Islam and Muslims - How Should We Approach Them?

Western Christians look at Islam through "Western glasses". In the US we tend to assume that "separation of church and state" is the normal state of things. Islam is more than just a "religion". Islam encompasses the religious, social, economic, governmental, military, and cultural aspects of the lives of Muslims in countries where Islam is the dominant religion. Shariah law is the practical application of the Koran (Allah's revelation to Muhammad) and the hadiths (Muhammad's sayings) to the daily lives of Muslims as interpreted by Muslim leaders, and it is neither compatible with the Bible nor with the US Constitution. Christians and adherents of other religions are second-class citizens under Shariah law. Islam is not only oppressive to non-Muslims, but it is oppressive to Muslims - and especially Muslim women and children - as well.

As Jesus' disciples in the US, we should oppose the imposition of elements of Shariah law in our country. We should oppose the introduction of Islamic principles into our culture. At the same time our hearts should be broken for the Muslims who live under such an oppressive system. Muslims are human beings for whom our Saviour, Jesus Christ, sacrificed His life. Islam does not believe that Jesus is the Son of God nor that He died to pay the price for our sins and redeem us. The freedom that we have in Christ must be shared with the Muslims.

Too many Christians either ignore the clear and present danger that is Islam or they allow their understanding of the oppression and danger of Islam to result in failing to love Muslims. We must seek to be guilty of neither position. We must face the advance of Islam around the world and in the United States with a clear-eyed understanding of the dangers it presents and an iron-willed determination to oppose the spread of Islam. At the same time we must love Muslims with the same love that Christ exhibited when He went to the cross to offer His life for their redemption.