Mark Tabata’s Weekday Devotionals: Thursday October 9 2025
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Exodus 23:13 (ERV)-Make certain that you obey everything I have said. Don’t pray to other gods or even mention their names.
John (not his real name) was furious with me.
Being a member of a secret society for several years, John did not appreciate being warned in love that there were many ways that his order contradicted Jesus and compromised the Bible. When I asked him, for example, how a follower of Jesus may swear an oath to the god of Islam (Allah) and still remain a faithful Christian (as his society teaches and practices), he first denied that any such oath took place. I shared with him from the official words of his book that I had a copy of:
“and may ALLAH, the god of Arab, Moslem and Mohammedan, the god of our fathers, support me to the entire fulfillment of the same, Amen, Amen, Amen.” (Shrine Ritual Monitor, Allen Publishing, pp. 35, 39)
Seeing that I had a copy of his society’s official teaching and that he couldn’t deceive me into believing that such an oath was false, John then “switched gears” and told me that “Allah” is just another name for the God of the Bible.
Is that true?
Let’s ask Nabeel Qureshi.
Who is he, you are asking?
Nabeel was a Muslim who carefully studied the differences between Islam and Christianity. Since the evidence for the Deity of Christ and the inspiration of the Bible were so shockingly powerful, he eventually made the decision to follow Jesus. And it cost him dearly. Family, friends, and people from all over the world turned against him. Nevertheless, he wrote down the fruits of his studies in several books (No God But One: Allah Or Jesus? A Former Muslim Investigates The Evidence For Jesus And Christianity; Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity; and Answering Jihad: A Better Way Forward). Sadly, Nabeel died from stomach cancer on September 16 2017. We commend his spirit to the just and merciful God we serve, even as we thank God for the many souls that have been reached through his books and efforts.
Quite often, Nabeel was confronted with the question of whether or not Christians and Muslims worship the same God. Consider his words:
“At the very end of my presentation, a woman in the audience asked me a controversial question: “Do Muslims and Christians worship the same God?” My answer to this question had offended Muslims in the past, and I was worried it would do so again. But another thing I have learned the hard way is, when asked a question, I should try to answer it directly. So I offered a quick prayer in my heart and began. I started by stating the obvious: Christians worship Yahweh, the Trinity, whereas Muslims worship Allah, a monad. This is not an incidental difference; Islam makes every effort to condemn the Trinity as blasphemy (4.171). The Quran rejects the relational aspects of God, saying that he is not a father (5.18) and he is not a son (112.3). It establishes its own doctrine of God, tawhid, in diametric opposition to the Trinity, and that doctrine becomes the central doctrine of Islamic theology. Most people who say Christians and Muslims worship the same God are aware of this difference, but they treat it as relatively inconsequential. This is not a trivial difference, though; it has major implications. Since mankind is made in the image of the triune God, love is woven into our very nature. The Trinity gives us the most consistent, most powerful basis for being self-sacrificial and altruistic…But the Christian model of theism goes further still. Much further. Remember that the eternal love of God is intrinsic to who he is; each person of the Trinity loves the others selflessly. It was out of this selfless love that God created mankind. In other words, we were made in the image of a selfless, loving God, so in our very nature we are designed to be selfless and loving. When we are self-centered instead of selfless, we act against our very nature. From the Christian perspective, people ought to be selflessly loving toward others not just because it is a good idea, not just because it helps our species survive, not just because it earns us a reward, and not just because it pleases God. People ought to be selflessly loving because it is who we are. Humans are made in the image of a selfless God; loving others is what makes us truly human. No other worldview so deeply embeds into mankind the obligation to love and care for one another. As a foundation for altruism, nothing outstrips the Trinity…. The question of whether Muslims and Christians worship the same God is complex, and there is much more that could be said. 1 Ultimately, when we understand the Trinity, we realize that the doctrine is not just a theological curiosity. It has far-reaching implications for how we ought to live and how we see the world, and it makes the Christian God categorically different from the Muslim God. It is what makes God relational, what makes his love eternal. It is how God can be in us through the Holy Spirit, while being over us as the Father, and suffering for us in the Son. And it is the Son that most distinguishes the Christian God from the Muslim God. We need to learn about him not only in light of the Trinity but also in light of his life on earth. Now that we understand the doctrine of the Trinity, that the one God subsists as three persons, we will better understand what Christians mean when they say that the second of the three persons entered into this world as a human named Jesus.” (Nabeel Qureshi, No God But One: Allah Or Jesus? (With Bonus Content): A Former Muslim Investigates The Evidence For Islam And Christianity, 69-72 (Kindle Edition): Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan)
If we take the Bible seriously, then we need to recognize that the “gods” of paganism (including Islam) are fallen angels and demons pretending to be gods and goddesses to the people of the world.
Deuteronomy 32:16-17-They provoked Him to jealousy with foreign gods; With abominations they provoked Him to anger. 17 They sacrificed to demons, not to God, To gods they did not know, To new gods, new arrivals That your fathers did not fear.
Paul quotes this passage in his instructions to the Corinthians:
1 Corinthians 10:19-22-What am I saying then? That an idol is anything, or what is offered to idols is anything? 20 Rather, that the things which the Gentiles sacrifice they sacrifice to demons and not to God, and I do not want you to have fellowship with demons. 21 You cannot drink the cup of the Lord and the cup of demons; you cannot partake of the Lord’s table and of the table of demons. 22 Or do we provoke the Lord to jealousy? Are we stronger than He?
Psalm 96:4-5 (LXX)-For the Lord is great, and greatly to be praised: he is terrible above all gods. 5 For all the gods of the heathen are demons: but the Lord made the heavens.
Allah is not another name for the one true God, the God revealed in nature and in the Holy Bible.
Now, some things to take from all this.
First, we can acknowledge common ground between Christianity and our Muslim neighbors without sacrificing Bible truth. Paul often found common ground with his religious non-Christian friends and neighbors (Acts 17:17, 22-28). We may find many good and commendable things about Islam, and acknowledge common ground that can serve as a bridge between Christians and Muslims. Islam is a religion which acknowledges Deity; there are some elements of Islamic theology which are worthy of consideration and even emulation (their teaching on charity, almsgiving, helping the poor and needy, etc); and they acknowledge the existence of Jesus and His status as a Prophet. These are good and commendable, and are also taught in the Bible.
Second, while there are sometimes religious issues which neighbors of good conscience may “agree to disagree,” on, there are sometimes religious and ethical issues that we cannot and should not compromise on while still being true to Jesus and His Word (Mark 8:38). The Islamic teaching regarding the nature of God is a terrific case in point. The Bible teaching regarding the Nature of God is completely different from the Islamic teaching regarding the nature of Allah. They are not the same. Again: Islam teaches that Jesus was not the Son of God, was not crucified, and was therefore not resurrected. The fundamental nature of Islam denies the Gospel of Jesus (1 Corinthians 15:1-8). On subjects such as these, there can be no compromise.
Third, let us remember that these issues are not merely philosophical contemplation or theological intrigue: they are interwoven with the conflict between the God of creation and the gods/demons of the spiritual world, a warfare in which we also are firmly entrenched as the Lord’s people (Ephesians 6:10-18).
As we go forward and work with our religious friends from other belief systems, let us do our best to find common ground. Then, using that common foundation, may we do what we can to point everyone to Jesus.
Guide us today, Lord. We thank You for loving us and for being with us. May our paths cross with those who do not know Jesus, and may we point them to Him. In His Name, Amen.