Daily Devotional for Sunday August 20, 2006

The Coming Showdown between Islam and Christianity

(Exodus 15:6; Deuteronomy 32:41; Psalms 68:11; 1 Peter 5:8)

Today, there are roughly 6.6 billion people in the world. Out of the world's population, apx. 2 billion claim to be Christians (no doubt the number of people who are actually "born again" and know Christ as their personal Savior by faith is less) and apx. 1.2 billion claim to be Muslims. Over the past decade, the number of Christians in the world has been declining while the false religion of Islam is the fastest growing. Many estimate that by 2020 there will be as many Muslims in the world as Christians.

I have always laughed at people who deny Christ and the Truth of His Word when they call Christianity "intolerant." They obviously have no idea what the Christian faith is all about since it is the most tolerant faith there is. God's plan of salvation is not exclusionary, it is IN-CLUSIONARY! The Bible says that WHOSOEVER shall believe. That simply means the love of Christ, His free gift of everlasting life is available to EVERYONE! It becomes the personal choice of each person to accept or reject Christ in their heart and life.

The fact is, it is the cults and false religions of the world that are intolerant, the worst of all being Islam. They literally teach that those who don't follow their false god "allah" and teachings are "infidels" and should be put to death. That my friend is about as intolerant as you can get. A great example of their intolerance has been in the headlines the past couple of months over this cartoon of Mohammed in a Danish newspaper.

It is perfectly OK to lampoon the Lord, create "art" for public display where a figure of Christ is covered by human excrement, and mock those who have put their faith in Jesus Christ and follow the Truth of His Word, however, because a cartoon appeared in a Danish newspaper recently showing Mohammed with a bomb on his head, Muslims worldwide have been offended and outraged. In different parts of the world, Muslims have turned to violence and people have actually died in these protests over a cartoon!

The fact is, Mohammed was a murdering pedophile who dreamed up his false god "allah" and the false religion of Islam out of a heart that rejected the one true God of the Bible. His fantasy book the Koran is largely poor plagiarism of the Old Testament. Yet because someone had the audacity to accurately portray him in a cartoon as the terrorist he was, those who follow this false prophet are upset to the point they responded with acts of destruction and murder.

Make no mistake about it, Islam is a false religion that teaches and encourages violence and death. This is what makes the United States support of Palestine so foolish. We took a position in opposition to God's Word by helping to give away part of the land He gave to the children of Israel, to people whose stated goal is to see Israel wiped off the earth and every Jewish person killed. This is exactly what Islam is all about. It is about the death of anyone who rejects their false religion! This just in. That means those of us in the United States too!!!

Just like in the Old Testament, there were people groups who rejected the God of Israel and His commands, and sought to utterly destroy every descendant of Abraham. Their clear and stated goal was to wipe out every Jewish person. Whether you fully comprehend it or not, the goal of Islam is to wipe off the face of the earth everyone who does not follow their false religion. Don't be fooled by the moderates who will tell you that Islam is about peace and that Muslims want to be in unity with other faiths, especially Christianity.

That may be the desire of a few who understand the financial benefits of peace and unity, but that is NOT what Islam is all about. Many want to lull you into believing that it is only a small percentage of Muslims who ascribe to terrorism and the death of those who reject their false beliefs. That is not true. The snapshots we get at times from incidents like the recent riots in France, the violence over this cartoon of Mohammed, 9/11, the bombings in London and other targets recently in Europe, Asia, and Africa, are what Islam is really all about. Please, don't be fooled.

I was appalled at the recent National Prayer Breakfast in Washington, D.C. It is one of the great Christian events in our nation that has turned into a disgusting forum for all of the false religions of the world. People pray at this breakfast to every false god man has dreamed up in his imagination, making a mockery of the one true God of the Bible and His Son Jesus Christ. This event is run by Christians, and why they allow these false religions to have equal status with the one and only God makes me sick. God shares His glory with NO ONE, especially some imaginary god made up by men who live their lives in rebellion to Him and His Word.

At the luncheon in conjunction with this year's National Prayer Breakfast, the feature speaker was Jordan's King Abdullah II. That is right. Not a Christian leader encouraging people to faith and commitment to Jesus Christ, but a Muslim waxing eloquently about how Muslims and Christians need to get along and that there is only a small fraction of Muslims who embrace terror and killing. Oh really? I guess the King hasn't read the Koran. I realize that King Abdullah II has a vested financial interest in seeing peace with the west, but the fact is he doesn't speak for Muslims across the world. It goes totally against the stated goal of Islam to have peace with anyone who does not embrace their false religion!

*Editorial Note: I can't tell you how disappointed I am in the leaders of the Christian group who put this event on, that they would invite a Godless man like Jordan's King to speak at such an event. I can assure you that I will never be asked to speak at any of these events. They are not interested in the message of the Gospel, only this watered-down, compromised, ecumenical lie from hell itself. The Christian "leaders" who are part of these events should only have one goal, telling those who follow the false religions that there is only one way to the one God and that is by faith in Jesus Christ. Their embracing of these false religions is a stench in the nostrils of God. They should be evangelizing them, not giving them a platform to spew their false beliefs! Satan is NOT your buddy, satan is NOT your freind, and satan will take the first chance he gets to destroy and kill you!!!

I love you and care about you so much. My heart breaks for the apx. 1.2 billion people on this planet who have believed the lie of Islam and will die in their sins and be lost for all eternity unless they turn to the Truth of the Gospel. One of the 5 languages Liveprayer will be translated into later this year is Arabic. I have a real burden to bring the Truth of God's Word and the hope of Christ to these people who are following Islam straight to hell.

I plan on using the Internet and secular television in Muslim countries to reach these people. I am praying even now for God to open the right doors in His perfect timing to allow Liveprayer to boldly go into the Middle East and other parts of the world dominated by Islam, and bring the light of the Gospel to those who live in that darkness. Just like God has given us favor and blessed us to be able to do that here in the United States, I am certain one day He will open those doors in other parts of the world as well.

In the meantime, know that there are those out there who have the stated goal of seeing us wiped off the very face of the earth simply because we are Christians. As the days of this world wind down, the persecution of the church and those who follow Christ is only going to get worse. That is why now is the time for those who profess Christ as their Savior, need to get serious about their faith and start to find ways to allow God to use your life to make a difference.

Just in your normal day-to-day life God gives you many opportunities to take a stand for Him. This is how you can make a difference. Share His love with those you meet, always be prepared to give people the reason for your hope, and live a Godly life which will always be your loudest witness for the Lord. The Bible says they will know us by our love for one another. That love extends past this brief journey to a person's eternal destination which is why we have to boldly and without shame tell others about how they can know Christ and His free gift of everlasting life.

There is coming soon a final showdown between Islam and Christianity. It has already been building over these past 1400 years since Mohammed dreamed up this false religion. As the two dominant religions on the planet, they will continue to collide as the final days of human history unfold. The good news is that we already know how it ends. That is why those who know Christ as their Savior must stand strong in proclaiming His Truth, since in the end, it is God's Truth alone that will be standing.