Rays of the same lamp
A natural question that is asked to someone who believes in a prophet is: ´What are the criteria for your belief in him? ´ Reasonable criteria would be:
(i) Evidence of his claim.
(ii) Consistency of His Teachings (About God, Afterlife, and Similar Beliefs).
(iii) Similarity to the teachings of the previous prophets.
(iv) Righteousness: he must be a very moral man.
The Bible supports our criteria. The Old Testament says about a false prophet:
1. Claimed to be sent by God. [1]
2. Is greedy for money, [2] addicted to alcohol, [3] immoral and profane, [4] influenced by evil spirits. [5]
3. Make false predictions, [6] lies in the name of the Lord, [7] from his own heart, [8] in the name of false gods. [9]
4. Frequently practices divination and witchcraft. [10]
5. Misleads people, [11] makes them forget God’s name, [12] teaches worldly things and sin [13] and suppresses them. [14]
The New Testament lists Jesus‘ criteria to identify false prophets:
“Beware of the false prophets who come to you in sheep’s clothing, but inside they are ravening wolves. You shall recognize them by their fruit. Can you also read grapes from the thorns or figs of thistles? So any good tree bears good fruit; but a rotten tree bears bad fruit. ”[15]
We learn the following:
(i) The prophecy continues after Jesus.
(ii) Beware of false prophets.
(iii) The criteria for identifying a false prophet are his fruits, that is, his works or deeds. [16]
As noted earlier, Muhammad clearly made the claim: „I am the Messenger of God.“ If someone evaluates their claim using the criteria cited above, they will find that they fully apply to them.
According to the Islamic doctrine, all prophets represent a spiritual brotherhood, with a single ´father´ but different ´mothers´. The ´father´ is prophecy and unity of God, the ´mothers´ are the different laws that they brought. Emphasizing the spiritual brotherhood of all prophets, Prophet Muhammad said:
“I am the closest of all people to the Son of Mary (Jesus). The prophets are paternal brothers, their mothers are different, but their religion is one. ” (Sahieh Al-Bukhari, Sahieh Muslim)
All prophets are ‚rays‘ from the same ‚lamp‘: the central message of all prophets has always been to serve only God. For this reason, Islam views denying a prophet as denying them all. The Quran says:
„Truly, those who do not believe in God and His Messenger and make a separation between God and His Messenger and say:“ We believe in some and reject others „and want to take an intermediate route, these are the unbelievers in the true sense, and We have prepared a shameful punishment for the unbelievers. But those who believe in God and His Messenger and make no difference between them are the ones to whom He will give their reward, and God is Forgiving, Merciful. ” (Quran 4: 150-152)
Denying Muhammad’s prophecy is tantamount to denying all prophets. Muhammad’s prophecy is as well known as the prophecy of Moses and Jesus: the numerous accounts of their miracles that have reached us. The book (the Quran) that Muhammad brought has been completely preserved and His law is complete and is still applicable today. Moses brought the law and righteousness, Jesus brought grace and flexibility. Muhammad connects between the law of Moses and the grace of Jesus.
If someone said: ‚he was a swindler‘, there are others who would fit this accusation better. Because denying Muhammad also means denying your own prophets. When a sensible person looks at two shining stars, they have to recognize both stars, they cannot say to one: ‚Yes, this is a shining star‘, but deny the other one! To do that would be to deny reality and it would be a lie.
Make a table of all the prophets you believe in. Start from the first to the last you believe in. Answer the following questions:
What is the evidence from which I believe he is a true prophet?
What was the Prophet’s message in his own words?
Did he bring a law? Is his law still applicable today?
What script did he bring? What is its content and meaning?
Has the scripture been preserved in the original language in which it was revealed? Is it considered to be flawless in literature, without internal contradictions?
What do you know about his morality and sincerity?
Compare all the prophets you have enumerated and then answer the same questions about Muhammad. Then ask yourself: „Can I honestly omit Muhammad from my list because the criteria of the other prophets do not apply to him?“ It will not take much strength to discover that the proof of Muhammad’s prophecy is stronger and more convincing.
A skeptic should think about what is so unusual about Muhammad’s claim to be a prophet? When did God ever declare the end of the prophecies? Who decided that there will be no more divine communication with human beings? Without evidence of an end to the divine revelations, it is natural to accept that the revelations will continue:
“Verily, We have sent you with the truth as a giver of good news and a warner; and there is no people in which Warner has not even existed. ” (Quran 35:24)
“Then we sent our messengers one by one. Whenever an envoy came to his people, they accused him of lying. So we let her follow each other (into the grave) and made her (fate) stories (told a lot). Cursed unless the people who don’t believe. ” (Quran 23:44)
This is true, especially when the truth has been twisted by the Jews and Christians; the Christians claim that Jesus was the son of God and the Jews called him an illegitimate son of Joseph the carpenter. Muhammad brought the truth: Jesus was God’s noble prophet who was born miraculously. For this reason, Muslims believe in and love Jesus; they do not exaggerate like the Christians, nor do they downgrade him as the Jews do.
Footnotes:
[1] Jeremiah 23: 17,18,31
[2] Micah 3:11
[3] Isaiah 28: 7
[4] Jeremiah 23: 11,14
[5] 1 Kings 22:21, 22
[6] Jeremiah 5:31
[7] Jeremiah 14:14
[8] Jeremiah 23: 16,26; Ezekiel 13: 2
[9] Jeremiah 2: 8
[10] Jeremiah 14:14; Ezekiel 22:28; Acts 13: 6
[11] Jeremiah 23:13; Micah 3: 5
[12] Jeremiah 23:27
[13] Jeremiah 23: 14:15
[14] Ezekiel 22:25
[15] Matthew 7: 15-17
[16] According to: ‚Vine’s Expository Dictionary of New Testament Words. ‚
Source: https://www.islamland.com/deu/articles/welche-sind-die-merkmale-eines-wahren-propheten