Assalamu Aleykum Warahmullahi Wabarakatuhu . My dear friend, he is a Christian and he asked me a Question that if Isa (as) was a Muslim, he preached Islam and invited people to the true monotheism, Islam. HE WAS SENT ONLY TO ISRAEL..IS ISLAM ONLY FOR ISRAELIS?? So his main question is, is Islam only for Israelists? and then he gave me a tafsir from Ibn Kathir that he was not sent for the Children of Israel but to the whole World (according to him). The tasfir says(61:14): ...Isa sent the disciples to the various areas of Ash-Sham to call the GREEKS and the Israelites to Islam... So he asks if he was only sent to israel and to the Jews, why did Isa (as) sent his diciples to invite the Greeks? Can anyone answer this and my ENTER button is not working lol Jazakallah!
See how some Christians know not only their books, but go into the tafseers to see what they can misinterpret, to give us da'wah, whereas as Muslims, da'wah is our duty, and we don't even know our own book let alone anyone elses.
The Qur'an is clear. Allah says:
And [I] will make him ['Iesa (Jesus)] a Messenger to the Children of Israel (saying): "I have come to you with a sign from your Lord, that I design for you out of clay, as it were, the figure of a bird, and breathe into it, and it becomes a bird by Allah's Leave; and I heal him who was born blind, and the leper, and I bring the dead to life by Allah's Leave. And I inform you of what you eat, and what you store in your houses. Surely, therein is a sign for you, if you believe. (3:49)
Your friend only needs to read two ayaat later after the verse he was looking up to find:
And [mention] when Jesus, the son of Mary, said, "O children of Israel, indeed I am the messenger of Allah to you confirming what came before me of the Torah and bringing good tidings of a messenger to come after me, whose name is Ahmad." But when he came to them with clear evidences, they said, "This is obvious magic." (61:6)
Jesus (peace be upon him) also says in the Bible:
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
So both books agree clearly that Jesus (peace be upon him) was sent only to the Children of Israel. In the Qur'an, Allah is telling us, and no word is truer than His.
Tafsir Ibn Katheer gives no reference for the statement about Greeks being invited to Islam. It says that the disciples were sent to various areas of ash-shaam. Ash-Shaam is not the land of the Greeks. However, there were some Greek speaking Israelites around at the time. Maybe there were some Greeks that had travelled there, who would hear the message being conveyed to the Israelites. Perhaps this is what is meant. All we can say is Allah knows best. But this does not change or alter the fact that Jesus (peace be upon him) was sent to the Children of Israel, nor does it suggest that he went contrary to his mission (na'oothu billah).
Maududi gives this insight on Greek speaking Jews/Christians:
[...] the language spoken by the Prophet Jesus and his contemporary Palestinians was a dialect of the Aramaic language, called Syriac. More than 200 years before the birth of Jesus when the Seleucides came to power Hebrew bad become extinct in this territory and been replaced by Syriac. Although under the influence of the Seleucide and then the Roman empires, Greek also had reached this area, it remained confined only to that class of the people, who after having access to the higher government circles, or in order to seek access to them, had become deeply Hellenized.....
It is also worth noting this, about how Christianity began to be preached to non-Israelite communities;
The earliest followers of the Prophet Jesus (peace be on him) believed him only as a Prophet, followed the Mosaic Law, did not detach themselves from the other Israelites in the matter of beliefs, religious in junctions and rites of worship, and differed from the Jews only in that they had affirmed faith in the Prophet Jesus as the Messiah (the Christ) whereas the Jews had refused to acknowledge him as the Messiah. Later, when St. Paul entered this community, he started preaching and proclaiming this religion also to the Romans and the Greeks as well as other non-Jewish and non-Israelite communities.
For this purpose he invented an altogether new religion, the beliefs, doctrines and injunctions of which were entirely different from those taught by the Prophet Jesus. This man had never met the Prophet Jesus but was a bitter enemy of him during his lifetime, and even remained an enemy of his followers for several years after him. Then, when he entered his community and started inventing a new religion, he did not cite any saying of Jesus as his authority but based everything on his own inspiration. The only object before him while framing the new religion was to make it acceptable to the gentile world. He declared that a Christian was free from all restrictions of the Jewish Law. He abolished all restrictions of the lawful and the unlawful in food. He repudiated the circumcision, which was particularly disagreeable to the non-Jewish world. So much so that he innovated the doctrine of the divinity of Christ and his being son of God and the Atonement for the original sin of mankind by dying on the Cross, for it immensely suited the polytheistic taste of the common man. The early followers of Christ resisted these innovations, but the flood gate opened by St. Paul caused a huge multitude of the non-Jewish Christians to enter this religion against whom the handful of true Christians could not stand for long. However, until about the end of the 3rd century A.D. there were still many people who denied the divinity of Christ. But in the beginning of the 4th century (in 325 A.D.) the Nicaea Council recognized the Pauline doctrines and admitted them as the basis of Christianity. Then the Roman Empire itself turned Christian and in the reign of Emperor Theodosius, Christianity became the state religion. Consequently, all the books that clashed with this doctrine were declared as heretical, and only those books were held as canonical which agreed with it...
As to Islam being only for the Children of Isra'eel, no, it is for the whole world. However, each messenger, prior to Muhammad , was sent to their respective nations, and for a specific time period. However, Allah knew with His foreknowledge, that those religions messages would get distorted by people, and would not remain the original message sent, thus a new messenger would be sent. It was with His wisdom, that the final messenger Muhammad was sent to all the world, and his message is the only one to remain undistorted and in tact, as Allah has promised to preserve it, thus no need for any new messenger. So Islam is indeed sent for all the world, not any distortions.
And Allah knows best.
Last edited by Insaanah; 11-26-2013 at 12:21 PM.
Reason: typo
Stunningly beautiful adhaan from the Dome of the Rock in Masjid ul Aqsa Download (right click and choose "save target/link as").
This is a clear message for mankind in order that they may be warned thereby, and that they may know that He is only One God, and that those of understanding may take heed (14:52)
Indeed Allah knows, and you know not (16: 74, part)
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel.” (Matthew 15:24)
So both books agree clearly that Jesus (peace be upon him) was sent only to the Children of Israel. In the Qur'an, Allah is telling us, and no word is truer than His.
Jesus primary mission on earth was to gather the lost sheep of Israel, but in the same Gospel mentioned above he also said the following:
"Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Matthew 28:18-20
It's clear that the Apostles engaged and baptized Gentiles, and that Paul's particular mission to spread the faith to Gentiles in the far reaches of the Roman Empire was confirmed by the Apostles as well.
Jesus primary mission on earth was to gather the lost sheep of Israel, but in the same Gospel mentioned above he also said the following
Yes, in the same Gospel he said a whole Gospel's worth of things.
Isa's mission is for the lost sheep of Israel. Seeing as he had a pure message, people followed his teachings, except those whom his message was intended for, the lost sheep of Israel.
Isa's mission is for the lost sheep of Israel. Seeing as he had a pure message, people followed his teachings, except those whom his message was intended for, the lost sheep of Israel.
The Jews of Jesus' time were staunch monotheists, yet they were still lost.
teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you.
From my perspective, Jesus (as) did not abolish Jewish law, but rather he taught the spirit of the law which is captured in Mark 12:28-31 “Which commandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (I find it interesting that he bebins with "Hear, O Israel..." and how similar 'The Lord our God, the Lord is one' is to 'la ilaha ill'Allah".) I feel that the essence of Jesus' teaching is the Golden Rule as exemplified by the parable of the Good Samaritan and that of humility and serving others per his washing the disciple's feet. I also see he taught reconciliation not through his death, but through repentance per the parable of the Prodigal Son and Matthew 9:13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” I see that he also taught his disciples against self-righteousness of the Pharisees and their adherence to Law over being kind and merciful to others. Fundamentally, I believe his message was to the Jew to bring life to their 'spiritually dead' practice of the law revealed to Moses'.
From my perspective, Jesus (as) did not abolish Jewish law, but rather he taught the spirit of the law which is captured in Mark 12:28-31 “Which commandment is the first of all?” Jesus answered, “The first is, ‘Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one; and you shall love the Lord your God with all your heart, and with all your soul, and with all your mind, and with all your strength.’ The second is this, ‘You shall love your neighbor as yourself.’ There is no other commandment greater than these.” (I find it interesting that he bebins with "Hear, O Israel..." and how similar 'The Lord our God, the Lord is one' is to 'la ilaha ill'Allah".) I feel that the essence of Jesus' teaching is the Golden Rule as exemplified by the parable of the Good Samaritan and that of humility and serving others per his washing the disciple's feet. I also see he taught reconciliation not through his death, but through repentance per the parable of the Prodigal Son and Matthew 9:13 Go and learn what this means, ‘I desire mercy, and not sacrifice.’ For I came not to call the righteous, but sinners.” I see that he also taught his disciples against self-righteousness of the Pharisees and their adherence to Law over being kind and merciful to others. Fundamentally, I believe his message was to the Jew to bring life to their 'spiritually dead' practice of the law revealed to Moses'.
I can see some semblance to La Illaha IlAllah in the verse you correctly quote above, for God is one divine being upon which everything depends. Nothing can exist outside of his will, and were He to stop willing it or forget us for even a moment, we would enter into immediate non existence. We are therefore infinitely in debt to God for bringing us into existence and compassionately maintaining us, it is therefore right and just to offer him sole adoration, supreme worship, and ceaseless praise. He exceeds our limited intellect, and even His oneness is so perfect and absolute that it escapes any resemblance in the created world, for although I may be one man I am composed of many parts, but God is without parts and therefore absolutely simple. We can meditated upon His oneness for all eternity, and it will never be sufficient to grasp the greatness that He is, for He truly is greater than anything we can imagine.
This is an undeniable truth and we can profit by discussing it but the topic at hand is not the nature of Jesus' mission but its scope. And so when he answered the Jewish alim with "Hear Oh Israel..." he was not limiting the scope of this commandment to only the Israelites and there descendants, rather he was doing what any good Jewish alim would recognize as quoting the famous passage in Deuteronomy 6:4, the Shema Yisrael, thereby settling a dispute between the Jewish ulema and further emphasizing the need for both true faith and great love. I will only add that though this is a beautiful and sublime teaching, and one we must always recall, it does not encompass the primary mission of our Lord, for if it did, the Jews would not have charged him with blasphemy (i.e. shirk) and sought his execution.
Let us ponder the Evangelist's proclamation:
"Behold the Lamb of God, behold him who taketh away the sin of the world."
This is an undeniable truth and we can profit by discussing it but the topic at hand is not the nature of Jesus' mission but its scope.
I agree, but I find it interesting that you keyed in on what I had written as an aside (in parenthesis) and that you did not comment on the rest of the verse. What follows this declaration is essential to the nature of Jesus' mission for if we misunderstand his mission then we can read into his life and supposed death (Lamb of God) whatever we wish to do as Paul so obviously did with his claims of 'revelation from God' that he makes in Galatians. If his mission was to bring a message of mercy and brotherly love to the people of Israel AND to prophesy the coming of Prophet Muhammad (saaws) as the 'Good News', then the question of who he was sent to is clarified.
I agree, but I find it interesting that you keyed in on what I had written as an aside (in parenthesis) and that you did not comment on the rest of the verse. What follows this declaration is essential to the nature of Jesus' mission for if we misunderstand his mission then we can read into his life and supposed death (Lamb of God) whatever we wish to do as Paul so obviously did with his claims of 'revelation from God' that he makes in Galatians. If his mission was to bring a message of mercy and brotherly love to the people of Israel AND to prophesy the coming of Prophet Muhammad (saaws) as the 'Good News', then the question of who he was sent to is clarified.
I can agree that having a proper understanding of Jesus' mission is very important, I'm not so sure though we need to delve into it here, and I have already provided an explicit quote of Jesus' great commission to the Apostles, to go out to evangelize and baptize all nations, and that's exactly what they did. From the beginning the Church set it's mission for all, there was never a dispute whether the Gentiles were called to part of this mission. There was an early debate on whether Gentile converts needed to be initiated into Judaism first, but never whether they were part of Jesus' mission.
As with most differences between us the issue ultimately boils down to theology. You believe Muhammad is the final prophet, the greatest model for all mankind, and the message he revealed in the Quran intended for all nations. I believe the finality of revelation already terminated with the coming of Jesus the Messiah, the son of God, who's sublime teaching and eternal covenant is meant for all ages and for all nations.
The Jews of Jesus' time were staunch monotheists, yet they were still lost.
I believe they had chosen to be lost. If Jesus had allowed interest, it may have been a different story. But interest was not allowed, the Jews could not accept it, so they took a defiant route, they lost.
From the beginning the Church set it's mission for all, there was never a dispute whether the Gentiles were called to part of this mission.
What about Jesus' answer to the Canaanite woman pleading for her daughter? He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
I believe this ayat is most pertinent, And when Jesus son of Mary said: O Children of Israel! Lo! I am the messenger of Allah unto you, confirming that which was (revealed) before me in the Torah, and bringing good tidings [aka the Good News] of a messenger [Muhammad] who comes after me, whose name is the Praised One. Yet when he came unto them with clear proofs, they say: This is mere magic. Quran 61:6
Of course, believing that Jesus was sent both to the Jew and to the Gentile (via Paul Galatians 2:7-8) is important to your faith, but from my perspective he was sent only to the Jews who were the monotheists of his time. I do not see that he was sent to bring monotheism to the polytheistic pagans of Palestine, but rather to bring enlightenment to the Jews for them to learn the importance of being merciful to their fellow human beings. Did Jesus' commission to the disciples include the most important commandment "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?" If not, can we assume they were being sent out to a people who already believed that to be true - meaning to other Jews? What portion of the gospels indicate a message of monotheistic faith? If there is none, then can that be assumed to be a given precondition of the people listening to Jesus' parables and sermons?
In stark contrast, Muhammad (saaws) most definitely was sent to bring monotheism to the polytheistic Arabs of Mecca first then to Arabs of the surrounding area and then to the whole world, per the delegates sent to the powerful rulers of the time. Even as Moses was sent to liberate the Children of Israel from Egyptian bondage, so also Jesus was sent to liberate them from the shackles of a proliferation of manmade laws that were erroneously deemed to have been from God. Again, Muhammad's (saaws) mission was different for he was sent to an unbelieving idolatrous people.
Tell your Christian friend that Jesus (as) was raised only for the Jews and no one else. Islam, before the Holy Prophet Muhammad (saw) was the Islamic law Allah had revelations for each and every nation. These nations had their own laws and those were specific to them. Then, the final law in Islam came and the Qur'an had a law for the whole world. This law stands until the Day of Judgment, but the law of Judaism and Christianity are both abrogated and whatever the Qur'an says contrary to it is correct, no matter what the Bible says.
The Bible was corrupted, and Jesus (as) was said to have gone out to other nations. But this is not true. He went out to other nations to gather the Jews to the law he was reforming. Jews were spread all over the world. This is seldom understood by many who think of Jesus' (as) mission. He wanted to gather all of the Jews under his wings. He did not intend to go after Gentiles.
“Sing and rejoice, O daughter of Zion! For behold, I am coming and I will dwell in your midst,” says the Lord. “Many nations shall be joined to the Lord in that day, and they shall become My people. And I will dwell in your midst. Then you will know that the Lord of hosts has sent Me to you."
Zechariah 2: 10-11
format_quote Originally Posted by MustafaMc
What about Jesus' answer to the Canaanite woman pleading for her daughter? He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
Jesus' mission was universal but it was to start with the lost sheep of Israel. The gentiles who approached our Lord were usually healed once they demonstrated faith in him, and with regards to this holy Canaanite woman he first tested her faith in him so as to extract an even greater faith which was then rewarded. It serves as a lesson to us to be perseverent in our prayers.
format_quote Originally Posted by MustafaMc
I believe this ayat is most pertinent, And when Jesus son of Mary said: O Children of Israel! Lo! I am the messenger of Allah unto you, confirming that which was (revealed) before me in the Torah, and bringing good tidings [aka the Good News] of a messenger [Muhammad] who comes after me, whose name is the Praised One. Yet when he came unto them with clear proofs, they say: This is mere magic. Quran 61:6
This verse does not exclude Jesus' universal mission starting with the Jews.
format_quote Originally Posted by MustafaMc
Of course, believing that Jesus was sent both to the Jew and to the Gentile (via Paul Galatians 2:7-8) is important to your faith, but from my perspective he was sent only to the Jews who were the monotheists of his time. I do not see that he was sent to bring monotheism to the polytheistic pagans of Palestine, but rather to bring enlightenment to the Jews for them to learn the importance of being merciful to their fellow human beings.
Your perspective is shaped by what you believe, and so by accepting Muhammad as prophet you reject what ever contradicts what he revealed. If you were not influenced by his teaching then perhaps your perspective would be different.
format_quote Originally Posted by MustafaMc
Did Jesus' commission to the disciples include the most important commandment "Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?" If not, can we assume they were being sent out to a people who already believed that to be true - meaning to other Jews? What portion of the gospels indicate a message of monotheistic faith? If there is none, then can that be assumed to be a given precondition of the people listening to Jesus' parables and sermons?
In stark contrast, Muhammad (saaws) most definitely was sent to bring monotheism to the polytheistic Arabs of Mecca first then to Arabs of the surrounding area and then to the whole world, per the delegates sent to the powerful rulers of the time. Even as Moses was sent to liberate the Children of Israel from Egyptian bondage, so also Jesus was sent to liberate them from the shackles of a proliferation of manmade laws that were erroneously deemed to have been from God. Again, Muhammad's (saaws) mission was different for he was sent to an unbelieving idolatrous people.
I'm not sure I'm capturing the thrust of your argument here. If you are trying to say that Jesus was sent to the Jews then we are in agreement, but if by this you are trying to suggest that his mission stops with the Jews, then we are in disagreement.
I'm not sure I'm capturing the thrust of your argument here. If you are trying to say that Jesus was sent to the Jews then we are in agreement, but if by this you are trying to suggest that his mission stops with the Jews, then we are in disagreement.
I was trying to show that the message indicates the nature of who it is meant for. The point of the thread is clarification about Islamic beliefs regarding who Jesus' was sent to as a messenger of Allah, it is not to debate differences in Christian and Islamic faiths. I have conveyed to the best of my ability what I believe as a Muslim and to provide examples to try to clarify those beliefs in terms and context that I thought could better convey those beliefs.
Jesus' mission was universal but it was to start with the lost sheep of Israel. The gentiles who approached our Lord were usually healed once they demonstrated faith in him, and with regards to this holy Canaanite woman he first tested her faith in him so as to extract an even greater faith which was then rewarded. It serves as a lesson to us to be perseverent in our prayers.
Brother, you sent me a Private message but I can't answer you. I don't have 50 posts yet
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?"
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?"
Very good, mashallah. I was looking for this reference to quote, but it seems Allah guided you to it.
Very good, mashallah. I was looking for this reference to quote, but it seems Allah guided you to it.
Jazakallah Brother!
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?"
O' Christians! What is the definition of 'ONLY'?
And why didn't Jesus (pbuh) say: Hear, O Mankind: The Lord our God is one? If he was sent to the whole mankind?
Now if you say that he, himself said that he is sent to the whole mankind than he is must be ----- according to your Bible. Either he contradicted himself and was not sure if he is sent to Bani Israel or for the Mankind.
Last edited by Muhammad; 02-10-2014 at 02:22 PM.
Reason: Remember that Jesus is a respected Prophet in Islam and we should refer to him as respectfully as possible
He answered, “I was sent only to the lost sheep of the house of Israel." But she came and knelt before him, saying, “Lord, help me.” And he answered, “It is not fair to take the children’s bread and throw it to the dogs.” She said, “Yes, Lord, yet even the dogs eat the crumbs that fall from their masters’ table.” Matthew 15:24-27
"Hear, O Israel: The Lord our God, the Lord is one?"
O' Christians! What is the definition of 'ONLY'?
And why didn't Jesus (pbuh) say: Hear, O Mankind: The Lord our God is one? If he was sent to the whole mankind?
Now if you say that he, himself said that he is sent to the whole mankind than he is must be ----- according to your Bible. Either he contradicted himself and was not sure if he is sent to Bani Israel or for the Mankind.
In my experience Muslims are for the most part very diligent and careful when it comes to interpreting the Quran. A holistic approach is taken, hadith is consulted for additional support, and the soundness of argument is based logically. I don't understand why then the diligence seems to wane when addressing the sacred text of another faith. I understand it may not be part of your religion, but just as a matter of correctness the same approach should be applied.
So lets begin with the obvious, Jesus said "I was sent only to the lost sheep of Israel," and yet in that same Gospel less than ten chapters later he says, "Go ye therefore, and teach all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father, and of the Son, and of the Holy Ghost". Obviously the Evangelist who recorded this gospel found no disunity between these verses, so obviously they were not seed as contradictory, and in fact there is no contradiction. Jesus did not appear among the Gentiles, rather he appeared among the Jews. When he taught, it was in synagogues or in other Jewish communities. When he first sent his disciples out he instructed them to only visit Jewish communities. Jesus did not actively seek out Gentiles during his ministry, but they did seek out him. But despite all this, he also indicated that his mission and message was intended to extend much further:
"And other sheep I have, which are not of this fold: them also I must bring, and they shall hear my voice; and there shall be one fold, and one shepherd."
John 10:16
"When I have been lifted up from the earth, I will draw all people toward me."[/COLOR]
John 12:32
So looking at this holistically we need not jump to the idea that we're dealing with a contradiction. Instead what we're seeing is that Jesus' message was intended for the whole world but it was to start with the Jews, as St Peter so eloquently explains to a group of gentiles:
"Then Peter opened his mouth and said: “In truth I perceive that God shows no partiality. But in every nation whoever fears Him and works righteousness is accepted by Him. The word which God sent to the children of Israel, preaching peace through Jesus Christ—He is Lord of all— that word you know, which was proclaimed throughout all Judea, and began from Galilee after the baptism which John preached: how God anointed Jesus of Nazareth with the Holy Spirit and with power, who went about doing good and healing all who were oppressed by the devil, for God was with Him. And we are witnesses of all things which He did both in the land of the Jews and in Jerusalem, whom theykilled by hanging on a tree. Him God raised up on the third day, and showed Him openly, not to all the people, but to witnesses chosen before by God, even to us who ate and drank with Him after He arose from the dead. And He commanded us to preach to the people, and to testify that it is He who was ordained by God to be Judge of the living and the dead. To Him all the prophets witness that, through His name, whoever believes in Him will receive remission of sins.
"While Peter was still speaking these words, the Holy Spirit fell upon all those who heard the word. And those of the circumcision who believed were astonished, as many as came with Peter, because the gift of the Holy Spirit had been poured out on the Gentiles also. For they heard them speak with tongues and magnify God.
"Then Peter answered, “Can anyone forbid water, that these should not be baptized who have received the Holy Spirit just as we have?” And he commanded them to be baptized in the name of the Lord. Then they asked him to stay a few days.
Acts chapter 10
Pax et Bonum
Addendum: I forgot to add I don't understand the motive behind Muslim's trying to limit the scope of Jesus' message. I suspect it has to do with the idea that the Quran is meant for all and that therefore Jesus' must have been a regional message, but interestingly enough I am not aware of anything explicit in the Quran that indicates the "Injil" was only meant for the Jews.
Last edited by Sojourn; 02-11-2014 at 12:58 AM.
Reason: Added additional paragraph
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. My dear friend, he is a Christian and he asked me a Question that if Isa (as) was a Muslim, he preached Islam and invited people to the true monotheism, Islam. HE WAS SENT ONLY TO ISRAEL..IS ISLAM ONLY FOR ISRAELIS?? So his main question is, is Islam only for Israelists? and then he gave me a tafsir from Ibn Kathir that he was not sent for the Children of Israel but to the whole World (according to him). The tasfir says(61:14): ...Isa sent the disciples to the various areas of Ash-Sham to call the GREEKS and the Israelites to Islam... So he asks if he was only sent to israel and to the Jews, why did Isa (as) sent his diciples to invite the Greeks? Can anyone answer this and my ENTER button is not working lol 
, was sent to their respective nations, and for a specific time period. However, Allah knew with His foreknowledge, that those religions messages would get distorted by people, and would not remain the original message sent, thus a new messenger would be sent. It was with His wisdom, that the final messenger Muhammad
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