PART 2: The God of the Bible and Allah of the Qur’an

Why They Cannot Be the Same God

A Biblical Examination of Radical Islam, the Identity of Jesus Christ, and the Only Way of Salvation

Does Islam Proclaim the Same Gospel as Jesus and the Apostles?

The most important question anyone can ask is not simply:

"Do Muslims believe in God?"

The deeper question is:

"Which message about God is true?"

The Bible teaches that God has revealed Himself through His Word and ultimately through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Therefore, every religious claim must be examined in light of God's revelation.

Part 2 — Another Gospel

Does Islam Proclaim the Same Gospel as Jesus and the Apostles?
The most important question anyone can ask is not simply:
“Do Muslims believe in God?”
The deeper question is:
“Which message about God is true?”
The Bible teaches that God has revealed Himself through His Word and ultimately through His Son, Jesus Christ.
Therefore, every religious claim must be examined in light of God’s revelation.

The Apostle Paul gave a serious warning:

> “I am amazed that you are so quickly deserting Him who called you by the grace of Christ, for a different gospel; which is really not another; only there are some who are disturbing you and want to distort the gospel of Christ.” (Galatians 1:6–7 NASB)

Paul was warning the church about false teachers who were changing the Gospel by adding requirements that God had not commanded.

Then he continued:

> “But even if we, or an angel from heaven, should preach to you a gospel contrary to what we have preached to you, he is to be accursed!” (Galatians 1:8 NASB)

Paul’s warning establishes an important biblical principle:

Any message that contradicts the Gospel preached by Jesus’ apostles must be rejected, regardless of who claims to deliver it.

What Is the Apostles’ Gospel?

The word “Gospel” means “good news.”
But what is the good news?
Paul clearly defined it:

> “Now I make known to you, brothers and sisters, the gospel which I preached to you… by which also you are saved… For I handed down to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He was raised on the third day according to the Scriptures.” (1 Corinthians 15:1–4 NASB)

According to Paul, the Gospel contains three essential truths:

1. Christ died for our sins

Jesus did not merely die as a martyr.
He died as the substitute sacrifice for sinners.
Isaiah prophesied:

> “He was pierced through for our wrongdoings, He was crushed for our iniquities; The punishment for our peace was upon Him, and by His wounds we are healed.” (Isaiah 53:5 NASB)

Jesus Himself said:

> “The Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give His life as a ransom for many.” (Mark 10:45 NASB)

The cross was not an accident.

It was God’s plan to redeem sinners.

2. Christ was buried

The burial of Jesus confirms that His death was real.

He truly suffered.
He truly died.
He truly entered the grave.
The Gospel is based on historical events witnessed by real people.

3. Christ was raised from the dead

The resurrection is the foundation of Christian hope.

Paul wrote:

> “And if Christ has not been raised, your faith is worthless; you are still in your sins.” (1 Corinthians 15:17 NASB)

Without the resurrection:

There is no victory over sin.
There is no defeat of death.
There is no assurance of eternal life.

Christianity stands or falls on the resurrection of Jesus Christ.

The Islamic Understanding of Jesus

Islam honours Jesus (Isa) as an important prophet and the Messiah.

However, the Jesus presented in the Qur’an is fundamentally different from the Jesus revealed in the New Testament.

The Qur’an teaches:

Jesus is not God.
Jesus is not God’s eternal Son.
Jesus did not die on the cross in the biblical sense.
Jesus did not provide an atoning sacrifice for sin.

For example, Surah 4:157 states: > “They did not kill him, nor did they crucify him—but it was made to appear so to them.”

This directly contradicts the central message of the apostles.

The New Testament repeatedly declares:

> “But God demonstrates His own love toward us, in that while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.”

(Romans 5:8 NASB)

And:

> “He Himself bore our sins in His body on the cross.” (1 Peter 2:24 NASB)

The apostles did not preach that Jesus escaped the cross.
They preached that the cross was the very reason He came.

Can Two Opposite Messages Both Be From God?

This is the central issue.
The Bible teaches:
Jesus died for our sins.
Jesus rose from the dead.
Jesus is the Son of God.
Salvation comes through faith in Him.

The Qur’an teaches a different understanding:

Jesus is not God’s Son.
Jesus is not God.
Jesus was not crucified according to the Qur’an.
Salvation is understood through obedience, judgment, and Allah’s mercy.

These messages cannot both be the revelation of God.

They present different answers to the most important questions:

Who is Jesus?
What did Jesus accomplish?
How can sinners be forgiven?

Grace Alone or Human Righteousness?

The Bible teaches that salvation is completely a work of God’s grace.

Paul wrote:

> “For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; not a result of works, so that no one may boast.” (Ephesians 2:8–9 NASB)

Again:

> “He saved us, not on the basis of deeds which we have done in righteousness, but according to His mercy.” (Titus 3:5 NASB)

The sinner cannot earn forgiveness.
No amount of religious activity can remove guilt before a holy God.
Salvation is a gift because Jesus paid the price completely.

As Jesus declared:

> “It is finished.” (John 19:30 NASB)

By contrast, the Qur’an presents a different understanding of salvation. Islamic teaching places emphasis on obedience to Allah, righteous deeds, and the hope of Allah’s mercy at judgment.

From a biblical perspective, this is fundamentally different from the Gospel because the Bible teaches that salvation is not a combination of human effort and divine mercy.