Text Box: بسم الله الرحمن الرحيم Friday Sermon HAZRAT KHALIFATULLAH AL-MASSIH AL-MA’UD Munir Ahmad Azim 15 October 2010 (06 Dhul Qaddah 1431 Hijri) (Summary of Friday Sermon) After having greeted everybody with the Salutations of Peace, the Messiah (Massih’ullah) read the Tashahhud, Taouz and Surah Al Fatiha and then he said: I continue my last week sermon (8 October 2010). Dear brothers and sisters, know that when God wants to give a servant the strength to endure events that He has decided to impose upon him, He thus clad him with the light of His attributes, so much so that when these ordeals irrupts (in his life), this illuminated servant no longer exists save by his Lord and not by himself. He is ready to withstand all hardships and to endure the most painful trials. What helps the servant to bear fate is the irruption of lights, but we could also say: “If he endures the weight of divine decisions then he has understood the purpose of it all” or: “He endures the trials because of the favours or gifts which he received previously from God” or: “What gives him the strength to bear destiny is to have contemplated the merits of the divine choice”, or “He endures His (God’s) decision because he has no doubt whatsoever about the extent of His (God’s) knowledge” or “He endures the course of events because he is aware that God sees him” or “He endures effects of the acts of God because it is through the manifestation of His beauty that God reveals Himself to him” or “He endures fate because he knows that his patience shall earn him the satisfaction of God” or “He endures fate awaiting the ultimate unveiling (of the face of God, when he shall be admitted in His presence)” or “He finds the strength to bear the weight of the legal requirements, for the secrets of the implementation (of the divine plan) is revealed to him” or, “He endures the destiny which God has imposed upon him, because he discerns Benevolence and Goodness, which are hidden in it.” Here are ten reasons which gives the slave (the servant of Allah) incentive to respond with patience and consistency to the decisions of his Lord, and which gives him the strength to bear them when they occur. But such an attitude is just the mark of a divine favour, and of God’s generosity vis-à-vis those chosen by God (because of their sincerity) who are the object of His solicitude. Let us now examine in detail each of these ten reasons, in order to grasp the quintessence of them all. The first reason that pushes the servant to wait before his fate is the burst or irruption of lights. Indeed, this irruption reveals to the servant the proximity of God (to him). God reveals that decisions (of fate) are adopted by God Himself. It is this awareness which relieves the servant and the makes him patient. Has not God said, “Bear with patience the decisions of your Lord because you evolve before Our eyes?” Meaning: Know that this is not the decision of someone other than Me (your Lord) that would be painful to you, but the decision of your Lord who always treated you with generosity. I myself, by the grace of God have composed these few lines: “Knowing that it is Thee (O God) who test me, and imposes upon me the decrees of destiny, softens the hardships I endure. Man finds no escape from divine decree! He leaves him no choice in his destiny (that is, the servant of Allah must comply to what God has already decided for him).” This situation is comparable to that of a man who finding himself in a house plunged in darkness, receive a blow without being able to determine where it came from; once light returned, there he finds himself face to face with his master, his father or his prince. This sudden awareness brings him to thus endure (any other trial which comes from either one of them). The second reason that encourages the servant to bear the weight of divine decisions is to understand God’s purposes. Know that when God imposes upon His servant one of His decisions, He gives him at the same time the faculty to understand the reason of this decision, the why of it all: He thus wants to lighten his burden, as the understanding of the motives of fate brings him back to God and makes him rely on Him. God also tells us: “God suffices for one who puts his trust in Him.” This means that God is sufficient for that person and that He shall protect him, supporting him against others and taking care of him, because if you understand what God expects of you, He will reveal to you the secret of servitude in yourselves. Does He not affirm also: “Is God not sufficient for His servant?” Thus, the ten reasons (to endure with patience) all proceed from the understanding which we have of God, being just different facets of it. The third reason for the servant to enduring his trials is the divine gifts presented to him (before). Indeed the memory of gifts previously given to you by God helps you to endure His less pleasant decisions at your attention. And since God has destined you what you like, bear with patience what He likes to see in you! Did you not ponder over this verse: “Having experienced an ordeal after two victories, you say: “Why have we suffered this?” God thus relieves His servant in moments of ordeals, reminding him the favours which he previously received. It is also possible that the benefits accrue to him along with the trials, thereby reducing the weight of these trials in the eyes of the close servants of God. This become a true fact when God reveals to the servant the sublime reward which awaits him after enduring his ordeal, or when He descends upon his heart steadfastness and peace of heart even in adversity, or when He reveals to him the subtleties of His kindness and (shows him) the gifts of God that He sends down to him in moments of hardship. Study the reasons of this divine favour (in such circumstances, will move us away from the subject that we have set). The fourth reason that gives the servant the strength to bear his destiny is to contemplate the merits of the divine choice. When in fact the servant realises this merit, at the same time he realises that God does not seek to make him suffer, being naturally Merciful towards the believers. One day Hazrat Muhammad (peace be upon him) looked at a woman who held her child in her arms. He asked his companions: “Do you believe that this woman can throw her child into the fire?” “No, O Messenger of Allah,” they replied. “Well, he said, God shows Himself far more Merciful towards His believing servant than this woman in respect of her child!” God imposes upon you however trials, because He knows the grace and favour that will result from them (in your favour). Remember well this divine word: “Only those who resign themselves shall receive their full compensation, without counting.” If God had allowed His servants to rely on their own choice, they would be deprived of His blessings and would find themselves denied access to His Paradise. Praised be He (Allah), therefore, for the merits of His choice! If you are deep in difficulties, in trials, remember the word of God: “It may be that you hate a thing which is good for you, and you may love a thing which is bad for you.” Thus, when a caring father takes his son to the barber or surgeon (depending on countries where this is practiced) to make him bleed (to remove impurities and maladies), it is not his intention to make him suffer, but for his healing! Know that it is not the greed which leads God to deprive you (of something), but His mercy upon you. Deprivation is a divine gift, but only he who possesses complete sincerity will perceive this gift under the guise of (apparent) deprivation. If you are aware that it is God who is testing you, it will relieve you of the affliction. For he who forces you to confront the events is the very One whose choice regarding you are always well founded. The fifth reason which makes the servant endure God’s decision is to know (the extent of) His knowledge. Or, in other words, to know that he is under the gaze of God (Allah is ever-watching him, being his Protector). The servant sees indeed a great relief in his afflictions when he realises that God observes him at the very moment of his affliction or trial. Has he not said: “Bear with patience the decisions of your Lord because you evolve before Our eyes?” that is to say, disbelief and stubbornness which the Quraish have against you O Muhammad (peace be upon him) have not gone unperceived by Us (i.e., God and His angels). I hereby end this sermon here and Insha-Allah next Friday I shall continue its third part by quoting the rest of the reasons (as from the sixth reason). May Allah arms us with patience and provide us with a strong heart to face the various trials of life, especially in this divine manifestation witnessed in this blessed century. May our hearts know love, fear and trust in God, our Salvation, Our Creator and Eternal Lord. Ameen.