The bodily, historical resurrection of Jesus is vital to our salvation. Among many claims, Jesus claimed, “I am the resurrection and the life. The one who believes in me will live, even though they die; and whoever lives by believing in me will never die. Do you believe this?” (John 11:25-26). During his ministry, Jesus mentioned many times his death and burial and that he would rise: “The Son of Man is going to be delivered into the hands of men.

The traditions of Islam teach that during this month, God gives Muslims a chance to double their rewards so as to have a much wider chance of getting into paradise. Muslims ask for His pardon for their past sins and conduct other meritorious behavior. Every act of kindness, prayer, giving, fasting, and anything else that a Muslim can possibly do to please God is expected. Since there is no assurance of salvation by grace for the 1.8 billion Muslims on earth, they hope to do more work as prescribed in Islamic law so as to have more chances on the Day of Judgement.

The Qur’an indicates that Jesus is the Spirit and Word from God. Although according to Islam, God is Al-Batin (hidden) and az-Zahir (manifested), Jesus is not seen or considered as being the manifestation (az-Zahir) of God. In contrast to that, in the Bible, we learn that Jesus was the manifestation of God. Jesus said: “He who has seen me has seen the Father” (John 14:9). God still calls people to live in fellowship with Him through Jesus.

Although a Muslim friend asked me this question to answer in the light of the Bible, this is a question that Christian scholars have debated since the early church. Some say, “No, everything that happens is God’s will.” So, if a prayer is answered, the answer must be within God’s will. Those who hold this position may cite Romans 9:18-21 which describes God as a potter and us as the clay. Since God shapes the clay, the final form of the vessel must be according to His will. Nothing can thwart God’s will. While this view has a great deal of truth, it is not complete or entirely correct for several reasons. First, the potter and clay example in Romans 9 references an Old Testament Scripture in Jeremiah 18, where the clay becomes spoiled in the potter’s hand, so he reshapes it into something else. The final form was not what the potter initially intended. Secondly, it is a mistake to say that every time something wrong happens, God ordained it. Though God uses some things as punishment, a lesson, or a blessing, to say he is involved as the main force behind every action is not biblical. For example, is it God’s will for someone to murder a child? Is it not more correct to say that God allows people the free choice to do what is evil or wrong? Finally, there are many Scriptures where God expresses sorrow over what people choose to do.