NABEEL QURESHI "Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus" Muslim converts to Christianity

Summary

In this powerful interview, Nabil Qureshi, author of 'Seeking Allah, Finding Jesus,' shares his journey from being a devout Muslim to encountering Christianity. Raised in a strict Islamic household, Nabil’s worldview began to shift after challenging a Christian friend, David, who responded thoughtfully to his doubts. Nabil’s story is filled with emotional and intellectual struggles, culminating in a dream that pointed him to Jesus Christ. Despite the immense personal cost of leaving Islam, Nabil embraced Christianity, finding comfort, truth, and a transformative faith that now drives him to defend the gospel and serve others.

Takeaways

• 😀 Nabil Kesi grew up in a devout Muslim family in the U.S., where Islam was integral to his identity and daily life.
• 😀 By age five, Nabil had memorized significant portions of the Quran and regularly performed the five daily prayers.
• 😀 His parents, immigrants from Pakistan, had strong reservations about Western values and associated them with Christianity.
• 😀 Nabil was raised with the mindset of defending Islam and challenging Christianity, especially the Christian view of Jesus.
• 😀 Throughout his childhood, Nabil saw Islam as the true faith, contrasting it with what he perceived as the less impactful Christianity of his peers.
• 😀 A pivotal friendship with a Christian named David introduced Nabil to thoughtful, loving responses to his challenges on the Bible and the Gospel.
• 😀 Nabil's challenges to Christians about their faith often revealed their lack of deep knowledge or ability to defend their beliefs.
• 😀 Over time, Nabil's own efforts to disprove key Christian doctrines like the death, deity, and resurrection of Jesus led him to discover strong evidence supporting these claims.
• 😀 Nabil came to see that the evidence for Christianity was far stronger than for Islam, leading him to a personal struggle and prayer for God's guidance.
• 😀 Dreams played a crucial role in Nabil's conversion, with one specific dream involving a narrow door that symbolized his need to respond to Jesus' invitation.
• 😀 After reading a passage from Luke 13, Nabil realized that God had used his dream to convey a clear message from the Bible, prompting his decision to follow Christ.
• 😀 Nabil's conversion was a difficult decision that involved the potential loss of his family, cultural identity, and honor in his community.
• 😀 Despite the cost, Nabil found comfort and encouragement in Bible verses like Matthew 5:4 and Mark 10:29, which reassured him of God's promises.
• 😀 Nabil now serves as an apologist for the Christian faith, sharing the transformative power of the Gospel and defending it against opposition, particularly from Muslims.

Q & A

What was Nabil Kesi’s upbringing like?

Nabil Kesi was raised in a devout Muslim household, with his parents being from Pakistan. He was taught to pray five daily prayers and memorized parts of the Quran from a young age. His upbringing in the United States was shaped by a desire to maintain a strong Islamic identity while living in a predominantly Western, Christian society.

How did Nabil view Christianity during his childhood?

Nabil was taught to see Christianity with suspicion, often associating Western immorality with Christianity. He was trained to defend Islam against Christianity and was encouraged to challenge Christians on their faith, particularly their beliefs about Jesus Christ’s divinity, death, and resurrection.

How did Nabil first begin to question his Muslim beliefs?

Nabil began to question his Muslim beliefs after engaging with a Christian friend, David, during his freshman year in college. Unlike others, David was able to thoughtfully respond to Nabil’s challenges regarding Christianity, which sparked Nabil's curiosity about the Christian faith.

What did Nabil find when he examined Christianity more closely?

Upon deeper investigation, Nabil found strong evidence supporting the death, divinity, and resurrection of Jesus Christ. These core beliefs of Christianity conflicted with Islamic teachings, which denied these aspects of Jesus. This led Nabil to re-evaluate his own beliefs.

What role did dreams play in Nabil’s spiritual journey?

Dreams played a significant role in Nabil’s spiritual journey. In Islam, dreams are considered a form of communication with God, and Nabil had several dreams that he believed were divine messages. One dream in particular, involving a narrow door to heaven, directly led him to a Bible verse that confirmed the message he had received.

What was the content of Nabil's significant dream?

In Nabil’s dream, he stood at the threshold of a narrow door that led to a room set for a feast, symbolizing heaven. His friend David appeared at the door, and Nabil was unable to enter until he responded to David’s invitation. This dream made Nabil realize he needed to respond to Jesus' call to salvation.

How did Nabil interpret his dream and what was the Bible verse he was led to?

After sharing the dream with David, Nabil was directed to Luke 13, which speaks of a narrow door leading to salvation. The verse confirmed the message of his dream, emphasizing the difficulty and importance of entering through the narrow door to eternal life.

What challenges did Nabil face in converting to Christianity?

Nabil faced significant challenges in converting to Christianity, particularly the cultural and familial pressure. As the eldest son in a devout Muslim family, his conversion would mean abandoning his identity and risking estrangement from his family, especially as his mother was the daughter of a Muslim missionary.

How did Nabil find comfort in the Bible during his conversion process?

Nabil found comfort in the Bible, especially in passages like Matthew 5:4, which says, 'Blessed are those who mourn, for they shall be comforted.' This promise of comfort was a stark contrast to what he had experienced in the Quran and helped him find peace in his decision to follow Christ.

What is Nabil’s mission now, after converting to Christianity?

After his conversion, Nabil dedicated himself to sharing the Gospel and defending the Christian faith. He serves as an apologist with Ravi Zacharias International Ministries, where he speaks to both Muslims and others, defending the truth of Christianity and highlighting the transformative power of the Gospel.