Joel Richardson’s best-selling book is scheduled for re-release next week!

I have researched much about Islam in the past few years and thought I had a grasp on what inspires and energizes Muslims who think so differently from Evangelical Christians.

My purpose has been to infuse into my own writing an admonition to fellow Christians to not shirk their responsibility to reach out to Muslims. I am convinced our reluctance is due to cultural and philisophical differences that are intimidating.

I have chosen fiction as the vehicle to accomplish my goal. Admittedly, it was an easy choice to cast jihadists as my antagonists. My early research was thus focused on reinforcing pat anti-Muslim notions cemented in the American psyche on 9-11.

I constructed an underlying theme, strictly to enhance the sinister nature of jihadists. I thought it would be an interesting twist to have the AntiChrist come from the eastern end of the Roman empire, not the western end as most eschatologists assume. It made more sense to me for a variety of reasons, the least of which is that the bureaucracy to be set up by the AntiChrist will include a religious arm. Islam fits that bill perfectly.

I did not intend to support this notion with theological precision, but wanted to rely on creative license to convey a compelling story.

I had became a follower of Jesus the year before the bestselling book, “The Late Great Planet Earth” was released. Like many fervent believers, I devoured the book and many like it over the years, from authors ranging from John Walvoord and Tim LaHaye to Jack Van Impe and Pat Robertson.

Because I would be presenting a concept so at odds with their teaching, I did examine the scriptures thoroughly to assure myself that I would not pervert any clear doctrine in the process.

Then I stumbled upon Joel Richardson’s book and was amazed that someone had laid out a justification for what I had assumed was creative license. I read Joel’s book and was amazed at my own shallow grasp of the issues. His research was scholarly, his logic compelling and his delivery impeccable.

Joel’s book surprised and admonished me in a way that I had not expected. His humble compassion for Muslims was clearly laid out in the closing chapters. His comments helped temper my tendency to polarize Muslims in a political fashion and admonished me to see them instead through spiritual eyes.

I began correspondence with Joel many months ago, which culminated in having him come to my area recently to lead our inagural conference noted in an earlier post on this site. Joel stayed in my home during the conference, which gave me an incredible opportunity to plumb the depths of his knowledge and spiritual maturity.

I can state with great confidence that Joel has a grasp on the subtleties of Islam and the Muslim mindset. This is also attested to by prominent Muslims. I recommend that you review his website for a recent interview held in Istanbul with Adnan Oktar, a highly-respected Muslim writer and opinion leader.

I am overjoyed that Joel’s book is being re-released next week as a hard-cover edition entitled The Islamic Antichrist: The Shocking Truth about the Real Nature of the Beast. Joel gratefully acknowledges the assistance of a professional editor for this release, which should satisfy the few detractors that have been too distracted with typesetting errors to appreciate quality research.

I give this book my highest endorsement. It can be purchased at Amazon.com

Liam Roberts

Previous blog entries you may find interesting:

The New Dark Ages: A Long Eurabian Night
Hand-Wringing Diplomacy: Mideast Peace is an Impossible Goal
Islam: What the West Needs to Know
A Woman’s Place in Islam
Islamic Law Requires Breast Feeding of Male Co-workers
What is the Qur’an? Archaeological Find Invalidates Islam’s Holy Book
Madrassah Schools: Why They Pose a Threat to Western Civilization
Violence in the Bible: 1st Response to a Muslim
Validity of Scripture: 2nd Response Presents The Bible as Superior to the Qur’an
The Historic Alliance of Christianity and Science
DNA and the Flood: The Biblical Account is Written in Our Genetic Code
Jihad.com: Islamofascists Are Recruiting Via the Internet
A Brief History of Islam
Submission: The Movie That Led a Muslim to Assassinate Theo Van Gogh
Honoring America’s Fallen Warriors
Profile of A Reluctant Hero: Why Christians Should Defend Themselves
The Enlightenment of Atheism