Ministry to Muslims

Ministering to Muslims in an Age of Increasing Tension

When I travel to various churches to speak about Islam (or better yet, about what God is doing among Muslims in these days), I like – I actually LIKE – the aggressive, even hostile questions from certain folks in attendance. Why? Those questions make me work, and think, harder, but they also reveal that something is going on deep inside the person asking the question. I’d rather have that than the ‘ho-hum, when can we get home and turn on the TV’ attitude.

What kind of questions? Things like: ‘How are we supposed to love people who think suicide bombing of civilians is a noble, god-honoring deed?,’  ‘How can I love my enemies?,’  ‘Can Muslims really come to faith in Christ?,’ and ‘Scripture (Gen 16:12) says that Ishmael “will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” So why bother evangelizing people like that? Or better yet, aren’t you opposing what God has said and ordained when you even TRY to evangelize people like that?’

Do you see how energetic those questions are? People are wondering, thinking, wrestling, hating, loving! What are we supposed to do about Islam (the religion), Muslims (the people), terrorists (some Muslims), the immigrant down the street (from all sorts of countries, who might be a Muslim).

Other than the Bible itself, one of the books I dare you to read is The Politically Incorrect Guide to Islam (and the Crusades) by Robert Spencer. It really will help you understand more – and for followers of the Way – help you pray more. Spencer is excellent at debunking many of the myths we’ve imbibed about Islam and Muslims through our secular media. Make sure at least someone in your church or Sunday School class has read Spencer. That will help reduce the verbal nonsense in your meetings.

Another point: Have you actually spent time in prayer asking God what He thinks about Muslims? Could it be that the Holy Sovereign Lord is serious about His love for a broken, sinful world? Could it be that He really wants the Good News shared everywhere? Could it be that we have a role in what God is doing and wants to do?

Some thoughts to get you started:

1. God really loves Muslims and expects us to do so as well – even if we have to start with the baby step of loving our enemies.

2. The world’s 1,300,000,000 Muslims really are included in the Great Commission. It’s high time we take our Commander in Chief (Jesus) seriously about obeying what He said to do.

3. Muslims are all over the spectrum, from secular to moderate to fanatical. But the bottom line – they are all sinners, in need of redemption.

4. Muslims really are coming to Christ. I can’t put in print the stories of what God is doing right now, on the ground, in Muslim countries. It’s thrilling.
5. People who work with church planting and evangelizing ministries in Muslim countries need prayer – lots of it.
6. We still need more laborers – short-term, mid-term, long-term. Remember, there are no closed countries – maybe some where it takes a lot of work to get in (and might be difficult to get out), but none that are off-limits to the Gospel.

Oh, that bit about the donkeys and living in hostility?  Reminds me of some of us as well before we came to Christ.