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| The Book of Isaiah: Words of a genuine prophet |
If you asked most people if they were familiar with the prophet Muhammad, they would answer affirmatively. But if you asked them if they were familiar with the prophet Isaiah, they'd probably tell you that they never heard of him.
Who's Isaiah? He was one of Israel's major prophets who lived about 28 centuries ago. Most people who call themselves Christians and Jews should be familiar with Isaiah because his prophetic book is contained in their bibles. Sadly, many of these people have never even heard of him which means that they probably never read the Bible.
What is so important about Isaiah? He revealed intimate details of the Jewish Messiah nearly 800 years before Jesus Christ was born.
For example, the Lord revealed to Isaiah that the Messiah would be born of a virgin birth. (Isaiah 7:14) The Lord revealed to Isaiah that the Messiah would be no ordinary man, but he would be God incarnate. (Isaiah 7:14)
He revealed to Isaiah that the Messiah would be the Son of God; the visible incarnation of the Triune Godhead. (Isaiah 9:6) And He revealed to the prophet that the Messiah would also be the Son of David (Isaiah 9:7) who would rule as Israel's king forever. By identifying the Messiah as both the Son of God and the Son of David, Isaiah revealed that the Messiah would come from the tribe of Judah and He would be both God and man.
And the Lord also revealed to Isaiah that the Jewish Messiah would die for the sins of the Jews and Gentiles. The Messiah's death, according to Isaiah, would become the ultimate and everlasting atonement for the sins of mankind. Here's what Isaiah wrote: "Surely he took up our pain and bore our suffering, yet we considered him punished by God, stricken by him and afflicted. But he was pierced for our transgressions, he was crushed for our iniquities; the punishment that brought us peace was on him, and by his wounds we are healed. We, like all sheep have gone astray, each of us has turned to our own way; and the Lord has laid on him the iniquity of us all." (Isaiah 53:4-6)
And then Isaiah wrote this: "Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." (Isaiah 53:10-12)
What did the prophet reveal in those passages? He revealed that after the Messiah died for the sins of the world, He would be resurrected from the dead. We know that happened three days after Christ was crucified on Calvary's cross for the sins of the world.
Keep in mind that Isaiah recorded those prophecies nearly eight centuries before Christ set foot on the earth. This was a true prophet of God. No one could possibly have made something like this up. The odds of that occurring are mathematically impossible.
Therefore, God indeed spoke to Isaiah. He never spoke to Muhammad. The Quran contains not one single prophecy written by Muhammad that can be proven to have occurred after he recorded it. Not one.
And yet Muhammad has been historically celebrated as a prophet of God, even by many well-meaning but ignorant Christians. And except for bible-believing Christians, Isaiah is virtually unknown.
That's tragic. That's why false religions flourish--because of willful ignorance.
Some will accuse me of being culturally insensitive. So be it. I've been called worse.
Is it insensitive to be concerned about the eternal destiny of lost souls? For those who would hold back the Gospel from Muslims so as not to be culturally insensitive, I would say shame on you. And woe to you as well.
And then Isaiah wrote this: "Yet it was the Lord's will to crush him and cause him to suffer, and though the Lord makes his life a guilt offering, he will see his offspring and prolong his days, and the will of the Lord will prosper in his hand. After the suffering of his soul, he will see the light of life and be satisfied; by his knowledge my righteous servant will justify many, and he will bear their iniquities. Therefore I will give him a portion among the great, and he will divide the spoils with the strong, because he poured out his life unto death, and was numbered with the transgressors. For he bore the sin of many, and made intercession for the transgressors." (Isaiah 53:10-12)
What did the prophet reveal in those passages? He revealed that after the Messiah died for the sins of the world, He would be resurrected from the dead. We know that happened three days after Christ was crucified on Calvary's cross for the sins of the world.
Keep in mind that Isaiah recorded those prophecies nearly eight centuries before Christ set foot on the earth. This was a true prophet of God. No one could possibly have made something like this up. The odds of that occurring are mathematically impossible.
Therefore, God indeed spoke to Isaiah. He never spoke to Muhammad. The Quran contains not one single prophecy written by Muhammad that can be proven to have occurred after he recorded it. Not one.
And yet Muhammad has been historically celebrated as a prophet of God, even by many well-meaning but ignorant Christians. And except for bible-believing Christians, Isaiah is virtually unknown.
That's tragic. That's why false religions flourish--because of willful ignorance.
Some will accuse me of being culturally insensitive. So be it. I've been called worse.
Is it insensitive to be concerned about the eternal destiny of lost souls? For those who would hold back the Gospel from Muslims so as not to be culturally insensitive, I would say shame on you. And woe to you as well.
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