Musing – What is I S I S?

What are Christians like?  Spirit led Christians exude certain qualities: love, joy, peace, longsuffering, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control because of the incredible role-model of Jesus who gave His life for us.  Thus Christians strive to be a giver and a blessing to others in this world.   

Realistically, the majority of those who are called Christians could be called “nominal” Christians -- they know little of God’s Word and do not strive to follow the tenets of the Bible wholeheartedly.  At funerals, these “nominal” Christians speak of loved ones going to heaven, but their lifestyle on earth is not very distinguishable from that of non-believers.  But the Born-again, devout, “evangelical” Christians are referred to as “fundamentalists” who base their faith and lifestyle on the Old and New Testament teachings. In fact, sometimes they are referred to as “Radicals” by other Christians!

What are Muslims like?  A Muslim is a believer in the fundamental Islamic precepts brought to the world in the seventh century by Mohammed who believed he heard Allah, whom he calls his God.  Many Muslims are not really interested in being “religious”; they know they were born Muslim and therefore claim Islam as their religion.  They know little of the precepts of their faith, don’t go to the mosque, don’t pray five times a day and don’t look forward to a once-in-a-lifetime religious sojourn to Mecca.  But a person who is a devout, “fundamental”, follower of Mohammed loves and studies the Koran and Islamic holy books and endeavors to live each day of his life as a disciple of his “one and only true god, Allah.”

The similarity!  Both Christians and Muslims have a segment that is “Fundamental” or “Radical.”  

So what produces a peace-loving Muslim, versus a violent or radical one?  In the same way that Christians are referred to as “fundamentalists”, the same adjective can be applied to devout Muslims. The term “radicalized” Muslim means he/she is a “fundamentalist.”  Why?  According to a January article “IT’S NOT ISIS, IT’S ISLAM” by Shira Sorko-Ram, their belief system is based on “mainstream Islam.” They are obediently following “original Islam” based on an “early Islamic” belief of the three pillars of Islam.  Those are the Koran, the Hadith (stories about Mohammed) and the Sira (biographies of Mohammed).  So the more devout a Muslim becomes, the more he/she adopts the lifestyle of their role-model, Mohammed, and studies and practices the chief doctrines laid out in the written words of Islam which are:

1.         The penalty for leaving Islam is death. Freedom of religion is not an option with Islam.

2.         Human rights for women are all but non-existent.

3.         The goal of Allah and all true Muslims must be to conquer all nations to create a global caliphate (a world super nation).

4.         Sharia will be the law for all human beings.

5.         The sword is to be used, if necessary, to reach these goals.

6.         Every Muslim is obligated to spread Islam. Devious methods are obligatory when necessary. These tactics are particularly suitable to the methods of the Muslim Brotherhood.

7.         Although there is no promise in Islam that a Muslim will be selected to go to heaven, there is one exception: If a Muslim becomes a martyr while fighting for Islam, he is guaranteed a place in heaven, with the well-known hope of 72 virgins at his service, and “eternal virginity” for women martyrs.

8.         The Jihadist is stimulated in this world by the knowledge that the women he captures in war are his sex slaves. (Part of the great attraction of ISIS.)

9.         Christians and Jews must convert to Islam, pay a tax or be killed.

10.     No new buildings of any other religions can be built.

The Muslims-in-name-only cannot successfully argue against these Islamic standards because it’s all written down in clear and forceful language in the books they are expected to believe as sacred.

Points to ponder

Can we be worshiping the same god if we have such contrasting
fundamental differences in how we are called to live and behave?

Why does our government insist on calling them ISIL instead of ISIS?  Do you know why?*

I pray that the truth will set us free

Yosef   a.k.a.  Joe Brusherd,                                  March 8, 2016

Author: “Hebraic Insights”  “Biblical Marriage” “Musings v.1 – A Victorious Life”
“Musings v.2 – The Torah and New Testament” Weekly “Hebraic Musings”   www.InsightsByYosef.com

*    The difference --- According to ABC2 news – “ISIS, which stands for Islamic State in Iraq and Syria, originally began as an offshoot of al-Qaeda. It got its name after it invaded Syria in 2013.   ISIL, which stands for Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant, refers to the terrorist group spread throughout the Middle East. The Levant is a geographic term that refers to Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel and Jordan.  President Barack Obama referred to ISIL when he addressed the nation…”  

Note that when he refers to the group as ISIL which includes the land of Israel, the sovereignty of the State of Israel is denied.