Indeed, this life is given once, and we should use it to the full for his glory. A general misunderstanding of Jesus’ teaching on persecution is that believers humbly do nothing while being attacked or assassinated. Certainly, retribution and hostility are not, at all, part of a biblical response (Romans 12:19; John 18:23-40); it does not mean that believers should not seek to escape harm when possible. Jesus told his followers to flee persecution in one town by moving to another (Matthew 10:23). This way, the good news about faith in Jesus will spread throughout the towns and cities. In the book of Acts, we see how the religious leaders launched the first great persecution against the church in Jerusalem after stoning Stephen. This caused the disciples to scatter through the “regions of Judea and Samaria” (Acts 8:1-4), but they preached the word wherever they went. They did not become secret believers; they still shared the gospel.

The Bible states, “During the days of Jesus’ life on earth, he offered up prayers and petitions with fervent cries and tears to the one who could save him from death, and he was heard because of his reverent submission” (Hebrews 5:7). Some 'friends' claim that Jesus' plea was heard and was rescued. Is that so?

The Holy Spirit - As an Ahmadiyya Muslim and later as a Sunni Muslim, it was a subject I did not know much about. Though the word for Spirit, ruh, is used twenty-one times in the Qur’an, nowhere is it used so clearly as in the Bible and especially in the New Testament. When people asked Muhammad about the definition and the working of the Spirit, the only revelation he claimed to have received from God was: ‘They will question thee concerning the Spirit. Say: The Spirit is by command of my Lord, and of knowledge, ye have been vouchsafed but little’ (Sura 17:85). The Qur’an speaks of the Holy Spirit, Ruh al-Quds also, but Muslims take it to be the title of angel Gabriel. Yet the Holy Spirit, as mentioned as the Comforter and advocate in the New Testament, is interpreted by them to be Muhammad. As a Muslim, I had a problem with such a claim. I wrongly believed that the Bible was corrupted like many other Muslims, so there was nothing to quote in favor of Muhammad.

Today, it is popular to make statements such as, “Everything is relative” or “It is wrong to think that a person can know the absolute truth.” One does not need academic degrees in logic to recognize the self-contradictory nature of such a claim. If there is no absolute truth, how can those who hold such a view make assertions about “everything” or insist that anything is “wrong” or even “right”? Many of my Muslim friends have embraced such a mindset in the spiritual area as they engage in conversation with people of other faiths.