Sharing the Gospel with Muslims is Easier Than You Think

Sharing the gospel with Muslims really wasn’t on my radar until I moved to New York to marry Trevor. Suddenly I had not just one Muslim neighbor, but two. (This is a big deal for a girl who grew up surrounded by cornfields.)

I instantly began praying for an opportunity to connect with the woman in the hijab across the street. I asked God to penetrate her darkness with His light. I also picked up The Gospel for Muslims: An Encouragement to Share Christ with Confidence by Thabiti Anyabwile. 

“The Gospel for Muslims” is a thin book (yay for books that don’t overwhelm!) with two sections. The first section covers the basics of the gospel and how Muslims’ beliefs compare. The second section is filled with practical tips for how to share the gospel with Muslims (chapter titles like “Be Filled with the Spirit,” “Trust the Bible,” “Be Hospitable,” and more). 

You may not be surrounded by Muslim neighbors, but maybe you go to school with a Muslim or work with one—or will one day. So I want to share three takeaways I’ve gotten from this book so far that I think will help you, too. 

1. It’s okay to feel afraid to share the gospel with Muslims.

You’re not alone. Even Thabiti, who converted from Islam to Christianity in college, shares of a time he was scared heading into a public debate with a Muslim. Here’s the thing: We don’t have to conjure boldness up from deep within us. Boldness comes from being filled with the Spirit of God. “In the book of Acts,” Thabiti shares, “the activity most frequently associated with the Spirit’s filling is speaking with boldness.” Here are just a couple of examples:

“You will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth” (Acts 1:8).

And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness (Acts 4:31).

Don’t keep silent when you are afraid. Pray that the Holy Spirit would fill you and give you the boldness you don’t have in order to be a witness for Him.

2. You have everything you need to share the gospel with Muslims.

You are equipped, even if you don’t feel like you are. The same message that saved you—the gospel—is the message that can profoundly transform your Muslim neighbors and friends. Seriously. Thabiti got me with this zinger on page thirteen: “In my experience, Christians know the gospel. They simply lack confidence in its power.” Ouch.

Share the gospel with Muslims. You don’t have to share it perfectly, without stumbling. You’re not responsible for whether they believe it; it’s simply your job to share with them the good news of Christ’s perfect life, death, and resurrection on their behalf.

3. Don’t try to minimize truths about God that you know your Muslim neighbor or friend won’t like.

For example, Muslims do not believe in the Trinity. The chief confession of Islam is, “There is only one God, and Muhammad is his messenger,” so they have a problem with one God in three persons. But rather than seeking to downplay this truth, Thabiti encourages us to “go there.” Why?

For one reason, we don’t get to create a God we understand. God says His “name” (singular) is “Father, Son, and Holy Spirit” (Matt. 28:19). Also, Thabiti explains, “We must cling to the Trinity because apart from the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit, there is no possibility of eternal salvation. . . . The Father chose us (Eph. 1:4–6), the Son offered the only sacrifice without blemish that is able to purify us and satisfy the Father (Eph. 1:7), and the Spirit seals us and produces in us new birth” (Eph. 1:14).

Share who God is without feeling the need to apologize or “cover” for Him. God is not an idea; He is a Person—be true to who He is and what He shares to be true.

I’d love to hear from you. Do you know any Muslims?

Thanks to one of Thabiti’s practical suggestions in The Gospel for Muslims, I’m going to be baking all week. I invited the woman in the hijab from across the street over for tea, and she said yes. Thabiti shares that only women have the opportunity to reach Muslim women for Christ (they can’t interact with men), and he suggests spoiling them like crazy when they come for tea. So I’m planning to do just that.

• If you enjoyed this post, I think you’ll really appreciate this gospel conversation I had with the most successful sex worker in the U.S. It’s bold. Tenaciously truthful. But also compassionate and loving. If you’re short on time, start with Part 2 of this two-part conversation. 
• This post has been updated; it was originally featured on LiesYoungWomenBelieve.com as “3 Tips for Sharing the Gospel with Muslims.”
• Full disclosure: I get commissions for purchases made through links in this post. 

Paula (Hendricks) Marsteller

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Paula (Hendricks) Marsteller is a compassionate, bold Christian communicator offering you gospel hope, thought-provoking questions, and practical help along the way.

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