At first it seems we have come to a topic which again does not have content for both men.

Muhammad was married. Again and again he was married. Some say there were about 15 wives. His own teachings limited him to four, but one day a "revelation" came that freed him from the hindrances of the common Muslim.

By age 20 or so, Muhammad was becoming more and more involved in the business world. He was astute in this field, and was gaining a reputation as one who could be trusted, and one who was quite efficient. At age 25, this combination got the attention of a 40-year-old wealthy merchant named Khadijah. She had been twice married already. Initially she hired Muhammad to deliver goods. Enamored by his character and style, she proposed to him in the normal method of the day, and he accepted.

The story goes that an angel promised him a 6-year-old girl as his bride when he was 52. There was no intimacy until the little girl, Aisha, was 9. Lings tries to paint Muhammad here in youthful colors, a man who looked maybe half his age. Given that he had the appearance of a 26-year-old, then, we still think it odd that he would be sharing wedded bliss with a girl who was out playing with her friends on their wedding day.

Later, he married a slave girl from Egypt. Mariyah eventually gave him a son, but not before he had banned her from his presence because of the jealousies arising at home. Then came another convenient reading from Allah, basically telling him to cancel the ban, and if necessary divorce the complaining wives, all of whom could easily be replaced by other women. This reading is now chapter 66 in the Koran. It certainly solved a lot of problems.

He married several other women from this tribe or that, at the end of every battle, or so it seems, as, king-like, he began to consolidate power throughout the region.

Stories are told of the confusion in his house, and the disrespect with which he was treated by his wives, to the consternation of Arab men who were used to being honored in their home.

But he was Muhammad. He was the Prophet. And now he had a revelation to support his family choices. And oh yes, the revelation included the hitherto unknown fact that not only Lot's wife, but also Noah's, was corrupt and turned from God, whereas the wife of Pharaoh repented and was saved. Look out, wives, says the Koran to these offending females, you can be replaced, and rejected by God!

The Bible, in both Old and New Testament, frowns upon multiple marriages. Adam and Eve are looked to as the pattern given by God. Jesus suggested that persons who marry more than one person, without infidelity or death occurring, are hard of heart, weak in character. The many wives of David and Solomon are not given us as patterns for godly character but examples of the grace of God, His using of imperfect people to accomplish His perfect will.

Jesus never married. But it is unfair to leave it there. I speculate here, but I believe that because the Bible says He was tempted in all points as are we, that sexual temptation was a reality also.

Not for a moment did He yield, but only because of the constant contact with the Father. Jesus had no illicit relationships with women, but neither did He have to ignore them in fear. Mary Magdalene and the woman at the well are two examples of females who related to Him and he with them, in purity. As He would later share with Paul, the taking of a wife can slow the progress of the work of God. It is literally true that Jesus Christ was married to His work, but His work was us.

It is not stretching things to call God's people the bride of Christ, for such language is in the New Testament record. Though the marriage has not yet been consummated, we are all His intended. Like Muhammad, Jesus is to be married to a broad range of women, and men too, but unlike Muhammad, Jesus' character is in no way questioned.

Muhammad's world viewed marriage as the essence of satisfaction here. In fact, Islamic Heaven is physical union with many virgins who remain virgins forever. Jesus' description of Heaven claims that there will not be marriage as we know it in that place, but we shall be as the angels of God. The union that is coming is of the Spirit, and far transcends anything that can be worked up by the human body.