Before the rise of the great monotheistic religions (Judaism, Christianity and Islam), polytheism, or the belief in many gods, was practically universal throughout the world.  These gods of the ancient world were like one large dysfunctional and incestuous family.  In answer to the question “Where did god come from?” one ancient writer said that any decent person would find the character of the ancient gods disgusting.

When Christianity arose, the polytheism of the Greeks and Romans appeared insipid and contradictory in comparison.  How could this unified and spectacular universe have been the product of a crowd of gods who were always at cross purposes and fighting each other? On the other hand, Christianity was about God, who is God the loving Creator, and about Jesus, the real Jesus, God on earth, who answered the question “where do I find God?’ with the love of God, God’s acceptance, and a spirituality transformation.

From 100 A.D. to 1200 A.D. Christianity pushed aside religion after religion that believed in many gods.  These religions went all the way from the many gods of Egypt to the many gods of the Norsemen.  These religions largely disappeared because their gods were always at cross-purposes.  The unity of Christianity with a God who has died on humanity’s behalf was far more appealing.

Polytheism, or the belief in many gods, was the common belief system of the entire planet for answering “where did God come from” before the rise of the great monotheistic religions, starting with the Israelite religion.  Nearly four thousand years ago, the Bible verses about a deeper God and His people teach that a single deity appeared to a man named Abraham, with the sole intent of being good to him and using him as a means of being good and showing grace to others.  All of history assumes that the idea of a single beneficial God is started with Abraham.  The thing about God is that He is universal:  anywhere Abraham went this God would be always working for Abraham’s good, the benefit of humanity, and the glory of God and the kingdom of God.

In the nation that came from Abraham, a future teacher and leader was predicted who would suffer on behalf of the sins of the world, and bring humanity back to God.  This person was called the Messiah, the Jewish name, or the Christ, the Greek translation of the same.  These messianic prophecies turned out to be about Jesus from Nazareth of Galilee, in northern Israel.  He taught about God and the love of God, His fairness and his compassion, and that a single and holy God does exist.  This loving and real Jesus was immensely popular, and a wonder worker who worked for the glory of God.  Those miracles were His divine credentials.

In a startling turnabout, the religious rulers of the time arranged His execution.  Their contemporary authorities felt that was due to jealousy.  In a far more staggering turnabout and surprise, as Jesus died, God the Father counted that suffering to be for all of humanity and thus invited humanity back into the kingdom of God.  God is counting His Son’s suffering as satisfying His requirements for dealing with man’s sin.  To verify His approval, God the Father brought the same real Jesus back from the dead.  The practical result was that God took away the well-deserved guilt of humanity through His Son’s sacrifice on the cross.

The three great religions that maintain the oneness of deity are Judaism, Christianity and Islam.  Judaism in the Old Testament formed the backdrop for Christianity.  However, they did not recognize the very Messiah their Old Testament predicted:

But He was pierced through for our transgression, He was crushed for our iniquities; the chastening for our peace fell upon Him, and by His scourging we are healed.  (Isaiah 53:5)

The book of Isaiah was written five hundred years before Jesus’ birth.  It richly predicts Christ’s life and ministry.  The Bible verses of Isaiah 52-53 are such a clear description of what Jesus did on the Cross that it is embarrassing to the Jews who refuse to believe it in its rich predictive detail.  What Judaism chose to do was avoid the Person and Kingdom of God that its own Old Testament predicted, and the finest among its people anticipated with joy.

Islam is a monotheistic religion that is a descendant of Christianity and Judaism.  It arose in the fifth through sixth century after Christianity started, through a self-proclaimed prophet named Mohammed.  In order to satisfy their own purposes, the Moslems changed the history of the Old Testament to take the centrality of God’s program from Israel to the Arab nations.  Further, they reduced the glorious grace of Christianity to a system utterly dependent upon human effort.

They rejected the Old Testament because they were not the people of God in the Old Testament, and they rejected the New Testament because it offered a salvation that was not based upon self-effort.

The Koran, the sacred book of Islam, is a product of one man and one time period.  In sharp contrast, the Bible is the product of many authors over two thousands years, with a consistent message that God has pursued humanity through the ages, and God has fully spoken in His Son, Jesus Christ.

The main difference between Islam and Christianity is this: In Islam, people are always trying to make friends with God on their own terms, while with Christianity, God has already created a friendship with us. Christianity is not based on a person’s works or worth; it is centered on God and what he has done.