What if you took a poll in your church today and the question was about peoples confidence in sharing their faith with others. What other major world religion would cause people the most anxiety when sharing their faith? If you answered Islam you would probably be right for a large number of people.
There are probably many reasons as to why this would be the top answer, but I want to talk about what I believe are the top three reasons why it is difficult for a Christian to evangelize a Muslim.
First, if a Christian is nervous about making someone angry by explaining the Gospel to someone, he or she is not likely to engage a Muslim. Unfortunately, we have been inundated with images of extreme responses of Islam, but what we must remember is that this is less than 10% of the Islamic population in the world.
Most Muslims are just like us. They have jobs, they have families, they have problems, and they have faith. Like us, these individuals are loved by God and He would have sent Jesus to die for just one of them. That is how much love God has for them.
The likelihood of American Christians coming into contact with a Muslim continues to rise as millions of believers in Islam make the United States home. Recent research shows the number of Muslims in the United States continues to grow.
One in five Muslim adults came to the faith after being raised in a different religion as a child. This said, the numbers of new Muslims who convert in any given year is about the same as the number who leave the faith for some other religion.
How do we bridge the gap of fear to help a Christian feel comfortable talking with a Muslim. It’s the personal stories of those who have come out of the Islamic faith that really give us a clear picture of what it is like to grow up in a Muslim home. What if you could show your church members the personal stories of those who grew up under the oppression of Islam and saw that this was not the way to heaven? Do you think that would change the way they view Muslims? Do you think that your members would be more empathetic to their Muslim neighbor?
Secondly, most Believers do not even know what Islam teaches. A clear understanding of the Islamic faith is not taught in our churches today, because our main focus is teaching our members the Christian faith.
Unfortunately, this makes it hard when we want our people to witness to a Muslim because the Believer doesn’t know how to answer the questions that Muslims have. Some very important questions that Muslims often ask are, “Why is the Bible the Word of God and not the Qur’an” or “If God has a Son, does that mean He has a wife too?” or “Why is the death of Jesus connected to God’s forgiveness, can’t He just forgive if He wants to?” If your flock are not prepared for these inquiries, it could make them question their own faith.
Believers could become worried about the legitimacy of their own faith since they think they should be able to answer these questions without issue. What if there was a short video that contrasts the Islamic and Christian faiths? What if this film highlighted the most widely asked questions that Muslims pose to Christians and there are actual answers to those questions? Do you think your people would be more likely to try to fulfill the Great Commission with their Muslim neighbors when they have the confidence with their answers to the mostly likely asked questions?
Third, a Christian doesn’t know how to start the conversation with a Muslim. Let’s be honest, walking up to someone without a starting point to witness is a challenge no matter what faith they are.
It is intimidating to start a conversation about something so personal as a person’s belief system, but all the twelve Disciples in the Bible did just that. They started conversations with complete strangers and gave them the Gospel in a way that that person would understand.
This can be especially true when most Americans (82%) see Muslims in the United States as being discriminated against, and half of US adults believing the problem is severe. This can give people an additional level of apprehension.
We saw the need for a simple tool that will allow your church member to start a conversation easily and without pressure to have all the answers? What if they had a tool that would allow them to end the personal conversation about faith, but give the non-believer an invitation to continue to explore the answers to their questions in the comfort of their own home?
Are you wondering if there is a tool that will help your people engage with Muslims in a more effective way? I have the answer for you, it is TrueLife.org’s film Is Islam Correct? This film is a History Channel type presentation with a host and two experts, one from a Suni background and one from a Shia background. These two experts discuss the most prevalent questions that a Muslim has about their own beliefs and those of Christians. The film explores key aspects of history and incorrect information that has been been taught for centuries by those in the Islamic faith. At the end of the film, both of the experts give their own testimonies of their lives in the Islamic faith and how life has changed since obtaining the information that has just been explained in the film.
What if your pastor decided to change things up on Sunday morning and gave you a test instead of sermon? Imagine the first question being, “How did we get the Bible?” or “What is the evidence for the resurrection of Jesus Christ?” or “Why would a loving God allow abuse?” TrueLife.org is committed to not only answering the questions of those in other faiths, but also to help educate the Christian in their own faith. It is our mission to prepare believers for the questions they will face when they are sharing the Gospel with others. The questions on the website can be viewed in video or article format, and new articles and videos are made available as soon as they are ready. Most of the videos also have companion study and leader guides that can be used for small groups and Wednesday night services. These study guides include discussion questions and other resources to help each person become immersed in understanding each topic.
TrueLife.org also has an easy invitation and evangelism system that can get 70% of your church evangelizing and inviting after one five minute addition to your church service every week. This tool takes away the fear of evangelism because it gives people a starting point, a place to direct a non-believer to if they have more questions or questions the person cannot answer, and it also allows the Christian to engage with someone in the best way they know how if they don’t have a lot of time. The invitation and evangelism system is non-confrontational and gives Believers the confidence they need to engage the people at the gas stations and grocery stores in a more effective way than ever before.
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