Today we continued our series on Islam by watching Nabeel Qureshi /David Wood – (unofficial) Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus series parts 1 & 2:
Here is the note-taking form I handed out prior to starting the videos:
Introducing the Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus Series
- We are benefitting from 16 years of the research, dialogue and experience of David Wood and Nabeel Qureshi – no need to “reinvent the wheel”.
- There’s no “learning everything in one sitting”, it is better to learn as you go along and respond to the situation you’re in (David Wood)
- Nabeel was a devout Muslim – he really believed Islam was the t______ r___________ and that Muhammed was the culmination of all the p____________.
- Nabeel’s first book was “Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus”. His second book was “No God but One: Allah or Jesus”. Those are both well worthwhile to buy. Make sure to get the Audible versions.
- Nabeel’s pinned tweet:
- People desperately need to know this information that Nabeel is going to share.
- David was an a_____________ and became a Christian based on the e___________________
The Importance of Relationships in Religious Dialogue
- This is the best possible approach (building a f_______________) in reaching people.
- David and Nabeel met about 3 weeks before ___/______ happened.
- Devout Muslims in the West are taught not only, “this is how you’re supposed to be a good Muslim”, but also, “this is why you’re n________ supposed to be a Christian”
- Muslims believe that the Bible has been c_____________ – c______________ over time.
- The average Christian Nabeel met, when he questioned them about the integrity of the Bible, they would have nothing to give him, but now, in David, he’d met someone who could a_______________
- After Nabeel explained his beliefs, David asked him, if you’re w____________, would you want to know it?
- They would go to Nabeel’s house and write out their arguments point by point and compare.
- David was saying Jesus r__________ from the d__________ and Nabeel was saying He didn’t. David’s future wife was an agnostic who believed that both views could be right (if it’s true for you then it’s true…)
- Islam and Christianity are much closer to each other than other world views, but “the d________________ make a d______________”.
- Tons of things Islam and Christianity agree on, but 3 main things they don’t agree on:
- Jesus’ d_____________ on the cross
- Jesus’ r________________ from the dead
- That Jesus is G__________
- Since they don’t teach the same things on core doctrines, they can’t both be true.
- Only 3 possibilities:
- Islam is t________ and Christianity is f_________
- Christianity is t__________ and Islam is f____________
- Both of them are ________________
- If Christianity is wrong, then the earliest Christians got the c_______ m____________ about J______________ wrong – they got the peripheral details correct, but the core wrong.
- You need to have a “dialogue partner” when searching for t_____________, in context of relationship.
- Both Christian and the Muslim are thinking, “Maybe God put us together for a r___________…”
- You’re not loving them for the sake of c____________ them, because if that’s your motivation, then, when they say they’re not going to convert, you’re going to drop your love for them. That’s an ulterior motive – that’s not l___________. You love them because they’re created in them i__________ of God.
- Christians said to David, stop spending time with this Muslim – he’s not going to convert, you’re w_______________ your t___________…
- Not everyone responds quickly like at a Billy Graham crusade… For Nabeel, it took _____ years, for Abdu Murray (another Muslim convert to Christianity) it took ______ years!
Discussion Questions
- Is it scary to engage in spiritual conversations with someone of a different belief system? Would you feel prepared to do this? If not, why not?
- What are some of the unique challenges in discussing your faith with a Muslim?
- Why did Nabeel leave Islam and accept the Gospel? Why did David become a Christian?
- What good question did David ask Nabeel, that we could ask any non-believer?
- Are you prepared to answer the objection that the Bible has been changed and/or corrupted over time?
- Considering all the possible approaches for sharing your faith, which approach do David and Nabeel feel is the best approach? Why? Are all of the other approaches without merit?
- What are the 3 main points (about Jesus) that Christianity and Islam do not agree on?
- Can Islam and Christianity both be true at the same time? What are your reasons for this view?
- In what way did Christians discourage David when he was spending all this time with Nabeel?
- Is spending great amounts of time (months or years) to witness to a non-believer, a waste of time? (Especially if you’re seeing no results and even outright refusals to convert to Christianity)
- Have you ever been guilty of getting to know someone solely as an evangelism target? If so, how did that work out for you?