Please take a look at this.

[itch]

I've never met a muslim online before, but yesturday I did and he has many questions about Christianity. He is very skeptical and I'm trying to patiently explain things to him without being self-righteous and all-knowing.

Here's one of his many questions:

Jesus was never resurrected.Even if he was said the bible,he was suppose to be ressurected on Monday,not Sunday.He died on Friday,which he didn't.He was flied to the sky and another man who looked like him was sent down.He died on Friday,ressureccted 3 days and 3 nights after he died which is suppose to be Monday not Sunday.

Please help me answer him.

[LadyRushia]

First off, that's not a question. It sounds like he's just trying to pick apart our beliefs and "prove them wrong."

He died on Friday,which he didn't

Which is it? Did he die on Friday or not? If he's gonna ask you questions, he needs his points to be consistent.

1(A) Now after the Sabbath, toward the dawn of the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and(B) the other Mary went to see the tomb.

From my understanding, the Sabbath is on Saturday, so the "dawn of the first day of the week" would be Sunday morning. If it wasn't Sunday, it would've said something like "two days after the Sabbath."

5But the angel said to the women, "Do not be afraid, for I know that you seek Jesus who was crucified. 6He is not here, for he has risen.

He rose on the dawn of the day after the Sabbath.

Also, I suggest telling him to use proper spelling and grammar if he's going to talk about these things with you(unless, of course, English isn't his first language). "Flied" is not the proper conjugation and "resurrected" only has one "c."

[AsianBlossom]

Well, I can help a little. Friday was the first day that Jesus was dead, followed by Saturday (the second day), and Sunday (the third day).

Here's something interesting in my Pieta prayer book about Jesus's passion, as revealed to one of the saints: "...the blows received on [His] head were 150; those on [His] stomach, 108; kicks on [His] shoulders, 80. [He] was led, bound with cords by the hair, 24 times; spits in the face were 180; [He] was beaten on the body 6666 times; beaten on the head, 110 times. [He] was roughy pushed, and at 12 o' clock was lifted up by the hair; pricked with thorns and pulled by the beard 23 times; received 20 wounds on the head; thorns of marine junks, 72; pricks of thorns in the head, 110; mortal thorns in the forehead, 3. [He] was afterwards flogged and dressed as a mocked king; wounds in the body, 1000...the drops of blood which [He] lost were 28, 430."

Now how could anyone possibly survive all that? Something interesting that I learned in a religion textbook was that Roman soldiers, when it came to killing their victims, were masters of it, and wouldn't leave a man alive if they were told to kill him. And what does your online acquaintance mean when he said "he was flied to the sky"?

Anyways, I hope this helps in some way.

[termyt]

Islam teaches that no Prophet is defeated by his enemies. So, they assert that Jesus could not have been defeated (killed) on the cross. In their mind, the only reasonable explanation is that Jesus was taken away before he could be killed and an enemy of his (most often this is Pilot himself) took his place on the cross. There is absolutely nothing to substantiate this except for Islamic teachings whereas Jewish, Christian, and secular sources all agree he died on the cross.

As for the three days, that is a matter of cultural definitions. By the Jewish way of thinking, any part of a day is a day and the day begins at sunset.

Jesus died on Friday, some time before sunset – they had to hurry to get him entombed before the Sabbath began at sunset. So, Jesus was dead and entombed on Friday. He remained entombed on Saturday and no one would have checked on him since it was the Sabbath. Sometime after sunset on Saturday (and thus on Sunday), the women went to the tomb and found him missing.

Remember, they did not have clocks and they did not count hours - at least not like we do today. They only knew how to measure the day based on the position of the sun and other heavenly bodies. Jesus may have been in the tomb for as little as 25 hours, but since it was certainly divided across three days, it counts as three days by Jewish reckoning.

[AsianBlossom]

A point well-made, termyt. I didn't know that Islam teaches that (frankly, I don't know too much about Islam at all...), so it's good to know.

[itch]

So, the Sabbath starts on Saturday? I thought the Sabbath was just Sunday.

Thank you all for your help. If he asks anymore questions or states anything else, I will post it here (Since you are all so helpful).

[LadyRushia]

Yes, the Sabbath is Saturday. That's the day when God took a rest from creation. Traditional Christianity will say that it's Sunday, but it isn't. I can't remember how that came about. Actually, a lot of Christians think the Sabbath is just a Jewish thing, but that's not true; Saturday is the day of rest(one of the reasons why my mom and I go to church on Saturday nights). There may be people on here that disagree, so let's not start a debate or anything ^^;; I'm not saying there's anything wrong with going to church on Sunday or that you're bad if you don't rest on Saturday, so I will now wrap up my thoughts on the matter.

Itch, I suggest you also look into the Word and do some research on your own so that you can help answer some skeptical questions ^_^

[Sheol777]

The Church now meets on Sunday because in Acts that is the day the believers met after the resurrection of Christ.

Also 'Sabbath' can also be used to indicate any holy day in the ancient jewish calandar. I have heard it said that possibily the 'Sabbath' being taled about in this passage may or may not be Saturday-but pehaps a 'holy day' that the jews held sacred at the time.

[AsianBlossom]

Also, some people consider Sunday the last day of the week because they count Monday as the first. I've noticed that on some calendars; however, I don't think that that's why we have church on Sundays. I think Sheol777 said why.

[termyt]

I'm not sure if we have any Seventh Day Adventists on this site or not, they would be able to provide additional insight into the Saturday - Sunday thing.

The Sabbath Day is traditionally observed on Saturday as Saturday is the last day of our traditional week. In Genesis it states that on the seventh day of creation, God rested. This was later confirmed in Jewish law that the Sabbath day was to be a day of rest (The first time in history, I might add, where it is recorded that the work-week was limited - how's that for worker's rights?).

Christians celebrate on Sunday. It’s not so much a Sabbath observation as a celebration of the resurrection of our Lord and the gift of the Spirit. In other words, instead of a weekly day of rest, Sunday is a weekly holiday.

Observing the Sabbath is an excellent idea. It’s good for your body and spirit to rest from work. It is, however, not a requirement. We do not live under the law – that is we are not required to follow the letter of the law. We live under grace – which means our transgressions are forgiven and we are to live in the spirit of the law.

That is why it's OK for Christians to work on Saturday, so long as they are giving thanks to the Lord and are looking after the needs of their bodies and spirits.

[itch]

Just thought I'd add to what Termyt said. . . it was forwarded to me.

Take a Rest

Every working creature needs a Sabbath rest — that goes for people, animals, and even the soil! Consider a study that compared two identical farming soils. One was farmed continuously for eight years while the other was allowed to stand fallow, meaning that it wasn't farmed. The soil from the field that wasn't allowed to rest contained 1,097 parts per million (ppm) nutritional solids, while the fallow or "rested" field soil yielded 2,871 ppm of nutritional solids!
Rest is crucial to the health of your body and soul, and sleep is an absolute and undeniable necessity of life. Lengthy and regular periods of rest are equally important over the long haul. Europeans are far ahead of Americans when it comes to getting their rest. It is normal for many European families to take extended vacations each year for periods averaging between four and ten weeks! Most Americans struggle to take just a two-week vacation every few years. Many don't take vacations at all.

Besides giving us the night for regular sleep, the Creator programmed people and animals to rest completely every seventh day. When we tinker with His design, things start to unravel. Even the Creator rested on the seventh day.

Remember, "rest" means stopping all labor — even mental labor. While mental exertion might not seem like work, it can place stress on your adrenal system and other parts of your body. On the Sabbath, try to rest inside and out.

[itch]

Well, I told him about what you guys said about the Sabbath and several other things. I was very patient and kind to him too. After I answered a few more of his questions and asked him a few of my own, he said he couldn't talk to me anymore.

I pray for him everyday. Please pray for him too.

[Yokuo]

Regarding the Sabbath, most people take it on Sunday, but by logic standpoint, it would be Saturday. But overall, nowhere in the Bible is a specific day for rest mentioned. The commandment of God says to work 6 days, but to have a 7th day for rest and to devote to worship of Him. I don't think if you take a Sabbath on a Friday, God will condemn you to Hell.

But as tradition dictates, the Sabbath is done on a Sunday. But honestly, as long as you take A sabbath, that is all that matters, the commandment is fulfilled, and thus you have not sinned.

Do you know why we even have a Sabbath? Because God worked 6 days and took a rest. So, if we work all 7 days, are we not saying we are capable of doing more than God? No, rather, we should follow in God's example. (That was for free )

As to the one you are speaking with, I will be in prayer over that situation

[mathgrant]

Do you know why we even have a Sabbath? Because God worked 6 days and took a rest. So, if we work all 7 days, are we not saying we are capable of doing more than God? No, rather, we should follow in God's example. (That was for free )

I'm no theologian, but I'm pretty sure that God's omnipotence means He could have worked all 7 days, had He wanted to. Indeed, He doesn't take Sabbaths -- He's here and active 24/7/365. I believe the real theological response isn't that God is incapable of working 7 days, but that He chose to work 6 days to set an example for the rest of us. (Although there's a chance you already realized this -- you did use a emoticon at the end.)



. . . we're deviating from the topic. D:

[Mr. SmartyPants]

In my experience, Muslims can generally tend to get very big on discussion/debate. They'll pull a lot of facts (If you want to call it that) out of nowhere and try to disprove Christianity. My close cousin is Muslim so I witnessed this firsthand. Basically Jesus was nothing more but another prophet (A very respected one) to Muslims.

I'd post more but I have to go now. XD

[Yokuo]

@Mathgrant: Yeah, I'm very aware of it. lol. You pretty much added the details I left out (it was late and I felt it was obvious )

[12praiseGOD]

I would like to add about the six and seven days...my sunday school teacher explained that in the actual greek translation it says that it was really 7 periods of time...and since he made time and we set a limit for a day...that means that he didn't neceserrally do it in six days, but more like other times. I agree though with setting an example since 6 periods of time would be also 6 periods of time in our definition (six days). I think somewhere in the Bible it says that many many years are only a few days for GOD or something like that...please correct me if I'm wrong and if anyone knows what I'm talking about could you please tell me were this verse is that says that? thankies=)
GOD bless you!!!
.huggles =)

[itch]

I think somewhere in the Bible it says that many many years are only a few days for GOD or something like that...please correct me if I'm wrong and if anyone knows what I'm talking about could you please tell me were this verse is that says that? thankies=)
GOD bless you!!!
.huggles =)

I believe the verse you're referring to is 2 Peter 3:8.

[12praiseGOD]

you got it itch thanks! huggles itch and ofers some poki.
huggles.
GOD BLESS AND HELP ALL OF YOU, NOT ONLY IN YOUR TIMES OF TROUBLE, BUT IN YOUR TIMES OF PEACE AS WELL.!!!!

[Tyrel]

Itch.. ok, I'll admit, I'm a huge fan of apologetics, and most of my most passionate work has been in going out and discussing with Muslims, and evangelizing. This is something I know about, and am passionate about.. So, if you ever have more questions, I'll try to come here to answer them. However, for now, may I direct you to these sources, which you may find useful.

http://www.the-good-way.com/eng/

and

http://www.answering-islam.org/Gilchrist/ - Gilchrist's books are fairly good. Not perfect, but quite adequate indeed.


also,

These letters are good;

http://www.answering-islam.org/Nehls/Abdallah/abdal1.htm

Just go to the bottom and hit NEXT for the next one. It's a series, and it is quite good. It's a fictitious series of letters from a Christian to a Muslim.

Hope that helps. This thread seems a little old.. if you have any questions, I'll do everything I can to answer.

[itch]

Itch.. ok, I'll admit, I'm a huge fan of apologetics, and most of my most passionate work has been in going out and discussing with Muslims, and evangelizing. This is something I know about, and am passionate about.. So, if you ever have more questions, I'll try to come here to answer them. However, for now, may I direct you to these sources, which you may find useful.

http://www.the-good-way.com/eng/

and

http://www.answering-islam.org/Gilchrist/ - Gilchrist's books are fairly good. Not perfect, but quite adequate indeed.


also,

These letters are good;

http://www.answering-islam.org/Nehls/Abdallah/abdal1.htm

Just go to the bottom and hit NEXT for the next one. It's a series, and it is quite good. It's a fictitious series of letters from a Christian to a Muslim.

Hope that helps. This thread seems a little old.. if you have any questions, I'll do everything I can to answer.

I really appreciate your help. *nods vigorously* Unfortunately, he told me to not send him anymore messages. I was bummed because I was just starting to get so much help from everyone that posted in this thread. But I have faith that God is working in his heart. If he happens to ask another question though, I'll be sure to discuss it with you.