This Jesus Was Different

Issue Date: September/October 2008

The following is a testimony sent to the author of Who is this Allah by a young man in Nigeria:

After my semester, I decided to visit a friend. Just as I was seated, I saw him coming towards me with a book in his hands. After the usual greetings, I saw the book was titled Who is this Allah? I started reading it immediately.

I realized I could not dispute the points the author was making since they were firmly established in the Quran. I had read all the Quranic passages he was quoting, but until then I never realized their implications.

I began to have a new understanding of the mission and ministry of Jesus Christ on earth. The Jesus (Isa) I knew in the Quran was a different person than the Jesus Christ I was reading about in this book. Here I could see His unique nature —a man of deep compassion and love... My heart began to open to know more about this Jesus.

I then realized this might be the answer to the cry of my heart I recite everyday in my daily prayers, 'Show us the true path...` (Quran Chapter 1.6). After reading the book, I concluded in my heart that I was deceived and misled by the devil in believing a lie.

I now faced the reality I had never imagined in life: Do I throw away the religion of my fathers and become a Christian? But my mind was already set. I chose to believe in the Jesus of the Bible and to receive him as my Lord and Savior. Suddenly, I burst into tears asking God to forgive all my sins and receive me as His child. Something then happened I will never forget. As I was crying, I suddenly felt a strange cold sensation moving over my body. My heart got twisted but I did not feel any pain and was suddenly filled with joy which no human language can explain. My entire being was flooded with the peace that was beyond the one I was looking for. I felt like a new born baby that had no problem in life.

By the following morning, my friend brought me some water to perform my ablution (ritual washing of hands, feet, face, nostrils, etc before prayer) and to say my salah prayers. I said to my friend, "I don`t need these things; I am now a Christian." My friend (his name is Mohammed) exclaimed, 'What!` I said, "I don`t know how to start telling you this, Mohammed, but please, read this book. Perhaps you may discover what I discovered."

I left my friend perplexed and went to meet some Christians outside my friend`s house to teach me how to pray. They explained that prayer is communicating with God, just like a child communicates with his father. They also advised me to get a copy of the Bible and read what Jesus taught on prayers. I returned to my friend`s room and found a copy of the New Testament. I read it through within a few days.  The message was so comforting to my soul. I had never read a book like it. I felt as if I was living in a different world. My understanding of God, the world and the people around me changed drastically. I began to see things in a new light."
 — Abdul Salam, Northern Nigeria