God Loves Muslims. DO YOU?

By Bill Commons – reprinted with permission from the Message, Vol. 54, No. 4. The Message is a publication of the Association of Baptists for World Evangelism (ABWE).

September eleventh is still fresh in our memories, especially after observing the fifth anniversary of that horrendous day. Television news is filled with disturbing reports from Iraq, and our country is divided by red and blue opinions, along with conflicting approaches to the War on Terror. Muslim extremists have captured the headlines, and the Western world trembles in fear, wondering when and where the next attack will take place.

As a result, North American Christians are largely in a state of reaction, thinking politically and militarily rather than biblically. Churchgoers often avoid anybody in Islamic dress and tend to be suspicious of those who look or sound Middle Eastern, though only a small percentage of Muslims come from that region.

How should we relate to the Muslims that live among us? Do our attitudes reflect Calvary’s love? We quote John 3:16, but do we live out the truth that “God so loved the world” – including all people, irrespective of race or religion?

“God so loved [Muslims] that He gave His only begotten Son.” The one true God proved His love from them by giving Himself in the person of Christ so they might be reconciled.

This same Savior is living through Bible believers today by the power of the Holy Spirit. “Christ in you, the hope of glory” (Colossians 1:27). He enables us to love as He does.

But for many believers, fears and suspicion quench the Holy Spirit, short-circuiting His ministry through them. Do we tend to allow events and political tensions to override our Lord’s command to love all people, whatever their religious, political, or military orientation? Such factors as racial pride, resentment of immigrants, or fear of extremists could make us forget that God loves Muslims, and we should too.

ABWE personnel living in Muslim majority nations tell us that Muslims have the same human needs and desires as we have in Western cultures. They want the daily freedom to care and love for their families, to work and earn money, to express themselves creatively and artistically, and to enjoy friendships with whomever they choose. In general, they are kind, hospitable, and hardworking. The news on television only focuses on the five percent of Muslims that are considered “radical.”

When watching world news, we ought to ask, “What is God doing?” He often uses the raging of nations to praise Him. For example, as a result of Instituted Islamic law in Iran, many Muslims have left the country and the Muslim faith, and some are now part of a growing number of Iranian Christian churches all across Europe. One Iranian convert described Islam in his country before the Ayatollahs came as a nicely wrapped package on a shelf. “But when the Imams made us open it and eat it,” he said, “and it stunk, and was bitter.”

Because of immigration and the fact that Europeans aren’t having large families, Islam is the fastest growing religion throughout Europe. But what you won’t hear on the news is that in France, for example, the fastest growing religious group by conversion is former Muslims becoming Christians. Even though the effects from the spread of Islam are felt all over the world, researchers inform us that more Muslims have come to saving faith in Christ during the past thirty years than in the previous 1,300 years combined.

Missionaries have often been befriended and protected by their Muslim friends and my sympathetic Muslim government officials. We honor those in Muslim communities around the world who have reached out in friendship to minority Christians living among them.

It is our desire to form friendships across religious, cultural, political, and ideological boundaries that all too often alienate people from each other. When we interact evangelistically with friends from other religious traditions, it should always be in a spirit of mutual respect and a sincere eagerness to gain understanding about their cherished beliefs. We must first listen emphatically to others before they are ready to listen to us. Plowing the soil with compassion-in-action is often essential preparation to planning the seed, and watering the seed must be done with a humble spirit that demonstrates the authenticity of the message we bring.

Our Muslim friends are often uninformed about God’s redemptive love for them and do not realize that genuine Christians seek not to conquer but to serve. Compassion and respect, in the love of Christ, melts barriers and open hearts to the Savior who laid down His life for Muslims.

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