Lesson 14 Reaching Muslims for Christ

Equipping the Saints: Understanding Islam
Reaching Muslims for Christ 1
A Special Topic Course
Presented by:
www.IslamicStateOfAmerica.com
Understanding Islam:
For Such A Time As This
Lesson 14: Reaching Muslims for Christ

Reaching Muslims for Christ
Introduction: God Is At Work!
• More Muslims are accepting Christ than at any other time in history
– More in the past ten years than in the entire 1400+ years of Islam’s history
• Church planting and baptisms are up in Muslim countries
– "In every hour, 667 Muslims convert to Christianity. Everyday, 16,000 Muslims convert to
Christianity. Ever year, 6 million Muslims convert to Christianity” (Source: Sheikh Ahmad Al
Qataani, President of The Companions Lighthouse for the Science of Islamic Law in Libya, during interview on
Al-Jazeerah network, May 7, 2007)
• Borders are opening and Islam is “reforming”
• Saudi King Fahd approved translation of the Arabic Qur’an into indigenous
languages… which has exposed misinterpretations of Christianity by Imams,
questioning their integrity and character
• More tools than ever are available to present the Gospel
– Jesus Film, Internet, radio, Faith Comes By Hearing
• B2J Movement – Back to Jerusalem
– Chinese home church movement determined to bring the Gospel back to the Middle East from
whence it originated
• Dreams and visions
2

Reaching Muslims for Christ 3
Video: Dreams and Visions – Is Jesus Awakening the Muslim World?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TW6Ith0h6Vo

Three Essentials for Your Witness
• Build relationships
– Fellowship, meals, sporting events
– Care for people, answer questions, be a friend
– Invite to spend time with you
• Tell Jesus stories
– Remember that Jesus has essential role in Qur’an… 93 times!
– All Muslims believe in Jesus… He is the bridge to a conversation
about the hope within you
• Pray
– Pray that God will soften his/her heart for the Gospel
– Pray that God will reach him/her with a vision of Jesus
4

Share Jesus Without Fear
• God is already at work
– You are simply joining Him in his amazing movement among Muslims
around the world
• God, through the Holy Spirit, is working on the heart of your friend
– Trust Him to complete that work
• God, through the Holy Spirit, is at work in you
– He will lead you in your words and actions as you trust Him
• God, through the Holy Spirit, is at work in the listener
– Even though you may be disappointed in your witness, what they hear
is not always just what you hear. Trust God for the outcome
• The Gospel never comes back void
– Share Jesus without fear.
– God will do His work. He needs you to be available
5

Jesus’ Example
• John 5:17-20
• The Father is still at work in our world
• We should join the Father wherever He is working
• Apart from the Father we can do nothing
• Be attentive with spiritual eyes and ears to know where the Father is
working
• Whenever we see the Father at work, stop whatever we are doing and
join Him
• The Father shows us where He is working, because He loves us and
wants to work through us in amazing ways
6
Do you want to be used by God in amazing ways?
Be available. Trust God for the opportunity and for the words.

Sharing the Hope Within You
• “Finding a person of peace is…
– A vital first step to a multiplying movement of new believers”
– Trust God to lead you to a person who is open to the Gospel
• Luke 10:1-20
– Go two by two
– Believe in the harvest
– Watch out
– Go needy
– Make your presence known
– Stay
– Heal and proclaim
– Know when to leave
– Expect results
7

Prepare to Share
• Pray first. Pray often. Expect results. Have a humble heart
• Approach spiritual discussions at the proper time
• Expect good will. Muslims love to entertain guests
• Do not be deceptive
– “I am an Isahi who loves Muslims”
– “I am a Christian but I am reading the Qur’an”
• Use your Muslim friend’s Qur’an. Use leading questions that draw
attention to Jesus
• Use a “bridge to the Bible”… get them out of Qur’an into God’s
word
• Lift up Jesus… Surah 3 attests to the divine attributes of Jesus
• Turn on your “radar”… God is at work… find out where
8

CAMEL Method
• “I know a three humped CAMEL named al-Imran who has 42
brothers and 55 sisters”
– Al-Imran is the Arabic name for Surah 3 of the Qur’an
– For more information, consult http://www.camelmethod.com/
• C – Chosen – Maryam was chosen by Allah for a special purpose
• A – Angels – Angels announced Messiah’s coming to Maryam
• M – Miracles – Jesus’ power is revealed in His miracles
• EL – Eternal Life – Jesus knows the way and is the way to heaven
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Key Points
• Lead with a question
– “I’ve been reading the Qur’an and have found that it says some very interesting
things about Isa. Would you open your Qur’an to surah al Imran, verses 3:42-55,
so that we can talk about it?”
• Isa is holy 3:45-47. Isa has power over death 3:49
• Isa knows the way to heaven 3:55
– “I am a sinner and I share Adam’s curse. By my own power I can never become
holy and get to be with Allah in heaven. Out of all the prophets, which one do you
think is most capable of helping me get to heaven?”
– Surah 46:9 (The Sandhills.) “If you had to choose between someone who says
he does not know what will happen to him after he dies, and one who is already
in heaven, which one would you rather have to lead you?”
• If necessary, share the Gospel in the language of your friend
– Faith Comes By Hearing makes it all possible!
– Free audio bibles and smart phone apps at www.faithcomesbyhearing.com
10

Bring Discussion Back to God’s Word
• Isa is holy Surah 3:45-47
• Isa has power over death Surah 3:49
• Isa knows the way to heaven Surah 3:55
• Man is separated from God and His love
– 1 Timothy 2:5 “God is on one side and all the people on the other side.”
• Because man has sinned against God
– Isaiah 59:2 “Your sins have cut you off from God.”
– Romans 3:23 “All have sinned and fall short of the glory of God.”
• Sin brings death and judgment
– Hebrews 9:27 “Man is destined to die once, and after that to face judgment.”
• Jesus, who died on the cross for our sins, is our way to God
– 1 Peter 3:18 “Christ died for sins once and for all… to bring you to God.”
• Personally receive Jesus in your life for the forgiveness of sins
– John 1:12 “To all who received Him, to those who believed in his name, He gave the right to
become children of God.”
11

12
Video: From Jihad to Jesus: The Jerry Rassamni Story
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rnVwJOCgFFE

Dreams and Visions
• Joel 2:28
– “I will pour out my spirit upon all flesh; your sons and daughters shall
prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, your young men shall see
visions.”
• Muslims all over the world are seeing the same visions
– The man in a brilliant white robe
– The good book, or people who will proclaim the meaning of the good book
– “You are on a twisted path. Take the straight path”
– “I am coming soon. Join me.” “Preach my Gospel.”
• An excellent “bridge” question to use in your conversations
– “Do you know of any Muslims in your community who are being visited in
their dreams by a prophet in a brilliant white robe?”
13
Will you join God in this amazing spiritual revolution?

Scripture for the Dreamers
• Matthew 17:2
– “… and He was transfigured before them. His face shone like the sun, and
His clothes became as white as the light.”
• Revelations 1:12-14a
– “Then I turned to see the voice that spoke with me. And having turned I
was seven lamp stands… one like the Son of Man, clothed with a garment
down to the feet and girded about the chest with a golden band. His head
and hair were white like wool, as white as snow…”
• Muslims all over the world are dreaming of this man
– Would you like to know who He is?
– Pray for Muslims to respond to their dreams. Pray that you can point them
to the Injil (Gospel). Have a copy of the New Testament ready to give
them.
14

Jesus Is Reaching People of Every Nation
• Khalil was a radical Egyptian terrorist who was
transformed when Jesus appeared to him and changed
his heart.
• Mohammed is a herdsman in Nigeria who found the deep
love of Christ. He survived various attempts on his life by
his father and eventually led his father to faith in Christ.
• Dini is an Indonesian teenager who became a Christian
on a night that Muslims individualize their prayers to
Allah. She was immediately filled with peace, even as
persecution began.
• Khosrow is a young Iranian man who was depressed and
without hope until he met Jesus. Now joy fills his heart.
• Ali is a Turkish man in bondage to alcohol. While making
the pilgrimage to Mecca, hoping to be freed of his
addiction and be led in the way of a true Muslim, he
found Christ instead.
15
Visit: MoreThanDreams.org

16
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6eMmel_vicc
Video: More Than Dreams—Jesus At Work in the Muslim World

Build relationships
Tell Jesus stories
Pray
17

In the Final Lesson
• Lesson 16
– “Reaching Muslims for Christ – II”
– How to share your faith in Christ with
Muslims
– How God is reaching the Islamic world
today
– A powerful conclusion to our 16 week
class
18
All presentations are available at:
www.IslamicStateOfAmerica.com

Backup Slides
• Georges Houssney research on how Muslims came to
saving faith in Jesus
• For more information consult:
– http://biblicalmissiology.org/author/ghoussney/
19

More Research On Muslim Conversions
• In the last few years, Georges Houssney has interacted with
hundreds of Muslim converts from many nations around the world.
As he heard many testimonies by Muslims of how they have come
to Christ, he decided to conduct a formal research to try to
understand the factors that led to their conversion.
• Georges prepared a questionnaire of 10 questions and asked 100
converts over a period of three years to fill it out. These converts
had come to national conferences for Christians from Muslim
Background held in Washington DC and New Jersey. The
questionnaire included multiple choice questions.
• Some respondents checked more than one response which
explains why the total is sometimes more than 100%.
20

About Georges Houssney
• Georges Houssney was raised in the predominantly Muslim city of
Tripoli, Lebanon. He came to faith in Jesus Christ as a teenager.
Soon God grew a deep love for Muslims in his heart, and he began
to sense God's call for full-time service among them.
• Well-known for his work supervising the translation and publication
of the Bible into clear modern Arabic, Georges and his family moved
from the Middle East to the United States in 1982 to minister to
international students. Georges is passionate about reaching
internationals here and abroad with the great news of salvation.
• He writes and lectures internationally about ministry to Muslims, and
he strives to awaken a new generation who will proclaim the gospel
boldly. Georges is founder and director of Horizons International and
does Muslim evangelism training through his training Engaging
Islam.
21

Survey of Muslim Converts - 1
• “Before I became a Christian, I was”
– The people who responded to this survey represented a good cross-
section of Muslim society:
– 40% were moderate.
– 40% had been nominal Muslims.
– 20% were self-described fanatic Muslims before their conversion. All of
them said fear dominated their relationship with God.
22

Survey of Muslim Converts – 2 & 3
• “As a Muslim, did you feel that your relationship with God was
based on fear, love, or duty/doing what is required?”
– 75% said it was based on fear.
– 40% included duty as a basis of their relationship with God.
– 5% said that as Muslims they felt that they had been worshiping God
rather than duty.
– Not one single respondent said that their relationship with God had
been based on love when they were Muslim.
• “What characteristic of God means most to you now?”
– 75% of the respondents mentioned the love of God.
– 25% mentioned God’s forgiveness.
23

• “What was the major factor in drawing you to Christ?
– 85% of respondents cited the love of Christians as one major factor.
– 60% cited it as the exclusive factor.
– 30 % cited disappointment with Islam.
– 25% noted that there were other reasons not listed leading to their
conversion.
– 25% experienced dreams and visions, most of Jesus but some various
dreams.
– 15% mentioned the Christian concept of God.
– 5% cited the Bible as the sole factor in their conversion.
24

• “What was the main change in your life after becoming a
Christian?”
– 40% were attracted to the reality of having a personal relationship with
God.
– 30% were drawn to the love of God and his fatherly nature.
– 25% of the responses talked about relief from fear.
– Some of the comments added were:
• “free at last”
• “My mind has been transformed by Christ.”
• “smile, love, tolerance,”
• “joy and happiness,”
• “hope.” “My life! Everything! I am a different being!”
• “180º = total change.”
25

• “What was your view of Islam before your conversion?”
– 55% described it as a cultural system (65% of the formerly secular
Muslims checked this.)
– 55% described it as a religion.
– 35% described Islam as a political system
– 20% indicated that all three aspects, political, cultural, and religious.
– 75% of the formerly fanatic Muslims described Islam as primarily a
religious system.
– 65% of the formerly nominal Muslims described it as by-and-large
cultural.
– The formerly moderate Muslims were fairly evenly divided on that issue;
– 25% saw it as political,
– 20% saw it as cultural,
– 30% saw it as religious.
26

• “Do you think that the God of the Bible is an entirely different
God than the Allah of Islam?,”
– 65% wrote that the two are entirely different,
– 10% wrote that they are not entirely different
– 25% wrote that God of the Bible and the Quran are both different and similar
• “After becoming a Christian, did you feel that you were
worshipping the same God?”
– 90% wrote that they feel that they are worshipping a different God.
– 5% wrote both “yes” and “no”
– 5% wrote that they felt they are now worshipping the same God.
27

• “Did you have any dreams or visions”
– 60% responded that they had experienced a dream or vision or both.
– 15% did not respond to this question
• “What characteristic of God means most to you now?”
– 75% wrote “Love of God.”
– 15% wrote “grace”
– 15% wrote “forgiveness”
– 5% did not answer.
28

Research Conclusions
• This research clearly demonstrates that conversion to Christ is more
driven by the positive aspects of Christianity than the negative
aspects of Islam. Muslims are primarily drawn to Jesus because of
his love and the love of his people. God is drawing Muslims to
himself by appearing to them in dreams and visions.
• 100% of the respondents were influenced by two major factors that
were not directly addressed by the questions.
– a. Scripture. Regardless of what factors drew Muslims to Christ, the
Bible was always an important factor. Without a copy of the New
Testament or the entire Bible, all the other factors would not have been
enough.
– b. Personal connection: In all situations all converts had a personal
relationship with a Christian who was involved in helping them
understand God’s plan of salvation.
29

Lesson 14 Reaching Muslims for Christ

Lesson 14 Reaching Muslims for Christ

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