Section 1 — Finding Common Ground

The Christian Statement

Before the disciple says anything about Jesus or the cross, the conversation needs soil. Common ground is not compromise — it is the recognition that every human being is made in the image of God, carries a longing for the transcendent, and is asking essentially the same questions underneath all their different answers.

With a Muslim, the common ground is actually vast:

• There is one God — absolute, sovereign, eternal, Creator of heaven and earth
• God revealed Himself through prophets
• Human beings are accountable to God
• There is a Day of Judgment
• Jesus (Isa) was born of a virgin
• Jesus performed miracles — healing the sick, raising the dead
• Jesus was sinless
• Jesus ascended to heaven and will return
• The Quran calls Jesus Word of God (Kalimatullah) and Spirit from God (Ruh min Allah)
• Prayer, fasting, generosity, and justice matter

✖ Muslim Response: Christians worship three gods. We worship one God. There is no partnership in the Godhead.

✔ How to respond: Christians do not worship three gods. We worship one God who exists in three persons — Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. This is not tritheism. Begin with agreement: there is one God. Don't get drawn into a Trinity debate at the opening of the conversation.

★ Disciple Tip: The Muslim has often been told that Christians are polytheists. None of this is true. Begin with what is true and let the agreement build trust before the hard questions come.

Section 2 — The Question That Opens Everything

The Christian Statement

The conversation always arrives at a single pivot point. Jesus asked it Himself:

"He said to them, 'But who do you say that I am?'" — Matthew 16:15 (NET)

Every major world religion has a position on Jesus. What no one can do is ignore the claims He made about Himself. The Father and I are one (John 10:30). Before Abraham came into existence, I am! (John 8:58). I am the way, and the truth, and the life (John 14:6). C.S. Lewis identified the trilemma: Liar, Lunatic, or Lord. The one thing He cannot be, given those claims, is merely a good moral teacher.

✖ Muslim Response: Jesus was a great prophet — the Messiah — but not the Son of God. God does not have a son.

✔ How to respond: The Quran honors Jesus more than any other prophet except Muhammad — virgin birth, sinlessness, miracles, Word of God, Spirit from God. The question is: what do those titles mean? If Jesus is the Word of God, a word that comes from God is not a creature God made — it is an expression of God Himself. We are not asking you to abandon monotheism. We are asking you to follow the Quran's own Christology to its logical conclusion.