Khutba Take Action Now For Your Future

Take Action Now For Your Future

Opening

There is none worthy of worship except Allah. There is none worthy of worship except Allah. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger. All praise is due to Allah. We laud Him, we beseech help from Him and ask His protection.

We seek refuge with Allah from the evil of our souls and the bad results of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide him, and whosoever He declares misled, none can guide him onto the right path. And I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah.

There is none worthy of worship except Allah. And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

Standard Khutba Opening

O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except as Muslims.

O you who have believed, fear your Lord, Who created you from a single soul, and created from it a wife, and spread among them many men and women. And fear Allah in Whom you ask for help and mercy. Verily, Allah is ever watching over you.

O you who believe, fear Allah and say the right word, that He may amend for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger, he has certainly attained a great triumph.

As for the rest, the best of speech is the word of Allah, and the best guidance is the guidance of Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him.

And the worst of things are their incidents, and every incident is a creation, and every creation is misguidance, and every misguidance is in the Fire.

And indeed, what you are promised will surely come to pass, and you cannot escape it.

The Story of Suraqah ibn Malik

During the time of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, leaving from Mecca to Medina, packing bags surreptitiously, leaving with near nothing, the only thing that was with him was his companion Abu Bakr and Allah.

Until they hid in a cave outside of Mecca, on a small mountain known as Thawr, and were fearful as the polytheists, the mushrikeen came looking for them.

Abu Bakr, may Allah be pleased with him, saying to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, as they were in the cave hiding, O Messenger of Allah, if one of them had seen his feet, he would have seen us.

O Messenger of Allah, if one of them were to simply look at his feet, they would see us here. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:

Do not grieve. Allah is with us. What do you think of two? Allah is the third. He said, don't have any worries. Don't worry. Allah is with us. What would you say about two people? The third with them is Allah.

After the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, stayed there for some time, and his daughter brought him food. Splitting her belt in half so that she could carry the supplies that she left with to take to them so that they may make the trip through Tihamah and on to Madinah.

Suraqah's Pursuit

As the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and Abu Bakr crossed through the desert, Quraysh heard of his leaving, and they put a price on his head. And they said, whoever can bring us Muhammad and his companion, or bring them to us, then we will give him this much.

One person who heard of this prize, who wanted to make that money, was Suraqah ibn Malik. Suraqah ibn Malik al-Mudlaji, may Allah be pleased with him. At that time, he was a Mushrik, he was a polytheist.

But he was a tracker. He was a Bedouin, skilled in following people through the desert. And so he followed the track of the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, until he almost caught them.

The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, raised his hands in dua, and Suraqah's horse, its feet sunk into the sand. He then got up again, and just as he was about to catch the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, and Abu Bakr again, the Prophet made dua, and his feet sunk into the sand. His horse's feet sunk into the sand.

And then the third time, the same thing happened. At this, Suraqah ibn Malik said to the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, that there is something that's going on, and I feel that you one day will be in a position of power. So write for me Kitab al-Aman, write for me a letter of security, so that when you are in power, I can present it.

And so it was written on a small piece of parchment that they had. And this is narrated by Al-Bukhari and Muslim in their sahihs. (Bukhari hadith 3906, Muslim hadith 2009)

The Prophet's Prophecy

And Imam Al-Shafi'i mentions in Al-Umm that after this, in a narration he narrates in Al-Umm with his isnad, that after this, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, he said to Suraqah:

كَيْفَ بِكَ إِذَا لَبِسْتَ سِوَارَيْ كِسْرَى (Al-Shafi'i in Al-Umm)

How will you be on the day when you wear the two gold bracelets of Khosrow, the son of Khosrow, the emperor of Persia, and his belt, and his crown?

Suraqah was taken aback. He said, Khosrow, Ibn Kisra, Ibn Hurmuz? He said, Khosrow, the son of Hurmuz? The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said, yes.

It wasn't until the caliphate of Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, when the palace of the Khosrow was opened, and all of the riches that were inside were gathered up. And as the people were going to start putting them away and then dividing them up amongst the soldiers, and sending some of them back to Al-Madinah, to Baitul Mal, Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, stopped them.

He said, first, there's something we have to do. He took those gold bracelets, and the belt, and the crown, and he said, bring Suraqah to me. And as he placed them on Suraqah's arms, he said:

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ الَّذِي سَلَبَهُمَا مِنْ كِسْرَى بْنِ هُرْمُزَ الَّذِي كَانَ يَقُولُ أَنَا رَبُّ النَّاسِ فَقَلَّدَهُمَا أَعْرَابِيًّا مِنْ بَنِي مُدْلِجٍ

All praise is due to Allah who took these from Khosrow, the son of Hurmuz, who used to say, I'm the lord of man. And gave them to a Bedouin, Suraqah ibn Malik, a Muslim from the tribe of Mudlij.

Suraqah, may Allah be pleased with him, he died in the year 24 during the caliphate of Uthman, may Allah be pleased with him. He, may Allah be pleased with him, narrates several hadith from the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him.

Suraqah's Question About Divine Decree

Now, I want you to keep his life story in mind when we think about today's topic. The Bedouins are known for being straightforward. Straight shooters, they're not going to beat around the bush. They'll ask direct questions.

Suraqah, may Allah be pleased with him, went to the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him, one day. And he said:

يَا رَسُولَ اللَّهِ بَيِّنْ لَنَا دِينَنَا كَأَنَّا خُلِقْنَا الْآنَ (Muslim hadith 2649)

O Messenger of Allah, clarify our faith for us as if we were created right now. Why do we do actions? Why do we act?

The Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him, answered him. He said, why do we act? Suraqah said, why do we act? Why do we do actions? Why do we act at all? Are these things that the pens have already scribed out? And that the provisions have already been made for? Or is it something constantly being renewed? Is it something constantly being created in the future?

The Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him, said, no. Your actions have already been written out for you. And the provisions for them have already been made.

So Suraqah said, so then why should we act? He, may Allah be pleased with him, answered him with the succinctness of speech that only he, may Allah be pleased with him, had. He said:

اعْمَلُوا فَكُلُّ مُيَسَّرٌ لِمَا خُلِقَ لَهُ (Bukhari hadith 4949, Muslim hadith 2649)

Act. For each of you will be facilitated for that which he was created for.

In another hadith, or in another narration from a different Sahabi, he, may Allah be pleased with him, added:

أَمَّا أَهْلُ السَّعَادَةِ فَيَعْمَلُونَ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ السَّعَادَةِ وَأَمَّا أَهْلُ الشَّقَاءِ فَيَعْمَلُونَ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الشَّقَاءِ (Bukhari hadith 4949)

As for the people of felicity, then they will do the acts of the people of felicity. And as for the people of misery, they will do the acts of the people of misery.

And then he, may Allah be pleased with him, recited Allah's statement:

And as for he who gives and is mindful and confirms the good to come, then we will make easy for him the greatest of ease, Jannah. And as for he who is stingy and sees himself as self-sufficient and disbelieves in the good that is to come, then we will make easy for him the greatest of difficulties.

The Hadith of Creation in the Womb

In the hadith of Abdullah ibn Mas'ud, the Prophet, may Allah be pleased with him, said:

إِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ يُجْمَعُ خَلْقُهُ فِي بَطْنِ أُمِّهِ أَرْبَعِينَ يَوْمًا نُطْفَةً ثُمَّ يَكُونُ عَلَقَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ ثُمَّ يَكُونُ مُضْغَةً مِثْلَ ذَلِكَ ثُمَّ يُرْسَلُ إِلَيْهِ الْمَلَكُ فَيَنْفُخُ فِيهِ الرُّوحَ وَيُؤْمَرُ بِأَرْبَعِ كَلِمَاتٍ بِكَتْبِ رِزْقِهِ وَأَجَلِهِ وَعَمَلِهِ وَشَقِيٌّ أَوْ سَعِيدٌ (Bukhari hadith 3208, Muslim hadith 2643)

The creation of each of you is gathered in the womb of his mother for forty days as a drop, and then forty days as a clot, and then forty days as a morsel of flesh, and then an angel is sent to it, and he is ordered to write four things: its sustenance, its life span, its actions, and whether it is from the people of misery or the people of felicity.

He then, peace be upon him, said:

وَإِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا إِلَّا ذِرَاعٌ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا (Bukhari hadith 3208)

One of you will do the actions of the people of Jannah until there is only an arm's length between him and it. Then his book will overtake him, and he will do the actions of the people of the Hellfire and then enter it.

وَإِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ النَّارِ حَتَّى مَا يَكُونُ بَيْنَهُ وَبَيْنَهَا إِلَّا ذِرَاعٌ فَيَسْبِقُ عَلَيْهِ الْكِتَابُ فَيَعْمَلْ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ فَيَدْخُلُهَا (Bukhari hadith 3208)

One of you will do the actions of the people of the Hellfire until there is nothing but an arm's length between him and it. And then his book will overtake him. And he will do the acts of the people of Jannah and then he will enter it.

In the hadith of Sahl ibn Sa'ad al-Sa'idi, there is an addition. He said:

فَإِنَّ أَحَدَكُمْ لَيَعْمَلُ بِعَمَلِ أَهْلِ الْجَنَّةِ فِيمَا يَبْدُو لِلنَّاسِ وَهُوَ مِنْ أَهْلِ النَّارِ (Bukhari hadith 3207)

One of you will do the actions of the people of Jannah, the people of Paradise, in what it seems to the people, in what is apparent to the public, but he is from the people of the Hellfire.

The Importance of Action

Why do I mention these ahadith today? The last time we spoke, we spoke about our inner conversations, the things that we say to ourselves, the negative thoughts, the subconscious conversation we have between our mind and our heart when we're saying nothing.

And I mention these ahadith today to say to you that it is important that you act, because nothing will change your life like action. Being proactive and doing what you need to do to better yourself in this life.

In the end of the ahadith that I mentioned before, Bukhari adds:

وَإِنَّمَا الْأَعْمَالُ بِالْخَوَاتِيمِ (Bukhari hadith 3208)

And your actions are judged by your last actions.

So a lot of people will say, I have a horrible life. I can't get past my sadness, my depression, my inability to function, my inability to do good. I can't seem to progress in life. And we become so inundated by our own negative thoughts, incapacitated by our subconscious, that we forget to make an actual change in our life.

So for anyone that's keeping themselves back from doing any good, good for themselves and their deen or their dunya, I want to ask you this. Do you know the unseen? Has Allah shown you what is in the preserved tablet? Do you know what's in that book that the Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم just told us about?

I'm absolutely sure that the answer is no.

The Power of Action vs. Thoughts

It's been said that good thoughts speak only to the thoughtful mind, but great actions speak to all of mankind. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم - ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) noticed that long question that Suraqah asked him. He said:

(Bukhari hadith 4949)

Act for each of you will be facilitated, made easy for that which he was created for.

So I want to ask you this. You say to yourself, I'm not a good person. You say to yourself, I'm lagging behind. You say to yourself, I can't succeed. I want to ask you, who tied your hands? Who shackled your feet? Who stopped you from putting forth the effort to have those things that you intend for good for yourself, your family, your community, and for the sake of Allah.

If you want to know the value of action and how your thoughts have no effect in reality on what you do in life, each one of you, when you walk out of here today, I want you to sit in your car and wait for it to start. Just sit there. Don't take your keys out. Just sit there. Stare at your steering wheel and see if it starts.

If you want to have kids, sit around and don't get married. Don't look for a wife. Don't look for a husband. Once you get married, don't do anything of that sort. And see if kids come to you.

If you're hungry this evening, go home and sit at your dinner table and see if food shows up. And I don't mean what your mother will bring you or your wife or anyone else.

You can sit there and think good thoughts about your car starting, all you want. You can sit there and think sad thoughts about why won't my car start, all you want. But the only thing that will change your life is taking that key and putting it in the ignition and starting your car.

So never think that you are shackled by something that you have no knowledge about. You have no knowledge of tomorrow. You have no knowledge of the future. You have no knowledge of how your life will end. So constantly strive to improve your life by acting. Because once you act, it will be made easy for you that which you were created for.

I say what you hear and I seek forgiveness from Allah for me and for you and for all Muslims from every sin, so seek His forgiveness, indeed He is the Oft-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

Second Part of Khutba

All praise is due to Allah alone and prayers and peace be upon him after whom there is no prophet, and upon his family and companions and those who follow them in righteousness until the Day of Judgment. As for what follows:

Imam Al-Tahawi on Divine Decree

الإمام الطحاوي رحمه الله in his famous work of creed. He said talking about the idea of predestination of divine ordainment of providence of destiny, whatever you want to call it. The idea of القضاء والقدر

He رحمه الله he said:

Destiny is God's secret amongst his creation. He hasn't shown destiny, predestination to the closest of angels or any of the prophets that were sent.

He says:

And to try and investigate and inspect and understand its details is a path to failure, it's a path to upset and it is a ladder to being prevented.

What does he mean by a path to upset and a ladder to being prevented? It's a path to upset because our minds cannot comprehend an infinite being. We cannot comprehend Allah's omniscience. His knowing everything, His hearing everything, His seeing everything. We can only comprehend about Allah what He has told us about Himself in His book and through the Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم - ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) and his sunnah.

It's like one of us looking at the moon in the sky and thinking that we understand the moon and all of the details of the moon. The moon looks small from the earth, does it not? Is it really? It looks beautiful, we understand its beauty. We understand its countenance. We understand its loftiness, its greatness. But just by looking our eyes are not able to take in the information needed to be able to process everything that's coming at it.

And similarly, our minds. We're trying to figure out an experiment that we are not the scientists who are proctoring. We're trying to understand the parameters of a test that we're in right now.

And so every time we try to understand something outside of our capability, we get upset. Every time we think we know what's going to happen in the future or why something was, it prevents us from doing what we need to do.

So I ask again, do you know the unseen? Has anyone tied your hands? Doing actions is going to be the number one way that you're going to be able to move past any negativity, any stagnancy, any problems in your life.

Belief in the Unseen Requires Action

Allah (جل جلاله - jalla jalāluhu) praises those who believe in the unseen:

Alif Lam Mim. That is the book there is no doubt therein. Guidance for those mindful. Those who believe in the unseen and then what? Establish prayer and give from that which we have given them.

So it takes action after that belief. If we incapacitate ourselves, we can't expect anything from inaction. Again, we can sit at our cars all day long and wait for them to start, but they'll never start.

A Lesson from My Teacher

I remember one night (في أمسية في المدينة المنورة - fī ʾumsīyah fī al-madīnah al-munawwarah) in a night gathering with Shaykh Ibrahim Al-Akhdar (حفظه الله - ḥafiẓahu Allāh) former imam of the Masjid Al-Nabawi and one of my teacher's teachers. I asked him, I said, Shaykh, is there any special dua I can make for memorizing the Quran? Is there anything special I can do?

He said:

O my son, there's no special food, special drink, special dua. My Lord will give strength to the one who grabs the Quran, says Bismillah and reads.

Oh John the Baptist, take the book with strength, with confidence.

And those who hold tightly to the book - Allah describes the believers as such.

Don't Wait for Perfect

So we can become incapacitated by our thoughts. We can allow ourselves to give in to negativity in our life. We can wait for perfect. Perfect will never come.

There's two things in life. There's perfect and there's done. Wait for perfect, you'll never be satisfied. You'll always be upset. You'll have prevented yourself from the good that you can do with what you have been given.

So change your life by doing, not by thinking about what you should do. The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم - ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) pointed to this very important point of how we can change what's in our hearts by changing our actions.

He said:

(Bukhari hadith 52, Muslim hadith 1599)

Is there not a morsel of flesh in the body? When it is wholesome, then the entire body is wholesome. And when it is corrupt, then the entire body is corrupt. Is it not the heart?

So our actions have an effect on our thoughts. And our thoughts have an effect on our actions. But our thoughts can affect some of our actions. But they never become our life until we allow them to.

Each of us will make mistakes. Each of us will falter. Each of us will hold ourselves back. But the way out of that is not by self-deprecating, by keeping ourselves and saying to ourselves that we're not worthy.

Have you ever been in the zone while you're doing something? So busy with work or so busy with play that you forget about everything else? And you're doing exactly what you need to do at that very moment and excelling in it? That's the state that you have to get in. So that you're not distracted by any of those thoughts. Because those thoughts most of the time will become inaction. They'll hold you back. They won't allow you to progress.

The Prophetic Guidance on Action

The Prophet (صلى الله عليه وسلم - ṣallā Allāhu ʿalayhi wa sallam) said to us about the value of not giving in to the negativity and the value of acting to change our lives for the better. He said:

(Muslim hadith 2664)

Seek diligently that which will benefit you. Benefit you in your deen. Benefit you in your dunya. Benefit you. Seek diligently that which will benefit you. And seek Allah's help. And don't incapacitate yourself. Don't think of yourself as less. And never should one of you say: If I had only done such and such thing, then such and such thing would have happened. Because "if" opens the door for shaitan.

Positive thinking doesn't equate to success. Just like negative thinking doesn't equate to failure. It's only when you use the formula that Allah (سبحانه وتعالى - subḥānahu wa taʿālā) has told us about. When you have good intentions and you have good actions, then you have righteous deeds.

Allah (سبحانه وتعالى - subḥānahu wa taʿālā) says at the end of Surah Al-Kahf:

So whoever wants to meet his Lord on the next day, then let him do righteous deeds and not join any partners in the worship of his Lord.

Closing Du'a

May Allah guide our wives and our parents and our husbands and our grandparents. O Allah guide our neighbors and our friends and our co-workers at work. O Allah guide this society and particularly all societies around the world. O Allah give them safety and security. Give them peace and give them Islam.

O servants of Allah, Allah commands justice, kindness and giving to your relatives and forbids immorality, evil and transgression. He warns you so that you may remember.

Remember Allah, the Exalted in Might, He will remember you and thank Him for His blessings that increase you. Remember Allah, the Exalted in Might. Allah knows what you do and establish prayer.