And Judaism genuinely doesn't about Paul which is fascinating considering what a role he plays for Christians. The 34-year-old convert from Islam was an itinerant speaker with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) until his diagnosis last summer. He spent months in aggressive treatment, including the removal of his stomach, all the while praying for a miracle to heal him. Furthermore, there are numerous contradictions in the entire Bible too. The author seems to be oblivious to all of this and doesn't answer a single one of the alleged contradictions. And then there was a weird part of the book where the author has a conversation with one of his best Christian friends, David, and receives an eyebrow-raising statement. Christian Apologist Nabeel Qureshi Diagnosed With Advanced Stomach Cancer, Says His Prognosis Is 'Grim' ". 31 August 2016 . Retrieved 2016-09-01. Born in the United States to Pakistani immigrants, Nabeel Qureshi grew up in a loving family, his religion one of the most consistent and beloved elements of his formative years. As a child and youth, he enthusiastically learned the facts and doctrines of his religion, eager to be an ambassador for Islam among his peers. Not until college did he meet a Christian who was willing to be his friend. As two young men passionate about their faiths, Nabeel and David often discussed religion. Through those discussions, Nabeel found his perception of Christianity and its flaws to be inaccurate. And in his efforts to disprove Christianity and confirm Islam, he also uncovers inaccuracies in his perception of Islam.

It is amazing to see how God brought Nabeel Quereshi to a saving faith through Jesus Christ! Now he putting his faith into practice by working with Ravi Zacharias's international ministries. It was not that Jesus was turning me against my parents. It was that, if my family stood against God, I had to choose one or the other. God is obviously best, even if that caused me to turn against my family. But how? How could I bear the pain?” It was so encouraging to watch God working in Nabeel’s life over many years, slowly, steadily drawing Nabeel to Him through certain people and events. Nabeel’s story encourages me that when it seems like our efforts to reach the lost fall on deaf ears, God is working beneath the surface, even if I can’t see it. We need to be patient because conversion is often a lengthy process. To portray the immense inner struggle of Muslims grappling with the gospel, including all the sacrifices and doubts that rise up along the way. Of course, like all people, Muslims in the East and West generally just believe what they are taught. Rarely is there much critical investigation into historical events, and the few that invest the effort usually do the same thing I had done: attempt to defend what is already believed, potentially ignoring or underestimating evidence that points to the contrary. This is only natural, since it is extremely difficult to change beliefs that are dear to the heart.Through this book Nabeel gives an insider’s perspective of the Muslim mindset. This is important as I fear that many Christians today may give in to the stereotypical portrayal that all Muslims are terrorists; thus making no real effort to get to know them, care for them much less share their life & the Gospel with them. Qureshi, Nabeel (16 June 2011). "Special Announcement: Acts 17 is Branching Into a New Ministry, Creed 2:6". Answering Muslims . Retrieved 23 February 2022. I was so looking forward to what finally pushed him over the edge and allowed him to leave Islam. But the driving issue was eventually Muhammad and the Quran itself. The challenge is that muslims are so afraid to carefully critique their culture and belief they will fight in ignorance to the bitter end. To be fair - I would do this for Jesus and the Bible as well. Qureshi seems to view religion as science. That is, you make a claim, others can make different claims and ultimately, you fight until one is proven true and the others are proven false. In some ways, Qureshi's journey was based on trying to force people to convert to Islam by convincing them their religions are wrong. He then meets David, who is basically doing the same but for Christianity. They discuss, Qureshi manages to bring less proof and therefore, Qureshi converts. Qureshi, Nabeel; Strobel, Lee (2014-02-11). Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus: A Devout Muslim Encounters Christianity. Place of publication not identified: Zondervan. ISBN 9780310515029.

Raised as a devout Muslim in the United States, Nabeel grew up studying Islamic apologetics with his family and engaging Christians in religious discussions. After one such discussion with a Christian, the two became friends and began a years-long debate on the historical claims of Christianity and Islam. Nabeel chronicled his resulting journey in his first book, Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus. To conclude, if you enjoy theological debates, you'll enjoy this book (especially if you're Christian, I lowkey want to recommend this book to Muslim friends just to hear countering points for Qureshi's claims). It's definitely an educational look on Islam, Christianity, and faith in general. After earning his doctorate in medicine from Eastern Virginia Medical School, Qureshi subsequently completed a M.A. in religion at Duke University and an M.Phil in Judaism and Christianity at the University of Oxford, becoming a Christian apologist with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries (RZIM) from 2013 until 2017. [2] [3] [4] Nabeel's story is engaging for several reasons. For starters, we read about his admirable upbringing in a very devout Islamic setting; he is raised in an idyllic loving home where he gives insight into the mysterious world of Islam. Most Westerners have no idea what happens within the subculture of transplanted Muslims (Qureshi's family moved to the US from Pakistan) and this glimpse into Nabeel's world is captivating. I found myself more than once infatuated with his homelife as a youth; their devotion to prayer and congregational life was seriously impressive. Secondly, this book is so mesmerizing, because Nabeel is transparent about his wrestling match seeking the truth of Who God is. It's not easy to ask God, "Who are you?" and then to go through the process of analyzing all that you've been taught to believe.Needless to say, I highly recommend this book. The author is also a gifted writer, easily capturing the attention of the reader. What I wasn’t expecting however, was how educational and intelligent this book was going to be. This is shown in two ways. Firstly Nabeel provides an inside look into Islam. This was fascinating for me as I, shamefully, knew very little about it. He balances a detailed look at the ideas and theology, with an excellent portrayal of the emotional turmoil he endured and the strength of the mindset that being brought up into Islam provides.

Throughout the book, the emphasis is that if Islam is true, Christianity is false and visa versa. There's the assumption that it is possible to disprove of a religion through empirical knowledge. This perspective, in my opinion, is both false and dangerous. It's false because come on, if it was possible to prove a religion in such certainty, we'd all be believers already. Religion is cool precisely because it requires faith, it requires accepting that some things cannot be known, that rationalism is not all there is. "My religion might not be true for you" is a thought that should be expressed more often. If you are a non-believer (of Christianity, in this sense), this book will help you to think critically (I mean it) about your own belief and not just holding on to a blind or lazy faith. The dream part was cool, like I don't really believe in religious dreams but it was neat that he found meaning there.

Smarter Learning

In college Nabeel began to grapple with the claims of Christianity that countered his Islamic faith. He grappled with the authority & reliability of the Bible verses the authority & reliability of the Koran; he grappled with salvation by faith in Jesus Christ verses salvation by accruing good deeds; he grappled with the deity of Jesus Christ verses the prophecies of Mohammad. Allow me also to say I recommend this for Christians in "the West", that is those of us who live where Christianity is the most common "religion". We are often not conscious of the sufferings of our brothers and sisters in the East as persecution of Christians has become prevalent (and has been prevalent) there. This young man had to put his entire life "on the altar" so to speak. All he was, all he believed...his family all for God.

Most importantly, though, I think this book provides a window into what apologetics and evangelism look like in the context of real relationships. So many apologetics books are antiseptic, but real life is gritty and there are real consequences to changing worldview. Qureshi dealt with those changes and shares with his readers the joys and the pains associated with that.

How does an Enhanced Edition compare to the print book?

Throughout his years of ministry, Nabeel lectured to students at more than 100 universities, including Oxford, Columbia, Dartmouth, Cornell, Johns Hopkins, and the University of Hong Kong. He participated in 18 moderated, public debates around North America, Europe, and Asia. Christianity Today heralded Nabeel as one of “33 Under 33” in its cover story on emerging religion leaders in July 2014. I wasn't sure what to make of this. The author claims that God sent him three dreams and that he knew after the first one that there would be two more. His first dream was somewhat bizarre involving various creatures and people. The meaning wasn't clear so he asked his Muslim mother to look up all the symbols/creatures in her 'dream book.' He then uses her response to interpret his dream. He does the same with the next two dreams although these seem to have a clearer message; 'leave Islam, convert to Christianity.' I'm not convinced that God would have us use a Muslim's dream book to interpret dreams that He has sent.....However, I don't believe these dreams detract from his story as it is clear to me that he would have converted without the dreams. Maybe God was gracious to him knowing how hard it was due to his family situation.... The author also treated us to his wrestling with the truth of Christianity and the difficulties with Islam. Through a four year period, he engaged in challenging and difficult conversations with people he came to trust, most notably his friend David, who figures prominently in the book. Qureshi is no intellectual slouch, finishing college in the top 1% a year early and then graduating from medical school. He applied his fine tuned intellect to exploring both faiths in depth. Nabeel was born the eldest son of Pakistani immigrants, growing up in America & the U.K.—wherever the U.S. Navy assigned his father. His parents were devout Muslims & wherever they went, they attached themselves to a mosque & to the local Islamic community. Me personally ? I was on the latter category, and my soul just got crushed after reading this; as if I re-embrace my first love to God.