February 3, 2003

Tell Muslims about assurance of salvation in Christ, missionary says
___By Mark Wingfield
___Managing Editor
___ARLINGTON--Christians have a hope of salvation they should share kindly and gently with Muslims who do not have a similar assurance, according to a Baptist interfaith witness expert.
___Joshua del Risco, a national interfaith witness missionary with the Southern Baptist Convention's North American Mission Board, spoke at the Texas Evangelism Conference Jan. 27-28. His topic: "Jesus vs. Jihad, the Road to Salvation."
___His own quest to understand Islam began at a pizza restaurant in Oklahoma City while he was pastor of a church. On Friday nights, he explained, he and his wife and young children routinely went to this restaurant.
___The manager and most of the staff are Muslims. As del Risco began to visit with them, he eventually asked the manager to

___Consider perceptions of unchurched, Seay says ___World is ripe for spiritual revival; harvesters needed ___Individuals can be on mission wherever they go, speaker says ___Tell Muslims about assurance of salvation in Christ, missionary says ___Recover priority of prayer for renewal, Elmore urges ___ Prospects found with online help ___To evangelize in a small church, ensure ownership, pastor advises ___Temple church models Jesus' admonition to go here, there & everywhere ___Serve up joy of Jesus to go rather than in churches only

explain to him what he believes as a Muslim.
___That opened a dialogue that continues to this day, del Risco said. And it

JOSHUA del Risco gained a passion for telling Muslims about Jesus when he met a Muslim manager at a restaurant his family frequented in Oklahoma City.

opened the Baptist pastor's eyes to see a need for greater dialogue between Christians and Muslims.
___As a NAMB missionary, del Risco now speaks across the country to educate Baptists about Islam and to offer suggestions for telling Muslims about the assurance of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
___Muslims, he explained at the Texas Evangelism Conference, do not have any assurance that they will be found worthy enough to enter paradise after death.
___"The only sure hope they have to salvation is jihad," he said, explaining that the word "jihad" has two meanings. The word literally means "to struggle or to strive," he said.
___Some Muslims use the word to describe striving to be under greater submission to Allah, del Risco said. The other meaning, more familiar to Americans in light of world terrorism, relates to engaging in a holy war against so-called "infidels."
___"Every Muslim is under mandate to be on jihad," del Risco said. "But that doesn't mean they are going to bomb us."
___Many Muslims living in the United States understand the command of jihad to be their mandate to convert or influence non-Muslims, not to kill or terrorize, he added.
___Yet understanding jihad is essential to understanding why some young Muslims are willing to kill themselves in suicide bombings, del Risco said. The Koran teaches that martyrdom guarantees a place in paradise and an honorable name for the martyr's family.
___While Christianity teaches an assurance of eternal salvation through faith in Jesus Christ, del Risco said, Islam has no parallel. Muslims, he said, may reach the end of life not knowing whether they have satisfactorily met the requirements of their faith.
___This presents a natural point of witness for Christians, he suggested.
___In talking with Muslims, however, del Risco encouraged Christians to love them and demonstrate a Christian life before them. Christians who would witness to Muslims must be bridge builders who do not approach the conversation as a war or harsh debate, he said.
___In the seminar, del Risco also explained the history of Islam and answered common questions Christians have about Islam. Among his comments:
___ Islam is the youngest of the major world religions and also is the second-largest religion in the United States.
___ "Islam" means "submission," which emphasizes the religion's demands of submission to Allah.
___ "Allah" is the Arabic name for God, not just the Muslim name for God. "Allah is the Arabic word for God, just like 'Dios' in Spanish. If you were to visit an Arabic Christian congregation, you might hear them praying to Allah."
___ Nevertheless, the God of Christianity is not the same God worshipped by Muslims, he said. The God of Islam is impersonal, distant, unknown and loves only faithful Muslims, according to the Koran.
___ "Islam is not only a religion, it's a political system. If you're a Muslim, your religion and your politics go hand in hand."
___ The Koran acknowledges that Jesus was born of a virgin, led a sinless life and performed miracles. And even though the Koran teaches that Mohammed was a greater prophet than Jesus, it acknowledges that unlike Jesus, Mohammed was not born of a virgin, did not lead a sinless life and did not perform miracles.
___ The Koran holds the highest authority in Islam, even beyond the prophet. "What Jesus is to us, the Koran is to Muslim people."
___ The Nation of Islam, led by Louis Farrakahn, is not the same thing as traditional Islam. Rather, del Risco said, the Nation of Islam is to Islam what Mormonism is to Christianity.
___

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