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Free Course: Muslim Apologetics 008

Muslim Apologetics Free Course, Lesson 008

THE THREE DAYS OF JESUS IN THE TOMB

Jesus stayed in the grave three days. Deedat (no year 116) says, Jesus slept in the tomb for one day two nights. He denies Jesus to have been in the grave for three days. Deedat uses the Roman time to calculate the biblical time than the Hebrew time used in the time of Jesus by the Jewish authors. Jesus entered into the grave on Friday (Luke 23:54), before the sunset which was the first day. After the setting of the sun on Friday, the second day had started which ended on the sun set of Saturday. After sunset on Saturday, Jesus had entered the third day. This is convenient with the Jewish counting of the day. The Good News Version has simplified this dilemma to people who are not conversant with Jewish counting of the day (Luke 24:1), time and years.

That Jesus will stay in the tomb for three days and three nights is foreign to the Bible. The Bible says Jesus said He will be in the grave for three days. It does not give the exact number of hours to be in the grave. This is the very reason that Deedat does not quote Christian authors who said Jesus will stay in the grave three days three nights. He does not even quote the scripture (Deedat p.116).

JESUS WAS SENT ONLY TO THE JEWS AND NOT GENTILES

In a debate recorded in a video, Deedat versus Swaggart , Deedat used Matthew 10: 5-6 in which he queried that Jesus only came for the Israelites and not Gentiles. The passage seems to suggest the Gentiles are excluded from being Christians or partakers of the salvation. I will quote three versions to bring clarity to the passage. The passage reads, “Jesus sent out the twelve apostles with these instructions: stay away from the Gentiles and don’t go to any Samaritan town. Go only to the people of Israel because they are like a flock of the lost sheep” (Contemporary English Version).

“These were the twelve whom Jesus sent out, charging them with the words, “Don’t turn off into the road that reads to the gentiles, and don’t ever enter a town of the Samaritans. Go, instead, to the lost sheep of Israel” (International Standard Version).

“These twelve men were sent out by Jesus with the following instructions: Do not go to any Gentile territory or any Samaritan towns. Instead, you are to go to the lost sheep of the people of Israel” (Good News Bible).

Swaggart belongs to Gentiles. This was not an easy question for him to handle as it referred that Jesus did not come for the Gentiles. He came only for the Israelites. It was unproper for him to be a Christian. It was proper for him to be a Muslim because it was a religion which included all Gentiles. How can you respond to the call of Deedat in regard to the passage which he used?

The Bible recorded that the disciples of Jesus were sent on the Missionary tour on two occasions. The first one is recorded on Matthew 10; while as the second one, is recorded on Matthew 28. Matthew 10 deals with neighborhood ministry among the Israelites excluding Gentiles. The second one has a composition of Israelites and Gentiles. The first part deals first with Israel then the second segment involves going outside the borders of Palestine to evangelize Gentiles.

Starting with Israelites was a strategy which is also spoken by Paul. Paul and Barnabas also followed the same strategy in the missionary journeys. “Then Paul and Barnabas waxed bold, and said, It was necessary that the word of God should first have been spoken to you: but seeing ye put it from you, and judge yourself unworthy of everlasting life, lo, we turn to Gentiles” (Acts 13:46 KJV). These words were spoken in the Synagogue at Antioch of Pisidia. Paul when he arrived in various places on the missionary journeys, he first visited the synagogues which were scattered among the Gentiles (Acts 13:5, 14, 43; 14:1;17:1,10,17;18:4,19; 19:8). These synagogues were worship places for the Jews and they had secondary members who were the proselytes and the God fearers. The first ministry of Paul was carried out among the Jews. It was when most the Jews had rejected Paul that he fully turned to the Gentiles.

Lastly, the book of Revelation 7: 4, 9 has two groups of the people who will be saved which are the Israelites first; and then Gentiles, as the second group who will come from all the nations of the world. Swaggart including all the readers of this passage who are believers belong to the second group of the Gentiles.

REVISION ASSIGNMENT

  • How do you respond to the Islamic argument that either Matthew or Luke is false in the genealogy of Jesus?
  • Give English meanings of the terms “father” and “son” and relate them how they differ with the Bible meanings.
  • Mention and explain the three offices of Jesus
  • Define the term kenosis.
  • Discuss the sin of shirk.
  • Why do you think Muhammad believed Christians worship Mary, the mother of Jesus.
  • Who coined the term Trinity?
  • How can you respond to Muslim accusations that the Bible was changed or corrupted by the Jews and Christians?
  • What reasons can you give to refute the Muslim idea that the Holy Spirit is Muhammad?
  • Refute the Muslim idea that Jesus was not crucified.
  • Defend the divinity of Jesus by using the OT

 

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15 Comments on "Free Course: Muslim Apologetics 008"

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  1. george mweli says:

    please send the muslim corses

  2. THOMAS says:

    Please send me this corses

  3. Philip Stevens says:

    George & Thomas,

    Please make application for these courses through the applicable Trinity Graduate School website.

    God bless,

    Philip Stevens
    DBS, Candidate TGSAT

  4. REVISION ASSIGNMENT
    • How do you respond to the Islamic argument that either Matthew or Luke is false in the genealogy of Jesus?
    There is a confusion of the identity of Mary the mother of Jesus in the Qu’ran (Surah 19:36-37; 66:12). In the Hebrew language she is Miriam. She is the daughter of Emran in Qu’ran. In Hebrew Emran is Amram who was the father of Moses and Aaron. There is no where in history as well in the Bible where it is said Miriam was the mother of Jesus. The father of Mary the mother of Jesus was Heli who was the son-in-law of Joseph the foster father of Jesus (Luke 3:23)
    Luke 3:23 (King James Version)
    23And Jesus himself began to be about thirty years of age, being (as was supposed) the son of Joseph, which was the son of Heli,

    • Give English meanings of the terms “father” and “son” and relate them how they differ with the Bible meanings.
    English meaning of the wording father and son is indeed offspring of the man whose wife united with him in matrimony has given him through birth a male child .Now the Difference from biblical wording is that Father and Son is in this case written with capital letter by highlighting that here we speak of God Yahweh as a Father and Son as a our Saviour –New Adam –Jesus Christ is Son of a God. Meaning He is God as well. God is title .

    • Mention and explain the three offices of Jesus

    Messiah- High Priest -King
    • The Book of Mathew Chapter 16
    • 16 And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God.
    • 17 And Jesus answered and said unto him, Blessed art thou, Simon Barjona: for flesh and blood hath not revealed it unto thee, but my Father which is in heaven.
    • 18 And I say also unto thee, That thou art Peter, and upon this rock I will build my church; and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.
    • 19 And I will give unto thee the keys of the kingdom of heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt bind on earth shall be bound in heaven: and whatsoever thou shalt loose on earth shall be loosed in heaven.
    • 20 Then charged he his disciples that they should tell no man that he was Jesus the Christ.
    • 21 From that time forth began Jesus to shew unto his disciples, how that he must go unto Jerusalem, and suffer many things of the elders and chief priests and scribes, and be killed, and be raised again the third day.
    • 22 Then Peter took him, and began to rebuke him, saying, Be it far from thee, Lord: this shall not be unto thee.
    • 23 But he turned, and said unto Peter, Get thee behind me, Satan: thou art an offence unto me: for thou savourest not the things that be of God, but those that be of men.
    • 24 Then said Jesus unto his disciples, If any man will come after me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross, and follow me.
    • 25 For whosoever will save his life shall lose it: and whosoever will lose his life for my sake shall find it.
    • .

    • Define the term kenosis.
    The relinquishment of the form of God by Jesus in becoming man and suffering death.
    ________________________________________
    [Late Greek ken sis, from Greek, an emptying, from kenoun, to empty, from kenos, empty.]

    • Discuss the sin of shirk.
    • shirk to do anything fearing the hell or desiring the heaven. According to him, it was equating the creations (heaven and hell) to Allah and one should live only for Allah’s Love and nothing else. Those who were not inclined to accept this view quoted from Qur’an to stress that Allah himself is asking His slaves to obey His orders by promising heaven. Allah also cautions the defaulters that they will be put to hell if they do not abide by His laws.
    • One person (He ought to be a salik), after inquiring with his Shaikh, came up with the following answer. He classified the Shirk into two Shirke Akbar and Shirke Asgar or Shirke Latif. Associating a partner with Allah, in worship or worshipping ghairullah (anything other than Allah) is Shirke Akbar and all those who do it are Mushrikeens (equators), who will be dealt very severely by Allah. Performing good deeds or shunning from the bad for the sake of heaven or fear from hell fall under the category of Shirke Asgar and those who do it are in lower dharaja (status).
    • In this article, Insha Allah, I will explain Shirk and its classifications as I learnt from my shaikh.
    • Shirk is associating partner with Allah or giving a share (of those which belongs to Allah alone) to others i.e. ghairullah. Shirk is the most hated sin by Allah. Allah says in the Qur’an that Shirk is the greatest sin (Inna -al-shirka Zhulm al-azheem Quran 31:14). He also says that He will forgive all other sins if he wishes, except Shirk (Quran 4:49). So, it is our duty to be wary of the damage it can cause to our belief and avoid it.

    • Why do you think Muhammad believed Christians worship Mary, the mother of Jesus.

    Muhammed thus knew much of the Christian teachings. Muhammed also had much contact with the Jews through the many battles he waged with them. Islam claims to worship the same God as the Christians and Jews but they call him “Allah” meaning “The one I bind myself to”. The Qur’an states that Jesus was born of a virgin and was an Apostle and Prophet and Righteous One of God Who did greater miracles than any other man ever did. Islam however opposes the view that Jesus is God and One with God. Islam believes that the Christian Bible contain lies about Jesus such as when He said, “I and the Father are One”. Islam also doesn’t believe that Jesus was crucified to death. Contrary to Judaism and Christianity, Islam believes the Holy Spirit is the same being as the angel Gabriel. Islam believes Muhammed to be the greatest prophet Allah has or ever will have.
    Muhammed was a warlord who engaged in wars and killed many people. He had several wives and concubines. A Jewish woman poisoned Muhammed’s food (a leg of lamb) after Muhammed’s attacks on her people. Some say he had her killed [Ibn Sa’d page 249, 250] and others say he spared her. Muhammed suffered from the poisoning for 3 or 4 years until he died in 632 AD.

    • Who coined the term Trinity?

    The term Trinity was first used by Tertullian in 220 A.D in North Africa. He used the Latin term trinitus which has been translated to Trinity in English. This was accepted by the Christian church as a good term to refer to the unity of God the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The term has been ever used in the Christian circles until today.
    The NT has oftentimes accused by critics such as also by the Jews that it is a document that teaches about Trinity. It is under such thinking that I have decided to use the OT as the major source of the teaching of the doctrine of Trinity.

    • How can you respond to Muslim accusations that the Bible was changed or corrupted by the Jews and Christians?

    • The first thing to do when you are confronted by this accusation is that you have to ask the accuser to give you more than two evidences apart from the holy Qur’an that the Bible is changed. Ask questions such when was it changed? Who changed it and at what place? Can you give examples of passages which were changed? What were the original words on those passages? Insist that he should answer these questions.
    • The most available evidence to a Muslim is the Qur’an. Muhammad did not give evidence of how the scriptures were altered. In response the apologist should tell and ask the accuser that he will give the Muslim four reasons to show the Bible was not changed. The first reason should come from the Qur’an (Surah 35:31) which says it was written to confirm the Bible. How can the Qur’an defend a document which was corrupted? The confirming of the Qur’an to the Bible is the first evidence that the Bible is not corrupted or changed.
    • Secondly, the Qur’an urge Jews and Christians to have faith in the Bible (Surah 3:84, 119; 4:136). Why does it urge Jews and Christians to the teaching of the Bible, if it is a corrupted document?(Surah 5:66, 68). The Qur’an says the Torah and the Gospel is God’s revelation (Surah 5:45, 47). Why are the two parts of the Bible (Torah and the Gospels) called God’s revelation if they were corrupted?

    • What reasons can you give to refute the Muslim idea that the Holy Spirit is Muhammad?
    Jesus said “I will pray the Father, and he shall give you another Comforter, that he may abide with you forever” (John 14:16 emphasis mine). Forever means without beginning or end. He is eternal. Is Muhammad eternal or has he lived forever? History says he was born in 570 A.D. and he died which is strong evidence that he was not what Jesus spoke as the Spirit.

    • Refute the Muslim idea that Jesus was not crucified.
    The apologists should question the honourable Qur’an quoting Jesus speaking of His death, “Peace be upon me, the day I was born, and the day I die, and the day I am raised up alive. That is Jesus, son of Mary, the word of truth concerning which they are doubting”(Surah 19:33-34).. This Surah does not dispute Jesus death but affirms it.

    • Defend the divinity of Jesus by using the OT
    Isaiah (7:14) prophesied the birth of Son from the virgin to be called Emmanuel. Matthew 3:23 refers to the birth of Jesus as the fulfillment of the prophet Isaiah. He goes further to translate the term “Emmanuel” that it means God with us. In other words the Son who was Jesus was God. Emmanuel means the manifestation of God. It again means God manifested Himself in the human body. Isaiah (45:15) says it well “Verily thou art a God that hidest thyself, O God of Israel, the Savior.”

  5. Stephanus Karnadhi says:

    Matthew 12:40 . . . So shall the Son of Man be THREE DAYS AND THREE NIGHTS in the heart of the earth. it should be clear from this verse how long Jesus was buried. I think we need another answer than the Jewish day count. Somewhere I read, unfortunatelly already forgotten now, that at that year there was a big sabbath before the weekly sabbath, which fall on Thursday. So the sabbath mentioned in Luk 23:54 is not necessarily the weekly sabbath which is Friday, but Thursday. Then the day & night count would be right. If this–the big sabbath–can be proven then we have a better answer–I think. God bless.

  6. Stephanus Karnadhi says:

    Check John 19:35 for the ‘big’ sabbath

  7. * How do you respond to the Islamic argument that either Matthew or Luke is false in the genealogy of Jesus?
    Well, Jesus did not say that he will be in the grave for 74 hours but three days and three night. So he was berried on Friday evening and risen on Sunday morning. That is exactly three days and three night. We need nothing more to calculate the hours.
    * Give English meanings of the terms “father” and “son” and relate them how they differ with the Bible meanings.
    Between father and son has big different. The son is born of his father and the son is not equal to the father. But according to the Bible especially on account of God the Father and the Son, both are equal in power, authority, sovereignty, eternity. In theological term both are omnipotent, omniscience, and omnipresent. But in the light of Salvation the Father for ordained and the son accomplished it.
    * Mention and explain the three offices of Jesus
    According to the bible Jesus is the king, high priest and prophet.
    * Why do you think Muhammad believed Christians worship Mary, the mother of Jesus.
    It can be true in one way because they know that Catholics are Christians and the Catholics are placing the image of Mary in the church, they pray in her name. Not even saying of Muhammad, I my self also thought off them that they are worshiping Mary.
    * Who coined the term Trinity?
    Of course the term trinity is not in the Bible direct but we can often see the three of them characteristics.
    * How can you respond to Muslim accusations that the Bible was changed or corrupted by the Jews and Christians?
    The good Christian will never changed or corrupted the bible, but those changed and corrupt the bible will not be a genuine christian.
    * What reasons can you give to refute the Muslim idea that the Holy Spirit is Muhammad?
    The bible does not tell us that the holy spirit is the spirit of Muhammad but the Spirit of the living God that was promised to give us by Jesus Christ himself.
    * Refute the Muslim idea that Jesus was not crucified.
    If Jesus was not crucified, the Bible will be a deceiver’s book and unreliable. Even the eternal God will be the empty God. He will be unworthy to worship.
    * Defend the divinity of Jesus by using the OT
    Jesus was existing from the beginning. When we read the very first chapter of Genesis 1:1, the Hebrew word is plural form. When God is going to create man he said that let us make man in our own image. these verses convincingly mention that Jesus was with God from the very Genesis.

  8. Krista St Amant says:

    Jesus entered the tomb before sunset on Wednesday and exited sometime on Sat after sunset. This does not take a rocket scientist to understand.

  9. Peter took care of the Jews,He build the town.It grew
    He dead on a cross(reverse)

  10. Micah Njakhar says:

    Pls can I get these corses in a pdf format? I really want to keep a hard copy!

  11. Brian Umbenhower says:

    Before they start directing us on the ways of ALLAH,or refuting or correcting our bibles and beliefs. Maybe they should study to see who ALLAH really is. This imformation is readily available on the internet and is not hard to confirm. And is verified thru numerous resources in many places. As paul mentioned “the Bereans serched the scriptures daily to see if such things are so.” not a correct exact quote but we get the picture. We should also research what we care to defend about our faith. The fact being JEHOVAH’s (GOD’s) Son was Crucified and Raised from the Dead. No other prophet or leader is anywhere but still in thier grave. Only YEHUSHUA is non resident in his Sheol- grave. Still the only way to JEHOVAH GOD IS YAHUSHUA JESUS. Jhn 14:6 Jesus answered, “I am the way and the truth and the life. No one comes to the Father except through me. Not Muhammed and certainly not Allah. And the Gabriel who visited him? This verse might explain that. 2Cr 11:14 And no marvel; for Satan himself is transformed into an angel of light.

    The Hausa translation of the Bible in northern Nigeria uses Allah as a designation for the true God. Allah is therefore the same divine being in both the Islamic and Jewish faiths and the one who became man for the salvation of mankind.

    The translators, by using a term familiar to the Muslims in northern Nigeria, no doubt thought they were being helpful. But by using Allah in the Hausa language, they have succeeded, instead, in creating confusion. Allah is no mere linguistic designation for God, as Dios in Spanish or Dieu in French. Allah is the name of the god of Islam. In fact, Allah was the name of the chief god among the numerous idols in the Kaaba in Mecca, which represented the deities of travelers passing through in the caravans. Allah was the god of the local Quraish, Muhammad’s tribe, before Islam was invented. Muhammad smashed the idols but kept the black stone which is still kissed today by Muslims. He kept, too, the name Allah for the god of Islam (its sign was the crescent moon) in order to appeal to his own tribe.

    Allah has definite characteristics: he is not a father, has no son, is not a triune being but a single (and thus incomplete) entity who destroys rather than saves sinners, has compassion on only the righteous, does not deal in grace but only rewards good deeds, has no way to redeem the lost sinners, etc. Allah is not the God of the Bible.

    The God of Israel, too, has a name, YHWH, now pronounced Jehovah but more anciently as Jahweh. Most Christians are unaware of God’s name because the Old Testament substitutes Lord for YHWH. In Exodus 6:3 God says,”By my name YHWH was I not known to them”; and at the burning bush when Moses asked His name, God explained the meaning of it by saying I AM THAT I AM; thus YHWH means not just one who is, but the self-existent One who is in and of Himself (Ex. 3:13-14).

    The God of the Bible is love, an impossibility for Allah. As a single entity, Allah was lonely and could not love or fellowship until other entities came into existence. Not so with YHWH (Jehovah). He is three persons in One: Father, Son and Holy Spirit, complete in Himself and in need of no others to love and fellowship with (“The Father loveth the Son” [John 3:35], there is communion within the Godhead, etc.). Only of this God could it be said that He is love in Himself.

    Allah could never say, “Let us make man in our image” (Genesis 1:26) and the Muslim scholar has no explanation for this expression, which is even found in the Koran’s paraphrase of this Bible verse. We could point out other reasons, but this should be enough to show that to use in the Hausa translation the name Allah for the God of the Bible is a great error! In fact Allah is a false god on a par with any other pagan deity.

  12. Benita Paschel says:

    How do you respond to the Islamic argument that either Matthew or Luke is false in the genealogy of Jesus? My only response is that the Muslim’s view is what they believe. They refuse to change, because one refuses to accept and/or understand why they believe what they believe.

    Give English meanings of the terms “father” and “son” and relate them how they differ with the Bible meanings.

    A natural father is who I call dad. He and mom can bring forth a son. Both dad and son are natural, fleshly and will one day diminish. However, God is our Father and His son Jesus are as one. They are eternal and have all of the same attributes. All authority from God has been given to Jesus.

    Mention and explain the three offices of Jesus

    Mediator – between us and God.
    Savior – our salvation, our everything, our Lord
    Holy Spirit – our purifier. He leads and guides us. The father, son and holy spirit are one within themselves. They are persons of the trinity.

    Define the term kenosis – empty (void)
    Discuss the sin of shirk. – A personal decision of hell or heaven. Islam was to obey Allah, if not this would be punishable even unto death.
    Why do you think Muhammad believed Christians worship Mary, the mother of Jesus.

    Many Roman Catholics of Mohammad’s day did worship and praise Mary, because she was the mother of Jesus. She was well favored by God and chosen. Today, I do not believe that the Catholics hold Mary as high as Jesus. They just use her as an example for Nunns and women to be holy and faithful.
    Who coined the term Trinity? This term means three, but one persons, the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit in Bible definition. However, it is an ancient term, but can be misunderstood in today’s society.

    How can you respond to Muslim accusations that the Bible was changed or corrupted by the Jews and Christians? The Bible have gone through many translations in order to be perfected for our understanding. However, God gave all of us a conscience and if we are led by the Holy Spirit no matter what is written, we would know truth because we would be convicted of our wrong doings.

    In the Old Testament, you can look at the lives of Noah, Abraham, etc. before the ten (10) commandments were written on the tablets of stone. These were righteous men of faith. By their lives we know that God existed and used them for His glory.

    What reasons can you give to refute the Muslim idea that the Holy Spirit is Muhammad? Muhammad is dead and the Holy Spirit is alive, because it is alive in me. If Muhammad is the Holy Spirit, then Jesus would not be risen from the dead and we all would perish.

    Refute the Muslim idea that Jesus was not crucified.

    The Holy Quran speaks of Jesus Crucifixion. Many Muslims today is referring to the Holy Bible and is saying that Jesus may have been crucified, but He is not the Savior, but Muhammad is. They also believe that when you are dead, you are dead. Some believe in the Holy Spirit and says that Allah and God (Elohim are the same persons and that Allah did not have to use Jesus to save anyone, because Allah is the eternal source.

    I refute the Muslims idea because if what they stand on is true, then they would not have to constantly war with other Christians. Anyone who has been proven wrong will constantly fight to try to get some glory. Satan will always be busy. YOU GET IT!

    Defend the divinity of Jesus by using the OT

    Read Genesis 1, The Book of Isaiah; Joel;

  13. The fact remain that JESUS CHRIST WENT TO THE CROSS DIE A SORROWFUL DEATH FOR MANKIND AND HE RESURRECT IN 3RD DAY THE CLAIM OR THE ARGUMENTATION OF MOHAMMEDANISM ARE BASELESS BECAUSE IT HAVE NO ROOT FROM THE BIBLE SECONDLY MOHAMED WAS NOT AND CAN NOT BE THE HOLY SPIRIT WHICH THE LORD PROMISE THE DECIPLE ‘THIS GREAT PROMISE COME TO FULFILLMENT AT PENTECOST THE UNFOTGOTABLE IN CHRISTEENDON

  14. nagesh david says:

    send me procedure to take admission in college .

  15. Greetings From Bangladesh. I need to Study this Course.please send me Questions. I will try my best.

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