| Book Name | Understanding Islam |
| Author | I.A. Ibrahim |
| Publish Year | 1997 |
| Publisher | Darussalam, Publishers and Distributors, Houston, |
| Language | English |
| Genre | Islam |
| ISBN | 9960-34-011-2 |
| Download | Link |
Understanding Islam Review:
When someone converts to Islam, God forgives all of his previous sins and evil deeds. A man called Amr came to the Prophet Muhammad(s.a.w) and said: “Give me your right hand so that I may give you my pledge of loyalty.” The Prophet (s.a.w) stretched out his right hand. Amr withdrew his hand. The Prophet (s.a.w) said: { What has happened to you, O Amr? } He replied: “I intend to lay down a condition.” The Prophet (s.a.w) asked: { What condition do you intend to put forward? } Amr said: “That God forgive my sins.” The Prophet said: { Didn’t you know that converting to Islam erases all previous sins? }After converting to Islam, the person will be rewarded for his or her good and bad deeds according to the following saying of the Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w) : { Your Lord, Who is blessed and exalted, is most merciful. If someone intends to do a good deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, (a reward of) ten to seven hundred or many more times (the reward of the good deed), will be recorded for him. And if someone intends to do a bad deed but does not do it, a good deed will be recorded for him. And if he does do it, a bad deed will be recorded against him or God will wipe it out. }
A prophet like Moses:
There were hardly any two prophets who were so much alike as Moses and Muhammad (s.a.w) . Both were given a comprehensive law and code of life. Both encountered their enemies and were victorious in miraculous ways. Both were accepted as prophets and statesmen. Both migrated following conspiracies to assassinate them. Analogies between Moses and Jesus overlook not only the above similarities but other crucial ones as well. These include the natural birth, the family life, and the death of Moses and Muhammad (s.a.w) but not that of Jesus. Moreover, Jesus was regarded by his followers as the Son of God and not exclusively as a prophet of God, as Moses and Muhammad (s.a.w) were and as Muslims believe Jesus was. So, this prophecy refers to Muhammad (s.a.w) and not to Jesus, because Muhammad (s.a.w) is more like Moses than Jesus.
Also, one notices from the Gospel of John that the Jews were waiting for the fulfillment of three distinct prophecies: 1) The coming of Christ, 2) The coming of Elijah, 3) The coming of the Prophet. This is obvious from the three questions that were posed to John the Baptist: “Now this was John’s testimony, when the Jews of Jerusalem sent priests and Levites to ask him who he was. He did not fail to confess, but confessed freely, ‘I am not the Christ.’ They asked him, ‘Then who are you? Are you Elijah?’ He said, ‘I am not.’ ‘Are you the Prophet?’ He answered, ‘No.’” (John 1:19-21). If we look in a Bible with cross references, we will find in the marginal notes where the words “the Prophet” occur in John 1:21, that these words refer to the prophecy of Deuteronomy 18:15 and 18:18.1 We conclude from this that Jesus Christ is not the prophet mentioned in Deuteronomy 18:18.
