9. GOD'S CHOSEN PEOPLE (...are the Jews: Not the Muslims as Islam decrees – Koran 3:19)
A Jew is a member of the people whose traditional religion is Judaism and who trace their origins to the ancient Hebrew people of Israel. "...salvation comes from the Jews." (John 4:22)
God's chosen people are the Jews (a tribe of Israel) as they have been from the beginning. God chose a people from among all the peoples to fulfil a role in His 'Plan of Salvation for all people of every nation' until the end of the world. His plan was that from this people would emerge a Messiah, a Saviour, (1 John 4:14) who would overcome the powers of evil, sin, suffering and death in the world and by Whom all men might come to share in the wonders of the Divine Eternity. (See Articles 13; 14.1 & 14.2; 15; 20.2 and 23.1)
God began by separating Abraham (Abram) from among the people of his time and promised him He would make him the father of a great nation and that in him all the nations of the earth would be blessed. (Genesis 12:1-3)
Because His wife Sarah was barren, Abraham had fathered a child with Sarah's servant-girl Hagar. An angel had named this child Ishmael (Genesis 16:11,12) and Abraham asked God if He would fulfil His promise to him through Ishmael. (Genesis 17:18,20,21) God said, "No! I will make My Covenant with the child you have with Sarah whom you shall call, Isaac." (Genesis 17:19) Sarah miraculously conceived in her old age when she was 90 and Abraham was 100. (Genesis 17:17) And, in due time God tested Abraham's faith by requiring of him to offer Isaac to Him as a sacrifice. When Abraham proved faithful, God promised him, He would make him the father of many nations with his children numbered as "the stars in the heavens and the sands of the seashore" promising him, "All the nations of the earth shall bless themselves by your descendants, as a reward for your obedience." (Genesis 22:1-18)
Isaac married Rebecca and God changed the name of their son Jacob to 'Israel' (Genesis 32:28) who fathered twelve sons who, in their turn, would father 'the twelve tribes of Israel'. And it was David of the line of his fourth son 'Judah' (called the Jews) who was made the 2nd King of Israel. (2 Kings 5:3,4) David is especially cited in the Scriptures as being a predecessor of the Messiah, (Matthew 1:17,20) the Saviour who was to"reign in the House of Jacob forever," (Luke 1:32) "and we have seen, and do testify, that the Father has sent His Son (a Jew) to be the Saviour of the world ," (1 John 4:14) the Saviour "to whom all the tribes of the earth shall come to be blessed", (Psalm 71:17) because "there is no other Name given under Heaven by Whom men can/must be saved." (Acts 4:12. See also: Genesis 18:18,19; 28:14,15; Isaiah 43:3,7,10-14; Hosea/Osee 13:4)
The story of the Saviour-Messiah, the Christ, is well known. There are over 400 references and prophecies regarding Him in the Jewish Old Testament Scriptures. The Scriptures say, "A virgin shall conceive, and bear a son, and He shall be called 'Emmanuel', which means 'God with us.' (Isaiah 7:14) He will be called 'God the Mighty' and 'Father of the world to come'. (Isaiah 9:6) They tell us that, 'God Himself will come and save you'." (Isaiah 35:4-6; 1 John 4:14)
And this is how the Messiah came to be born:
"His mother Mary was betrothed to Joseph:
but before they came to live together, she was found to be with child through the Holy Spirit.
Her husband Joseph: being a just man, and not willing to expose her publicly, decided to separate
from her privately. He had made up his mind to do this, when the angel of the Lord appeared to
him in a dream and said: "Joseph, son of David, fear not to take Mary as your wife, for that
which is conceived in her is of the Holy Spirit. She will give birth to a son and you shall name
him Jesus because He is the one who shall save his people from their sins." Now, all this took
place to fulfil the words spoken by the Lord through His prophet, Isaiah. (7:14) "The virgin will
conceive and give birth to a son, and they will call him Emmanuel", which means "God with us."
In this manner was Joseph made foster-father to Emmanuel. (Matthew 1:18-24; Luke 1:26-38)
The New Testament gives account of Emmanuel's life in the world , what He did and said and His establishment of a Church (Matthew 16:18,19) which He commissioned to carry his message and blessings into every nation until the end of time (Mark 28:18-20) as His means of fulfilling the 'Perpetual Covenant' God made with Abraham 2000 years before he came. (Genesis 17:7)
Muhammad draws on the Scriptures of the Jews but he did not discern God's Plan. He acknowledges the Prophets who speak of Emmanuel, the Messiah, but he acknowledges the Messiah as being 'no more than an apostle'. (Koran 5:75, 19:88)
Muslims believe theirs is 'the only true religion' (Koran 3:19) which gives them the mandate to subject every nation of the world to their Sharia Law. (See Article 1, Article 2 and Article 17)
They do not understand the significance of the Messiah in His role of fulfilling God's Covenant with Abraham and that His IS 'the only true religion' commissioned to reach out to all the nations for all time , because His is "the only Name given under Heaven by Whom men can/must be saved." (Genesis 17:7,19; Matthew 28:18-20; Acts 4:12; 1 John 4:14)
They do not understand that like all men, their nation too, is called to come to the Messiah to receive God's blessing. (Psalm 71:17) Rather, they show themselves to be the children of Ishmael, who 'set himself against all men and who had all men set against him.' (Genesis 16:11,12) They correctly claim their lineage through him to Abraham but, the line of Ishmael is NOT 'the line of the Covenant' and God's 'Messiah Plan'.
'The line of God's Plan' is exclusively the line from Abraham, Isaac and Jacob (Genesis 17:19) and King David (Acts 13:21-23) and the Virgin Mother of the Messiah. (Isaiah 7:14; Genesis 3:15) None can supplant it! (See Article 11; Daniel 2:44 & 7:13-14)
The Muslims are right! There IS only one 'true religion', and the ancient Jewish Scriptures very clearly confirm it is truly 'the religion of Emmanuel, the Jewish Saviour-Messiah'. (Isaiah 44:21,24; 45:15; 51:2,5,8; 59:20,21; 61:1,2; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 John 4:14)