Has Allah Chosen You This Ramadan | Khutbah by Dr. Omar Suleiman

Introduction

We begin by praising Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala by bearing witness that none has the right to be worshipped or unconditionally obeyed except for him. And we bear witness that Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam is his final messenger. We ask Allah to send his peace and blessings upon him, the prophets and messengers that came before him, his family and companions that served alongside him and those that follow in his blessed path until the day of judgment. And we ask Allah to make us amongst them, اللهم آمين.

Dear brothers and sisters, as we come to the end of the series of عباد الرحمن (Ibadur Rahman), may Allah azza wa jal make us from عباد الرحمن (Ibadur Rahman). And we enter into the month of mercy in which we seek the mercy of Ar-Rahman, Ramadan.

I wanted to let this khutbah serve as a bridge between the series that we had on عباد الرحمن (Ibadur Rahman) and entering into the month of Ramadan with the very last verse.

The Final Verse of Ibadur Rahman

When Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says "say," and it's incredible because over these verses Allah azza wa jal is extolling the best of the best of his servants, عباد الرحمن (Ibadur Rahman). And then suddenly Allah azza wa jal delivers a message to the opposite of عباد الرحمن through عباد الرحمن and the ultimate عبد الرحمن (Abdur Rahman) Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam.

Now you say this to them. You say this to them: You have no worth. Your lord does not care about you if it is not for your dua, if it is not for your supplication. And verily you have denied and so you will suffer the consequences and be stamped with that denial and punished with that denial.

Allah Must Choose You First

Before I go into the details of this verse, I want to begin with a very important premise as Ramadan starts to come around to us: That Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has to choose you in order for you to be granted any grace or any gift from him in the first place. Allah azza wa jal has to choose you.

You see when we talk about the people as they enter into the season of hajj and into the place of hajj, we say that you are ضيوف الرحمن (duyuf ar-Rahman). You are the guests of the most merciful. You've been chosen by Ar-Rahman.

There's a level of choosing that comes from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for every single one of us when something good is unlocked for us. When Allah azza wa jal talks about al-Mustafa sallallahu alayhi wasallam, the chosen one Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam. With everything that the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam had of amazing qualities and amazing akhlaq, and he was raised for the moment alayhi salatu wasallam, Allah chose him as the vessel for the Quran before the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wasallam was even born.

And so it wasn't because he was الصادق الأمين (as-Sadiq al-Ameen) that he became Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wasallam. It was that Allah azza wa jal prepared him with the proper ingredients to be most ready when revelation would come into his heart sallallahu alayhi wasallam, when faith would be transferred into him and through him alayhi salatu wasallam to the billions of people that have benefited from the reception of that revelation. Allah chose him.

When Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, "Remember Musa alayhi salam," and we know all of the preparation and the stories of Musa alayhi salam, Allah azza wa jal says مخلص (mukhlas). Sounds very similar to مخلص (mukhlis) - a person who is sincere due to their work of sincerity. They strove for Allah azza wa jal and they strove and Allah azza wa jal opened up pathways for them. But Allah azza wa jal says about Musa alayhi salam: He was purified, made to be in that place by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

A Chosen Nation with Responsibility

And all of us by extension have some level of being chosen. Allah azza wa jal chose you as an ummah, as a people that would carry on the message of Islam, the legacy of iman transferred through all the prophets. You're a chosen nation.

And that does not mean that you have no responsibility. That means that you spend your entire life trying to be worthy of that choice and to not lose what Allah azza wa jal has bestowed upon you, to not lose it. And so you know that you did not earn any of this because of you, but you also know that you could lose it because of you, and you don't want to lose it.

The Value of Faith and Dua

And so as we come back to this ayah: "Say that your lord would have no care for you, has no value for you if it is not for your dua."

Abdullah ibn Abbas radiyallahu anhu says دعاؤكم means if it is not for your iman. Your iman is what gives you value in the sight of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala and Allah azza wa jal chose people with iman. He does not turn away the sincere pursuance, but there is a selection process here that makes this verse so deeply profound as we come into Ramadan. May Allah azza wa jal choose us to be amongst those who witness Ramadan with iman, with ihtisab, with faith and with seeking the reward and choose us to be amongst the forgiven, اللهم آمين.

You have to be chosen if it was not for your faith. And it comes to a hadith of the Messenger of Allah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. He said:

(Authenticated by various scholars)

Allah gives of this world those whom he loves and those who he does not love. People receive from the distribution of this world those that Allah loves and those that Allah does not love, because it's distribution. And that distribution of this material world is not necessarily a manifestation of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala's love and blessing and favor.

Divine Distribution vs Divine Selection

So there is a distribution. Some receive and are tested and fail, some receive and are tested and blessed, some are denied and they are elevated because of their patience as a result. But it's distribution. It's not random, it's divine, but it's not a distribution of Allah's divine favor when Allah azza wa jal distributes this dunya.

But Allah does not give iman to someone unless he loves them. There is a difference between divine distribution and divine selection. Iman is divine selection. And it's also not random. It comes through something, but you have to be chosen and show to Allah azza wa jal that you are worthy of that choice and that you will not lose the blessing that he chose you for. And there is a way of engaging this process.

Let's not talk about anyone claiming to be chosen people yet doing everything that is in contradiction to what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala commanded of humanity. No, no, you don't get that type of chosenness here. If there is any group of people that could claim to be the chosen people of Allah in this world today, it is the people of Gaza. If there's any group of people in the world that could make the claim that they are the chosen people, it is أهل غزة (ahl Ghaza). But let's not go there for a moment.

Why Dua?

Let's come back to us on an individual level. How do you engage that iman if Allah azza wa jal bestows it upon you as a favor, as a choice? And why would Allah azza wa jal use the word dua?

You see, subhanAllah, first and foremost: "Say to them my lord has no need for you" because there is a level of exclusivity that now comes with your lord. This is a relationship with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that can only be engaged through iman and through dua, that can only be engaged through the means by which he commanded you to engage him.

And so it's not that your lord doesn't care for you. It's my lord has no care for you. And my lord is the one who's commanding me to tell you. Allah is our protector, our lord. You have no protector. You have no protective friends.

Why use the word dua? Dua is worship. And as you come into this month of Ramadan, faith is increased by the worship of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, by good deeds, by acts of obedience, and it's decreased by acts of disobedience.

Ramadan: The Month of Growth

It's a month in which you engage your iman in a way that it grows. The Quran increases a person in iman. It's a month in which you will water your iman with the Quran in a way that you don't do at any other time of the year. And don't feel bad unless you completely neglect the Quran outside of Ramadan, because even the people of Quran engage the Quran more in the month of Quran.

Imam ash-Shafi'i rahimahullah ta'ala would always read the Quran, but in Ramadan, it was a different level. Imam Abu Hanifa rahimahullah, the same thing that's narrated about him. You go through the examples of the salaf and the sahaba, of course being the premiers of the salaf. They all engaged it more in Ramadan, but that doesn't mean they abandoned it outside of Ramadan.

And so you do more good deeds, more acts of obedience in Ramadan. Your iman grows. You avoid the sins that diminish iman. You read the Quran and engage the Quran which grows iman. And dua - this is the month of dua. You engage in that closeness with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in a transformative way that grows that relationship and that grows a closeness to him and that grows your value.

The Example of Aisha: Perfuming Charity

You see, you say that my lord has no care for you. The opposite is also to be understood: that with your dua and with your iman, Allah azza wa jal loves you more and more and more and more and more. Every time you make dua to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, you get closer to him if it's sincere. Every time you do an act of good, you get closer to him subhanahu wa ta'ala. You grow in your relationship with him.

Why am I talking about this on the footsteps of the month of Ramadan? I'll tell you why, and I'll use a narration about our mother Aisha radiyallahu ta'ala anha for a moment. And that will help us to understand this idea of divine distribution versus divine selection, how to have not a transactional relationship with Allah but a transformational relationship with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

It was narrated about our mother Aisha radiyallahu ta'ala anha that our mother Aisha radiyallahu ta'ala anha when she would give her sadaqah, she would perfume her charity. Please for a moment think about the love and the reverence of Allah in the heart of that woman. Our mother - the stories of our mom - think about the love and the reverence in her heart for Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Think about what's going through your mind as you're doing that, as you're taking these coins, you're taking these little pieces and you're perfuming them.

What are you doing mom? What is this all about? And she said:

"This goes to the hand of Allah before the hand of the one who's asking. This goes to the hand of Allah before the hand of the one who's asking."

What a relationship! And so while everybody else is maybe thinking "I get this much, give this much sadaqah, get this much, give this much sadaqah, get this much" - and you know what, you should have in your mind that charity is not decreased, or charity does not decrease your wealth, and that Allah azza wa jal will give you. If it wasn't an incentive, Allah wouldn't have mentioned it in the Quran that you give and Allah gives you more in return.

But she took it a step further. She said, "This goes to the hand of Allah before it goes to the hand of the beggar." Not from a place of need, it's a place of love. She personalized what is the most transactional ibadah of all the ibadahs. What's more transactional than calculating your money and taking a cut of it and putting it in zakah? Out of all of the ibadahs, the one that has the most likelihood of becoming transactional is your zakah and your sadaqah. But she even took that and turned it into a deeply personal relationship between her and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

Perfuming Your Worship

And so I ask you, dear brothers and sisters: What does it look like to perfume your recitation of the Quran as you present it to Allah? What does it look like to perfume your siyam as you present it to Allah? What does it look like to perfume your taraweeh as you present it to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala every single day and every single night?

This is a deep relationship. Ya Allah, are you happy with this? Ya Allah, are you pleased? And here's what I want you to think about every single night: If Allah azza wa jal chooses you to live to see Ramadan and to be accepted in Ramadan - may Allah choose us all to be amongst those people, اللهم آمين - if Allah allows us to witness this blessing.

Pursuing Allah's Pleasure

When it comes to the pursuit of Allah's reward, pursuing jannah is noble. The higher level of ihsan, of excellence, is to pursue what will guarantee you jannah as well, which is to pursue the rida of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to pursue the pleasure of Allah. To make this about Allah azza wa jal and to make the greatest gift that you seek his pleasure with you subhanahu wa ta'ala.

And if you are amongst those - for those who do acts of ihsan, of excellence, is excellence in return and more. And that more is to stare at Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, to see Allah while he's pleased with you.

The greatest way of doing a good deed is to pursue Allah azza wa jal's pleasure as well - not just paradise, but to pursue his pleasure. And all that will do is increase the beauty, the love, the quality of everything that you do.

The Higher Level of Accountability

There's also an equivalent to that when it comes to muhasabah, when it comes to sins. Obviously we seek refuge in Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala from the fire, and we seek refuge in Allah from the punishment of our sins. But there is another layer of muhasabah, of holding yourself accountable, and you know what that layer is? What will I say to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? What will I say to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala when I meet him with this deed?

You see, because there are things that are haram and then there are things that border haram. They're shameful. What will I say to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala? It's the opposite of perfume. You know, someone could come and dress right for the interview, but they didn't put deodorant or put something on themselves. They stink, they smell bad. It's the opposite. They fulfilled the requirements, but there's still a smell that's there. It's the opposite of this. What will I say to Allah?

The Daily Practice: What Is Allah Saying About Me?

And you know something, dear brothers and sisters, it's one way to think about this on the day of judgment: What will I say to Allah on the day of judgment? But here's a practice that I want you to carry every single night in Ramadan. Every single night in Ramadan - I guarantee you it will transform your Ramadan. You know what it is?

Every single night you ask yourself: What is Allah saying about me right now to the angels? You see, your name is never stagnant in the heavens. Either Allah is praising you or dispraising you. Either Allah is telling them how much he loves you, or he's telling them the opposite - how angry he is with you.

What is Allah saying about me tonight? Tonight, when I present this package of fasting to him today? You see, because you can't fully engage the process of dua unless you're thinking about the other side of that equation. The same thing is true for muhasabah. It's not just what will I say to Allah. It's: I wonder what Allah is saying about me right now. I wonder what Allah is telling the angels about me right now. I wonder how Allah sees my actions today, what he's saying about those actions today.

Personalize it. Allah chose you - choose him. Allah has bestowed iman upon you. That is a sign. There's some level of love for you. Increase that love. Lean into that love. Make this affair of Ramadan an affair of love between you and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala that increases.

Conclusion: A Practice for Every Night

When you do your deeds, don't just think about the reward of those deeds. Think about the rida of the one who prescribed those deeds in the first place. And did I increase in that rida or not?

And by the way, this is not just a practice in Ramadan. Every single night when you go to sleep, you ask yourself: What did Allah say to the angels about me today? And if there's something that you think would have caused that conversation to go in a direction that you're not pleased with:

أستغفر الله - I seek your forgiveness, O Allah, and I repent.