A brief overview of Islam:

• "Islam" literally means "peace through the submission to God".
  
  
• "Allah" is an Arabic word that literally means "God". Muslims also believe that "Allah" is the personal name of God.
  
  
• "Muslim" literally means "anyone or anything that submits itself to the will of God".
  
  
• Followers of Islam number over 1.5 billion worldwide. Along with Judaism and Christianity, it is considered to be one of the three Abrahamic faiths.
  
  
• Islam is one of the fastest growing religions in the world. To become Muslim, a person of any race or culture must say a simple statement, the shahadah, that bears witness to the belief in the One God and that Prophet Muhammad was the last prophet of God.
  
  
• Islam was founded by Muhammad, who lived from about 570 to 632 AD. Its holy scripture (the Quran), claimed to be the direct word of Word as given to Muhammad by the Archangel Gabriel, later written down and compiled by his followers twenty years after his death. The Quran contains 114 suras (chapters), which are not arranged chronologically but by length, beginning with the longest to the shortest (a decision made by Muhammad's disciples, who were unsure as to how to compile the Quran).

Tradition has it that Muhammad himself was unable to read or write, and that he suffered from epilepsy. Although Muhammed had many wives, it is well documented that he also "married" a small child....

(For more information about Islam, please see The Spirit of Islam.)

Muhammad's religion, Islam, makes some of the following assertions:

"Prophet Muhammad is 'The Son of Man'.... and a direct descendant of Ishmael"....

The Refiner's Fire wants to know: Exactly WHERE in the Bible is "Muhammad" mentioned? The Bible is the ONLY Word of God, and it teaches that Yeshua (Jesus) is the Son of God and "the Son of Man":

Genesis 49:10 - The sceptre shall not depart from Judah nor the ruler's staff from between his feet, and to him shall be the obedience of the peoples.

Numbers 24: ¹⁷ "I see him, but not now; I behold him, but not near; A star shall come forth from Jacob, A scepter shall rise from Israel, And shall crush through the forehead of Moab, And tear down all the sons of Sheth. ¹⁸ "Edom shall be a possession, Seir, its enemies, also will be a possession, While Israel performs valiantly. ¹⁹ "One from Jacob shall have dominion, And will destroy the remnant from the city."

Isaiah 9:6 - For to us a child is born, to us a son is given and the government will be upon his shoulder and his name will be called Wonderful, Counsellor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.

Isaiah 11:1-2 There shall come forth a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch shall grow out of his roots. And the Spirit of the Lord shall rest upon him.

Here are a few scriptures from the "New" Covenant that call the One prophesied in the "Old" Covenant "the Son of Man":

Matthew 16: ¹³ Now when Jesus came into the district of Caesarea Philippi, He was asking His disciples, "Who do people say that the Son of Man is?" ¹⁴ And they said, "Some say John the Baptist; and others, Elijah; but still others, Jeremiah, or one of the prophets." ¹⁵ He said to them, "But who do you say that I am?" ¹⁶ Simon Peter answered, "You are the Christ, the Son of the living God." ¹⁷ And Jesus said to him, "Blessed are you, Simon Barjona, because flesh and blood did not reveal this to you, but My Father who is in heaven.

Matthew 17:9 As they were coming down from the mountain, Jesus commanded them, saying, "Tell the vision to no one until the Son of Man has risen from the dead." (Did Muhammad rise from the dead???? If so, how come we can visit his grave?)

Matthew 19:28 - And Jesus said to them, "Truly I say to you, that you who have followed Me, in the regeneration when the Son of Man will sit on His glorious throne, you also shall sit upon twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel.

Matthew 26:64 - Jesus said to him, "You have said it yourself; nevertheless I tell you, hereafter you will see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING ON THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN."

Mark 14:62 - And Jesus said, "I am; and you shall see THE SON OF MAN SITTING AT THE RIGHT HAND OF POWER, and COMING WITH THE CLOUDS OF HEAVEN."

Luke 22:48 - But Jesus said to him, "Judas, are you betraying the Son of Man with a kiss?"

John 8:28 - So Jesus said, "When you lift up the Son of Man, then you will know that I am He, and I do nothing on My own initiative, but I speak these things as the Father taught Me.

Please check out the following webpage which shows that the Muslims seem to be desperate to find their "prophet" in the Bible: "Are There Predictions of Muhammad in the Old Testament".

"Genuine prophets preach only Islam"....

The Refiner's Fire wants to know: Where in the Bible would one find that comment? Let's take a look at what a "genuine prophet" is supposed to teach:

• A Prophet must Speak in the Name of God (YHWH): The name YHWH is never mentioned in the Qur'an!
  
  
• A Prophet's Prediction Must Be Verifiable: The predictions which cover the longest duration are the most relevant and valuable for us and thus we tend to focus on them. Yet, according to the principle which is announced in Deuteronomy 18:21-22; Isaiah 43:9; and John 13:18-21, it is important that there be other predictions which are short-term and can be verified by contemporaries of the prophet. These predictions serve to identify him as a prophet, and so give credibility to longer range predictions. If we look at Moses, we see that his prediction of the death and defeat of the Egyptian army was immediately fulfilled (Exodus 14:13-14,27-28). Another prediction (Deuteronomy 28:1,15,64-66; 30:1,4-5) is not fulfilled until centuries later. Likewise, if we look at the prophet Isaiah, we see that one prophecy was fulfilled the same day (Isaiah 38:5-8), another the next day (Isaiah 37:21-38), while another 150 years later in B.C. 606 (Isaiah 39:6-7) and another was fulfilled 200 years later (Isaiah 13:1,19-22)
  
  
• The Message Must Conform to the Revelation Which Has Gone Before: God's word must remain consistent (unchanging) (Deuteronomy 4:1-2; Isaiah 8:20; Matthew 5:17-18; 24:35; and Revelation 22:18-20). In Psalms 89:35 we find that God cannot contradict His word. In the Qur'an we read, "I had already in advance sent you warning. The Word changes not." (Qaf 50:28-29). That which the prophets revealed cannot be contradictory. If it is, it cannot be trusted. When we look at the Qur'an we find many stories which contradict the revelations which came before (the Biblical account).

There are many contradictions found in the Muslim "Holy scriptures" concerning Abraham:

• Abraham's father is called Azar, instead of Terah (An'am 6:74 vs. Genesis11:26).
  
  
• He did not raise his descendants in the valley of Mecca, but in Hebron (Genesis 13:14-18).
  
  
• His hometown was not called Mecca but Ur in Chaldea (the secular Ebla tablets of Syria confirm the account of Genesis 11:31).
  
  
• He did not wander in the Meccan valley of Arabia, but through Haran and Canaan (Genesis 11:31 & 12:5).
  
  
• The Lord made His covenant with Isaac and not the son of the slave, Hagar (see Genesis 17:18-21 & 22:2).
  
  
• There is no record that he and Ishmael went to Arabia and built the Ka'bah in Mecca, though he did spend some time in Egypt (Genesis 12:10).

Muslims assume that Arabs are Ishmael's descendants.

• Historically the first father of the Arabs was Qahtan or Joktan. Some of his sons' names are still found in geographical locations in Arabia today, such as Sheba, Hazarmaveth, Ophir, and Havilah.
  
  
• Abraham's nephew Lot is another ancestor; as is Jacob's twin brother Esau, the father of the Edomites and the Moabites.
  
  
• Finally, Keturah, Abraham's third wife (Genesis 25), had six sons who all became forefathers of Arabs (i.e. Sheba and Dedan located in Yemen).

Other contradictions of the Biblical account are found in the Qur'an. Two of these are:

• In the Qur'an, Mary is recorded as the sister of Aaron and the daughter of Imran, as well as the mother of Jesus (Surat Maryam [Mary] 19:28). Thus, the Mary the Qur'an depicts as the mother of Jesus is 1,570 years removed from the Mary of the Bible.
  
  
• Haman, a Babylonian, not an Egyptian name, is mentioned as the "Wazir" of Pharaoh in Suras 28:5; 29:38: 40:25,38; yet the book of Esther correctly lists him as an official of king Xerxes, in Babylon.

Which of these Biblical qualifications did Muhammad demonstrate?

• Did Muhammad speak in the name of "the One Who Is", YAHWEH? Though YAHWEH is used 6,823 times in the Tanach (in the original language, not in most Bible translations), it is not used once in the Qur'an, and was perhaps not even known by Muhammad.
  
  
• Did Muhammad's revelation conform to the message which had preceded him? There are many contradictions between the Qur'an and the Bible, the most damaging of which pertain to the identity of Jesus and the purpose of his mission on earth. If a prophet's message goes against previous predictions, he, then, can no longer qualify as a true prophet.
  
  
• Were any of Muhammad's predictions verifiable within his lifetime? Muhammad could produce no verifiable proof to claim the office of a prophet. In fact, this became a cause for concern to Muhammad, who three times mentions the distrust of others of his inability to produce a miraculous sign for his authority (see Surahs Yunus 10:21 and Ra'd 13:7,27).
  
  
• Does Deuteronomy 18 refer to Muhammad? There are no Muslims who believe Muhammad was a descendant of Isaac. While there is an ongoing discussion concerning the veracity of the claim for Muhammad's descendence through Ishmael, this view is, nonetheless, widely held by Muslims today. Yet, according to the Qur'an (Al Ankabut 29:27 and Jathiya 45:16), all the prophets came in the line of Isaac, fulfilling the promise to Abraham in Genesis 17 that only through Isaac (and consequently Israel) would the covenant with the Lord be fulfilled.

(Source of the above: Who is a True Prophet?)

To continue with the Muslim assertion that "genuine prophets only teach Islam", please read "Ten Bible Prophecies Fulfilled Recently". These 10 Bible prophecies were fulfilled after 1948, when Israel became an independent country for the second time in history. These prophecies foretold of modern Israel's stunning military victories and of its transition from a desert wasteland to a prosperous nation.

Then read "Ten Bible Prophecies that are Being Fulfilled Today". These 10 Bible prophecies said that Israel would become a country, that it would be destroyed, that the Jews would be scattered worldwide and persecuted, that the Jews would have a worldwide impact, and that they would return to Israel. Today we are able to see evidence that each of these prophecies are being fulfilled.

Next, read the Book of Revelation, prophecy which was given to the prophet John, on the island of Patmos. Do any of these sound like Islam/Shalom/Peace?

Genuine prophets spoke the Truth, according to the way God gave it to them. This Truth often included war and calamity and it NEVER mentioned "religion" - ESPECIALLY "Islam". You are deceiving yourself and others by saying that "genuine prophets" only teach peace. This is just as untrue as the name of your religion which supposedly means "peace", yet teaches murder and hate and has spawned myriad terrorists worldwide. Here is an example:

Qur'an 2:190-192 "....Slay them wherever you find them. Drive them out of the places from which they drove you. Idolatry is more grievous than bloodshed....Fight against them until idolatry is no more and God's religion reigns supreme."

While it is safe to say that most true God-fearing, peace-loving Muslims would never harm their fellow man, militant Muslims (who have been attacking Americans for the last 25 years!) are just the opposite. They gleefully point to the numerous Qur'anic texts where Muhammad (as Allah's spokesman) commands his followers to fight and subdue all who resist Islam. What leads young men to volunteer to die for the privilege of killing others "for the cause of Allah"? Could it have something to do with the fact that Islam offers no certain hope of heaven to any of its adherents, with one exception? Consider these few Qur'anic verses...

• "As for those who are slain in the cause of God, He will not allow their works to perish. ... He will admit them to the Paradise He has made known to them." (47:8)
  
  
• "Let those who would exchange the life of this world for the hereafter, fight for the cause of God; whether he dies or triumphs, We shall richly reward him. ... The true believers fight for the cause of God, but the infidels fight for the devil. Fight then against the friends of Satan ..." (4:74,76)
  
  
• "The believers who stay at home--apart from those that suffer a grave impediment--are not the equals of those who fight for the cause of God with their goods and their persons. God has given those that fight with their goods and their persons a higher rank than those who stay at home ..." (4:95,96)
  
  
• "Slay the idolaters wherever you find them. ... lie in ambush everywhere for them. If they repent and take to prayer and render the alms levy, allow them to go their way ..." (9:5)
  
  
• "Those that make war against God and His apostle and spread disorder in the land shall be put to death or crucified or have their hands and feet cut off on alternate sides, or be banished from the land. They shall be held up to shame in this world and sternly punished in the hereafter: except those that repent before you reduce them ..." (5:34,35)
  
  
• "Make war on them until idolatry shall cease and God's religion shall reign supreme" (8:39)
  
  
• "Prophet, rouse the faithful to arms. If there are twenty steadfast men among you, they shall vanquish two hundred; and if there are a hundred, they shall rout a thousand unbelievers, for they are devoid of understanding." (8:65)
  
  
• "Fight against such of those to whom the Scriptures were given ... and do not embrace the true Faith, until they pay tribute out of hand and are utterly subdued." (9:29)

Lastly, the Qur'an also contains some "scriptures" that sound extremely racist:

"On the day when some faces will be whitened and some faces will be blackened, say to those whose faces will be blackened, 'Did ye reject faith after accepting it? Taste then the penalty for rejecting faith.' But those whose faces will be whitened, they will be in God's mercy: therein to dwell." (Sura Al-i-Imran, 3:106-107)

"And on the day of resurrection you shall see those who lied against Allah; their faces shall be blackened. Is there not in hell an abode for the proud?" (Sura Al-i-Imran, 39.60)

Why is white equated with goodness and black equated with evil? If a Black person was faithful to Allah and the Qur'an, will his face be "whitened" on Judgment Day?

Muslims insist that racism and slavery are Christian phenomena. Yet while the British Empire was abolishing slavery under pressure from British Christians such as David Livingstone and William Wilberforce, Arab Muslims were enslaving Africans (i.e. following the promise by Allah concerning those [captives] "that your right hand possesses" from Sura Nisaa, 4:3). Why have Muslim countries never been involved in the movement for the abolition of slavery?....

Much more could be said about Islam, but the bottom line is, like every other "religion", it is totally man-made, which renders it invalid in the eyes of the TRUE Creator!