Some assume that Allah, the God of Islam, is just another name for Yahweh or Jehovah, the God of the Bible. Is Allah and Yahweh the same God? Do Christians and Muslims worship the same God?

No! The God of Islam is not the same God revealed in Scripture. This can be seen in two distinct areas. First, the God of the Bible and the God of Islam have different attributes or characteristics. Second, the God of Scripture is a Trinity while the God of Islam is not.

Difference in Attributes

The Christian God and the Muslim God have different attributes. While the Bible and the Quran attribute similar powers to Yahweh and Allah, they are certainly not the same God. This can be seen in several ways.

Yahweh is a God of Love, Allah is Not

Muslims recite ninety-nine names of God, going three times through a prayer strand with thirty-three beads on it. Christians can agree with Muslims on almost every one of these attributes of God. The fourth attribute is that He is the Holy One, and the forty-seventh is that “He is the Loving One.”

However, holiness and love are not driving passions in many Muslim’s understanding of God. This is seen in a contrast between the God of the Bible and the God of Islam. Islam emphasizes Allah’s absolute power and control and Muslims submit to its many rules.

Yet they cannot have any assurance whatsoever about their standing before God, that is until Judgment Day. Islam teaches that God is aloof in His majestic glory; that He is a God who is detached from all else.

In contrast to this, the Bible depicts God as a personal being whose love and compassion toward humanity was shown by the coming of Jesus Christ. The loving God showed His love for this world by sending His Son.

The most famous Bible verse also referred to as the “Heart of the Bible,” speaks of God’s love for the entire world. We read the following.

God’s love was demonstrated in sending the Messiah, the Christ.

God is also specifically called love in 1 John 4:8. God is not only “full of love;” the God of the Bible is a God of love.

Yahweh Never Lies, Allah Deceives

It has been observed that in three different places, the Quran seems to teach that Allah actually intentionally deceives people. They are as follows:

“And the disbelievers planned, but Allah planned. And Allah is the best of planners” (Surah 3:54).

Elsewhere it says:

“And when those who disbelieved devised plans against you that they might confine you or slay you or drive you away; and they devised plans and Allah too had arranged a plan; and Allah is the best of planners” (Surah 8:30).

“And when we make people taste of mercy after an affliction touches them, lo! They devise plans against Our communication. Say, Allah is quicker to plan; surely Our messengers write down what you plan” (Surah 10:21).

Note that the English translations of these verses use words like “plan” or “best planner” when speaking of Allah. However, it has been argued that the Arabic word actually means “deceives.” If this is the case, then the Quran teaches that Allah is a God of deception.

This is in contrast to the God of the Bible who does not and cannot lie. Paul wrote this to Titus:

“This truth gives them confidence that they have eternal life, which God – who does not lie – promised them before the world began.” (Titus 1:2 NLT).

God cannot and does not lie because this is not part of His nature. We are told the same thing in Hebrews 6:18 (NLT). Indeed, Scripture says that there are two unchangeable things about God: His promise and His oath. Consequently, it is not possible for Him to lie.

Again, the Christian God, the God of the Bible, is the God of truth.

Trinitarian vs. Unitarian

The Quran portrays a different God than that of Christianity. The first duty of a Muslim is to publicly recite the Shahada which says, “There is no God but Allah and Muhammad is his messenger.”

This statement of faith is primary for Muslims. Allah alone is God and within his nature, there is only one divine person. Islam rejects the Trinity and the New Testament teaching that Jesus Christ is the eternal God. They consider Him only a prophet, for God does not and could not have a son.

The Quran says, “But it is not suitable for (the Majesty of) the Most Beneficent (Allah) that he should beget a son” (Surah 19:92).

In another place, it says, “And behold God will say, “O Jesus the Son of Mary! Did you say unto men, ‘Worship me and my mother as gods in derogation of God” (Surah 5:116)?

The Quran assumed that the Trinity consisted of God the Father, God the Son Jesus, and Jesus’ mother Mariam (Mary).

In no uncertain terms, Islam rejects the Trinity. The Quran further says, “They do blaspheme who say: Allah is one of three in a Trinity: for there is no god except One Allah. If they desist not from their word (of blasphemy), verily a grievous penalty will befall the blasphemers among them” (Surah 5:73).

The Quran, therefore, contains direct attacks against the doctrine of the Trinity. The following statement could not be clearer; Allah does not have a son.

“People of the Book, do not exceed the limits of devotion in your religion or say anything about God which is not the Truth. Jesus, son of Mary, is only a Messenger of God, His Word, and a spirit from Him whom He conveyed to Mary. So have faith in God and His Messengers. Do not say that there are three gods. It is better for you to stop believing in the Trinity. There is only One God. He is too glorious to give birth to a son. To God belongs all that is in the heavens and the earth. God alone is a Sufficient Guardian for all” (Surah 4:171).

The Quran assumes that Christians believe in three gods, Of course, this is blasphemy against Allah, the only God who exists.

The Bible Teaches that God is a Trinity

What should the Christian response be to the accusation of Muslims? The Bible teaches that there is one eternal God who has revealed Himself in three eternal persons, or three centers of consciousness. They are the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.

These three persons are the one God. This is the doctrine of the Trinity.

Unfortunately, there were some Christians who were teaching false ideas of the Trinity in Mecca. One such distortion of the Trinity claimed that God actually has a wife named Mary. God and Mary produced a child whom they named Jesus.

This is the sort of distortion of the doctrine of the Trinity that Muhammad was acquainted with. He, along with many others, concluded that Christians believed in three gods; “tri-theists.”

Here’s a video of a former Muslim, turned Christian, explaining the Trinity.

The Importance of the Trinity

The importance of the Trinity doctrine cannot be overestimated. There are many reasons why this is so.

This is how God has revealed Himself. God has revealed Himself in Scripture as a Triune God. Scripture teaches that the one God exists in three eternal persons. They are God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Spirit. This is what the one true God has said about Himself. He is the only God who exists (Isaiah 45:5; Isaiah 46:9) and He exists as a Trinity.

This is His revelation to us, and we are obligated to believe it, not doubt it, nor question it.

The Trinity is an example of the statement, “God is love.” For all eternity, there has been love between the three members of the Godhead. Consequently, God has never needed anything or anybody because there was love and communication among the different members of the Trinity.

Islam Claims Allah and Yahweh are the Same God

While it is obvious that Allah, the God of Islam, is not the same as Yahweh, the God of the Bible, Muslims insist that it is so. In fact, Islam not only demands that faithful Muslims believe this, it also demands that Jews and Christians believe it as well. This is consistent with their belief that the Quran is the divine revelation from Allah which supersedes the Bible.

Since Muslims acknowledge the Scriptures to be the Word of Allah, they must, therefore, insist that the same God who has been revealed in the Old and New Testament is the same God as revealed in the Quran.

When the Bible and the Quran differ in their characterizations of God, it is the Quran that always provides the final word since it is Allah’s later revelation to humanity.

Of course, Christians and Jews do not accept this line of argumentation since they do not believe the Quran to be the Word of God or Muhammad to be a prophet of God.

Consequently, the differences between the biblical view of God and what the Quran teaches, are further evidence that Judaism, Christianity, and Islam cannot be harmonized.

Conclusion

Although Christianity and Islam each claim that there is only one God that exists, they do not actually believe in the same God. Indeed, the Christian God as the Bible reveals, and the Muslim God, which the Quran speaks of, are entirely different.

As mentioned earlier, Islam believes and teaches about an impersonal God who does not love sinful humanity. He is not someone who can be known on a personal level. This is in contrast to Yahweh, the God of the Bible, who is a personal God and desires to have a personal relationship with each human being.

It is clear: the God of Islam is not the same God as in Christianity. Therefore, the explanation of God, in at least one of these two faiths, must be wrong. Either God is a Trinity or He is not. Islam and Christianity cannot both be true at the same time.

Indeed, Christians and Muslims do not believe in the same God.

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Reference: Understanding Islam by Don Stewart

Recommended Resource: No God but One: Allah or Jesus? A former Muslim Investigates the Evidence for Islam and Christianity by Nabeel Qureshi

Having shared his journey of faith in the New York Times bestselling Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi now examines Islam and Christianity in detail, exploring areas of crucial conflict and unpacking the relevant evidence.

In this anticipated follow-up book, Nabeel reveals what he discovered in the decade following his conversion, providing a thorough and careful comparison of the evidence for Islam and Christianity – evidence that wrenched his heart and transformed his life.

In Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus, Nabeel Qureshi recounted his dramatic journey, describing his departure from Islam and his decision to follow Christ. In the years that followed, he realized that the world’s two largest religions are far more different than they initially appeared.

No God but One: Allah or Jesus? addresses the most important questions at the interface of Islam and Christianity: How do the two religions differ? Are the differences significant? Can we be confident that either Christianity or Islam is true? And most important, is it worth sacrificing everything for the truth?

Nabeel shares stories from his life and ministry casts new light on current events and explores pivotal incidents in the histories of both religions, providing a resource that is gripping and thought-provoking, respectful, and challenging.

Both Islam and Christianity teach that there is No God but One, but who deserves to be worshiped, Allah or Jesus?