There is a recent tactic that I’ve noticed about Muslim apologists. They’re trying to make the Bible into a combination of Christianity mixed with Islam. This is done by saying Christianity is the religion of Paul while the religion of the Old Testament, Jesus, James and the other disciples is the religion of Islam. Of course, these Muslims rejects many things from the Old Testament, Jesus, and the Apostles and naturally if you show these verses to a Muslim they’re simply “corruptions” of the supposed “original message” of Jesus and other Biblical authors.
One thing that emerges from the Muslim “dichotomy” is the issue of Law. Law is a tricky word. Law could mean natural Law, the Law of Moses, or many other things. The reason that I believe that they can do this, is from the distortion of Paul’s words by Martin Luther. Paul certainly believed in the Law. He believed that it played a role in salvation as well. He believed all Christians were bound to it.
I think 99% of Muslims who read Paul, read him like they do other writings in the Bible. He’s not there to be understood. He’s read in a way as to promote Islam. The Muslim is there to try and find the “dichotomy” between Paul and Jesus and not actually learn Paul’s theology.
Of course, this gives us Christians a need to know Paul and be able to quote him chapter and verse. His honor needs to be defended against these attacks. Naturally as Christians, we should be familiar with his writings anyway for our own spiritual development.
There is one way that this charge can be refuted without even quoting from St. Paul. We simply have to point out to the Muslim that he doesn’t believe in the Law either. We need to ask them where Jesus and Muhammad taught the same law. Jesus followed the Law from the five books of Moses while Muhammad made up his own Law. Jesus observed the Sabbath, ate kosher, celebrated the holidays lined out in the five books of Moses and many other things. Muhammad never did that, nor did he instruct his Muslim followers to do so.
Muslims have their own law. They pray five times a day, eat halal food instead of kosher, make a pilgrimage to Mecca once in their life, and other things. It’s not the law Jesus followed as He didn’t do any of this stuff.
When a Muslim tries to point out the Jesus vs Paul Law “dichotomy” we must say that this has a certain context that we’d be willing to explain. We must admit that this is a difficult subject but that there is a context. On the other hand, we must give the burden of proof back to them. Is the Law of Muhammad the same as the Law of the Old Testament or Jesus? The answer is an obvious no. They’re actually committing what they accuse Paul of doing.
I think that almost all Muslim arguments against Christianity fall victim to this same criticism. That is, that the Muslims don’t use Muslim arguments against Christianity. They take these arguments from atheists, liberals, and Jews. Those arguments may be legitimate for those groups but how about for a Muslim to use? The truth is that most of them aren’t. It’s one of many problems of being a member of an ahistorical religion.
Do we, then, destroy the law through faith? God forbid: but we establish the law.
– Romans 3:31
Jesus did not come to abolish the Law, but to fulfill it.
NOT follow it, obey it, adhere to it, continue it… But FULFILL it, as the only perfect (God-)man who could possibly do so.
Whereas Islam is just Pharasaic Judaism rehashed… More righteous than the Pharisees indeed (but that was a trick question, because the Pharisees were not truly righteous – no one is).