INTRODUCTION

In the year AD 610, an Arab merchant claimed to receive a revelation from the angel Gabriel inside a cave, near the city of Mecca. And in just 22 short years, Muhammad, regarded by Muslims as God's last and final prophet, was able to unite the Arab world through military conquest, launching a distinct religious movement. This week we?ll compare and contrast this pivotal religious figure with another one, Jesus Christ, along with the movements they each started.

DISCUSSION QUESTIONS

1. How does an organization or movement bear the mark of its leader? Where have you seen this?
   
   
2. As religious leaders, how were Muhammad and Jesus similar? How were they different?
   
   
3. How are the Qur'an and the Bible similar? How are they different?
   
   
4. Islam teaches that heaven is earned but never certain, in that Allah has the final say. Christians believe that salvation is a gift from God that cannot be earned. What difference does this make in faith and in practice?
   
   
5. Adherents of Islam have undertaken terrorist actions in recent history. In Christianity's history are the Crusades and the Spanish Inquisition. What can we learn from these events?
   
   
6. What do you see as the major differences between Islam and Christianity?

THINK ABOUT IT

What have you learned about Islam? What have you learned about Christianity?

WHAT WILL YOU DO?

How will you engage with Muslims in the future?

CHANGING YOUR MIND

For even the Son of Man did not come to be served, but to serve, and to give his life as a ransom for many. Mark 10:45