Pastor McConnell, The Christian Faith and the Challenge of Islam

Well Christianity and Islam are back in the news again. Pastor Jim McConnell’s sermon in the Whitewell Tabernacle on “One God – One Faith” certainly drew a lot of media attention particularly because of what Jim had to say about Islam and its followers.

As preachers, one of our tasks is to teach truth. In order to do that sometimes we have to expose error.  We need to point out truth and error forcibly and clearly.  In a confused, mixed-up world words have to be used clearly and unambiguously and sometimes people might be offended by that.  Remember, even religious people were furious at some of the teachings of Jesus.  Paul upset people.  Both were persecuted and hounded because of what they taught. Persecution comes with the territory.
But also as preachers our words have to be weighed carefully, chosen wisely and delivered compassionately.  We must never appear to have mixed motives or personal agendas.  Do preachers always get that right?  Absolutely not – and in the online world and live stream and so on, the pressure is all the greater.

We live in a very PC world where tolerance is heralded as a virtue.  To appear intolerant of others beliefs or religion or sexual orientation, is regarded as the ultimate sin.  Preachers cannot bow to this pressure.  We must obey God rather than men.  Whatever the consequences

So what of Islam then?
 
It has 6 basic beliefs

Belief in Allah as the one and only God, in angels, in the holy books, in the Prophets... e.g. Adam, Ibrahim (Abraham), Musa (Moses), Dawud (David),Isa (Jesus), Muhammad is the final prophet.  Belief in the Day of Judgement.. and belief in Predestination...

Simply, when you analyse Islam it is diametrically opposed to biblical Christianity.  In practice therefore its most fervent and misguided advocates often see Christianity as an ‘enemy’ and that sometimes leads to persecution and, in extreme cases, death.  This is the outworking of Sharia law.

Wikipedia in an impartial but factual way reports this about Sharia law.

“According to scholars of traditional Islamic law, the applicable rules for religious conversion under Sharia are as follows:

• Leaving Islam is a sin and a religious crime. Once any man or woman is officially classified as Muslim, because of birth or religious conversion, he or she will be subject to the death penalty if he or she becomes an apostate, that is, abandons his or her faith in Islam in order to become an atheist, agnostic or to convert to another religion. Before executing the death penalty, Sharia demands that the individual be offered one chance to return to Islam.'

In other words if a Moslem converts to follow Christ, the death penalty may be applied.
But following Jesus means loving people, including our Moslem neighbours, caring for people and urging people of all creeds and religious beliefs to follow Christ.  Without fear or favour.  The pagan protestant and the religious Moslem – both equally need Christ.
As the mighty Peter once said, “Salvation is found in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to mankind by which we must be saved” Acts 4 v12

The Road to Success

Great night at the Ramada Hotel.  When was the last time you saw hundreds of people queuing to get into a Christian event and the police having to manage the traffic?  God just amazed us with his blessing.  I thought they might have been coming to hear my preaching (??) but I guess the real draw was the rugby boys and the great venue.

Nevertheless, if you missed it, and even if you didn’t, here’s a summary of my brief message on the night.  What is the real Road to Success?

If anyone knew how to spell SUCCESS it was him. He had it all as the leader of a vast empire. In fact, it was so good that when a rival leader arrived to see him, she exclaimed “I knew it was good but the half hasn't even been told me”  Like many successful people, he wrote a book about SUCCESS and warned against some of the things he had tried that REALLY LED TO NOWHERE!  Cul-de-sacs' and dead end roads that petered out and weren’t success at all. 

Wealth?  He had that.  But that wasn’t the road to success.

 Pleasure?  Misguided hard work?  Learning?  Wisdom? 

All good in themselves but not the road to success.  The man’s name was Solomon and the book is in our Bibles.  It’s called Ecclesiastes.  His answer is simple “Remember Him” That’s right.  Acknowledge God – the Creator God, who hung sun, moon and stars in the sky; who created plants and rivers and mountains and trees and flowers and monkeys and donkeys and kangaroos!  Remember him before you get too old before all the cul-de-sacs of life crush you and leave you disappointed and hopeless.  Don't exclude him from your life.

1000 years later along came that very God who said “What does it profit a man or woman if they gain the whole world and lose their soul?”  You could have everything and yet be a failure.  So he went to a cross and died for people like you and me to give us real hope and a new beginning.

SUCCESS?  Here it is...

SIMPLY

UNDERSTANDING that the

CROSS of

CHRIST

ETERNALLY
SAVES

SINNERS like us !!