasting life, and we long to You praying, "Come Lord Jesus! Accomplish Your salvation in Your followers, and win many of the multitudes who oppose Your way."
QUESTION:
- What is the hope of the believers in Christ?