Of course, with Islam, “God willing” is the key phrase. One of the clergy speaking on the subject said that if you live a beautiful life, “God willing, there’ll be no surprises.” But as I learned in an interview with a man who works closely with Muslims, those two words can’t be removed.

Islam’s formal principle is the sovereignty of God. If you live a perfect life and be a very good Muslim, doing everything the Quran tells you to do, God will probably like you and want you in paradise. But if He decides He doesn’t like you, He can send you to hell, and there’s nothing you can do about it. In Christianity, on the other hand, uncertainty has no place. God has already shown that He loves each and every person. He loved us by sending Jesus to die for us. We get to paradise not because of God’s whim, but because Jesus bought our ticket. God has to allow us in because He Himself paid for that assurance and signed the contract in blood. So often, widows come to me, especially at their husbands’ funerals, and say, “I don’t know how people can go through life without the assurance of the resurrection.”

I am sad for those who live in uncertainty, and I pray that God will work to bring them to know Christ.

As Ramadan comes to a close, let’s look back at what Ramadan means to the world. The media is trying to determine whether the end of the month means more violent acts or less by militant Muslims.

Contrast this with Christmas and Easter, which besides an economic boost to retailers, is generally accompanied by “peace on earth, goodwill to men.” While those words were originally referring to God’s good will toward us, not to each other, the former follows the latter.

What I see in the contrast is a lack of hope. It must be very difficult to live in a religion that offers no sure and certain hope like Islam, where the only way to be assured of heaven is by dying for the cause. Christians believe that salvation is a free gift, paid for by Jesus Christ.

So even though Ramadan is done, I encourage you to pray for the Muslims that they may find and know true peace–not just the lack of violence, but the wholeness that only Christ can give.