Friday Sermon: Our Duty to Allah and Fellow Human Beings

یٰۤاَیُّہَا الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللّٰہَ حَقَّ تُقٰتِہٖ وَ لَا تَمُوۡتُنَّ اِلَّا وَ اَنۡتُمۡ مُّسۡلِمُوۡنَ ﴿۱۰۲﴾

یٰۤاَیُّہَا النَّاسُ اتَّقُوۡا رَبَّکُمُ الَّذِیۡ خَلَقَکُمۡ مِّنۡ نَّفۡسٍ وَّاحِدَۃٍ وَّ خَلَقَ مِنۡہَا زَوۡجَہَا وَ بَثَّ مِنۡہُمَا رِجَالًا کَثِیۡرًا وَّ نِسَآءً ۚ وَ اتَّقُوا اللّٰہَ الَّذِیۡ تَسَآءَلُوۡنَ بِہٖ وَ الۡاَرۡحَامَ ؕ اِنَّ اللّٰہَ کَانَ عَلَیۡکُمۡ رَقِیۡبًا ﴿۱﴾

یٰۤاَیُّہَا الَّذِیۡنَ اٰمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللّٰہَ وَ قُوۡلُوۡا قَوۡلًا سَدِیۡدًا ﴿ۙ۷۰﴾ یُّصۡلِحۡ لَکُمۡ اَعۡمَالَکُمۡ وَ یَغۡفِرۡ لَکُمۡ ذُنُوۡبَکُمۡ ؕ وَ مَنۡ یُّطِعِ اللّٰہَ وَ رَسُوۡلَہٗ فَقَدۡ فَازَ فَوۡزًا عَظِیۡمًا ﴿۷۱﴾

“O you who believe, keep your duty to Allah, as it ought to be kept, and do not die except as Muslims” (The Holy Quran, 3:102).

“O people, keep your duty to your Lord, Who created you from a single being and created its mate of the same (kind), and spread from these two many men and women. And keep your duty to Allah, by Whom you demand one of another (your rights), and (to) the ties of relationship. Surely Allah is ever a Watcher over you” (The Holy Quran, 4:1).

“O you who believe, keep your duty to Allah and speak straight words: He will put your deeds into a right state for you, and forgive you your sins. And whoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, he indeed achieves a mighty success” (The Holy Quran, 33:70–71).

The Holy Prophet [Muhammad (pbuh)] used to recite the above three verses when delivering the sermon before the announcement of a marriage.

The first verse reminds man of his duty to God. Two duties constitute Islam — duty to God, and duty to his fellow-beings. In order that life is spent in accordance with the injunctions received from Allah, man’s attention has been first invited to the duty to Allah. Unless man is conscious of the presence of God Who not only hears what one speaks and sees what one does, one’s words and actions remain unchained and uncontrolled. So, man is first warned to keep his duty to Allah to the utmost of his capacity because

لَا یُكَلِّفُ اللّٰهُ نَفْسًا اِلَّا وُسْعَهَا ؕ

“Allah does not impose on any soul a duty beyond its ability” (The Holy Quran, 2:286).

God knows that every person does not possess equal stamina and perseverance. Those who stand steadfastly, God speaks of them as those on whom angels descend, saying,

وَ لَا تَحۡزَنُوۡا وَ اَبۡشِرُوۡا بِالۡجَنَّۃِ الَّتِیۡ کُنۡتُمۡ تُوۡعَدُوۡنَ ﴿۳۰﴾  نَحْنُ اَوْلِیٰٓؤُكُمْ فِی الْحَیٰوةِ الدُّنْیَا وَ فِی الْاٰخِرَةِ ۚ

“Do not fear, nor grieve, and receive good news of the Garden which you were promised. We are your friends in this world’s life and in the Hereafter” (41:30–31).

There is yet another category who are not put to severe tests, but they believe:

الَّذِیۡنَ یُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ بِالۡغَیۡبِ وَ یُقِیۡمُوۡنَ الصَّلٰوۃَ وَ مِمَّا رَزَقۡنٰہُمۡ یُنۡفِقُوۡنَ ۙ﴿۳﴾  وَ الَّذِیۡنَ یُؤۡمِنُوۡنَ بِمَاۤ اُنۡزِلَ اِلَیۡکَ وَ مَاۤ اُنۡزِلَ مِنۡ قَبۡلِکَ ۚ وَ بِالۡاٰخِرَۃِ ہُمۡ یُوۡقِنُوۡنَ ؕ﴿۴﴾  اُولٰٓئِکَ عَلٰی ہُدًی مِّنۡ رَّبِّہِمۡ ٭ وَ اُولٰٓئِکَ ہُمُ الۡمُفۡلِحُوۡنَ ﴿۵﴾

“… in the Unseen and keep up prayer and spend (on good works) out of what We have given them, and who believe in what has been revealed to you and what was revealed before you, and of the Hereafter  they are sure. These are on a right course from their Lord and these it is that are successful” (The Holy Quran, 2:3–5).

This category has been praised, no doubt, but angels do not descend upon them. God does not burden anyone beyond his scope, and that is why He says to keep your duty to Him to the utmost of your capacity and try to live and die in a state of submission.

In the second verse (4:1), the address is not exclusively to the believers but to the entire mankind, making no distinction of race, colour, caste or creed. We are all created of the same material, springing therefrom men and women interrelated and interdependent. When men and women were created in abundance, they would naturally spread far and wide in different climates, eating different foods, speaking different languages, changing to different colours [complexions]. But, O mankind, keep your duty to your Lord. The differences enumerated should not cause you to be unjust to anyone. You were originally created from one being. In the eyes of Allah, you are all equal as human beings. If you do not observe duty to Allah and your nationality, race, creed or colour incites you and you succumb to your own temptations, then beware!  You are being ever-watched by your Creator and you will have to account for your deeds and misdeeds. A wonderful lesson indeed!

Cordiality in human relations cannot take root unless we are straightforward in our dealings with each other from the level of wife and children to that of countries and nations. Hypocrisy has coined for itself a word apparently high-sounding but intrinsically very devastating and damaging, i.e., statesmanship. It is said about one of the greatest statesmen that England has ever produced that if he was ever asked the time by his watch, he would never give a straight reply. He would rather put a counter question, “What does your watch show?”

The Holy Quran says,

قُوۡلُوۡا قَوۡلًا سَدِیۡدًا ﴿ۙ۷۰﴾

“Speak straight words” (The Holy Quran, 33:70).

Speak in clear terms. Your words should not construe any other sense except that which the words exhibit.

You would have observed that pacts and treaties are signed only to be interpreted differently by different signatories. Why? Because the words used are not straight. Both parties derive their own meaning, interpret the pact according to the reservations they had in their minds.

The Quran does not allow ambiguities in our speech or writings. For those who use straight words in their dealings, God has made a promise that their deeds will be put into a right state. Allah says not only will your actions be put on the right lines but your sins committed in the past will also be forgiven.

Why have these verses been selected as a topic for the marriage sermon? Marriage is also a contract whereby a man and a woman are required to abide by certain rules and principles framed by God Himself and enjoined by the Holy Prophet. Those principles are summarised as:

1. Keep your duty to Allah. For whatever you think, speak and do, keep in mind that you are accountable for them.
2. There is no distinction between man and woman, black and white, socially or economically high or low. You are all made of the same material, born of the same ancestor. Your treatment of each other should not be discriminatory otherwise there will be no peace, either within your home or outside.
3. Speak straight words. In mutual relationship, no diplomacy should be allowed to make inroads to creating mistrust.

If you abide by these principles, Allah promises two things:

1. Your life will be peaceful, clean and straight, and
2. Allah will forgive your sins and you will feel yourselves as if in Paradise in this worldly life.

We must bear in mind that there are no shortcuts to forgiveness in Islam as suggested in some other religions. For forgiveness, the Quran offers two suggestions: repentance, and good deeds.