UI – Part 345 – Joy: Islam vs Christianity

Where is the Joy

So there is no mystery to the Question, ‘Is there joy in Islam?’, the answer is NO.  

Now then, what about Christianity. Ask the same Question and the answer would be, ‘Why of course there is joy.  In fact to be joyless would be a sin.’

Shout for joy to God, all the earth (Psalms 66:1) – The Lord invites everyone into a relationship with him a relationship filled with love and joy.  

Come, let us sing for joy to the world, let us shout aloud to the Rock of our salvation (Psalm 95:1), – Sing, yes make music, make merry, dance and jump, party in the presence of your Lord.  He has made you free and brought light to the world.  Let his light shine, take away the darkness and be joyful. Come before him with joyful songs (Psalms 100:2).

Hate Filled

Deceit is in the hearts of those who plot evil, but those who promote peace have joy (Proverbs 12:20), – The Quran refers to Allah (god) as the Best of Deceivers.  If you as a follower of the ideology of Islam apply the tenants of your Scripture you must respond to the call to fight, fight, fight.  And when there is the statement of fact, in Sura 60:4, that hatred, yes hatred must prevail in the hearts of Muslims towards Christians and Jews, how can the objective ever be peace. Where there is hate there is evil, for how else in those empty times does a Muslim consider anything other than venting the hatred that Allah has poured into their bodies.  

The Gospel

From Luke 2:10, But the angel said to them, ‘Do not be afraid.  I bring you good news that will cause great joy for all the people.’ –  The good news is the saving grace of Christ.  Sins are criminal acts against God.  They must be punished, not by man, but by God on Judgment Day.  God sent his Son, Jesus, who as a magnet was the positive that attracted the negative of our sinful nature, making believers free and right in God’s eyes.  The magnet was then destroyed, punished on the cross, the power of our Lord God did for man what no human can do. 

Then the Spirit of the Lord was infused in believers; it was as a charge, an electric charge, that entered the body and brightened the soul, as joy, with the awareness of their salvation. God made him (Jesus) who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God (2 Corinthians 5:21).  

On Judgment Day Christ will stand in the courtroom as the advocate of all who have faith in Him.  He brought this message with him while on earth, he fulfilled his promises and his truth, and the proof was the Resurrection.  He overcame sin and death. 

Where Does Joy Come From?

It is the Holy Spirit that fills the Christian with joy.

Ask (in the name of the Lord) and and you will receive, and your joy will have the full measure of my joy within them (John 16:24).

No Joy in Islam

May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace as you trust in him, so that you may overflow with hope by the power of the Holy Spirit (Romans 15:13), – Has Allah ever been called the Allah of hope?  As the Iranian leader Ayatollah Khomeini proclaimed to all Muslims, there is no joy in Islam. What is reported he said, “Allah did not create man so that he could have fun.  The aim of creation was for mankind to be put to the test through hardship and prayer.  An Islamic regime must be serious in every field.  There are no jokes in Islam.  There is no humor in Islam.  There is no fun in Islam.  There can be no fun and joy in whatever is serious….”  This is very dark.  From the Quran, life, your earthly existence, ‘is but the joy of delusion.’  The next life is important, but would it not be more exciting to know, with assurance, the next life can be yours in this life – and Christ made that possible.  God made that possible.  Let the spirit of the Lord fill your empty cup with the fulness of living knowing the Lord and be joyful. 

Researching the holy book of Islam for the word ‘joy’ yielded very little.  Even in life after death paradise is not a place for simple enjoyment or rest. Just for further advancement. The striving is to continue, without true joy from loving Allah. It is the desire to be with Allah, in the afterlife, that is to compel a Muslim.   Whereas a Christian has a relationship with God in the present.  This bring peace.  

I see the darkness of Islam with the requirement under the strictness of Islamic Law for women to wear black burqas, with multiple layers of black mesh covering their eyes to keep the sun from making even their eyes visible.  Nothing can be used to accent the dress.  In so doing the woman would be in violation of Sharia Law, defying authority and Allah. Islamic police, to include in their ranks other woman, watch for errors and are prepared to take a whip and punish.   In color there is joy.  Absent color there is little to excite or bring a smile, a sense of appreciation for the independent thought given to brighten the day, brighten the garment.  Making the most dour and drab the slightest bit stylish takes an effort.   

But the warning is clear, there is nothing colorful, nothing joyous in Islam. 

Islam – An Ideology

Islam is a legal system.  It is not faith based, as is Christianity.  Meeting the requirements of the Law, Sharia as defined in an area or Muslim country where a Muslim lives, is to be obeyed and Muslims are told, from the Scripture, there will be rewards for the effort.  Called a ‘works’ religion, the life after this life will be impacted by the accomplishments in satisfying the Laws of Islam today.  Thus a heart for Allah is not as important as total obedience to the Law.  Being perfect as a disciplined Islamic individual may not have any bearing on whether that person accepts Allah or even the Prophet Muhammad.  But then, not doing so, seen by Allah, would be an error and thus offset rewards otherwise received.  A Muslim may never know.  So strive without joy and maybe a Muslim will find joy after they die.   

Why not rejoice in believing in a loving, caring, God?

Fruit of the Spirit

But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forgiveness, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).  Against such things there is no law.  – Read this several times. God’s presence in you as a believer in the Risen Lord requires no law, no commandment, to be filled with love, joy, forgiveness, and so on.  Discover Christ, his truth, and enjoy the beneficial presence of the living water, God within.  Whatever you have learned or received or heard from me, or seen in me – put into practice.  And the God of peace will be with you (Philippians 4:9).

The Good Life

A recent sermon made the statement, “The Holy Spirit fills us and brings us into the good life.”  In that good life is a joyful existence.  Why, because as a believer, knowing we have been forgiven, once dead to the spirit of God and made anew, alive, reborn, we can ‘shout for joy.’  God’s love for mankind will never abandon or try to extirpate those that do not believe.  God keeps sharing his gift with a welcoming consideration, knowing those who deny him, awaiting that moment when his love overwhelms and your love for him makes you weak, humble, peaceful and at the same time filled with tears of joy for the freedom you have received.  Hatred will be lifted and replaced with love, to include love of God and neighbor. 

Joy and Sin

Said earlier, being without joy is a sin.  That may raise a few eyebrows.  Let’s go to the Word, ‘Rejoice in the Lord always and again I say Rejoice.  Let your graciousness be known to all people, the Lord is near….’ (Philippians 4:4-7).  Rejoice, as defined – feel or show great joy or delight.  This is to be done always, being joyful in the Lord, never a dark moment, knowing you have been saved.  Certainly sadness is just fine.  There is a time to weep.  But, quoting Nate Wilson, “What I am talking about is when we allow our circumstance to take our eyes off Jesus Christ and we lose the joy we should have in Him.” (Read More – The Sin of Joylessness)

Pray for Those Living in Darkness

Christians must pray for those who are kept hidden from the world outside Islam.  We must pray also access is granted, to include the Old Testament which is liberally referenced in the Quran, and the New Testament where the Quran refers to Mary as the virgin mother of the Messiah, Jesus.  The Quran considers Christians ‘polytheists’ by virtue of their reverence for the Father (God), the Son (Christ), and Christ’s mother (Mary).  But where they fail is understanding this is not the relationship, or the trinity.  It is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit; that is the Trinity.  As an analogy consider the Sun, as God, and connected are Rays from the Sun (God’s Son, fully connected), and the warmth provided by the sun on those exposed (the Holy Spirit).  

The Bible, the Book of the People, is seen with disdain as being in error.  Indeed the joy of freedom from the burdens of the law, is anathema.  The Bible was written over thousands of years before Muhammad and any revelation he claims to have experienced.  He was aware of the Bible and many of the stories.  He shared them, his recall not always accurate, with Companions who after his death gathered what they remembered to record the Quran.  The error, thus, is not the Bible, but the Quran, a document contrived for the purpose of continuing a hate-filled existence, under the bland banner of Islam, towards those not in accord with its leaders. 

In darkness Islam will stay even as the light of God is available.  The Prophet, his Allah and the authorities of Islam, the keepers of the black gates, shield the Muslim population from the truth of their Lord and savior.  It is not a Christian thing.  Christ bore the burden of the sins of everyone and took the punishment.  Be aware, know this, accept this, and find salvation and joy. 

Why must Muslims fall prey to the demand and laws of mortals that have assumed a role that denies the truth.  They too are free and simply must take His hand, God’s hand, follow and be led into the light.  It will not be easy, but it will provide those who do so great joy.  They will rejoice in the Lord knowing they have been saved. The Spirit of the Lord will overtake them and give them peace, even under conditions of despair.  

God is Great

Praise to the Lord.  The God of Truth is Great. Sing, dance, wave colorful streamers, gather in love and hope, and feel the warmth of His mercy and grace.  As said, God is as the sun, sunbeams and its rays.  They are One.  From the sun the rays are beamed and in the light you feel the heat.

From my book, The Damascus Quran, (pg 226 iBook), “The sun was as the Father.  The ray or beam emanated from the sun.  It had its own properties but was very much the sun, its essence. You can see the ray, it is visible, but not the sun.  To look at the sun, one will be blinded, preventing you from seeing it as the whole.  Seeing the sunbeam, one encountered both the sun and the ray.  They are different.  They are one.  It is all the sun.  It is all the Father.  The ray revealed the sun as the son reveals the Father.” We are all aware of the sun and the life it enables, the light and warmth it provides.  Knowing that is as knowing the spirit, the Holy Spirit, and the warmth and life the sun, the son, provides.  There is a preference for the sun shining and not hidden behind clouds that dispense rain and take us away from the warmth the sun provides.  The rain is as Islam from which we seek shelter and protection, awaiting the return of the sun.  With the sun we exit into the light and raise our arms in joy and thanks.

Now You Know More – And Where Joy and Hope Are Found

Now you know where you can find joy and hope. Join the party.  No one needs to die to obtain it.  Just open yourself up to the truth.  In the Word of God you will find no war, no fighting, and no hatred.  There is an awakening and a new consciousness available to those who have not accepted God’s unconditional life and his gift of Grace. 

Grace and Peace