God and Allah are the sole deities in the Christian and Islamic religions, respectively. They are both considered the divine creator and supreme ruler of the universe, and their followers make up more than half of the global population.
Key Takeaways
- God reveals Himself to human beings, while Allah does not.
- God forgives sinners and wants them to repent, whereas Allah is satisfied with mere apologies.
- Christians believe in the Trinity (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit), while Muslims believe in Allah as the sole deity.
Most Christians believe that God is immanent, meaning he is within all things, and transcendent, meaning he is not affected or altered by the forces in the universe. Trinitarians believe that God is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit in one persona, while nontrinitarians believe that each of the three is different from one another.
The term Allah comes from an Arabic article and a word that translates to “the sole deity, God” in English. During pre-Islamic times, pagan Arabs believed that Allah had associates such as sons and daughters. However, this changed with the advent of Islam, which taught that Allah is the sole deity. Allah has 99 names, each representing a distinct quality.
The Christian God reveals himself to human beings who trust in Jesus Christ, his only son. These individuals can enjoy a personal relationship with God. In contrast, Allah does not reveal himself to anyone. The Christian God is merciful and forgives sinners, while Allah has not provided a way for sinners to reconcile with him if they do not apologize. God is separate from sin, while Allah is not. Allah is content with sinners apologizing for their sins, even if it is done repeatedly. Meanwhile, the Christian God forgives but wants sinners to repent and not repeat their mistakes.
Many people mistakenly believe that God and Allah are the same entity. To understand their characters, one must read the holy books of each religion: the Bible for Christianity and the Qur’an for Islam.