muslims and God

k. karen wanted a "real" post so here goes. i've been holding onto this one since sunday at church - you know - week two of missions month :)

the guest missionaries last week were about to head over to Jordan for 3 years. that's a long ways away. they are young, probably in their late 20s or early 30s, with a small child. they currently live in minneapolis, where the guy was an assistant pastor at a small church.

sometimes, i cannot believe what people do for God.

anyway. did you know that right now, 1/5 of the the earth's population is muslim? i don't know alot about the muslim faith, they wear all the robes and stuff, and bow down to allah several times a day. that's about it. and to be truthful, i had not spent too much time thinking how God feels about muslims. here's the good news: he loves em :)

we found out that one of the greatest areas of breakthrough of the Gospel is actually iran! who knew! our missionary speaker chose to preach most of his message directly from Isaiah. which of course is a VERY good book.

from Isaiah 52:15:
so will he sprinkle many nations, and kings will shut their mouths because of him.
For what they were not told, they will see,
and what they have not heard, they will understand.

the thing that amazes me from this verse, is that God's plan is to reach people. He will reach people and tell them of His Son. people who have been raised to bow down to another WILL hear of Jesus. in many instances today, God is working thru the supernatural, visions and dreams, to reach people.

the gist of being muslim is of course based on works. if one leads a good life, follows the regulations and rules, there is a chance that you might see the promised land. but no guarantees. you must keep working.

i found it interesting also that the koran acknowledges Jesus, in fact, suggests that He will usher people in to the judgment after they die. however, they do not acknowledge the Resurrection. the talk of Him in the koran, however, is enough to bring about a curiosity for many muslims about Jesus. they want to know more about Him. one of the testimonies our speaker gave was of a man - who when finally confronted with the idea of Christianity - said simply "i cannot stop thinking about this Jesus."

i love that. i love that God has engrained Himself into who we are. whether we have Him from the start, or whether we dream of Him in some faraway land, where such dreams can cause great persecution, as well as finally. finally. finally. salvation. He is coming. and i am so glad :)

sigh.