`

Trust Allah’s plan and have a good opinion of Him

Trust Allah's plan and have a good opinion of Him
by
November 08, 2024
in Khutbah
No Comments
413

Jabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said, “I heard the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him) say, three days before his death:

‎وَعَنْ جَابِرٍ قَالَ: سَمِعْتُ رَسُولَ اللَّهِ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ قَبْلَ مَوْتِهِ بِثَلَاثَةِ أَيَّامٍ يَقُولُ:

 «لَا يَمُوتَنَّ أَحَدُكُمْ إِلَّا وَهُوَ يُحْسِنُ الظَّنَّ بِاللَّه». رَوَاهُ مُسلم

‘None of you should die except while having a good opinion of Allah.'”  (Muslim)

This is confirmation that we should trust Allah, His power and His plans, especially when things are bitter in our lives. During these tough times, and it has been almost 13 months since the aggression against Palestine and Lebanon started, it is very testing, so we need to remember to trust His wisdom.

Trust Allah will forgive you

Having a good opinion of Allah has different dimensions. Even though we have shortcomings and mistakes, the moment we turn back to Allah, we are assured that He will forgive us. He has stated in many verses in the Quran that as long as we do not associate partners with Him, He will forgive us if we turn to Him with sincere repentance:

‫ قُلۡ یَـٰعِبَادِیَ ٱلَّذِینَ أَسۡرَفُوا۟ عَلَىٰۤ أَنفُسِهِمۡ لَا تَقۡنَطُوا۟ مِن رَّحۡمَةِ ٱللَّهِۚ إِنَّ ٱللَّهَ یَغۡفِرُ ٱلذُّنُوبَ جَمِیعًاۚ إِنَّهُۥ هُوَ ٱلۡغَفُورُ ٱلرَّحِیمُ

‏Say, “O Servants of Mine who have trangressed against yourselves: despair not of Allah’s mercy, for indeed Allah forgives all misdeeds; indeed, He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Bestower of mercy.” (‏Az-Zumar, Ayah 53)

عَنْ أَبِي ذَرٍّ الْغِفَارِيِّ رَضِيَ اللهُ عَنْهُ عَنْ النَّبِيِّ صلى الله عليه و سلم فِيمَا يَرْوِيهِ عَنْ رَبِّهِ تَبَارَكَ وَتَعَالَى، أَنَّهُ قَالَ: يَا عِبَادِي! إنَّكُمْ تُخْطِئُونَ بِاللَّيْلِ وَالنَّهَارِ، وَأَنَا أَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا؛ فَاسْتَغْفِرُونِي أَغْفِرْ لَكُمْ. رواه مسلم

In another narration, Abu Dharr al-Ghifaree (may Allah be pleased with him) reported that the Prophet (peace be upon him) narrated that his Lord said:

O My servants, you commit sins by day and by night, and I forgive all sins, so seek forgiveness from Me and I shall forgive you. (Muslim)

Allah is calling us, aware of our shortcomings and mistakes. He is telling us that the remedy for these mistakes is not to flee from Him, but to come closer to Him. Hence, the word repent tawbah / yatubu is the same as the word  ada / yaudu which means to come back. Ask Allah for forgiveness with sincerity.

عَنْ أَبِي ذَرٍّ ، عَنِ النَّبِيِّ صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَسَلَّمَ يَرْوِيهِ عَنْ رَبِّهِ، قَالَ : ” يَا ابْنَ آدَمَ ، إِنَّكَمَا دَعَوْتَنِي وَرَجَوْتَنِي، غَفَرْتُ لَكَ مَا كَانَ فِيكَ. ابْنَ آدَمَ ، إِنَّكَ إِنْ تَلْقَانِي بِقُرَابِ الْأَرْضِ خَطَايَا، لَقِيتُكَ بِقُرَابِهَا مَغْفِرَةً بَعْدَ أَنْ لَا تُشْرِكَ بِي شَيْئًا، ابْنَ آدَمَ ، إِنَّكَ إِنْ تُذْنِبْ حَتَّى يَبْلُغَ ذَنْبُكَ عَنَانَ السَّمَاءِ، ثُمَّ تَسْتَغْفِرُنِي أَغْفِرْ لَكَ وَلَا أُبَالِي .” رواه الدارمي.

Abu Dharr (may Allah be pleased with him) narrated from the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), who relayed it from his Lord:

“O son of Adam, as long as you call upon Me and hope in Me, I will forgive what is in you. O son of Adam, if you were to come to Me with sins that fill the earth, I would meet you with forgiveness that fills the earth, as long as you do not associate anything with Me. O son of Adam, if you were to sin until your sins reached the skies, then you seek My forgiveness, I would forgive you and I would not mind.” (Ad-Darimi)

What Allah promised will be fulfilled

Prophet Ibrahim (peace be upon him) left Hajar in the barren land that was Makkah with their son Ismail and with just a small amount of water and some dates, and began to walk away, so she asked him three times why he was going but he did not reply.

فَقَالَتْ يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ أَيْنَ تَذْهَبُ وَتَتْرُكُنَا بِهَذَا الْوَادِي الَّذِي لَيْسَ فِيهِ إِنْسٌ وَلاَ شَىْءٌ فَقَالَتْ لَهُ ذَلِكَ مِرَارًا، وَجَعَلَ لاَ يَلْتَفِتُ إِلَيْهَا فَقَالَتْ لَهُ آللَّهُ الَّذِي أَمَرَكَ بِهَذَا قَالَ نَعَمْ‏.‏ قَالَتْ إِذًا لاَ يُضَيِّعُنَا‏.‏

“O Ibrahim, where are you going, leaving us in this valley where there is no one and nothing?” She repeated this to him several times, and he did not turn to look at her.

Then she asked:

“Is it Allah who commanded you to do this?” He replied, “Yes.”

She said: “Then He will not let us down.” (Bukhari)

Look at her strong faith and trust in Allah. Hajar accepted this with contentment, submitted to God’s will, placed her trust in Him, and relied upon Him. She trusted Him and

He provided for her and Ismail with a spring that is still gushing abundantly, when all hope seemed lost. There was a plan that was not immediately apparent – that land went on become the holiest of all lands.

The blessings that followed from this act are well-known and visible to anyone with insight. From that act, Allah brought forth prophethood and scripture, and from that lineage came the final prophet, Muhammad ibn Abdullah (peace be upon him).

The story of Abu Jandal and Abu Baseer

The names of Abu Jandal and Abu Baseer are famous in the seerah. They are connected to the Treaty of Hudaibiya, because the articles of the treated stipulated that no one from Makkah could come to Madinah, but whoever went from Madinah to Makkah could go. Abu Jandal came and he was persecuted a lot and his father slapped him and said he would take him back and the Prophet (peace be upon him) could do nothing. People were horrified and said, “What? Did you send him back?” and he replied that he had signed a treaty and Allah would give them relief.

Abu Jandal and Abu Baseer are significant figures related to the story of the Treaty of Hudaibiya. Shortly after the treaty was signed, Abu Jandal, the son of Suhayl ibn Amr (who had negotiated the treaty on behalf of the Quraysh), managed to escape from Makkah and sought refuge with the Muslims in Hudaibiya.

Under the terms of the treaty, any Muslim from Makkah who sought refuge in Madinah had to be returned to the Quraysh, while anyone who left Madinah for Makkah would not be returned. This condition was particularly challenging for Muslims who were still facing persecution in Makkah.

One day, Abu Jandal appeared before the Prophet (peace be upon him) still bearing visible wounds from the torture he had endured. His situation stirred the hearts of the Muslims, who felt deep sympathy for him. However, as Suhayl, his father, was still present, he demanded that his son be returned to Makkah as per the treaty terms. Despite the agony of seeing Abu Jandal’s plight, the Prophet (peace be upon him) abided by the terms of the treaty and reassured Abu Jandal, telling him to be patient, for Allah would bring relief and a way out.

Not long after, Abu Baseer, another persecuted Muslim in Makkah, also managed to escape and made his way to Madinah. However, the Quraysh sent two men after him to retrieve him under the terms of the treaty. When they arrived, the Prophet (peace be upon him) handed Abu Baseer over to them, again adhering to the agreement. But on their way back to Makkah, Abu Baseer managed to escape from his captors, killing one of them in self-defence.

Realising that returning to Madinah would mean being handed back to the Quraysh, Abu Baseer took refuge at a place on the coast called Seif Al-Bahr, along the route between Makkah and Shaam. There, he was eventually joined by Abu Jandal and other Muslims who managed to escape Makkah. They formed a small community that effectively intercepted and disrupted the Quraysh’s trade caravans, creating significant pressure on the Quraysh.

Eventually, the Quraysh, realising the impact of this group and the strain it was causing to their livelihoods, pleaded with the Prophet (peace be upon him) to delete this term from the treaty so they could allow Abu Baseer, Abu Jandal, and their companions to come to Madinah without interference. This was the promise of the Prophet (peace be upon him) that Allah would bring relief to his Ummah.

We need to remind ourselves that it is not the first time we are going through these tests trials and tribulations. We need to refresh our imaan and our trust in Allah. The relief will come. It will come when Allah has prescribed it. Just like Hajar we should say this is the command of Allah and the destiny of Allah and He will not let us down.

Allah has not abandoned us

Allah reminds us that He is aware of everything:

‎‫وَلَا تَحۡسَبَنَّ ٱللَّهَ غَـٰفِلًا عَمَّا یَعۡمَلُ ٱلظَّـٰلِمُونَۚ إِنَّمَا یُؤَخِّرُهُمۡ لِیَوۡمࣲ تَشۡخَصُ فِیهِ ٱلۡأَبۡصَـٰرُ﴿ ٤٢ ﴾ مُهۡطِعِینَ مُقۡنِعِی رُءُوسِهِمۡ لَا یَرۡتَدُّ إِلَیۡهِمۡ طَرۡفُهُمۡۖ وَأَفۡـِٔدَتُهُمۡ هَوَاۤءࣱ﴿ ٤٣ ﴾

Do not ever think that Allah is oblivious of what the unjust are doing. He only defers them to a day when sight(s) glaze over,

as they rush forward with their necks outstretched, their heads upraised, their eyes unblinking and their hearts void. (Ibrāhīm, Ayah 42-43)

Allah Almighty also stated in Surat Hajj that He is with the believers and no one should doubt that in the least:

‎ ‫مَن كَانَ یَظُنُّ أَن لَّن یَنصُرَهُ ٱللَّهُ فِی ٱلدُّنۡیَا وَٱلۡـَٔاخِرَةِ فَلۡیَمۡدُدۡ بِسَبَبٍ إِلَى ٱلسَّمَاۤءِ ثُمَّ لۡیَقۡطَعۡ فَلۡیَنظُرۡ هَلۡ یُذۡهِبَنَّ كَیۡدُهُۥ مَا یَغِیظُ﴿ ١٥ ﴾

Whoever has been thinking that Allah will not support him (Muhammad) in the Dunya (Life) and the Hereafter—let him extend a rope to the sky, then cut(it) off, and see whether his plotting eliminates what enrages(him). (Al-Ḥajj, Ayah 15)

‎‫ In this statement Allah was telling those who wanted the downfall of the Prophet (peace be upon him): “Die in your rage.” He will undoubtedly support him, despite your animosity. This interpretation was shared by figures like Mujahid, Qatadah, Ikrimah, Ata, Abu al-Jawza, and others, as reported by Ibn Kathir. A verse from the Quran that supports this meaning is Allah’s statement: “And when they are alone, they bite their fingers in rage. Say: ‘Die in your rage.'” (3:119)

Abu Wail narrates that Sahl ibn Hunayf (may Allah be pleased with them) said:

“O people, be suspicious of your opinions regarding your religion. I witnessed the day of Abu Jandal, and if I could have changed the command of the Messenger of Allah (peace be upon him), I would have. (Bukhari and Muslim)

Imam al-Shatibi (may Allah have mercy on him) commented in Al I’tisam that the statement ‘be suspicious of your opinion,’ means that human understanding is limited and can often be flawed, particularly in complex issues where divine guidance or prophetic commands are involved.

If it is not clear today, it will be clear tomorrow. And even if it is never clear, there is no harm, for he is holding on to the strong bond,” i.e the revelation.

Just like Hajar we should say this is the command of Allah and the destiny of Allah and He will not let us down.

Based on the Khutbah of Shaykh Haytham Tamim 8th November 2024

share

Shaykh Haytham Tamim is the founder and main teacher of the Utrujj Foundation. He has provided a leading vision for Islamic learning in the UK, which has influenced the way Islamic knowledge is disseminated. He has orchestrated the design and delivery of over 200 unique courses since Utrujj started in 2001. His extensive expertise spans over 30 years across the main Islamic jurisprudence schools of thought. He has studied with some of the foremost scholars in their expertise; he holds some of the highest Ijazahs (certificates) in Quran, Hadith (the Prophetic traditions) and Fiqh (Islamic rulings). His own gift for teaching was evident when he gave his first sermon to a large audience at the age of 17 and went on to serve as a senior lecturer of Islamic transactions and comparative jurisprudence at the Islamic University of Beirut (Shariah College). He has continued to teach; travelling around the UK, Europe and wider afield, and won the 2015 BISCA award (British Imams & Scholars Contributions & Achievements Awards) for Outstanding Contribution to Education and Teaching.

Recommended Posts