Jesus, the Prince of Peace

Is Islam a Religion of Peace or is Jesus the Prince of Peace?

Peace (al-salām) plays an important role in the Qurʾan and in Muslim life; it is on the lips of every Muslim in ordinary greeting, and mention of Muhammad (i.e., Allah bless him and grant him peace.).¹Earle H. Waugh, “Peace [Supplement 2016]”, in: Encyclopaedia of the Qurʾān, General Editor: Jane Dammen McAuliffe, Georgetown University, Washington DC. Consulted online on 02 November 2018 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/1875-3922_q3_EQCOM_050520>First published online: 2016 Peace also plays an important role in Christianity. Peace identifies Jesus as the Christ (Messiah). One of the titles for the Messiah is “Prince of Peace” (see Isaiah 9:6 with Isaiah 52:7; 53:5).

Jesus’ genealogy indicates He is the Prince of Peace – Jesus was a descendant of King Solomon, whose very name meant “peace/shalom” (Matthew 1:6-7;12:42).
Jesus’ title, “Son of David” indicates that He is the Prince of Peace (Matthew 1:1).
When Jesus was born of the Virgin Mary the angels of heaven sang, “Glory to God in the highest, And on earth peace among men with whom He is pleased” (Luke 2:14).
The prophet John the Baptist declared Jesus to be, “the lamb of God who takes away the sin of the world” (John 1:29,36).
Jesus pronounced a blessing upon peacemakers and taught that His followers should love our enemies and pray for those who persecute us (Matthew 5:44).
Jesus never sinned (2 Corinthians 5:21; Hebrews 4:15; 1 Peter 2:22; 1 John 3:5).²Muhammad was a sinner (Qur’an 40:55; 47:19; 48:1f; 94:1–3).
Jesus’ miracles indicated He is the Prince of Peace (Matthew 9:27-30; 20:29-34).
Jesus exemplified peacemaking throughout His ministry even praying for His enemies from the cross, “Father, forgive them; for they do not know what they are doing” (Luke 23:34).
Jesus gave peace with God while dying on the cross (Luke 23:39-43).
Jesus gave His disciples peace after He rose from the dead, “Peace be with you” (John 20:19,21,26; cf .John 14:27).³Many Muslims dismiss the Christian Scriptures because they mistakenly think they are corrupt. The reason for this is because the Qur’an mentions a non-existent book revealed to Jesus from heaven and that Jesus gave to His disciples, the Injeel (al-injīl; cf. Qur’an 5:46-47; 57:27). Jesus was never given a book from heaven and Jesus never gave a book to His followers. See “What every Muslim should know about the Bible.“

What brings greater peace? The swords of Muhammad or the cross of Jesus?

Image of one of Muhammad's swords named, "Dhu al-Faqar".

Muhammad shed the blood of many of his enemies,⁴Muhammad had hundreds of Jews beheaded from the tribe of Banu Qurayza. Jesus’ shed His blood to make brothers and sisters of enemies.

Islam was established by the power of the sword.⁵Muhammad’s military gear included nine swords, one quiver, six bows, five spears, seven pieces of armor, two helmets, and at least two shields.”Possessions of Muhammad” Wikipedia Would Muhammad have any followers today, if he did not fight and kill with the sword? Jesus, the Prince of Peace, established peace through His death and resurrection.

“In contrast to the similar transition in fortunes for the followers of Christ witnessed in the Gospels, Acts and Epistles of the New Testament, the Muslims from the earliest days won their survival at least partly by physical force of arms, another phase in the struggles which had convulsed the peninsula over the past century, and their subsequent extraordinary expansion was inseparable from military conquest. Little more than half a century after the first convulsions in Mecca, the Dyophysite Patriarch Henanisho I had the courage to point this out to ‘Abd al-Malik, then Islamic caliph (that is, the leader who claimed to be successor to Muhammad). The Caliph asked him to give his opinion of Islam. The Patriarch replied, ‘It is a power that was established by the sword and not a faith confirmed by divine miracles, like Christianity and like the old law of Moses’.”
Diarmaid MacCulloch, “A History of Christianity – The First Three Thousand Years”, 256.

Model of the temple showing the veils separating the entrance into the temple and separating the holy place from the Holy of Holies.

The cross of Jesus brings greater peace than Muhammad’s swords, because the cross brings peace with God. Supernatural proof was given when the temple veil was torn from top to bottom at the time of Jesus’ death (Mark 15:37-38).