Sunday, August 25, 2024

Prophets and Divine Love

 

The Messengers of Allah 

 

'The Messenger believes in what has been revealed to him from his Lord, and so do the believers. They believe in Allah, His angels, His Books, and His messengers. (They proclaim) “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” And they say, “We hear and obey. (We seek) Your forgiveness, our Lord! And to You (alone) is the final return.” (Al-Baqara 2: 286)

 

Alhamdulillah Summa Alhamdulillah, I resume my sermon on the subject I discussed last week regarding the creation of Adam (as).

 

So, we see that just as the angels submitted to the will of Allah when He created Adam (as), and accepted His will as His law without finding within themselves the idea to revolt against Allah’s will, and where they [i.e. not just the messengers but the angels as well] said: ‘We have heard and obey,’ similarly, all souls, even before the creation of Adam (as), whom Allah had decreed to send to earth, all of them – including us – submitted to Allah’s will when Allah decreed our coming into this world, and where He placed us among the descendants of our ancestor Adam (as) who contained within him the divine essence. Therefore, the human race also bore witness that we would be obedient to Allah and submit to His will. We must be very aware that all prophets and messengers are also included, because we too (the Messengers) must believe in the Messengers who came before us. We have the duty to confirm the coming of the prophets and messengers before us, and we also announce the coming of the prophets after us, until the final limit of the end of the world where it is in Allah’s decision to destroy the earth and create other creations, because nothing is impossible in His power.

 

Therefore, we (the Messengers and the entire human race) have received the ability from Allah to communicate with Him. Everyone has this ability within them, and they must know how to ignite this light that will illuminate their soul with this special connection. This is why Allah has prescribed various forms of acts of worship so that man maintains this contact with Him. But for the Chosen Prophets of Allah, they have deeper connections with Allah, which an ordinary person during the lifetime that Allah has granted them on earth cannot reach. When a prophet of Allah appears on earth, he comes with a degree of spiritual superiority.

 

Speaking of this, it is good to mention here the incident of Hazrat Musa (as) and Al-Khidir (as). Despite the debates that people have concerning the identity of Khidir (as), it is clear that Khidir also had the status of a prophet in the eyes of Allah. Allah had bestowed His Holy Spirit (Ruh’il Quddus) upon him as well, but he did not bring any law, whereas Musa (as) brought the law (the Tawraat). However, Allah gave a lesson to Hazrat Musa (as) that he should not claim to have all knowledge, because Allah knows to whom He shares His knowledge, the knowledge of the unseen (Ghayb), and Al-Khidir (as) was among the prophets to whom He had given this ability.

 

Therefore, you will notice that unless I have received a specific revelation from Allah, I will never slander or say that a certain person is false, that he is not a Messenger of Allah, or a Prophet, if that person has taken the name of Allah and say that he has been commissioned by Allah and come from Him. If Allah in the past sent many Messengers, one after another to various nations, and sometimes several Messengers appeared at the same time, then it is not impossible in the work of Allah that He raises several prophets in the Ummah of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) to reform people around the world and bring them back to Allah.

 

In the way the world has plunged into darkness, Allah knows whom He will raise (as His Elect/s). If we say something against the will or instruction of Allah, then it is we, the prophets of Allah, who will have to answer before Allah. But we must be very careful, because a prophet comes to confirm other prophets and also to confirm all reformers, especially in our era of Islam, after the advent of Hazrat Muhammad (pbuh) in the world. It is our duty to distinguish the true from the false, and guide people on the right path. These are [the duties of] the prophets of Allah. We receive the Ruh’il Quddus (Holy Spirit) which grants us such information that benefits not only our own knowledge and intellect, but for most prophets, we have the duty to share this message with the people whom Allah has designated for us to give this message.

 

Thus, through the creation of our ancestor Adam (as), we see how Allah has elaborated a wonderful plan for His servants on earth. This earth is a platform of judgement between good and evil, so that man can distinguish what will benefit his life here in this world and also his life in the hereafter. Allah draws our attention to the fact that we are all temporary on this earth. We are not really the very body that will decay one day under the earth, but we are the consciousness, the Ruh (soul) that comes from the Spirit of Allah, from the consciousness of Allah. Unfortunately, many of us – mankind – have lost this ability to draw closer to Allah because we prefer to listen to the suggestions of Satan who seeks, along with his army, to remove us from the divine grace and mercy.

 

This is the plan that he (the Satan) initiated with our first ancestor Adam (as), where he sought – out of his jealousy – to attract Allah’s wrath upon Adam (as). But he did not expect that Allah would forgive Adam (as), choose him, and establish him on earth so that he could propagate the oneness of Allah. Allah will never abandon such a one - a chosen one of His who has the divine essence within him. He is such a is creation of Allah that Allah, with His wisdom and mercy, is very pleased with. It is with love (Hubb) that He creates His Prophets, His representatives on earth. This Hubb testifies to a connection that very few people can understand. This love has the capacity to attract Allah's forgiveness upon him. Allah’s love is greater than the love that a mother or even a father has for their child. Allah's love is incomparable. This love is so powerful that Allah can annihilate this world and create another world and once again place us in a state where we thirst for Him and seek our way towards Him. This earthly life is not an end for us. What is with Allah is better for us. To be more precise, it is Allah Himself who is best for us. It is His Hubb, His Muhabbat (love) that we need to seek. The one whom Allah loves, He will definitely test him at the highest level so that when He manifests His grace upon him, the entire community of Jinns and humans will witness it!

 

Satan thinks that he will mislead man, and when his work is done, man will receive divine punishment, but it is Allah’s Hubb that triggers this “punishment” because in the end, all this is an awakening of consciousness for man, and even Hell is a place where Allah wants to separate the darkness of man’s soul and bring him back to the pure state he was in before, so that he can deserve his entry into His pleasure and His Paradise.

 

To prevent people from enduring great hardship to discover their true nature, Allah periodically sends prophets to guide His servants and prevent them from falling into such traps. By sending prophets and messengers, Allah demonstrates His love, aiming to save humanity from hell and lead them into His grace without suffering. These messengers bring warnings, good news, and reminders to their nations. With the arrival of Prophet Muhammad (pbuh), the message to worship Allah alone was reinforced for all of humanity.

 

Remember, Allah’s love and mercy is way bigger than His anger. Anyone who turns to Him with sincere repentance will find that Allah is quick to forgive and offers them the opportunity to reform themselves in the best possible way. However, some people start and proceed on the path of reform but then falter and revert to their old ways. These individuals lose their chance to reform because, once they lose trust in Allah and turn away from Him, Allah also turns away from them.

 

To please Allah, one must establish a strong connection with Him. This involves constantly remembering Allah, speaking to Him, and seeking His help, as if one’s soul is always in His presence. In every daily task, one should remember Allah, seek His guidance, and look for His grace, help, and comfort. A true Muslim finds completeness in Allah. What greater satisfaction can a prophet feel than seeing his efforts rewarded, his words touching many hearts, and those hearts yearning for Allah? This brings immense joy and relief to a prophet when he sees his followers and others taking his advice to heart, turning to Allah, and seeking Him alone. 


Insha-Allah, I pray to our Lord that I see my disciples as Muttaqun (God-fearing). I hope to witness the divine light of the reform I aim to bring in you and the world. May Allah always guide you on the right path. Insha-Allah, I hope to see you all pious and sincere, not hypocrites or non-believers. May Allah inspire your hearts towards goodness and true Islam, so that our era becomes a glorious example among all eras until the Day of Judgement and beyond. Insha-Allah, Ameen. 


----Friday Sermon of 02 August 2024~26 Muharram 1446 AH delivered by Imam- Jamaat Ul Sahih Al Islam International Hazrat Muhyiuddin Al Khalifatullah Munir A. Azim (aba) of Mauritius.