Defending the Christian Faith in Conversation with Islam — Unit 5: The Trinity and the Charge of Shirk

Key Verse

"Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!" (Deuteronomy 6:4, NKJV)

Learning Objectives

When you finish this unit, you should be able to:

1. Explain the Islamic doctrine of tawhid and the sin of shirk as a Muslim would explain them.

2. Describe what Qur'an 5:73, 5:116, 4:171 and 6:101 say about Christian belief and what they seem to describe.

3. State the biblical doctrine of the Trinity clearly, using its three basic truths.

4. Answer the charge that Christians worship three gods, with Scripture and with clear reasoning.

5. Speak about the Trinity with Muslim friends in a way that is truthful, simple and gentle.

Introduction: The First Wall in Many Conversations

When a Christian begins to talk with a Muslim friend about God, one of the first questions is often this: "How can you say that God is one when you worship three gods?" For many Muslims, this is not a small disagreement. It touches the very heart of their faith. They have been taught since childhood that the greatest sin a person can commit is to give God a partner. To them, the Christian teaching about the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit sounds like exactly that sin.

A pastor who wants to help his people must understand this concern before he tries to answer it. A Muslim who raises this question is often sincere. He is not trying to insult us. He believes he is defending the honour of God. We should respect that zeal, even while we show him that the Bible does not teach three gods.

This unit has four parts. First, we will learn what Muslims mean by tawhid and shirk. Second, we will look at what the Qur'an says about Christian belief. Third, we will set out what the Bible actually teaches about one God in three Persons. Fourth, we will learn how to answer the charge of "three gods" clearly and kindly.

Tawhid: The Oneness of God in Islam

The Arabic word tawhid (pronounced ta-WHEED) means "making one" or "declaring one." In Islam it is the doctrine that God is absolutely one. It is the centre of Muslim faith and worship. Every Muslim knows the confession of faith called the shahada: "There is no god but God, and Muhammad is the messenger of God." The first half of this confession is a statement of tawhid.

A short chapter of the Qur'an sums up this belief. A chapter of the Qur'an is called a sura, and a verse is called an ayah. Sura 112, called al-Ikhlas ("Sincerity" or "Purity of Faith"), is recited very often by Muslims. In Pickthall's translation it says that Allah is "the One," and that "He begetteth not nor was begotten" (Qur'an 112:1-3). It ends by saying that there is none comparable to Him (Qur'an 112:4).

For a Muslim, tawhid means at least three things:

• God is one in His being. He is not divided into parts, and there is no other god beside Him.

• God alone is to be worshipped. No prophet, saint, angel or idol may receive worship.

• God is unlike His creation. Nothing in the created world is equal to Him or shares His nature.

Christians agree with much of this. We also believe there is only one God. We also believe that God alone must be worshipped. We also believe that God is the Creator and is not part of His creation. The disagreement is not about whether God is one. The disagreement is about what kind of oneness God has, and about who Jesus is.

Shirk: The Unforgivable Sin

The opposite of tawhid is shirk (pronounced SHIRK). The word means "association" or "sharing." In Islam, shirk is the sin of associating a partner with God: treating any created being as if it were divine, or giving to anyone else the worship that belongs to God alone. Idol worship is the clearest example.

The Qur'an treats shirk as the gravest of all sins. Pickthall translates Qur'an 4:48 this way: "Lo! Allah forgiveth not that a partner should be ascribed unto Him." The verse goes on to say that God forgives other sins to whom He wills. Many Muslims understand this to mean that a person who dies in shirk, without repenting, will not be forgiven.

This explains why the Christian confession that Jesus is Lord and God is so serious to a Muslim. If Jesus were only a created man, then worshipping Him would indeed be shirk. Christians agree that worshipping a mere creature would be idolatry. The real question, then, is whether Jesus is a creature at all. The Bible says He is not. He is the eternal Word who was with God and was God, and who became flesh (John 1:1, 14).

What the Qur'an Says About Christian Belief

The Qur'an speaks directly to Christians in several places. It calls Jews and Christians the "People of the Book." Some verses speak warmly of Christians, but several verses reject what the Qur'an understands Christians to believe about God and Jesus. We will look at four of them.

Qur'an 5:73 — "The Third of Three"

In Pickthall's translation, Qur'an 5:73 says: "They surely disbelieve who say: Lo! Allah is the third of three; when there is no God save the One God." The verse warns of punishment for those who do not stop saying this.

The verse condemns the phrase "the third of three" because the Qur'an insists that God is one. Christians also deny that God is one of three separate gods; the church has always confessed one God, not three. But many Muslims, including many Muslim commentators, read the verse as rejecting the Christian Trinity itself, not only the worship of three separate gods. So the pastor should say, "We agree that God is one, but let me explain why Scripture leads Christians to confess the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit." That answers the real disagreement instead of brushing it aside as a simple misunderstanding.

Qur'an 5:116 — Jesus, Mary and God

Qur'an 5:116 describes a scene in which God questions Jesus on the Day of Judgment. In Pickthall's translation God asks: "O Jesus, son of Mary! Didst thou say unto mankind: Take me and my mother for two gods beside Allah?" Jesus answers that he never said such a thing.

This verse asks whether Jesus told people to take himself and his mother as two gods beside God. It does not define the Trinity or name Mary as one of its Persons, and Muslims explain it in different ways. No orthodox Christian creed has ever placed Mary in the Trinity; the Persons of the Trinity are the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit. The Bible honours Mary as a blessed and faithful woman, chosen to be the mother of Jesus, but she was a human being and a creature. The verse still raises a real question about the worship Christians give to Christ, and answering it needs more than correcting a mistaken picture of the Trinity.

Muslim scholars explain this verse in different ways. Some say it describes Christians who gave Mary too much honour, not the official teaching of the church. Historians note that there were small groups in the early centuries that gave Mary a kind of worship; one, called the Collyridians, was described by the church writer Epiphanius in the fourth century, who condemned them. Whatever the reason for the verse, the pastor can say plainly and kindly: "If someone worships Mary as a god, the Bible condemns that too. But that is not the Trinity."

Qur'an 4:171 — "Say Not Three"

Qur'an 4:171 speaks to the People of the Book. It says that the Messiah, Jesus son of Mary, was a messenger of Allah and "His word" and "a spirit from Him." Then it says, in Pickthall's words: "say not 'Three' - Cease! (it is) better for you! - Allah is only One God." The verse adds that God is far above having a son.

Qur'an 4:171 warns Christians not to say "Three" and rejects the idea that God has a son, while also calling Jesus God's "word" and "a spirit from Him." A thoughtful Muslim may take this verse as rejecting the Christian Trinity itself, not only three separate gods. So Christians should state what they actually believe, one God in three distinct Persons, and explain why Scripture leads them to it. The titles Word and Spirit are a good subject for conversation, but we should not assume that the Qur'an gives them the same meaning as John's Gospel. As we saw in Unit 4, Christians can ask a Muslim friend with respect: "What does it mean that Jesus is God's word? Was God ever without His word?"

Qur'an 6:101 — "How Can He Have a Child?"

Qur'an 6:101 asks, in Pickthall's translation: "How can He have a child, when there is for Him no consort?" A consort is a wife. The verse reasons that God cannot have a son because He has no wife.

This verse shows what many Muslims think Christians mean when they call Jesus "the Son of God." They think it means that God had physical relations with a woman and produced a child, as the pagan gods of the ancient world were said to do. Christians reject this idea as strongly as Muslims do. The Bible never teaches that God took a wife or that the Son was produced in a physical way.

Yet removing this misunderstanding does not end the disagreement. A careful Muslim may still reject the eternal Sonship of Jesus after he hears that God never took a wife. So explain the doctrine and discuss the disagreement that remains, instead of acting as though clearing up the misunderstanding settles the question. In a serious conversation, real disagreement handled honestly is better than a victory over an argument nobody actually holds.

What These Verses Seem to Describe

When we put these verses together, a picture appears. The Qur'an seems to reject:

• Saying "three" in a way that seems to make God less than one (4:171; 5:73). Christians also reject three gods, but we do confess the Trinity, so a real disagreement remains.

• Taking Jesus and Mary as two gods beside God (5:116). No Christian creed has ever placed Mary in the Trinity.

• The idea that God had a son by physical begetting through a wife.

Christians reject the worship of Mary as a goddess, the idea of three separate gods, and any idea that God fathered a child in a physical way. But Christians do confess the deity of the Son and the Trinity, which Islam denies. A respectful Christian can say, "I also reject physical begetting and three separate gods. Would you allow me to explain what we actually believe about the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit?" Clearing away the misunderstanding makes the real disagreement clearer; it does not make it disappear.

The real difference remains. Islam denies that Jesus is God and denies that God exists as Father, Son and Holy Spirit. Christians confess both. But it is far better to discuss the real difference than to argue about a belief that neither side holds.

The Biblical Doctrine of the Trinity

The word "Trinity" is not found in the Bible. Muslims sometimes point this out. But a word does not have to appear in Scripture for the truth it names to be there. The word "tawhid" is not found in the Qur'an either, yet Muslims rightly say that the Qur'an teaches the oneness of God. In the same way, the word "Trinity" is a short name for what the Bible teaches. Christian writers used it very early: Theophilus of Antioch used a Greek form around AD 180, and Tertullian used the Latin word trinitas around AD 200, long before the councils of Nicaea (325) and Constantinople (381).

The doctrine of the Trinity can be stated in three basic truths. When all three are held together, we have the biblical teaching.

Truth One: There Is Only One God

The Bible is firmly monotheistic. Monotheism means belief in one God only. Our key verse is the great confession of Israel: "Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the LORD is one!" (Deuteronomy 6:4). Jesus Himself quoted this verse as the first commandment (Mark 12:29). Through Isaiah, God says: "I am the LORD, and there is no other; There is no God besides Me" (Isaiah 45:5). Paul writes that "there is no other God but one" (1 Corinthians 8:4).

Christians are not less committed to one God than Muslims are. The Christian faith grew out of the faith of Israel, which had stood against the many gods of the nations for centuries. The apostles were Jews who would have died rather than worship a second god.

Truth Two: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit Are Each Fully God

The New Testament shows that the Father is God. It also shows that the Son is God. John writes: "In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God" (John 1:1). Thomas worships the risen Jesus and calls Him "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). Jesus speaks of the glory He had with the Father "before the world was" (John 17:5).

The Bible also shows that the Holy Spirit is God. When Ananias lied to the Holy Spirit, Peter told him: "You have not lied to men but to God" (Acts 5:4). The Spirit knows the deep things of God (1 Corinthians 2:10-11), is everywhere present (Psalm 139:7), and gives new birth (John 3:5-8). These are works only God can do.

Truth Three: The Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit Are Distinct Persons

The Father is not the Son, the Son is not the Spirit, and the Spirit is not the Father. They are distinct. At the baptism of Jesus, the Son is in the water, the Spirit descends like a dove, and the Father speaks from heaven (Matthew 3:16-17). Jesus prays to the Father (John 17:1). He promises that the Father will send "another Helper," the Spirit (John 14:16). The three are named together in Jesus' command to baptize "in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit" (Matthew 28:19). Notice that the word is "name," singular, not "names."

Paul's blessing names all three as the source of grace: "The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, and the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with you all" (2 Corinthians 13:14). The early church did not invent the Trinity. It found the Father, the Son and the Spirit already present on the pages of the New Testament.

Putting the Three Truths Together

If we deny the first truth, we fall into belief in many gods. If we deny the second, we make Jesus or the Spirit into creatures. If we deny the third, we say that Father, Son and Spirit are only three masks or roles of one Person. The Bible teaches all three truths together: one God, eternally existing as three distinct Persons, each fully God.

This is a mystery in the biblical sense: something we could not discover by ourselves, but which God has revealed. A mystery is not a contradiction. We should expect that the infinite God will be greater than our minds can fully grasp. A Muslim also believes that God is beyond full human understanding. The question is not whether God is beyond us, but what God has told us about Himself.

How a Pastor Can Explain the Trinity from Scripture

In his teaching on the Holy Spirit, Dr. Cook begins with a useful observation. We often speak of the Father through His attributes, of the Son through the events of His earthly ministry, and of the Holy Spirit through His work. This does not divide the one God into three jobs or three parts. It is simply a way of noticing what Scripture shows about the three Persons: the Father who sends, the Son who reveals and redeems, and the Spirit who bears witness to the Son and works within believers.

Begin with the oneness of God, not with a puzzle about numbers: "The LORD is one" (Deuteronomy 6:4; Mark 12:29). Then ask whether the Bible gives the names and works of God to the Son and to the Spirit. John says the Word was with God and was God (John 1:1-3, 14). Thomas calls the risen Jesus "My Lord and my God!" (John 20:28). Peter treats lying to the Holy Spirit as lying to God (Acts 5:3-4). The Spirit teaches (John 14:26), testifies (John 15:26), guides (John 16:13), gives gifts as He wills (1 Corinthians 12:11) and can be grieved (Ephesians 4:30). So the Spirit is not an impersonal force, and He is not another god.

Then turn to the baptism of Jesus (Matthew 3:16-17). The Son stands in the water, the Spirit comes down, and the Father's voice is heard. The three are distinct, but not separated. Jesus commands baptism in the one name of the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit (Matthew 28:19), and Paul names all three together in his blessing (2 Corinthians 13:14). A pastor should be able to walk through these passages himself, instead of relying on pictures such as water or an egg (see "Be Careful with Comparisons" below).

The Spirit's work centres on Christ: He testifies of Jesus and convicts the world (John 15:26; 16:8). In his preaching, Dr. Cook compares our difficulty in looking straight at the Holy Spirit with the difficulty of looking straight at the sun: we do not stare at the sun, but by its light we see everything else. This picture is about the Spirit's work of making Christ known; it is not a definition of what God is. Our explanation should be clear enough that a Muslim friend knows we worship one God, and honest enough to admit that the doctrine contains mystery.

Answering the Charge of "Three Gods"

Now we come to the practical question. How do we answer a Muslim friend who says, "You worship three gods"? Here are several clear answers. Use the ones that fit the person and the moment.

One What and Three Whos

The doctrine of the Trinity does not say "one God and three Gods," which would be a contradiction. It does not say "one Person and three Persons," which would also be a contradiction. It says one God (one being) and three Persons. These are different kinds of things. The apologist James White put it simply: God is one "What" and three "Whos." The word being answers the question "What is God?" The word person answers the question "Who is God?"

A simple comparison helps. I am one being, and I am one person. A rock is one being, but it is no person at all. The Bible reveals that God is one being who exists as three Persons. That is different from anything in creation, but it is not a contradiction, because "one" and "three" refer to different things.

Be Careful with Comparisons

Many preachers use comparisons such as water (ice, liquid, steam), an egg (shell, white, yolk), or a man who is a father, a son and a husband. These may help a child begin to think, but they all fail in important ways. Water that changes form suggests one Person wearing three masks. An egg suggests that each Person is only one-third of God. A man with three roles is still only one person. It is wiser to state the biblical truths plainly than to depend on a picture that teaches error.

"Son" Does Not Mean Physical Birth

When a Muslim friend objects to "Son of God," explain what the title does not mean. It does not mean that God had a wife. It does not mean that the Son had a beginning. In the Bible, "son of" often describes nature or relationship, not physical birth. The eternal Son shares the Father's very nature and has always been in perfect relationship with Him. When Sura 112 says "He begetteth not," a Christian can agree that God does not beget in a physical way.

God's Eternal Word

Many Sunni Muslims believe that the Qur'an is the uncreated, eternal speech of God. In their theology, God's speech is an eternal attribute that has always existed with God, yet God is still one. This does not prove the Trinity, but it can open a door. A Christian may gently ask: "If God's eternal speech can be with God from eternity without making two gods, why is it impossible that God's eternal Word, of whom John 1:1 speaks, is with God and is God?" Ask this as a question for thought, not as a weapon.

Love Before Creation

The Bible says, "God is love" (1 John 4:8). Love needs someone to love. If God were a single Person alone from all eternity, whom did He love before He made the world? In the Trinity, the Father has always loved the Son, and the Son has always loved the Father, in the fellowship of the Spirit (John 17:24). God did not need to create in order to love. This shows that the Trinity is not a strange addition to our faith. It is the foundation of the gospel truth that God is love.

A Note from Nabeel Qureshi

Nabeel Qureshi grew up in a devout Muslim family and was taught that the Trinity was a clear example of shirk. Through years of friendly debate with his Christian friend David Wood, he studied what the Bible actually says about Jesus. Qureshi argued later that a Muslim cannot fairly judge the Trinity until he understands what Christians really believe, and that the deeper question is who Jesus is. His book No God but One: Allah or Jesus? (2016) compares tawhid and the Trinity in detail and is recommended reading for this unit.

Speaking About the Trinity with Gentleness

Imagine a pastor named Samuel in a town market. His neighbour Ibrahim, a kind Muslim shopkeeper, says to him, "Samuel, you are a good man, but how can you worship three gods?" Samuel does not argue loudly. He smiles and says, "Ibrahim, thank you for asking. I also believe God is one, and I would never worship Mary or a second god. May I tell you what my Bible says?" Then he shares Deuteronomy 6:4 and John 1:1, and he listens to Ibrahim's reply. The conversation does not end that day, but a friendship is strengthened, and the door stays open.

This small story shows a wise pattern. Here are some practical guidelines:

• Begin with agreement: we both believe there is one God, the Creator, who alone must be worshipped.

• Ask before you answer: "What do you think Christians believe about God?" Then correct misunderstandings gently.

• Clear away what we do not believe: not three gods, not Mary as divine, not physical sonship.

• Keep the focus on Jesus. The Trinity is revealed most clearly through who Jesus is and what He did.

• Use Scripture, briefly and accurately, rather than long philosophical arguments.

• Never mock the Qur'an, the Prophet of Islam, or your friend. Answer with "meekness and fear" (1 Peter 3:15).

• In places where Christians are a minority, be wise about where and when you speak, and avoid public quarrels that could bring danger.

Summary

Tawhid, the doctrine that God is absolutely one, is the centre of Islam, and shirk, associating a partner with God, is its gravest sin. For this reason, many Muslims believe that Christians commit shirk by worshipping Jesus and confessing the Trinity. The Qur'an rejects saying "three" (4:171; 5:73), taking Jesus and Mary as two gods beside God (5:116), and a son born to God through a wife (6:101). Christians also reject three gods, the worship of Mary and any physical begetting, but we do confess one God in three Persons, so a real difference remains. The Bible teaches that there is only one God; that the Father, the Son and the Holy Spirit are each fully God; and that they are three distinct Persons. God is one being in three Persons, which is a revealed mystery but not a contradiction. Pastors can answer the charge of "three gods" by clearing away misunderstandings, explaining the difference between being and person, showing that "Son" does not mean physical birth, and pointing to Jesus, always with gentleness and respect.

Questions for Reflection

1. Why is the charge of shirk so serious to a Muslim, and how should that shape the way you respond to it?

2. Which of the Qur'an's descriptions of Christian belief have you heard from Muslim neighbours, and how would you clear up the misunderstanding?

3. How would you explain the difference between "one being" and "three Persons" to a member of your congregation in your own words?

4. Why are common comparisons such as water or an egg unhelpful, and what would you say instead?

5. How does the truth that "God is love" help you show that the Trinity is good news and not only a puzzle?

6. What steps can your congregation take to speak about the Trinity with Muslim neighbours wisely and safely?

7. Explain the Trinity from Matthew 3:16-17 and John 14-16 without using any comparison from water, eggs or human roles.

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