*Note, All khutbahs are in ‘as-delivered format. Consequently, some things may be unclear or omitted in writing as it is written in a way that fits with my own style and prompting methods. Feel free to leave a comment below if any concerns arise.*

Delivered Friday, February 25th, 2022

Goal: It’s okay to be weak, but wallowing in it is unacceptable. 

Part I:

Prelude:

During the time of the prophet… in the earliest stage of Islam, there lived a Makkan woman named Umm Anmaar. 

Wanting someone to help around with household chores and other tasks, she one day decided to visit the slave market, as was customary for the time. 

She came across a young boy who had yet to reach his teenage years, and saw something in him… thus deciding to purchase him as her new slave. 

Eventually, she discovered he was actually an Arab from the Banu Tamim tribe…

captured as a prisoner of war and moved around as a slave. She then placed the young boy as an apprentice to a blacksmith, with him soon proving proficient…. perhaps prodigious even. 

Soon, The young slave became famous for his craftsmanship in Makkah, and people loved dealing with him due to his character full of honesty… and integrity. 

Umm Anmaar… made a lot of money off of him.

Despite his youth, the young boy possessed unique intelligence and wisdom, often finishing his work expeditiously and spending time reflecting on the decadent and corrupt Arab society. He was appalled by the ignorance, Jahil, and tyranny that he witnessed, and was victim to himself.

Although his future was bleak, He would often say..

“After this night of darkness…, there must be a dawn.” And he waited with patience, and hope.

And he didn’t have to wait long. 

When Rasulullah (SAW) received the message and announced the oneness of Allah, calling for an end to injustice and oppression, for an end to the tyranny abound in Arab society…

The young boy responded. 

Despite being a slave, he stretched out his hand and testified that “la ila ha illallah, wa annahum rasulullah!”

There is no God but Allah, and you, Muhammad, are his messenger.

Soon his actions reached the ears of Umm Anmaar, his owner… culminating in a group of youngsters ganging up on him and viciously beating him bloody with their fists and iron bars until he fell to the ground… and lost consciousness.

But it did not stop there.

The leaders of the Quraysh were shocked that a slave would go against them for Islam, and gathered to discuss the… “Muhammad Problem.” As deterrence, they decided for a period that every day when the sun was at its apex and the ground scorching, the young slave should be brought to the town center… stripped of his clothes, dressed in iron armor, and laid on the ground. 

We all know what happens when intense heat finds metal. 

The young boy’s skin would sear [dressed in the iron armor in the sun]… and when all the strength had left him, they would ask him: “what do you say about Muhammad?” And he would reply: “he is the servant of Allah and his messenger, having come to lead us from darkness into light.”

Furious, they would intensify their beatings, and drag his back through flaming charcoal… leaving him in excruciating pain and anguish, until he would repeatedly faint from the agony.

His only recourse came when the Muslims emigrated to Madinah in the 2nd Hijra.

This young boy’s name… was Khabbab ibn-Al-Arat. 

He was among the first 10 to accept Islam, and some even believe him to be the first to publically declare his faith.

—–

In verse 214 of Baqarah, we find another story.

In the later years of Islam, the Muslims were fighting a war. However, this proved to be one of the most daunting campaigns ever, to the extent that which a revered sahabah came forward and cried out to the prophet:

`O Messenger of Allah! Why do you not invoke Allah to support us? Why do you not supplicate to Allah for us’? 

Allah subhana wa ta’ala tells us that the believers in this battle cried out… “Mata Nasrullah”

When is the help of Allah [coming]??

But Allah had long answered this question. He had informed the prophet:

Wa-itha sa-alaka ibadee annee, fa-innee qareeb [2:186]

“And when My servants ask you concerning Me – indeed I am near.”

So Rasulullah responded to the sahabah,

“Ala, inna nasrullahi qareeb.” [2:214]

“Verily, the help of Allah is near” – and they soon found victory indeed.

This revered sahabah who cried out had fought in Badr, fought in Uhud, and witnessed the great expansion of Islam under Abubakar, Umar, Uthman, and Ali, rathiyallahu-anhuma.

And this revered Sahabah was Khabbab ibn Al-Arat… 

Yes, the same young slave who had suffered so much agony in his youth, who had the highest levels of faith…

Yet despite all the trials he overcame in his past, and the strength he possessed… even he was still pushed to the wall, and in his weakness wondered where the help of Allah was.

Khabbab (RA) is often mentioned in tandem with the likes of 

Bilal and suhaib rathiyallahuanhuma.

But as it goes with history…

Some stories shine so brightly that others… can’t help but become overshadowed. 

Intro: 

My brothers and sisters,

Khulika insanu daeefa

Mankind was created weak.

And because we are weak, we require the help of Allah at all times

Which one of us will say he has comparable iman to the sahabas?

If you truly think so, may Allah guide you…

Body: 

Even the strongest of Sahabas, like Khabbab ibn-Al-aratt, still showed weakness at times.

But forget a great sahabah, even Rasulullah (SAW) himself has shown weakness. 

There was a period of about 6 months in which Rasulullah (SAW) did not receive any revelations.

The Makkan Idol-worshippers used this period to taunt him, saying he had lost the favor of Allah, and was not truly the messenger of Allah (editor note: kind of ironic). 

This escalated to a point where even Rasulullah (SAW) became worried Allah was displeased and had forsaken him (highlighting the dangerous impact of words). 

But Allah then sent Angel Jibril (AS) to reassure him.

Wadduha, 

By the morning light

Wallayli itha saja,

And By the night when it covers with darkness,

Ma wad’da aka rabbuka wa ma qala

Your lord has neither forsaken nor detested you.

Rasulullah was still human, after all. 

If even he succumbed to weakness….

What about us?

Wa akulu-kawli hatha, wa’astaghifirhu, innahu huwal ghafurrurahim

Part II:

Alhamdulillah wassalatu wasalamu Ala rasulillah

Intro: 

My brothers. My sisters.

I know it seems I’ve just been rambling on about mankind’s weakness.

So, why?

I wanted to first establish, categorically, that to be weak… is not a crime.

It is expected, even; it is our natural state.

In my previous khutbah,

I said mankind was in a state of loss, “Innal-insana lafi khusr…,” as we learned from Allah azza wa jal in Surahtul Asr.

Since then, however… I have news…

We are still losing….

I mean, how could we not be?

As I rambled in the first half, We were created weak 

And even worse, as brother Redzuan reminded us last week, is that we are all suffering in some form.

“La qadakhalakanal insana fi kabad….” [Surah Balad]

Mankind was created in hardship and toil.

We are weak, and we are struggling, suffering… 

If you didn’t believe me back then, 

Surely by now, you must be convinced… that we are truly at a loss… 

so why lose even more?

But as is the sunnah of Allah, there is hope… 

Earlier, I said Khulika insanu daeefa, quoting verse 28 of surah Nisa.

But that’s actually the 2nd half of the verse.

The first half?

“yureedullahu anyyyukhaf-fifa ankum”

Allah wants to lighten your burdens

Verily, Allah is ar rahman and ar-raheem. Wouldnt it be a joke to create us weak, in suffering, and then make things even harder for us? 

Sayaja’alalllahu ba`da `usrin… yusra [65:7]

Allah always grants ease after hardship. There is always a way forward.

Body: 

My question for us today is, although we were created weak. Although we were created in toil and hardship.

What have we done about it? 

Allah says in suratul Balad [90:-]…

“Falakatahamal Aqaba..

فَلَا ٱقْتَحَمَ ٱلْعَقَبَةَ

But he hath not attempted the Ascent, the steep path.

وَمَآ أَدْرَىٰكَ مَا ٱلْعَقَبَةُ

ah, what will convey unto thee what the ascent is!

فَكُّ رَقَبَةٍ…

Freeing the neck, unshackling the slave

Or giving food on a day when you yourself are hungry

Or to an orphan near of kin.

Or to the poor afflicted with misery

Then he became one of those who believed (in the Islamic Monotheism) and recommended one another to perseverance and patience, and (also) recommended one another to pity and compassion.”

This is path to overcoming weakness.

—-

Al-Dhahabi reported that Imam Al-Ghazali, one of the greatest Islamic scholars in history, may Allah have mercy on him, once said, 

“Know that the religion has two conditions. 

The first is to abandon what has been forbidden. 

The other is to perform righteous acts of obedience. 

Abandoning what is forbidden is more difficult than being obedient. 

Everyone is capable of being obedient, but none are capable of abandoning lowly desires except the truthful. 

For this reason, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: The true emigrant is one who emigrates away from evil, and the one striving in jihad for the sake of Allah is he who strives against his desires.”

From Siyar A’lām al-Nubalā’ 1420

—-

Are we reading Quran as often as we could?

Allah says in Surah Al Isra, chapter 17 verse 82,

وَنُنَزِّلُ مِنَ الْقُرْآنِ مَا هُوَ شِفَاءٌ وَرَحْمَةٌ لِّلْمُؤْمِنِينَ 

We send down in the Qur’an that which is a healing and a mercy to those who believe:

Too often do we find ourselves reducing the Quran, however, to, at best an untouchable religious symbol that we may be afraid to read, 

and at worst: a decoration.

This is like going to the hospital when you have a bacterial infection and getting prescribed antibiotics. However, after going home, instead of taking them, you put the pills in a glass case on your bookshelf… just staring at them daily as you slowly get sicker… wondering why the antibiotics aren’t working until you die of systemic organ failure.

Ya ikhwan,

Are we denying ourselves that which we love but know is prohibited?

Are praying as though each Salah is our last?

Are our deeds for the sake of Allah and not fame and respect?

Are we finding the heart to do good, even when everyone else… is doing it all wrong?

—–

My goal with this Khutbah was not to tell you what to do, or what to think. Deep down, we all know already what is right, and which is wrong. Many of us were lucky to have grown up instilled with the values of Islam… but just as many of us are just starting on this journey. 

We all believe, however, that Islam is truly the light that washes away the darkness. 

I admire sermons that inspire thought, that inspire reflection, and that galvanize faith.

Such is the ideal I hope to emulate.

—

My sisters, my brothers.

We are alive, so we have the ability to make choices.. to change ourselves.. to truly live.

Where there is life, there is the opportunity… to be better

We can live the right way.

The greatest amongst humankind struggled their entire lives to find the truth, to find what is right, and to uphold justice.

Plato, Buddha, St. Augustine, 

And prior to receiving the message, Muhammad Rasulullah (SAW) himself. 

Alhamdulillah, we don’t need to do all that work.

We have a complete way of life handed to us

All we have to do is live it…

—

END:

My brothers and sisters, 

We don’t need to look far for evidence of mankind’s weakness.

It is something accepted as a fact in all cultures

It is something we see in our own actions every single day. 

Yet all cultures also discuss the potential of humans, our ability to transcend ourselves… to master ourselves… all towards a greater purpose.

This is jihad’un nafs… the struggle against the soul, the struggle… against oneself.

This is the highest and noblest form of Jihad.

And as Muslims, it is ordained upon us.

—

My brothers and sisters. 

I am perfectly aware of the difficulty in ascending the steep path towards overcoming our weakness.

I know this is easier said than done.

It is called the steep ascent for a reason, after all.

But, fortunately, or unfortunately, for us,

We say we are Muslim – so we have to do it.

Naturally, If I asked you to climb Kilimanjaro tomorrow, you’d call me crazy.

But if you suddenly woke up in Tanzania, and were left with no choice but to climb…

You’d do it.

You would need to stop periodically and acclimate yourself to prevent altitude sickness. 

But You’d do it.

I’m not asking you to climb the mountain overnight, and I’m not asking you to ascend to the heavens on a flying horse.

I’m just asking us to climb up step-by-step – Today, tomorrow, and for the rest of our lives.

For we find that the things we move towards, eventually come to pass.

My dear brothers and sisters,

The goal is not to be perfect,

The goal is to be stronger than we were yesterday.

Wassalatu Wasallam ala Sayyidina Muhammad ibn Abdullah…

DUA:

Akimussalah: