Divine commandment

[ابوالوليد المسلم]

Divine commandment
حسام بن عبدالعزيز الجبرين

Translated by Alamgeer Usmani.

(Praise belongs to Allah, we praise Him, and we ask Him for help and forgiveness. We seek protection in Allah from the malice of our souls, and the evil of our actions. Whom Allah guides, no one can lead him astray, and whom He makes astray, no one can lead him back to the right path. I bear witness that there is no other deity but Allah alone who has no partner, and I bear witness that Muhammad is His slave and messenger.


“O you who believed! Fear Allah as He should be feared, and die not except as Muslims.” (Aali ‘Imran * 3:102).


“O mankind, fear your Lord who created you from a single soul, and from it, He created its match, and spread many men and women from the two. Fear Allah in Whose name you ask each other (for your rights), and fear (the violation of the rights of) the womb-relations. Surely, Allah is watchful of you". (Al-Nisa:01).


“O you who believe, fear Allah and speak in straightforward words. If you do so, Allah will correct your deeds for your benefit, and forgive your sins for you. Whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger achieves a great success”. (Al-Ahzab:70-71).


To proceed,
The truest of word is the Book of Allah and best of guidance is the guidance of Muhammad (Peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). The worst of things are those that are newly invented; every newly-invented thing is an innovation and every innovation is going astray, and every going astray is in the Fire.).


To proceed:
Honourable brothers,
If it is supposed that one of us met a wise and experienced man who acquired many tastes. it would be regarded as wisdom to benefit from the journey of his rich life and to take his commandments with attention, but what about my and your behaviour as regard to the greatest commandment which is from the All-Knowing, All-Wise, the Rich, the most Merciful to His poor, needy servants. This the commandment which Allah the Almighty prescribed for us and for the nations before us:
﴿وَلَقَدْ وَصَّيْنَا الَّذِينَ أُوتُوا الْكِتَابَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ وَإِيَّاكُمْ أَنِ اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ﴾ [النساء: 131].
“We have ordered those who were given the Book before you, and (ordered) you yourselves to fear Allah.”.


Brothers in Faith,
The reality pity revolves around two principles: Namely, obeying commands and leaving prohibitions. Allah, the Almighty, and His Messenger (PBUH) commanded a lot of diverse acts of worship, such as devotion to Allah, love, fear, hope, having good thought, and many other acts of worship of the heart.


And Allah the Almighty and his messenger also prescribed from the acts of worship of the limbs, such as: salah, mandatory almsgiving, fasting, remembrance, honouring one’s parents, maintaining ties of kinship, letting the beard grow, honesty, charity, trustworthiness, smiles, a cheerful face, helping the needy, good thought, showing leniency to insolvent, and the list of acts of worship is quite long.


﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اسْتَجِيبُوا لِلَّهِ وَلِلرَّسُولِ إِذَا دَعَاكُمْ لِمَا يُحْيِيكُمْ وَاعْلَمُوا أَنَّ اللَّهَ يَحُولُ بَيْنَ الْمَرْءِ وَقَلْبِهِ وَأَنَّهُ إِلَيْهِ تُحْشَرُونَ﴾ [الأنفال: 24].
“O you who believe, respond to Allah and the Messenger when He calls you to what gives you life, and be sure that Allah intervenes between man and his heart, and that to Him you shall be gathered”.

The question that each one of us should ask himself is: To what extent do I obey the commands of God and His Messenger?


Why do we act upon some commands of Allah and leave some others? Haven’t Allah commanded us in His Book to act upon the all commandments of Islam:
﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا ادْخُلُوا فِي السِّلْمِ كَافَّةً وَلَا تَتَّبِعُوا خُطُوَاتِ الشَّيْطَانِ إِنَّهُ لَكُمْ عَدُوٌّ مُبِينٌ﴾ [البقرة: 208]
“O you who believe, enter Islam completely, and do not follow the footsteps of Satan. Surely, he is an open enemy for you”.


Mujahid says, means: Act upon all the commandments of Allah and the acts of righteousness.


O worshipers:
Come, let us examine ourselves regarding one another aspect of piety: That is: abandoning the prohibitions, which are many and varied, such as: polytheism, showing off, haughtiness, suspicion, arrogance, backbiting, disobedience to parents, cutting off the ties of kinship, adultery, the work of the people of Loot, lying, slandering, usury, singing, and other heart and practical prohibitions.


The question about examining ourselves is: What is our matter with these prohibitions and sins? And Allah the Almighty intimidated for the violation of the command of his messenger, peace and blessings be upon him:
﴿لَا تَجْعَلُوا دُعَاءَ الرَّسُولِ بَيْنَكُمْ كَدُعَاءِ بَعْضِكُمْ بَعْضًا قَدْ يَعْلَمُ اللَّهُ الَّذِينَ يَتَسَلَّلُونَ مِنْكُمْ لِوَاذًا فَلْيَحْذَرِ الَّذِينَ يُخَالِفُونَ عَنْ أَمْرِهِ أَنْ تُصِيبَهُمْ فِتْنَةٌ أَوْ يُصِيبَهُمْ عَذَابٌ أَلِيمٌ﴾ [النور: 63]
“Do not take the call of the messenger among you as a call of one of you to another. Allah definitely knows those of you who sneak out hiding themselves under the cover of others. So, those who violate his (messenger’s) order must beware, lest they are visited by a trial or they are visited by a painful punishment”.


In other verse He says:
﴿وَذَرُوا ظَاهِرَ الْإِثْمِ وَبَاطِنَهُ إِنَّ الَّذِينَ يَكْسِبُونَ الْإِثْمَ سَيُجْزَوْنَ بِمَا كَانُوا يَقْتَرِفُونَ﴾ [الأنعام: 120].
“Leave outward sin and inward sin. Surely, those who commit sin shall be punished for what they used to commit”.


How strange is our matter when we disobey the command of the Great Almighty and insist?! Yes, we are human beings and it is our nature to fall short and make mistakes, but do we regret at the time violation? Do we hurry up to do repentance? Do we compensate for the bad with the good?

The piety that we often hear about, is the name of obeying the commands of Allah and leaving prohibitions.


Servant of Allah,
Have the lofty, anchored mountain chains fascinated you? Have you ever thought about this vast and sprawling land? Has your faith ever increased while you contemplate the greatness of the heavens that how vast they are and how Allah raised them without pillars?


The mountains, the earth and the heavens refused to bear when the trust was offered to them. Almighty said:
﴿إِنَّا عَرَضْنَا الْأَمَانَةَ عَلَى السَّمَاوَاتِ وَالْأَرْضِ وَالْجِبَالِ فَأَبَيْنَ أَن يَحْمِلْنَهَا وَأَشْفَقْنَ مِنْهَا وَحَمَلَهَا الْإِنسَانُ إِنَّهُ كَانَ ظَلُوماً جَهُولاً﴾ [الأحزاب:٧٢]
“We did offer the Trust to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to bear its burden and were afraid of it, and man picked it up. Indeed, he is unjust (to himself), unaware (of the end)”.


Al-Awfi said, on the authority of Ibn Abbas: The meaning of trust is: obedience.


Ali bin Abi Talha said, on the authority of Ibn Abbas, that the meaning of trust is: the obligations.

Oh God, we ask You for guidance, piety, chastity and richness, make the faith dearer to us and adorn our hearts with it and make unbelief and immorality and disobedience hateful for us, and make us among the rightly-guided people.


Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and do not bless us with mercy, we shall, indeed, be among the losers.

Second sermon

Praise be to Allah who forgives sins, accepts repentance, He has severe punishment, there is no god but He, to Him belongs the final destination, and may Allah’s prayers and peace be upon His Prophet and His servant and his family and companions.


Afterwards,
On the authority of Abu Amr Sufyan bin Abdullah al-Thaqafi, may God be pleased with him, he said: “I asked the Messenger of Allah to tell me about Islam a thing which might dispense with the necessity of my asking anybody after you. He (the Holy Prophet) remarked: Say, I affirm my faith in Allah and then remain steadfast to it”. Narrated by Muslim.


Ibn Rajab, may Allah have mercy upon him, said: “And steadfastness is in the walking on the straight path, which is the right religion without deviation from it, right or left, and this includes doing all acts of obedience: outward and inward, and abandoning all prohibitions.” The absolute Truth, Glory be to Him, said:
﴿فَاسْتَقِمْ كَمَا أُمِرْتَ وَمَنْ تَابَ مَعَكَ وَلَا تَطْغَوْا إِنَّهُ بِمَا تَعْمَلُونَ بَصِيرٌ﴾ [هود: 112]
“So, stand firm (on faith) as you have been commanded, as well as those who having repented (from disbelief) have joined you, and do not cross the limits. Surely, He is watchful of what you do”.


The problem lies when we carry out the commands of Allah and His Messenger and the prohibitions of Allah and His Messenger according to our whims.


Meditate on the verse (so, stand firm (on faith) as you have been commanded) it is not so to be steadfast as you wanted or desired, and no matter how keen the servant is, he will commit sin. The Almighty said:
﴿فَاسْتَقِيمُوا إِلَيْهِ وَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ﴾ [فصلت: 6]
“Turn straight towards Him, and seek forgiveness from Him”.


Sa'idi said: (However, the servant is keen to be steadfast) but a defect must occur from him by defaulting on an order, or committing a forbidden act. Almighty ordered him to remedy this by asking for forgiveness that includes repentance, so he said: “And seek forgiveness from him”


And it is mentioned in the hadith:” Adhere to righteousness even though you will not be able to do all acts of virtue”. This (hadith is graded as sahih by Al-Albani.).


Servant of Allah,
Isn't Allah the Benefactor, the Creator? Isn't Allah the, Reckoner and the One who gives reward? Isn’t obedience a way to get Allah’s mercy and paradise? Aren't sins a reason for Allah's wrath and torment?! Is this world not a passageway, and the hereafter the residential house? When will we implement what our Lord wants from us? Aren't we the poor and the weak, and Allah the Rich, the Strong, the Merciful, the Owner of everything?


Did Allah not promise us that He commanded us to repent and seek forgiveness and to follow the bad with the good? Rather, He promised us that from His mercy, generosity and grace, He would ******* our bad deeds with good deeds. Have we taken the steadfastness which is the means of righteousness? While asking Allah’s guidance, do we ask Him as a compelled, humble and hamulated servant asks?


Servant of Allah: The month of ascending the ladder of piety, has come:
﴿ يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا كُتِبَ عَلَيْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كَمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ ﴾ [البقرة: 183].
“You who believe, the fasts have been enjoined upon you as they were enjoined upon those before you, so that you may be God-fearing”.


Servant of Allah,
Do acts of righteousness and accept glad tiding, and abandon the sins be patient.


.﴿ وَجَزَاهُم بِمَا صَبَرُوا جَنَّةً وَحَرِيراً﴾
“And will give them, in return for their patience, Paradise and (garments of) silk”.


It is the month of mercy, benevolence, forgiveness and blessing in which the gates of heaven are opened and the gates of Hell are closed and the devils are chained.


Oh Allah, oh Lord, I have preached about a matter in which I fall short. Oh Allah, I confess my sins, so forgive me. Oh Allah, forgive the sins what we have sent forth, what we have left behind, what we have concealed, what we have declared, and about what we have transgressed, and no one knows us better than You.


Our Lord, we have wronged ourselves, and if You do not forgive us and do not bless us with mercy, we shall, indeed, be among the losers.


Our Lord, we heard a herald calling towards Faith: Believe in your Lord.’ So, we believed.