Evangelicals Now
Christian news worldwide
magnifying glass Search archives
home Home check the archives Archives Subscribe Subscriptions Advertising Information & booking of classifieds Adverts Find a local evangelical Church Find a church for the search engines and extremely curious! About us Contact us Site Map
Printable
Version

Why follow Jesus?

WHY FOLLOW JESUS?
By Steven Masood
OM Publishing. 128 pages
ISBN 1 85078 264 4

This is an evangelistic book written with Muslims particularly in mind. It is full of solid gospel truth and focuses particularly on the authority of the Bible and the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ.

Both Christianity and Islam have their roots in the Jewish Scriptures. It begins with what the Qu'ran has to say supporting both the Old and New Testaments. It tells us that the Qu'ran insists that both the Injil (the Qu'ran's way of referring to the gospels) and the Torah (first five books of Moses) are guidance for everyone, 'clear testimony for mankind, and a guidance and mercy' (Qu'ran 28.43). When speaking to Muslim people about the Bible they often argue that the Bible text has been corrupted and is now untrustworthy. Mr. Masood addresses that crucial question. The Qu'ran itself never suggests that the text of Scripture has been corrupted. Some claim that the Injil and the Torah have been corrupted since the rise of Islam, but we have OT and NT documents (from the Dead Sea Scrolls, for example) which predate the rise of Islam and confirm the modern Scriptures.

After laying this scriptural foundation, the rest of the book focuses on the Lord Jesus. Again, references to him within the Qu'ran are quoted before moving on to a full consideration of the OT prophecies concerning him, his Messiahship, his deity, his teaching and his sacrifice. The way of life Jesus taught in purity, charity and prayer is given substantial consideration.

There are theories which Muslims often raise about the death and resurrection of Jesus, for example that it was actually Judas who was crucified, and again the author deals with these succinctly and cogently. Wherever possible he quotes the Scriptures. Muslim people are usually refreshingly serious people and it is so good to read an evangelistic book which majors on what is biblical rather than in packaging the message for the entertainment-centred Western mind.

Having started by quoting the Qu'ran, the author does not seem to deal with how a Muslim must view the Qu'ran if he or she became a Christian. But perhaps the book is meant to be a helpful first step along the road to faith without trying to do everything.

John Benton