If you open a Bible to the table of contents you will see what appears to be sixty-six chapters... but they are really sixty-six little books. The Bible is a book of books which were inspired by God and written through forty different people over a period of 1500 years. It is a history of God's actions to have a relationship with man. The first thirty-nine books are called the Old Testament because they reveal the Old Covenant. The remaining twenty-seven books are called the New Testament because they reveal the fulfillment of the Old Covenant and its transition into the New Covenant. To read more about this, click here.
If you have ever moved from one country to another, or from one climate to another, you probably learned that it is helpful to have some advance knowledge of the new country and climate before you arrive, so you can properly respond to the people and the climate. In the same way, there are five topics that are particularly important to address for those of you coming from a Muslim background who wish to get acquainted with the Bible.
Five Topics
- The authenticity of the Bible
- The consistency of God's revelation
- Why true Christians believe that Jesus is the Son of God
- Did Jesus really die on the cross?
- The Trinity
A one on one discussion would be best. But the next best thing is... I will anticipate comments and concerns which are common to those from Muslim cultures... and provide an answer. If you have questions which I do not address, please contact me using the "Ask a Question" link at the bottom of any page.
1) The Authenticity of the Bible
You may have heard that the Old and New Testaments have been changed and are therefore not trustworthy... that because of this, Allah had to provide the Quran to replace it... that the Quran contains the essence of all the heavenly books, including the Old and New Testaments of the Bible.
A) Can the Word of God Really be Changed?
This raises questions:
- If God kept the Quran from being corrupted, why didn't he protect the Bible from being corrupted?
- If the Bible was God's word, how could man change it?
- Isn't God able to protect His word?
- Since the Bible is God's Word, whom are we accusing when we say it's been changed? Aren't we accusing God Himself by saying that He was not able to protect it from being changed?
- Who changed the Bible? When was it changed?
- What parts were changed? Why were they changed?
B) What does the Bible say regarding itself?
Matthew 5:18 (Jesus speaking) "...until heaven and earth disappear, not the smallest letter, not the least stroke of a pen, will by any means disappear from the Law until everything is accomplished."
Matthew 24:35 (Jesus speaking) "Heaven and earth will pass away, but my Word will not pass away."
1 Peter 1:24, 25 "...the grass withers and the flowers fall off, but the Word of the Lord abides forever." (also Isaiah 40:8)
2 Timothy 3:16 "All scripture is inspired by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness."
2
Peter 1:21 "For no prophecy was ever made by an act of human will, but men
moved by the Holy spirit spoke from God."
C) What does the Quran say about the Bible?
The Quran doesn't say the Bible has been changed. It actually says that unless one obeys the Torah and the Bible, they are rebellious, disbelievers and have gone astray. The Quran mentions the Torah and the "Zabur" (the Old Testament with the Psalms) and the "Injil" (which is the New Testament) many times. When the Quran was written, it never said that the Bible had been changed. So, when Islam began in the 6th century, 600 years after Jesus Christ, the Bible was accepted as true. For more on this, click here.
D) What about the issue of translation?
The Bible which exists today was translated from the original languages of Hebrew, Aramaic and Greek. Whether it was printed in 2020, 2000, 1980, 1950, or 1900 it was translated from the original language. We have a complete Bible that dates back to the third century A.D (300 years after Christ and 400 years before Islam). It is a complete, original Bible and several of these still exist: one in a museum in London and another in the Vatican in Rome. But, some may say, "Well, maybe it was changed before the year 300." We have thousands of original copies of various sections of the Bible that date back to before the year 300. If these pieces were put together, the result would be hundreds if not thousands of complete Bibles dating back to before the year 300. The oldest of these manuscripts dates to roughly the year 100 A.D. The first books of the New Testament were written in 40 or 50 A.D. Evidence of this is in the writings of the Church Fathers, by whom many books and articles were written prior to 100 A.D. The entire New Testament, with the exception of five sentences that have nothing to do with theology or doctrine, can be reconstructed from the quotes of the church fathers found in these writings. In essence, we have original copies from the same time as the writings of the Apostles who wrote by the inspiration of the Holy Spirit.
E) Why are there four Gospels rather than just one?
Some Muslims believe that Islam has one Quran, while Christianity has four Bibles. This is not true. While we do have the four Gospels, of Matthew, Mark, Luke and John, these are not conflicting accounts but rather the same story told from four different points of view, to highlight different aspects truth. These four agree on the the life and teachings of Jesus Christ, and neither contradicts the other. They do not record all of the events surrounding the life of Jesus, but together with the Old and New Testament writings they combine to form one Bible, inspired by the Holy Spirit. What is interesting is that in the days of Christ, the region of the Middle East where Christ was born and brought up was under the influence of Greek civilization. The Greek judiciary system required two witnesses to appear before a judge to bring evidence in a trial. God in His sovereignty, however, has provided us with four witnesses, all of whom are in agreement concerning the events of the life of Christ. II Corinthians 13:1 says, "...every fact is to be confirmed by the testimony of two or three witnesses." Finally, the Bible is not a scientific book, but where it mentions science it is accurate. It is not a history book, but where it mentions anything historic it is again accurate. It is not a geography book, but where it mentions geography it has proven to be true and accurate. The Bible, as it is in our hands today, is the true Word of God and is able to stand up to any type of test, research, or criticism. Not one word of the Bible has been proven wrong by science or any one else.
2) The consistency of God's revelation
You may have heard that Allah has established three religions over the course of history: Judaism, Christianity and Islam... that Allah first sent Moses to establish Judaism, but because the Jews were a stiff-necked, disobedient people He scattered them all over the world and sent Jesus, the Son of Mary, to establish Christianity... that by the fifth century, however, Christianity had become so corrupt that God sent Mohammed to establish Islam, His last and final revelation. Growing up in Islam, you may have have heard that Islam includes both Judaism and Christianity and that Abraham was a Muslim. In your mind, Islam is everything and everything is Islam.
A very important thing to understand – is that God was consistent in His revelation and will continue to be so until the end. God's primary purpose was not to establish a religion; religions are man-made. Rather, he desired to establish a personal relationship between Himself and man. This is the message of the entire Gospel. The first two chapters in the Bible speak about creation, including that of man and woman. In the third chapter, we read about the fall of man into sin. From the fourth chapter of Genesis through to the end of the last book of the Bible, Revelation, the primary message of God's Word is that of Salvation. There is a very important passage in Genesis chapter 3, verses 14 and 15 (Genesis 3:14-15), in which God confronts Adam and Eve regarding their sin:
"And the Lord God said to the serpent, 'Because you have done this, cursed are you more than all cattle, and more than every beast of the field; on your belly you shall go, and dust shall you eat all the days of your life; And I will put enmity between you and the woman, And between your seed and her seed; He shall bruise you on the head, And you shall bruise him on the heel.'"
Growing up in Islam, you know the story of Adam and Eve, the creation and the fall. You probably remember that Satan appeared in the shape of a serpent and tried to seduce the woman to eat from the fruit, that she succumbed to temptation and ate, and then she gave some of the fruit to her husband to eat. The key point here, however, is God's promise: "...the seed of the woman shall bruise the head of Satan."
Here is an important question: "Who from the time of Adam and Eve until today was indeed born only from a woman and not the union of a man and a woman?" Islam correctly answers, "Jesus". Jesus was that seed of a woman, who was prophesied to bruise Satan's head. Jesus was Allah's fulfillment of His promise – that from the seed of the woman He would destroy Satan and redeem man. This promise was given the moment man fell into sin and was fulfilled by Jesus Christ. The Old Testament prophets pointed their prophecies toward the coming of Christ. His coming was, from the beginning, part of God's plan:
Isaiah 7:14 "Behold, the virgin shall be found with child and bear a son, and she will call his name Emmanuel."
Isaiah 9:6 "For a child will be born to us, a son will be given to us, and the government will rest on his shoulders; and his name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Eternal Father, Prince of Peace."
Matthew 1:23 "Behold, the virgin shall be with child, and shall bear a son, and they shall call his name Emmanuel, which translated means, 'God with us.'"
3) Why true Christians believe Jesus is the Son of God
By true Christians, I exclude cultural Christians, those who think that they are a Christian because they were born into a family or nation which identifies as Christian. A true Christian is one who has been born again, in the Spirit (John 3:1-17).
Is Jesus really the Son of God?
When the Bible says that Jesus is the "Son of God", it is not saying that Jesus is a physical son (God having sexual relations with Mary). That would be blasphemy. The Bible does not say that God ever had a physical relationship with a woman to have His son. Jesus is the Son of God from a spiritual point of view, not a physical one. Jesus is not the physical offspring of God. In Luke 1: 26-35, we see how the angel brought the news to Mary that she would conceive and give birth to a son. It said: "The Holy Spirit will come upon you... So the holy one to be born will be called the Son of God." He is not the physical son of God, but we call him the Son of God because he came from the Spirit of God. Therefore, he is not the physical son, but "He shall be called the Son of God."
In Arabic, the words "ibn" and "walad" are similar but different. "Ibn" means "son", sometimes figuratively, sometimes denoting heirship. But "walad" means "child" in the sense of the flesh. So, Jesus was the "walad" of Mary and the "Ibn" of God. So, we would not call Jesus in Arabic "Walad Allah." We call Him "Ibn Allah", meaning He came from God (John 16:28).
In Arabic, the phrase "son of..." is used to signify where one is from. For instance, a person from Lebanon would often called a "Son of Lebanon." A man from Morocco would be called a "Son of Morocco." And because the Nile is the most famous part of Egypt, an Egyptian will often be called "Son of the Nile." One could also be called "Son of Education", meaning that he is a very well educated person. The phrase may also be used to express one's main interest. In the same way, Christ is called "Son of God" because He came from the Spirit of God.
4) Did Jesus really die on the cross?
A) Does the Quran refute Christ's crucifixion?
Growing up in Islam, you may have been taught that Jesus did not die on the cross. There is a verse in the Quran which says, "and for boasting, 'We killed the Messiah, Jesus, son of Mary, the messenger of Allah.' But they neither killed nor crucified him—it was only made to appear so. Even those who argue for this 'crucifixion' are in doubt. They have no knowledge whatsoever—only making assumptions. They certainly did not kill him. Rather, Allah raised him up to Himself. And Allah is Almighty, All-Wise." Surah 4:157-158
You have probably learned to understand "But they neither killed nor crucified him" to mean that Allah was so merciful that He could never allow a wonderful prophet such as Jesus to be crucified by His enemies. You have heard that Allah saved Him, and lifted Him up to heaven... That Allah then punished Judas Iscariot, who had betrayed Him the night before, by changing him into the likeness of Christ... That it was Judas, not Christ, who was crucified because Jesus was too great and wonderful to be crucified.
Here is the key to Surah 4:137-158: The sentence, "But they neither killed nor crucified him—it was only made to appear so." Means that they did not kill Jesus. Jesus, let them take his life. He gave His life. Their "boasting" was incorrect because they didn't take His life. It "was only made to appear" as if they took the life of the Jesus. They possibly "are in doubt" because Jesus said He was the Son of God and His prophecy of the destruction of Jerusalem came true in 70 AD, therefore validating his claim. They are "only making assumptions" may mean that they are guessing incorrectly. They didn't take His life from Him. Allah took him up, both placing Jesus on the cross to die for the sins of mankind and by raising Him from the dead (The death of Jesus for the sins of mankind will be explained in the next section).
There are other verses in the Quran which state that Jesus was killed. One verse in particular attributes to Jesus the statement, "Peace unto Me the day I was born, the day I died and was taken to heaven." Surah 19:33
B) The Biblical prophecy and necessity of Christ's crucifixion
The issue of Christ's death on the cross also brings us back to the verses in Genesis 3:15. In this passage, God promised that the seed of the woman would bruise Satan, even though Satan would bruise His heel. The bruising of His heel is nothing less than His crucifixion and being nailed to the cross. But, though Allah allowed Satan to nail Him to the cross, that same death would bruise his own head. Through this death and resurrection, Christ won the victory over Satan and redeemed mankind. Also, in Genesis 4, we see how God accepted Abel's sacrifice, the lamb, but rejected Cain's sacrifice, which was the fruit of his labor. The lamb is a substitute for man and represents the coming of Christ. The fruit of Cain's labor was representative simply of good works, and was not sufficient to meet God's requirement. In Genesis 22, Abraham takes his son as a sacrifice in obedience to God's command: "And He said, 'Take now your son, you only son, whom you love, Isaac, 4 and go to the land of Moriah; and offer him there as a burnt offering on one of the mountains of which I will tell you" (Genesis 22:2). What does this mean? Why would God have asked such a thing? In this story, God provided a ram miraculously as a substitute for Abraham's son. Abraham had lifted his knife and was ready to kill his son, but what happened instead? He heard a voice saying, "Abraham! ... Do not stretch out your hand against the lad, and do nothing to him; for now I know that you fear God, since you have not withheld your son, your only son, from Me" (Genesis 22:12). What would have happened had Abraham not listened? His son would have been killed. But Abraham believed and took instead the ram, which he sacrificed in the place of his son. The ram represents Jesus Christ, and we can look back 2000 years ago and see Him on the cross for you and me. Turn to John 1:29, where John the Baptist proclaims, "Behold! The Lamb of God who takes away the sins of the world!" Jesus is the Lamb of God. In addressing the issue of Christ's death further, I suggest you read through Isaiah 53, which very clearly speaks about the coming of Christ and the redemption of mankind – Jesus Himself bearing our sins on the cross, Himself being the sacrifice. The entire chapter talks about Jesus, but focus especially on verses 4 through 12. Take time to observe all the prophecies regarding Jesus. After you read that section, please answer this question, "Who do you think the prophet Isaiah is talking about here?" It is clear; he is talking about the son of Mary, Issa, Ibnou Mariam," that is, Jesus, son of Mary. What was prophesied in Isaiah was fulfilled in the person of Christ nearly 600 years later. Notice verse ten, "the Lord was pleased" to offer Christ as a sacrifice for man's sin. Allah is just; He said in Romans 6:23, "For the wages of sin is death," which is eternal separation from Allah. However, Allah is also merciful. He would not allow the whole world to go to hell. From the moment man fell, the death of Christ was planned as the solution for sin. Some people may question the necessity of Christ's death on the cross, citing good works as a means of atonement for one's sin. But suppose I stole your watch, and you caught me, brought me to the police and turned me in. Suppose further that because of this, the police sentenced me to five days in jail. Could I get out of it by saying, "Wait a minute, I bought him lunch yesterday, paid for his meal and everything!" Would this be sufficient to cancel out my crime? Would the police accept it? Of course not! It's not logical. Good works alone are not sufficient payment for one's crimes. Consider a just judge: A judge is sitting in the courtroom, wearing his judicial robe, and a young girl stands before him. She has been charged with driving without a license and speeding down the highway, for which the penalty is ten thousand francs. He points his finger at her and asks, "Are you guilty or not?" To which she answers, "Yes, Your Honor. But I cannot afford to pay the penalty." The judge, however, tells her, "You must pay!" And with that dismisses the court. He then steps down from the bench, takes off his robe and gives the girl ten thousand francs. Why? Because he is her father, and while he could not dishonor his name by letting her go free, he is also merciful and loving and could not bear to see her put in jail because of her inability to pay. The only solution, therefore, is for him to pay the penalty himself. In the same way, we can see how Christ has paid the penalty for our sin in Philippians 2:5-11: Christ, being equal with God, nevertheless emptied Himself, taking off the robe of heavenly glory and coming down as a man to bear the cross. At the cross, the justice and the mercy of God met together, and both were satisfied.
Let me ask you, "What would you think of God if for thousands of years He promised that Jesus would come and die for the sins of the world, and at the last moment, when Jesus was about to be put on the cross, He took Him alive and changed Judas into the image of Christ? Does this description fit the God we know?" Not only would this make God out to be a liar, but also there would have been no provision for man's sin! Jesus was the only sacrifice sufficient for man's salvation.
C) If Jesus died on the cross, and if Jesus is God, does that mean that God died on the cross also?
In the Gospel of John, chapter 4, we are told that God is Spirit. In the original Hebrew language, Spirit is "roh." From this word, the word "rihe" is taken, which is also the air in the atmosphere. Air is everywhere. Though you cannot see it, you know it is present: You can feel it, you breathe it, even though it has no color or shape. The same thing is true with the Spirit of God – He is present everywhere. If you take an empty bottle, you know that it is empty of any liquid, yet it is filled with air. The air that's inside the bottle, furthermore, has taken the shape of the bottle, even though air has no shape. The characteristics of the air inside the bottle are identical to the characteristics of the air outside the bottle. The fact that there is air inside the bottle does not mean there is none outside the bottle, because air exists every- where in the atmosphere. Now, if you were to take the bottle today, and smash it against the wall, it would break into hundreds of little pieces. It would be shattered. Can we say that the air inside the bottle would also be shattered? No. Only the vessel that contained the air has been shattered.
The same thing took place when God, who is Spirit, dwelt among us in the body of Jesus Christ. God took the likeness of man. That does not mean that He no longer existed. Rather, like the air when it filled the bottle, God still exists everywhere. Furthermore, Jesus' crucifixion on the cross does not mean that God was killed, but rather that the body, which contained the Spirit of God, was killed. God has always existed, even during the three days in which Jesus was dead in the tomb. This is exactly what the Apostle Paul has written in his epistle to the Philippians, chapter 2, verses 5-11:
"Have this attitude in yourselves, which was also in Christ Jesus, who, although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made in the likeness of men. And being found in appearance as a man, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, also God highly exalted Him, and bestowed on Him the name which is above every name, that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, of those who are in heaven, and on earth, and under the earth, and that every tongue should confess that Jesus Christ is Lord."
5) The Trinity
Having been born into Islam, you may have been taught that, "Christians believe in three different gods – God the Father, Jesus, and the Holy Spirit. That is blasphemy! One cannot believe in three different gods."
Three different gods would be blasphemy. But that is not what Christians believe or what the Bible teaches.
The doctrine of the Trinity is a Christian doctrine which asserts that there is one God who exists in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In this doctrine, the Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit are all God, but there is only one God. Each of the three is God, in essence.
According to Christian doctrine, Jesus is God, the Son of God and the Son of Man. Jesus as God and as the Son of God is the second person of the Trinity. So, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are the first, second and third persons of the Trinity, respectively. So the Christian doctrines of the divinity of Jesus and the Trinity are intertwined.
You may have noticed... that the doctrine of the Trinity is not one doctrine. It represents a variety of interrelated doctrines.
The divinity of Jesus is one of the many doctrines in the Trinity.
Farther down this page I will present scriptures from the Bible and the Quran which relate to these doctrines.
As you read on, you will see that both the Quran and the Bible represent that there is one God who speaks of himself in the plural as "we" or "us". So, both books refer to God as singular and plural.
The word trinity means a group of three. You will not find the word "Trinity" anywhere in the Bible. The word Trinity represents a variety of doctrines which some Christians would say are true, even though they appear to be false and contradictory at first glance. The difficulty is... in this doctrine, the Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit are all God, but there is only one God.
So,
The Father is God.
The Son is God.
The Holy Spirit is God.
And,
The Father is not the Son.
The Son is not the Holy Spirit.
The Holy Spirit is not the Father.
In other words, one God in three persons. That is the doctrine of the Trinity in condensed form.
When I say that the Father is God... the Son is God... the Holy Spirit is God... I did not say, "the Father = God"... "the Son = God"... "the Holy Spirit = God". An apple is fruit but that doesn't mean that apple = fruit.
Even those who hold to the deity of Jesus and the Trinity acknowledge that the doctrines are difficult to explain... that God can be one and also three. I will critique some viewpoints regarding the mathematical aspects of the Trinity later in this page.
But first, let's examine some scripture from three religions which assert that there is one God, who is also a plural God. Christianity, Islam and Judaism. We will briefly examine scriptures from Genesis in the Bible and Surahs 15, 54 and 66 in the Quran.
God is a "We" in the Bible and the Quran
In the Bible we see that God is presented in the plural, "And God said, Let us make man in our image, after our likeness..." (Genesis 1:26a, ASV). This quote is from the book of Genesis, which Judaism and Christianity hold as scripture. It is clear that Christians didn't change this scripture after the coming of Christ to make Genesis 1:26 consistent with the Christian doctrine of the Trinity with Jesus as God, being the second person in the triune God. You can go to chabad.org and sefaria.org and see that the Jewish Bible has the same exact quote as I have shown for Genesis 1:26a. God the creator is clearly in the plural... "us"... in both the Jewish and Christian Bible.
But, like the Jewish and Christian Bibles, the Quran also presents God in the plural: Allah is called "We" in the Quran. In the Quran, "We" created the earth and vegetation, constellations and man (Surah 15:19, 16, 26 respectively). Allah then refers to himself as man's creator in the singular as "I" in Surah 15: 28. Allah (in the plural as "We") sends wind and rain (Surah 15:22), causes life and death (Surah 15:23) and sent the flood in Noah's day (Surah 54:9-13). Allah (in the plural as "We") breathed of "Our Spirit" into Mary the mother of Jesus (Surah 66:12).
Notice the word "Our" in the phrase "Our Spirit". This is the breath of a plural Spirit of a plural deity going into Mary.
Corpus.quran.com has multiple English translations of these verses but "Our Spirit" for 66:12 is not in all of them. Quran.com shows both Arabic and English. You can hover over the Arabic words to see the Arabic words which mean "Our Spirit". Start at the top right of the Arabic text since Arabic is read from right to left.
So, the scriptures of Judaism, Christianity and Islam all present God in the PLURAL. This is noteworthy since they are all known for their insistence that there is only ONE God. Now we will see that the scriptures of all three religions also present God as ONE God.
This raises an interesting prospect. The debunking of God as a plurality debunks not one but three religions.
There is One God in the Quran and the Bible
The Bible says, "Hear, Israel: Yahweh is our God. Yahweh is one" Deuteronomy 6:4 (World English Version). This quote is from the book of Deuteronomy which both Judaism and Christianity affirm to be scripture. "Yahweh" is the personal name of God. Click here for more on this. Matthew 28:19 commands, "Go
The Quran in Surah 5:73 says, "There is only one God".
So, both the Quran and the Bible present God in the singular.
God is Both Singular and Plural in the Quran and the Bible
If we look at the scriptures of the Jewish, Christian and Muslim religions, we see that they are unified in asserting that God is both singular and plural. I am focusing on what the scriptures actually say rather than what men say that the scriptures say. Followers of any religion should be suspicious when religious leaders say that the words of their scripture don't mean what they say. This applies to Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Judaism and etc. I believe that religious leaders try to change the meaning of scripture to avoid a contradiction of one verse with another verse... or a contradiction of one verse with what religious leaders have taught. Having faith does not mean that we don't also follow an honest, logical and scientific approach to scripture. Words mean what they say. Religious leaders must present an honest response to scriptures of their faith which appear to create contradictions with other scriptures of their faith or contradictions with the teachings of the leaders of their faith.
The scriptures of all three religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism present God as plural and singular.
Explanations of the Plurality of God in the Bible and the Quran
The Christian Bible presents detail to the plurality of God in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit... In the Bible, these three persons are deeply involved in the ways that God expresses his infinite love for his children:
- Father: God as authority (John 12:49, 44-49)
- Son: God in flesh (Hebrews 1:8, 2:5-18, 2:17)
- Holy Spirit: God as Spirit in believers (John 14:17, Acts 5:3-4, Matthew 1:18, Luke 1:34-35, explained later )
The books of the Bible which are endorsed in Judaism show God as authority (Psalm 89:9) as being God in the flesh (Isaiah 7:14, Genesis 32:24-31) and as the Holy Spirit (Psalm 51:11). You can go to chabad.org and sefaria.org and see English translations of these passages in the Jewish Bible. If they disagree with the Christian Bible, you can use the Interlinear version at biblehub.com to examine the Hebrew words underlying the English translations, with definitions of the Hebrew words.
The Quran presents Allah in the plural (Surah 15:16, 19, 22, 26; 54:9-13, 66:12)) and as singular (Surah 5:73) but not as a trinity (Surah 5:73). The Quran doesn't provide detail, whether God's plurality is two, or more than three, since it can not be three according to Surah 5:73. There are the 99 names of God in the Quran. The Quran presents God as the one Spirit of a plural God in Surah 66:12. Allah (in the plural as "We") breathed of "Our Spirit" into Mary the mother of Jesus (Surah 66:12).
Some say that the plurality of Allah in the Quran is a plurality of attributes but not a plurality of persons. In this view, multiple attributes are intended by Allah when He presents Himself as "We". Others say that the word "We" in the Quran represents grandeur. Followers of the Quran are not unique in this type response to words that appear to create contradictions. Some followers of the Bible do the same thing with words in their scripture which appear to contradict other scripture or contradict their beliefs. Nevertheless, the words mean what they say whether the words are in the Quran or the Bible. Blue is not pink. Water is not the sun. I is singular and we is plural. Words are what they are rather than what we want them to be. Otherwise words become meaningless and communication becomes impossible. Kings do have grandeur. And kings may say "We" will do such and such. But "we" is still plural, not singular. Kings represent millions of people and can use the word "we" to indicate this. But "we" is still plural, representing a plural number of people. We who desire truth must understand the meaning of words honestly. When we read words we don't like, we can't simply say that words don't mean what they mean.
Now "we" will look at scriptures in the Bible saying that the Father, Son and Holy Spirit are each God. With both holy books we will use the same standard. Words mean what they say, not what we want them to say.
Bible: The Father is God
"to all who are in Rome, beloved of God, called to be saints: Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ" (Romans 15:7).
Bible: The Holy Spirit is God
1) "But Peter said, "Ananias, why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit and to keep back part of the price of the land? 4 While you kept it, didn't it remain your own? After it was sold, wasn't it in your power? How is it that you have conceived this thing in your heart? You haven't lied to men, but to God" (Acts 5:3-4).
2) Jesus, the Son of God, was born through Mary, a virgin, because she "was found pregnant by the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 1:18). Because of this impregnation by the Holy Spirit, Luke states: "Therefore also the Holy one who is born from you will be known as the Son of God" (Luke 1:34-35). So, Jesus was the Son of God, because God the Holy Spirit impregnated her. This does not mean that the Holy Spirit had sexual relations with Mary. The Holy Spirit is a Spirit... with supernatural power... which was used to cause a virgin to give birth.
Bible: Jesus is God
1) "looking for the blessed hope and appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior, Jesus Christ" (Titus 2:13)
2) "1In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God... 14The Word became flesh, and lived among us. We saw his glory, such glory as of the one and only Son of the Father, full of grace and truth. 15 John testified about him. He cried out, saying, "This was he of whom I said, 'He who comes after me has surpassed me, for he was before me.'" 16 From his fullness we all received grace upon grace. 17 For the law was given through Moses. Grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ. 18 No one has seen God at any time. The one and only Son,
So, "the Word was God" (1:1), "became flesh" (1:14), was a "he" (1:14), was "the Son of the Father" (1:14), was "testified" of by "John" (1:15), came "after" John in the flesh (1:15), but was "before" John as deity (1:15), brought "grace" (1:16), since grace was "realized" through him (1:17) who was called "Jesus Christ" (1:17). As additional explanation, Jesus was before John because Jesus is God but after John because he was born as a human after John was born.
3) For other passages revealing Jesus as God see also Hebrews 1:8, Hebrews 1:5-6, 2 Peter 1:1, 1 John 5:20, 1 Timothy 1:1, Philippians 2:5-11, Isaiah 9:6 (a child will be born named "Mighty God"), Isaiah 7:13-14 (promise made to "house of David, in other words, the lineage of David, of a child to be born to a virgin to be named Immanuel, which means God with us, the promise being fulfilled in Matthew 1:23), Acts 16:29-34 (In verse 31 the Philippian jailer hears that salvation comes by faith in Jesus. In verse 33 he was baptized as profession of that faith and in verse 34 we see that his faith was in God, revealing that faith in Jesus is faith in God, because Jesus is God.)
Mathematical Problems with the Trinity
The doctrine of the Trinity is a Christian doctrine which asserts that there is one God who exists in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. In this doctrine, the Father, Jesus and Holy Spirit are all God, but there is only one God. In defense of the Trinity, some will say...
"What I am is different from Who I am".
I am one human. That is what I am. I am also a father, a son and husband. That is who I am. In applying this to God (whose name in the Bible is Yahweh)... Yahweh is one God. That is what Yahweh is. Yahweh is God. Yahweh is also Father, Son and Holy Spirit. That is who Yahweh is. That is how some will explain that God exists in three persons, the Father, Son and Holy Spirit.
But, even those who hold to this view acknowledge that it is difficult to explain... that God can be one and also three.
At first glance, science, logic and mathematics seem to indicate that 1 + 1+ 1 must always equal 3. For example,
1 Apple
+ 1 Apple
+ 1 Apple
= 3 Apples
But the Bible doesn't say that there are three Gods in the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Christians will say that they are three persons in the Godhead resulting in one God... so, the three apple analogy doesn't apply. Let me show you:
1 Person (God the Father)
+ 1 Person (God the Son)
+ 1 Person (God the Holy Spirit)
= 1 God (whose name is Yahweh)
Color has also been used as an explanation of the Trinity.
The primary colors are red, blue and green. These colors cannot be created by mixing other colors. But every other color can be created from these three by mixing them in various proportions. If red, blue and green light shine on the same spot, the result is white light. Three become one.
1 Color
+ 1 Color
+ 1 Color
= 1 Color
By the way, white is a color. Though some in artistic fields may not consider white to be a color, according to physics white is a color. That's because it is formed by combining three colors. Colors combined are color. Each primary color is a separate color from the other two, can interact with the other two colors... and each of the three individually are color. And all three combined are color.
The Trinity has the same traits.
According to the Bible, the Holy Spirit conceived Jesus (Matthew 1:18), filled Jesus (Luke 14:1), empowered Jesus (Matthew 12:28) and led Jesus (Luke 14:1). Then, at Jesus' request, the Holy Spirit was sent by the Father to dwell within those who are born again (John 14:16-17). So, the three persons of the Trinity interact with each other. Like color, each person of the Trinity is a separate person, can interact with the other two persons... and each of the three individually are God. And... all three combined are God.
Color Red
+ Color Blue
+ Color Green
= Color White
God the Father
+ God the Son
+ God the Holy Spirit
=God the Trinity whose name is Yahweh
So, that is how some use color to explain the Trinity. To see in depth explanations of the Trinity, click here.
Like these two analogies using apples and color, all defenses and criticisms of the Trinity are based on what we know. But, we know that the things we know do not necessarily reveal the things we don't know. For example, primitive man would have mocked at things which we now know as reality like automobiles, rocket ships, electrons, computers and the atomic bomb. Primitive man would have been greatly mistaken to presume that such things could not someday exist.
The Trinity is a spiritual matter. We can not prove or disprove spiritual matters on this side of death. After death, we will know the answer. But in the meantime, we have two spiritual books, the Quran and the Bible. Both claim to have spiritual truth which is handed down to man from God. How else can man know truth about God, unless God reveals it? But, the Quran and the Bible disagree on this issue of the Trinity. So, how can we know which one to believe? Which one can be "debunked"?
For an answer to this question, please click here.