Christ-centred witness

As Christians in Britain seek to reach out with the gospel to those of other faiths, including Muslims, it is vital that we ask ourselves what place we are giving to the Lord Jesus Christ in that witness.

Is it possible, for example, that the controversy between Islam and Christianity about who Jesus Christ really is and what he came into the world to do has made us uncomfortable in speaking boldly of the true glory of the God-man? We have been encouraged by some Christians that in speaking to Muslims we may need to avoid referring to Christ as the Son of God, lest we reinforce Muslim misunderstandings about Christian doctrine. Yet can we avoid the Bible’s high designations of Christ without being unfaithful?

It is not the intention of this article to give a definitive answer. Its purpose is rather to stimulate you, the reader, to think about the place that a full-orbed doctrine of Christ must have in your evangelism. While we do well to appreciate that there are complexities involved in speaking of the person of Christ to those of other faiths, surely we need to remember that presenting the real Christ to sinners as the only Saviour is the heart of the task that God has given us. In the end, it is the revelation that the Holy Spirit has entrusted to us in the Scriptures, and not our own human wisdom or cultural reservations, which must define the content of our message.

Countering misconceptions

It is clear that one of our key tasks in speaking to Muslims is to counteract the misconceptions of our beliefs concerning Jesus Christ that are commonplace in Islam. We Christians do not believe that God had a wife with whom he conceived a son. Nor do we believe that Mary is part of the Godhead. We abhor all such blasphemy with as much vehemence as any Muslim. But while Muslims are being taught that we believe such things, it is a vital part of our witness to disabuse them of their sad misunderstandings. Yet in doing so we must be very careful to avoid trying to sugar the pill of orthodox Christian belief about the true deity of Christ by being vague about our convictions or hiding the truth regarding our Saviour.

Christ at the centre

If we are to give Christ his rightful place in our witness, we must remember that Christianity is not primarily the religion of a book but of a person. Christianity is Christ in a way that Buddhism is not Buddha, nor Islam Mohammed. The centre of our faith is Christ himself, not his teaching. To understand this is to realise that the Bible is not the Christian equivalent of the Qu’ran. Let me seek to explain what I’m saying.

It is true to say that religion is quintessentially revelation, and so the study of any religion is the study of the claimed revelation it is based on. In Islam that revelation is the Qu’ran, that Muslims believe to be Allah’s last direct word or testament to mankind, given to Mohammed by the angel Gabriel. However, in Christianity the heart of God’s revelation is found, not in writings, but in the person of Jesus Christ, the Logos, the Word made flesh. The Christian claim is not that God sent an angel or a prophet, but that he came himself, having taken human nature for himself, in order to reconcile human beings to himself.

This truth not only nails the pluralist lie that Allah and Jehovah are one and the same god, but demonstrates to us the true nature of God in a way that no verbal assertion can. Islam confidently asserts that one of the 99 names of Allah is that he is Al-Wad_d, the loving one. And some Muslims even pretend that it is a higher and more superlative love than is found in the God of Scripture. Yet when the Bible tells us that God is love it speaks of a far more astonishing love than Islam can imagine, and a love that defines God, the love that gave his Son to damnation in order to reconcile a vile and rebellious world to himself.

Scripture, revelation and Christ

The fact that Jesus Christ is the essence of God’s revelation to human-kind does not detract from Scripture, but gives the Bible its true glory. Scripture is the God-breathed testimony of Christ, and has been given so we can know that salvation, available to us and all mankind, 2,000 years later. And yet it does seem that there are things in Scripture that complicate our witness to Muslims and may tempt us to shy away from using Christ-centred Scripture as we seek to bear testimony.

Yet it is surely true that to be wary of using the Scripture’s own testimony to Jesus in our witness to Muslims is to keep our most effective evangelistic weapon out of the battle. Sure, God’s Word must be used with discretion, but it can also be used with real confidence. It is true that the cultural hearing aid through which Muslims listen to all the Scriptural statements about Jesus being the Son of God presents us with the need to spend time and care in giving a faithful explanation of the Scripture’s teaching, as well as driving us to God for the power of his Spirit.

It is also true that Muslim neighbours may not have the appetite to listen nor the willingness to understand. Yet God assures us that his Word is the sword of the Spirit. As such it teaches and corrects, and penetrates deep within the soul and spirit. More than that, it holds the promise of the Spirit’s illumination like no other evangelistic tool. It is the Spirit’s delight to lead men and women to Christ, and he is well able to produce understanding of, and affection for, the Saviour — using the book he has given us for that very purpose.

Some involved in Muslim outreach encourage us to use Qu’ranic verses in our witness to Muslims, when these verses appear to help to support Christian truth. The whole question of the use of the Qu’ran is a fraught one and presents real difficulties. Yet whatever view we have of that issue, it is clearly much more important that Muslims, and peoples of other faiths (or none), should hear the self-attesting words of Scripture from our lips. It is these words, by the Spirit of God, which cause men’s hearts to burn within them.

Paul’s methods or ours?

It is feared that today many Christians and churches have lost confidence in the gospel and its simple proclamation, and that secular business methodology is determining much witnessing strategy. Some have sought to justify that approach, not only calling it contemporary, but seeking to find echoes of it in Paul’s ministry at Athens and elsewhere. Yet Paul was adamant that his strategy was to be single-minded in presenting ‘Jesus Christ and him crucified’. Indeed, he consciously veered away from adopting worldly wisdom, in order to be sure of the powerful aid of the Spirit (1 Corinthians 2.2-4).

Surely we must focus on Christ in our witness, even when speaking with those who have distorted views of him. Paul preached Christ with a fervour that offended many of his religious hearers, yet the Spirit used his ministry to draw many of the same kind of people to the Saviour. We can look for him to do the same for us in our very varied society.

The uniqueness of Christ

Christianity is about Christ. When sinners repent they are being drawn to him, not to a religious structure. He meets the sinner at the cross with a loving embrace, and unites us to him. Surely, then, it is incumbent on the Christian to bear witness to Christ above all — to his incarnation, his life, his death and his resurrection. We must make sure that displaying Christ, testifying to him, and boasting about him are at the centre of our ministry visions, approaches and practices.

This is absolutely essential in this day of pluralism. It is only when we emphasise to Muslims (or any other contacts) the beauty of Jesus Christ that we portray appropriately and personally the uniqueness of the Saviour. As Donald MacLeod has pointed out (Person of Christ, IVP), when it comes to facts, and especially the facts about Christ, Christianity and other faiths are in collision. Simply stated, if Jews and Muslims are correct in their views of Christ, Christianity collapses. However, since Christians are correct in their high views of Jesus Christ, Christian exclusivism is fully justified. And it will not do to suggest, as some Christians do, that Christ is the anonymous Saviour in other religions and belief systems. He is Saviour only of those who consciously believe in him, those who depend on him for acceptance with God and eternal life. For that reason it is essential that our witness is very specifically focused on the majestic Christ of the New Testament.

Christ revealed in our lives

Finally, it is vital to add that our witness to our fellow men, including those of other faiths, will only be authentic if Christ is not only the testimony of our lips but flavour of our lives. Our interactions with non-Christians should confirm and testify to our union with Christ. Where we speak of Christ, do we do so with awe and wonder, with delight and warmth? And do his attributes, qualities and saving power become evident to our non-believing friends? Is our union with Christ, which he secured on the cross, apparent in the coffee shop, traffic queue, living room and mum and toddler group? Surely God will bless the ministry that is preoccupied with and possessed by Jesus Christ.

Let us grasp that the greatness of Christ is the focus of all Christian truth. And let us understand that our appreciation of him is the means to all Christian progress. Hence we should declare Christ’s greatness as our missionary anthem. It is appreciation of the greatness of the Saviour that will inform our worship, encourage us in prayer, fortify our service, and strengthen our resolve.

The vision, then, is not a new missionary methodology, but a lifestyle. A life that boasts of Christ, while, at the same time, imitates him, is one that will pierce unbelieving hearts for the gospel in a simple but profound way. And such a life is likely to be more valuable and effective in the task of making disciples of all nations than even the most contemporary and well thought out strategies that the best educated of missionary planners could come up with. It is not that the choice of methods is unimportant. It is simply that no evangelistic method can make up for a lack of preaching the authentic Christ from a life dominated by Christ-like grace.

Looking at evangelising Muslims

Countering misconceptions

Christ at the centre

Scripture, revelation and Christ

Paul’s methods or ours?

The uniqueness of Christ

Christ revealed in our lives

Natalie Tunbridge

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