Recent terror attacks over seas has brought a measured response from so many. On one hand there is anger toward those who perpetrate such actions and on the other hand there is an effort to explain it. If you take all of the attacks both here and abroad, the wording that keeps coming up is extremism or radicals. In short those who kill innocent people in the name of Allah are not true devotees of Islam but represent a radical element. I pause to wonder if it is a radical element then where are the leaders of the Islamic faith who come out to condemn these horrible acts?
The Word of God is from God and it is the only standard to which we can appeal to find answers (2 Tim. 3:16). Israel in the long ago was told about a Prophet that would come, to whom all Israel would obey (Deut. 18:15). At the close of the chapter, Israel wanted to know how they could tell if a prophet was true or not (verses 21,22). The answer was that if a man said something was going to happen and it did not, then Israel was not to be afraid of him. Jesus, the Prophet of verse 18 never made a mistake in what He said or in how He lived.
We are warned to not add to or take from that which God has revealed (Deut. 4:2; Prov. 30:6; Rev. 22:18,19). If we change the words or in any way alter the meaning which God gave our souls would be in danger of being lost. God secures what He revealed to man, through His Spirit, by saying there is no private interpretation of scripture (2 Peter 1:20). Holy men of God spake as they were moved by the Holy Ghost (verse 21). Micah says the Messiah would be born in Bethlehem (Micah 5:2). Any other city would violate this prophecy. Daniel said the kingdom of God would be set up during the days of the fourth world power (Dan. 2:44). Starting with Babylon, the fourth kingdom would be Rome. Moving the prophecy out of the first century to now is handling the word of God in a wrong way.
The warning from God is if we teach another gospel we will be accursed from God (Gal. 1:8). We are in teaching and in our lives to speak as the oracles of God (I Peter 4:11). Faith comes from the Word of God that shows us that we can understand the Bible because faith is a necessary part of one’s connection to God (Rom. 10:17; 1Cor. 1:10). It is required in us that we correctly interpret what it is that God revealed (2 Tim. 2:15). For example, can we hate our brother? The answer is, if we do hate our brother we are a murderer (I John 3:15). Proper interpretation would cause us to see that hate is sinful and the Christian must expel such from his thinking.
Why do these terrorists keep murdering people? You see if we use the word extremist then what does that mean about the Islamic faith? It means the murderers are misinterpreting the Qu’ran. I have yet to hear any Iman of the Islamic faith speak out and say these murderers are misinterpreting their holy book. The Christian is bound by his connection to God to correctly interpret what God has revealed. We would lose our souls if we do otherwise.
On the other hand if the murderers are not misinterpreting their holy book, then their holy book must be seen as the cause for their actions. The apostles were given the command by Jesus to go into all the world and preach the gospel (Mark 16:15). This was accomplished by early in the 60’s of the first century (Col. 1:23). We correctly interpret that Jesus came to give us life (spiritually) and give it to us more abundantly (John 10:10). He is the author of eternal salvation to all that obey Him (Heb. 5:9). Is killing innocent people the correct or incorrect interpretation of the Qu’ran? We offer men life, not death through Jesus the Christ.