What Is True Islam?

What Is True Islam?

(Based upon an article in Prophecy in The News, June 2016)

8/14/16 CFBC Chester, IL Dr. Mike Fogerson, Speaker

Introduction:

A For the last several years, it has become common place to hear of bombings, shootings, attacks done in the name of Islam.

1 Some of these: Boston bombing, Paris bombing, Belgium train sation bombing.

a In other places . . . San Bernadino shootings, Fort Hood, Chattanooga, Beheading in Oklahoma, Orlando Shooting.

b Boko Haram Nigerian kidnappings, Kenya mall killings, cutting the throat of a priest giving Communion recently in Europe.

aa In Iraq, the tomb of Jonah was blown up . . . Palmyra ancient Temples blown up.

bb All of these were atrocities were perpetrated by Muslims.

2 Our politicians/Muslim apologists are quick to tell us that these terrorists acts don’t represent true Islam.

a Most won’t even describe the perpetrators as Islamic, Islamic Extremists, Islamic Terrorists.

b Who can tell us what true Islam is? What Islam represents? ONE PERSON: Mohammed.

B Mohammed, the quintessential epitome Islamic life, is emulated by Muslims world wide.

1 His life was called sunna, which means the way or the example.

a Mohammed’s life can be catagorized into three different stages:

aa His life as a religious leader

bb A political leader

cd a military leader

b All three of these stages in Mohammed’s life plays a role in defining, understanding true Islam.

2 Mohammed as Religious Leader.

a In 610 AD (Mecca), Mohammed began as religious leader with 70 converts over a 12 year period.

aa In 622 AD, Mohammed began to confrontational with the leadership of Mecca and they threw him out of town for disturbing the peace.

bb He tried to go to the city of al-Taif, but they chased him off with rocks.

b With nowhere to go, Mohammed was a Muslim refugee.

aa In 622 AD, he fled to Medina, a city controlled by Jewish tribes.

bb The Jews allowed Mohammed, the Muslim immigrant, stay at Medina.

3 Mohammed as Political Leader

a Mohammed went to Medina’s pagan neighborhood and began to organize these people who had grievances with the Jewish controlled government.

(He put pressure on these folks to join his movement, become his followers politically.)

b Mohammed’s influence grew in Medina to the point where the jews made a treaty with him, recognizing him as a political leader in addition to the religious leader of Islam.

4 Mohammed as Military Leader

a Back in Mecca, Mohammed’s followers became confrontational and were ran out of town like their founder.

aa They became refuges . . . fled to Medina and were allowed in by the Jews.

bb In contrast to Jesus’ teaching of “love your enemies, bless those who curse you; do good to those who hate you; if they take your coat, give them your shirt”, Mohammed allowed his followers to rob trade caravans headed to Mecca in retaliation for kicking them out of the city.

cc In other words, if they take your home . . .you take their caravan.

b A whole chapter in the Qur’an, Sura 8, is dedicated to how his 300 warriors were to distribute stolen goods. (BTW, Mohammed received 20%)

c In 624 AD, Mecca sent 1,000 soldiers to escort their caravans.

aa The 1,000 soldiers were defeated by Mohammed and his 300 warriors at the Battle of Badr.

bb He’d go on to fight 66 battles over the next eight years . . . reportedly killing 3,000 before he died.

d He used catapults when attacking the city of al-Taif, and when he was told that the stones were killing innocent women/children, Mohammed’s response was “they are among them.” (IOW, they’ve got to be killed too.)

C Today, every time a suicide bomber/ISIS fighter engages their brutality they think their following Mohammed’s example: religiously, politically, militarily.

1 Today, trying to separate the religious side of Islam from the political-military side of Islam is like trying to split Mohammed.

a The Quran isn’t simply an Islamic book of doctrine, but also how to run the government, courts, laws.

b Sharia Law. Caliphate.

aa In Islam, the world is divided in two: The House of Allah (submitted to Allah) & The House of War (in the process of submission to Allah.)

bb Caliphate (Islamic State) is their goal by whatever means possible.

2 Islam tells the world that it is religion of peace, but their definition of peace is not your definition of peace.

a Lincoln (at the Sanitary Fair of Baltimore, April 18, 1864), “We all declare for liberty, but in using the same word, we do not all mean the same thing.”

b In the west, peace is when we all get along.

c In Islam, peace is achieved when the world submits to the will of Allah. (World peace is World Islam)