In regard to the Qur'an, is there any part of that book that is productively applicable to our lives? Is there a danger in reading it? Wouldn't this be the equivalent of spiritual pornography? I mean, I wouldn't read the book of Mormon, yet I have been tempted to read the Qur'an, but felt guilty, like I'd be cheating on God... Just wondering if there was anything in the Quran the would be considered "from God."
Short answer: By all means, you should read the Koran! You should also read the book of Mormon.
Now let's unpack this a bit more. Why are you "tempted" to read the Koran? What is your motivation? No religous writing would be "spiritual pornography" if you are reading it to educate yourself on what these religions teach. It is very difficult to reach out to a member of such a vastly different worldview if you are not able to establish common ground. The best way I know to do that is to understand their beliefs. On the other hand, if you are reading these books to find some needed truth from God you don't think is in the Bible, that would be a problem, and would indicate something is going on in your heart. Even if you are reading for the right reason, I strongly recommend that you be very familiar with what the whole Bible teaches before you venture too far into other writings. You must have a proper foundation to recognize whether what you are reading is true or not. If you have not trained yourself in the Bible enough to do that, then watch out!
As to something in the Koran being "from God," let me add that in one sense Christianity doesn't have a monopoly on truth. All truth is God's truth, wherever you find it. Paul quoted from Greek philosophers and poets more than once in the NT. This doesn't mean those works were inspired, just that the parts Paul quoted accurately supported the point he was trying to make. It would be fine to go read those poets now, but we wouldn't add their works to our Bible or set Christian doctrine by them. The same is true about other religious writings: they may contain a few truths about life and morality, but we are not going to set Christian doctrine by them. Parts of the Koran are true. After all, it is based partly on Judaism and Christianity, which were both 2000 years old and 600 years old, respectively, when it was written.
So if you are ready and want to, enjoy the great example of 7th century Arabic poetry that is the Koran, knowing that some of what you read will be true, but much won't. And, when you are done, use what you have learned to build bridges with Muslims in your area to the glory of God. But I would not do this before you have read the entire Bible a few times. The scriptures of no other religion contain the word of God. -- IBTM Research Team
