- Sermons
- /
- Friday Sermons
Enemies are plotting to make us shattered, weak and poor:
Dear brothers, one of the crucial subjects that we tackle nowadays is how both far and close enemies are plotting against Islamic societies. These enemies want us to be shattered, weaker, and poorer. They are conspiring against Islamic societies to get them involved in civil wars, to make them abandon their Deen (religion) and to be wicked and destructed. It is engouph to walk down one of Muslims’ streets, go to one of their markets and hear their news, to notice the consequences of the cultural invasion, and the military destruction that is planned to take place in the Muslim world. I always say that this bitter truth is far better than the soothing illusion, because unless we realize how big the problem is, we will never be able to face it.
The enemies’ plot is a great one, that it could remove the mountains from their places. They are plotting against this nation to make it poor, weak, astray, destroyed, humiliated, and annihilated under the shiny image of The New Middle East, Allah the Almighty says:
"Indeed, they planned their plot, and their plot was with Allah, though their plot was a great (one, still) it would never be able to remove the mountains from their places (as it is of no importance)"
But Allah the Most High shows us, we believers, the redemption from their great conspiracy
The solution of our problems is summarized in patience and taqwa (piety):
Believe it or not; all the problems of the Muslim world, no matter how big, many, various and unsolvable they are, can be solved. The proof is in one ayah, Almighty Allah says:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
Because they are conspiring, and because their conspiracy has to do with Allah, they definitely can never remove the mountains from their places, the noble ayah says:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
Their extremely evil conspiracies, might, military power, nuclear bombs, fighters, satellites, technologies, cleverness, experiences will vanish if you remain patient and become pious. This is the motto of all Muslims nowadays:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious - see V.2:2), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
Islam teaches us how to confront outside pressures and challenges :
Dear brothers, this great Deen teaches us how to confront the outside pressures and challenges using the right method. Reacting to these challenges is not a proper way as it leads us to losing battles,. On the contrary, Returning to the inside of ourselves and depending on reformation, purification and support are the right methods.
There are two ways: either to confront, though they are stronger than us and they accuse us of doing things that we have never done, or, as Allah the Almighty says, to get used to reconciling with Him,renew our faith and look for the faulthsin our lives, call ourselves to strict account. Therefore, we should get back to the inside by reformation, purification and support. Definitely getting back to oneself is difficult, because then man will save himself. The noble ayah says:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
The above ayah crystallizes the depth of going inside oneself. Some of the following facts can be based on it; Many texts guide us to get back to deep inside ourselves. You have a moderate outside, and you have the inside. It is true that attack is one way of defense. However, at a certain stage, when you get back to yourself and reconcile with Allah, and when you evaluate the application of Islam inside yourself, at your home and at work, this is what we call getting back to oneself. Once you reconcile with Allah and turn in true repentance to Him, and once you go on straight and insist on defending this Deen, you will see wonders.
Our problems are symptoms of one disease; abandoning Allah:
Dear brothers, Almighty Allah mentions in the Noble Qur’an the reasons of the extinction of great and powerful nations, and how their cultures vanished. It was not due to the lack of construction nor to the misuse of administration. The real reason is represented by missing something inside and abandoning the Way of Allah. Let me tell you something; you can count thousands of diseases that Muslims suffer from, such as: belonging to the self instead of to the group, preferring the individual interests to the collective ones, anxiety, fear and the education of despair, of deadlock and of depression. Moreover, there are innumerous mental diseases that we suffer from. Believe me all these diseases are absolutely symptoms of one disease; which is abandoning Allah Most High, so let us agree on this conclusion. Abandoning the Way of Allah leads to the belonging to oneself instead of to the group, to selfishness and to collect money even on the expense of the Deen. This is exactly what happened to Muslims in the battle of Uhod. One of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, asked: how could we be defeated and we are the soldiers of Allah? The answer is mentioned in the Qur’an:
"It is from yourselves (because of your evil deeds)."
"No calamity befalls, but with the Leave [i.e. decision and Qadar (Divine Preordainments)] of Allah, and whosoever believes in Allah, He guides his heart [to the true Faith with certainty"
Man can do nothing by power. He has to get back to Allah instead
There is internal disorder has nothing to do with how powerful our enemies are, because Allah is the Most Powerful. Thus, we should not exaggerate the power of our enemies; we should look for the reason of such disorder in our lives instead. Sometimes we justify our defeat saying that our enemies are stronger than us. However, this power is nothing compared to the Power of Allah. The reason of our defeat lies deep inside ourselves. Dear brother, Allah says:
"And don't be weak in the pursuit of the enemy; if you are suffering (hardships) then surely, they (too) are suffering (hardships) as you are suffering, but you have a hope from Allah (for the reward, i.e. Paradise) that for which they hope not"
There is a big difference; they are suffering too. Yet, the believers are patrons of each other, and the disbelievers are patrons of each other too. They work, plan, meet and draw a certain future together. Therefore, we should be aware enough of this fact. Instead of educating, guiding, working together, standing with each other, acquiring new habits and rooting out problems, we face this social corruption and deterioration by two things: power, which is useless, and getting back to Allah, which is everything. You should stand straight on Allah’s Orders, reconcile with Him and turn in true repentance to Him. Only then can you start away.
Muslims’ unfulfillment of the oath to Allah is why they are ignorant:
Our master Omar Bin Abdul Aziz said: people have problems as many as they commit sins. That’s why they said that deterrent punishments protect a society, but they do not establish it. This is a clear Islamic vision; the Ayat which talk about rules and punishments are no more than tenth of the Noble Qur’an, whereas the ones which deal with the positive discipline of man from inside are ninth of the Noble Qur’an
If there is a Muslim who is honest, straight, chaste, a good worker and a good father, there will be triumph. If you are a Muslim but your home, work, income, the way you spend your money and your social activities have nothing to do with Islam, then you are a Muslim from outside only, which is useless. This confuses me as it does for you, so:
((Twelve thousands can not be defeated because of being few))
At present, Muslims are one billion and eight hundred million; which is more than quarter of the whole world population. They have treasures that only Allah knows, and they live in a strategic place. Yet, Muslims are the poorest people, and most of the diseases spread in the Muslim world because they have not fulfilled their oath to Allah, consequently they are ignorant.
Dear brother, it is said that the private triumph comes before the public one. When you defeat your nafs (self) then you contribute to achieve the public triumph. If one is defeated by his nafs, he will not be able to face an ant, that is why Allah guides us to do two things:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious)." As a result, not the least harm will their cunning do to you. We are guided to two things; patience and taqwa. Patience: is bearing the hardships, and consistently obeying the Orders of Allah regardless of the harsh circumstances. Patience is the first half of triumph, and the second half is the mistakes that the enemies make. Patience means using time to get rid of the problems which we cannot get rid of right now. There is a problem which we failed to get rid of, then what should we do? We should be patient. Allah says:
"Then, verily! Your Lord for those who emigrated after they had been put to trials and thereafter strove hard and fought (for the Cause of Allah) and were patient, verily, your Lord afterward is, Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful."
Al-taqwa, on the other hand, is a kind of internal immunity against bad external conditions. The harm that military defeat, bad social and economic conditions do is limited as long as we do not change our principles, values, selves, ethics and behavior. Al-taqwa strengthens the essence of resistance, and it makes us have experience, recognize the shortcomings in the internal structure of ourselves and destroy the fear of enemies inside us.
Patience cultivates the nafs to make it better and elevated:
Dear brothers, the essence of patience is cultivating the nafs, making it better and elevated. Supporting the nafs can be done in many ways such as; being striclty committed to the acts of worship, resisting temptations, being cooperative, supporting sh3er, sacrifice and altruism.
The individual cannot stay far away from the general atmosphere of the society, because this is exhausting and costly. When the majority of people make their livings illegally, then the ones who make their living legally get very rare; they are a minority. Corruption is dangerous. There must be things that sometimes you cannot obtain unless you go against the Orders of Allah Most High. That is why the noble prophet said:
((Worship when corruption spreads is like an immigration to me))
So in such a case worshipping equals immigration.
The great Deen is both individual and collective:
The following ayah has the solution for our problems:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
This ayah is addressing both individuals and societies. As a believer, when you remain patient and pious, you will be rewarded by Allah. Similarly, when the whole nation remains patient and pious, they will win. This great Deen is both individual and collective. If you apply it to your life, you will be satisfied. The nation will be satisfied too if everything is done according to it.
"Verily, with the hardship, there is relief"
The second ayah says:
"Verily, with the hardship, there is relief (i.e. there is one hardship with two reliefs, so one hardship cannot overcome two reliefs)"
The good news for believers in the above mentioned ayah is that the hardship can never be endless, and that inside darkness there is the promising dawn. With patience there is triumph, with hardship there is relief; that is, the solution of each trouble lies exactly in it. We can overcome every crisis if we have a good engineer, an expert doctor and a passionate mother.
"Verily, with the hardship, there is relief (i.e. there is one hardship with two reliefs, so one hardship cannot overcome two reliefs)"
The hope of the Companions, may Allah be pleased with them, was great, and they believed that things would surely improve by Allah. Bin Mas’ood said, “If hardship had been hidden in a tight place, relief would have called it.”
Relief cannot go hand-in-hand with hardship but it follows it:
Those who are specialized in studying Arabic language said that the word hardship (Al-‘usr) is preceded by the definite article (the), while the word relief (Yusran) is not preceded by any article. Arabs say that if the defined word is repeated then its meaning does not change by this repetition:
"Verily, with the hardship, there is relief (i.e. there is one hardship with two reliefs, so one hardship cannot overcome two reliefs)"
The word hardship is mentioned twice. Yet, its meaning does not change since it is defined. Relief, on the other hand, has two different meanings because it is not defined. Verily, with the hardship, there is relief (i.e. there is one hardship with two reliefs, so one hardship cannot overcome two reliefs) In other words; if the word is defined and repeated twice then the second mentioned word has a different meaning of the first one. Consequently, they said, “one hardship can never defeat two reliefs.”
In the aforementioned ayah, there’s an obvious hint to the existence of relief inside the hardship although relief comes after hardship. This is logic; relief hides inside the hardship.
When the problem was extremely complicated,
It was solved although he thought it would not
***
Leave your problem aside, for everything is predetermined
You’ll get good news which will make you forget what happened
Surely, in the hardship there is relief
You may have problems and you may not
Allah is the only Commander, so do not get upset
For Allah has been always Kind with you
The one who cannot see an outlet, is illusioned:
Dear brothers, I feel that the majority of Muslims were trapped by the education of despair, frustration and deadlock. Man does not believe in victory because he is controlled by this education, which is a result of the frequent disasters that have taken place in the Muslim world. However, the person who cannot see an outlet, is under an illusion, and he is mistaken because Allah does exist and He is the only Commander, i.e:
"Verily, Fir'aun (Pharaoh) exalted himself in the land and made its people sects"
Read this ayah carefully:
"Weakening (oppressing) a group (i.e. Children of Israel) among them, killing their sons, and letting their females live. Verily, he was of the Mufsidun (i.e. those who commit great sins and crimes, oppressors, tyrants, etc"
The result is:
"And We wished to do a favour to those who were weak (and oppressed) in the land, and to make them rulers and to make them the inheritors, And to establish them in the land, and We let Fir'aun (Pharaoh) and Haman and their hosts receive from them that which they feared."
Ranks in the worldly life are temporary, for death puts an end to everything:
Which is better, to have a stomachache that recovers by a diet, or a tumor? The first illness can be recovered once the patient listens to the doctor’s advice and follow a diet, while the patient who has a tumor cannot be recovered. That is why the doctor tells him to eat whatever he wants. This is the meaning implied in the following ayah. Allah says:
"So, when they forgot (the warning) with which they had been reminded, We opened to them the gates of every (pleasant) thing,"
Many things are available; green land, rain, industry, wealth though there is deviation. You can do whatever you want:
"So, when they forgot (the warning) with which they had been reminded, We opened to them the gates of every (pleasant) thing, until in the midst of their enjoyment in that which they were given, all of a sudden, We took them to punishment, and lo! They were plunged into destruction with deep regrets and sorrows."
It is better for me to suffer from a curable illness and go on a harsh diet than to suffer from an incurable one and the doctor tells me that you can eat whatever you want:
"So, when they forgot (the warning) with which they had been reminded, We opened to them the gates of every (pleasant) thing, until in the midst of their enjoyment in that which they were given, all of a sudden, We took them to punishment, and lo! They were plunged into destruction with deep regrets and sorrows."
Having education based on optimism, and believing in Allah:
Dear brothers, we need an education based on optimism and trust in Allah and this great Deen of Islam. We should not have the education of pessimism, and thinking despair that nothing can be reformed. Some people say, "We cannot do anything. We are finished." This is what we call devilish education. We are not done, because everything is under Allah’s Control. If we reconcile with Him, things will change. We make a deadly mistake if we bring up our children on the education of deadlock, despair and pessimism, because then we will pay a very high price.
Some people think that things cannot be changed which is wrong and the fact is the opposite. All of you know that there are secular neighboring countries which consider Islam as their eternal foe. You’ve heard of a country that was based on fighting Islam and how Allah changed it into a semi-Muslim country. This is a fact, isn't it? Let me tell you something: disappointment in life leads to disasters which lead to the education of despair. However, Allah has mercy on us. He gives us reviving doses, for instance, people who lived in the north of our country used to fight Islam, but now they believe in it. This is a major shift which is almost a dream that came true.
Ten thousand fighters in Gaza defeated the forth strongest army in the region. They defied the largest army in number and which has the best quality of weapons. Those Gazan fighters destroyed sixty-four tanks on one day. The war went on for twenty days and the enemy failed to achieved any of his goals. As if Allah is telling us: “O my servants I am here and everything is in My Hand.” Another example is the collapse of the financial system in the world. One hundred and fifty five banks announced their bankruptcy. The major shift in the north, the victory of our brother in Gaza, and the collapse of the financial system are all reviving doses. Allah gives us these doses to tell us that:
"Verily! I am Allah! La ilaha illa Ana (none has the right to be worshipped but I), so worship Me"
Allah gives us reviving doses to assure us that He does exist:
Dear brothers, there is we should do soething and reconciliation with Allah is in our hands, because as it is mentioned in hadith:
((When a servant turns back to Allah, a caller calls those in the heavens and earth to congratulate him as he has reconciled with Allah)).
for Allah shows us through His doses that He exists and that He is the only Commander:
"But if you remain patient and become Al-Muttaqun (the pious), not the least harm will their cunning do to you."
The first and second Ayat:
"Verily, with the hardship, there is relief (i.e. there is one hardship with two reliefs, so one hardship cannot overcome two reliefs)"
The hardship (’usr) is preceded by the definite article (the), so it remains one hardship although it is repeated twice, whereas the word relief (?Yusr) is not preceded by any article. Thus, one hardship will never defeat two reliefs insha’a Allah, the noble ayah says:
"And We wished to do a favour to those who were weak (and oppressed) in the land, and to make them rulers"
And praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds.
* * *
2nd Sermon
Praise be to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. And I profess that there is no god but Allah alone, & He has no partners. And I profess that our master Muhammad, whose character is exalted, is His Slave and Messenger. May Allah's Blessings, Peace & Grace be upon him and his Family and Companions.
Things that our enemies have lost:
Dear brothers, I tell you that society consists of individuals. When each one reconciles with Allah, and when we have a good number of people who have reconciled with Allah and stood straight, it is more likely that some of our hopes willcome true by defeating our enemies It is a certain fact ; our enemies have lost three things. They have lost what we call having control; they used to be the ones who decide the beginning and end of the wars. The used to take the decision; they decided how much time the war would take, six days, four hours, or five days etc. They are powerful at present. Yet, they have no say on war; they have lost the ability to end any war. This is a great achievement. Nowadays, they think million of times before launching a war against neighboring countries. When they launch the war they do not know when it ends. In Gaza war they planned to be a one day war and they hit eighty targets on one day. However, the war went on and the resistance never stopped for twenty two days. That is how they lost the decision, and in such a case it is the decision to stop the war. Just read their newspapers, Jews for example had been seeking security for sixty years, but now they just want to survive. They used to bomb us and we were frightened and hid in basements, while now they are bomb us and we bomb them, and both of us are frightened. Also both of us hide in basements. This is exactly what we mean by the balance of fear. Keep these terms in mind: they no longer have control; the major goals have changed from security to survival and the third point is the balance of fear. Surely these are great achievements for our belief in Allah is great. Losing hope, despair and deadlock are our greatest enemies. I read a report by CIA, which I referred to in some of my sermons. It said that this state would not live more than twenty five years, the Franks stayed in our country for ninety years and they left, and we hope that they will leave this country as well.
Supplication:
We beseech you Allah to show us the way of rightness among those whom You showed, and give us good health among whom You gave, and be our patron like those whom You became their patron, and bliss what You bestowed us, and save us from the traumas that You destined, for You rule in rightness and You are never judged, and he whom You patron shall never be humiliated and whom You make as enemy shall never be honored, blessed and dignified are You, and we thank You for what you destined, we ask Your Forgiveness and we repent to You. O Allah, instill in us doing good so that it may bring us closer to You. O Allah, give us and don’t withhold from us, honor us and don’t disgrace us, choose us and don’t turn away from us to sh3er, satisfy us and be satisfied with us. O Allah send Your Blessings on our master Muhammad, the Illiterate Prophet and his Family and Companions
