NOTE: Alislam Team takes full responsibility for any errors or miscommunication in this Synopsis of the Friday Sermon

With the grace of Allah today we are going through the twenty second day of fasting and are in the third ashra(ten days) of Ramadan. According to a saying of the Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) we have passed Ramadan’s ten days of God’s mercy and then ten days of God’s forgiveness and are now going through ten days of salvation from the fire of Hell. It is God’s favour on us that He has granted us the opportunity to experience this. However, a true believer has firm belief in God, tries to abide by righteousness and is filled with fear of God and is not merely joyous that the last ten days of Ramadan will be a source of his salvation. No doubt, these days of Ramadan are a source of mercy, forgiveness and salvation from the fire of Hell, but have we truly availed their beneficence? Their beneficence cannot be garnered without abiding by the commandments of God and His Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him). Indeed beneficence of these days has its requisites which we need to look out for in order to please God and attain His grace.

Commentators opine that God’s mercy is of two kinds. One that He dispenses as a favour and for which man does not have to make any attempt as it is stated:

‘…My mercy encompasses all things…’ (7:157)

Mankind in general avails of this mercy. The Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) explained: ‘This verse indicates that God’s mercy is general and extensive whereas chastisement owing to Divine attribute of justice comes into operation after specific action is taken by man. That is, this attribute comes into play once Divine law is violated. This necessitates that there is Divine law and sin is committed by contravening it. It is then that this attribute comes into play and fulfils its requisite.’ (Tafseer Hazrat Masih e Maud, Vol. II, p. 566)

Indeed, God is Gracious but when man violates His law and is guilty of chastisement God’s attribute of justice comes into play. Generally God’s mercy encompasses everything but in places violation of Divine law requires punishment, yet God can have mercy and forgive. Such a situation is not becoming for a Muslim. A true believer has special status and his belief demands to keep his spiritual state in check and abide by God’s commandments to the best of his abilities. However, if owing to human frailties he happens to commit sin, God’s mercy covers him. Such a situation would be different to the one explained in an earlier sermon where one is brazen in committing sin on the pretext that God’s mercy is very extensive. This is tantamount to challenging God’s wrath.

The Promised Messiah (on whom be peace) said:

‘There is no promise in warning. It is only this that owing to His Holiness Allah the Exalted wills to punish the guilty person. Owing to this, at times He also informs those to whom He sends revelations/His Prophets about the matter. Yet, when the guilty person pays his dues by repenting and seeking God’s forgiveness through humble and meek entreaties, Divine mercy supersedes the requisite for chastisement and hides and conceals chastisement within itself. This is what is meant by the verse: ‘…I will inflict My punishment on whom I will; but my mercy encompasses all things…’. That is, mercy surpasses chastisement. If this principle is not accepted, all religious laws are negated.’

(Tafseer Hazrat Masih e Maud, Vol. II, p. 566)

Indeed, God saves and forgives the guilty owing to their repentance even those guilty for whom chastisement has been decreed can be forgiveness due to their humble entreaties. This is not a place a true believer should be at, that is, violate Divine law and then make entreaties and look for Divine mercy. The second kind of mercy is related to true believers, mercy which is conditional to good deeds as stated: ‘…Surely, the mercy of Allah is nigh unto those who do good.’(7:57).

[The Arabic word used here for those who do good is mohsin] Mohsin محسن is one who is good to others, who abides by righteousness, has knowledge and fulfils God’s work with all its requisites. God’s mercy is for those who do not commit sin deliberately, who always call unto God and remember Him and fear committing sin. If they unknowingly commit some sin they call onto God with righteousness in heart and this is what attracts God’s mercy and their prayers are accepted. It is indeed God’s special grace that He accepts our prayers. God’s mercy is with the mohsin who spends a righteous life and who is good to others and fulfils their rights. Man does not come in the category of being a mohsin by doing ordinary good acts. This demands that one’s practices are of very high standard.

The Holy Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be on him) defined mohsin in a way that gives rise to great cause for concern. He said a mohsin is a person who when doing anything good is conscious that he is watching God or at least that God is watching him. If one is conscious of this at all times one would simply not do any wrong and will not go astray from righteousness. In fact one could not even imagine harming anyone. Commandments of Islam are such that no matter how one practices them they end up comprising of paying rights of God and paying rights of mankind. Although we wish that our prayers are accepted and we receive God’s mercy but vast majority of us do not regularly make the efforts which a true believer needs to make in order to attain the status.

We are delighted to experience the first ten days of Ramadan which are days of mercy but do we also stop and ponder if we practiced during the days what we should have practiced to seek God’s mercy? Did we make short-term entreaties like a sinner or did we try to… read more at ahmadiyya.org.sg