Every prophet of Allah died. Their graves are known. Their stories are complete.
The Qur’an says something different about Issa al-Masih.
It says he is with Allah now. Alive. Not in the past tense. Present tense. Right now, as you read this.
بَل رَّفَعَهُ اللَّهُ إِلَيْهِ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ عَزِيزًا حَكِيمًا
“Nay, Allah raised him up unto Himself. And Allah is Ever All-Powerful, All-Wise.”
Surah An-Nisa 4:158 | quran.com/4/158
What does raised him up mean here?
The Arabic is rafa’a, the word for lifting up, exalting, elevating to a higher position. After the death the Qur’an describes in Surah 3:55, Allah raised him. He is now with Allah. Alive. At a station no other prophet holds.
What does the Qur’an say Issa will do at the end of time?
وَإِنَّهُ لَعِلْمٌ لِلسَّاعَةِ فَلَا تَمْتَرُنَّ بِهَا وَاتَّبِعُونِ هَذَا صِرَاطٌ مُسْتَقِيمٌ
“And he shall be a Sign for the coming of the Hour. Therefore have no doubt about it, but follow Me. This is the Straight Way.”
Surah Az-Zukhruf 43:61 | quran.com/43/61
He is the Sign of the Hour. He is the one whose return will mark the approach of the Day of Judgment. This is not the role of someone who has finished his work and is at rest. This is the role of someone whose mission continues.
What did Issa himself say about where he is?
مَا قُلْتُ لَهُمْ إِلَّا مَا أَمَرْتَنِي بِهِ أَنِ اعْبُدُوا اللَّهَ رَبَّي وَرَبَّكُمْ وَكُنتُ عَلَيْهِمْ شَهِيدًا مَا دُمْتُ فِيهِمْ فَلَمَّا تَوَفَّيْتَنِي كُنتَ أَنتَ الرَّقِيبَ عَلَيْهِمْ
“I told them only what you commanded me: Worship Allah, my Lord and your Lord. I was a witness over them while I remained among them, and when you made me die, you became the watcher over them.”
Surah Al-Maidah 5:117 | quran.com/5/117
When you made me die. Issa himself, speaking to Allah in the Qur’an, confirms his death. And then: you became the watcher over them. He died. He was raised. Allah continued watching what Issa had begun. The story did not end.
Is Issa still alive right now?
The Qur’an’s own logic says yes. He was raised to Allah after his death. He will return as the Sign of the Hour. The Day of Judgment has not come. Therefore he has not yet returned. Therefore he is still with Allah, now, in a state no other prophet shares.
From the Injil
“I am the living one. I died, and behold I am alive forevermore, and I have the keys of Death and Hades.”
Injil, Revelation 1:18 | bible.com/bible/111/REV.1.18
The Injil records Issa speaking after his resurrection. Alive. The Qur’an and the Injil describe the same reality from different vantage points.
A Parable
A king sent an ambassador to a distant province. The ambassador completed his mission, suffered greatly in the doing of it, and was brought home. The king honored him and gave him a place at his right hand.
The people in the distant province heard that the ambassador had returned to the king. Some said: then he is gone and we will not see him again.
Others said: he is with the king. That is not the end. That is where the work continues from. And when the king decides the time has come, the ambassador will return.
One old man who had met the ambassador briefly was asked: do you think he is truly still alive?
The old man said: I met him. I heard him speak. A man like that does not simply stop. The king does not keep such a man for nothing.
Issa al-Masih is alive now. This is the Qur’an’s testimony.
He was raised to Allah after his death. He will return as the Sign of the Hour. He has not yet returned. He is with Allah now.
If Issa al-Masih is alive now, what does that mean for the one who follows him?
He is not a memory. He is a living presence. Sit with that. Take it to your prayer.