Spirit of Ramadan – part 3 Juma Khutbas

The purpose of fasting is not to fast but to transform our lives and put ourselves on the path of success in this world and the next.  Ramadan comes to reset our standard, the criterion of what has value and what doesn’t. When we stay away from even the Halaal during the hours of daylight we are emphasizing for ourselves that what makes something good and valuable is not the thing itself but whether it pleases Allahﷻ or not. That is the meaning of Uboodiyah. The slave has no will of his own. His will is the Will of his Creator, Allahﷻ. He wants whatever Allahﷻ wants for him and not only accepts it but is pleased with it. This is the essence of Ridha bil Qadha – to be pleased with the destiny that Allahﷻ wrote for us. That is the first lesson.







 Obedience is the essence of Islam. When Allahﷻ revealed:









لِّلَّهِ مَا فِى ٱلسَّمَـٰوَٰتِ وَمَا فِى ٱلْأَرْضِ وَإِن تُبْدُوا۟ مَا فِىٓ أَنفُسِكُمْ أَوْ تُخْفُوهُ يُحَاسِبْكُم بِهِ ٱللَّهُ فَيَغْفِرُ لِمَن يَشَآءُ وَيُعَذِّبُ مَن يَشَآءُ وَٱللَّهُ عَلَىٰ كُلِّ شَىْءٍ قَدِيرٌ









Baqara 2: 284    To Allah ˹alone˺ belongs whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth. Whether you reveal what is in your hearts or conceal it, Allah will call you to account for it. He forgives whoever He wills and punishes whoever He wills. And Allah is Most Capable of everything.







When this Ayah was revealed, the Sahaba went to Rasoolullahﷺ and knelt before him and said, ‘Ya Rasoolullahﷺ, Allahﷻ has said that He will hold us accountable for our thoughts, desires, and emotions. We have control over our speech and actions. But we have no control over our thoughts and desires. If Allahﷻ punishes us for that, we will be destroyed.’ Ask yourself if this doesn’t sound like a reasonable plea. But see the response of Rasoolullahﷺ to this. His blessed face became red with anger. He asked them, ‘Will you be like those who when they received a command of Allahﷻ would say, ‘We hear but we will not obey.’ Say, ‘We hear and we obey. Forgive us, Our Rabb. To You is our return.’ The Sahaba didn’t argue. They didn’t make excuses. They didn’t even hesitate. They obeyed him instantly.







Ask what happened then? Nothing happened. Nothing happened for one year. For 12 months, the Muslims lived with the knowledge and belief that Allahﷻ would hold them accountable even for their thoughts and desires. That was the toughest training imaginable to inculcate the fundamental and greatest of all virtues, obedience to Allahﷻ in the way of Rasoolullahﷺ. Then after 12 months, Allahﷻ revealed:









ءَامَنَ ٱلرَّسُولُ بِمَآ أُنزِلَ إِلَيْهِ مِن رَّبِّهِۦ وَٱلْمُؤْمِنُونَ كُلٌّ ءَامَنَ بِٱللَّهِ وَمَلَـٰٓئِكَتِهِۦ وَكُتُبِهِۦ وَرُسُلِهِۦ لَا نُفَرِّقُ بَيْنَ أَحَدٍ مِّن رُّسُلِهِۦ وَقَالُوا۟ سَمِعْنَا وَأَطَعْنَا غُفْرَانَكَ رَبَّنَا وَإِلَيْكَ ٱلْمَصِيرُ









Baqara 2: 285    The Messenger ˹firmly˺ believes in what has been revealed to him from his Rabb, and so do the believers. They ˹all˺ believe in Allah, His Angels, His Books, and His Messengers. ˹They proclaim,˺ “We make no distinction between any of His messengers.” And they say, “We hear and obey. ˹We seek˺ Your forgiveness, our Rabb! And to you ˹alone˺ is the final return.”







The reward of obedience is sweet and honorable. When they obeyed Him, Allahﷻ honored them by repeating the words of Rasoolullahﷺ and the Sahaba as His Word, to be recited in Salah until the end of time. Allahﷻ gave the Sahaba relief and honored them by te