Ammar Alshukry – Serving The Deen
AI: Summary ©
The importance of serving the Prophet Muhammad and learning from the Prophets is discussed, as well as the need for da'inos to benefit from it. The community's opportunities for providing support and opportunities for da' centers are emphasized, along with the importance of giving da' minor resources and moments to take advantage of opportunities. The speaker emphasizes the need for individuals and community to act like the bird in Surah and provide resources for them, as well as sharing news of events and programs and engaging in activities like giving da' minor resources.
AI: Summary ©
We seek His guidance and we seek His
forgiveness and we seek refuge in Allah from
the evil of ourselves and the whispering of
our desires.
Whom Allah guides no one can misguide and
whom He allows to be misled no one
can guide.
And I bear witness that there is nothing
worthy of worship except Allah alone having no
partners and that Muhammad ﷺ is His slave
and His messenger and His perfect worshipper.
Ja'far ibn Abi Talib had migrated to
Abyssinia and as you know he famously was
the one who gave the address to the
Najashi explaining to the king of Abyssinia why
they had left their homelands and why they
were being persecuted and the message that Rasulullah
ﷺ had come with.
Ja'far and that group stayed in Abyssinia
for 11 years and they would not return
back to the Arabian Peninsula until after the
conquest of Khaybar in the 7th year.
The Prophet ﷺ was in Medina for 7
years before the Muslims came back from Abyssinia
and when they arrived it was a big
deal and Rasulullah ﷺ said, I don't know
what I am more happy about the conquest
of Khaybar or the Qudumi Ja'far or
by the arrival of Ja'far ibn Abi
Talib, the Prophet ﷺ's cousin.
Ja'far who had sacrificed and left his
homeland when the sahaba were homesick from Medina
when they had migrated to Medina you can
imagine the homesickness of someone who migrated to
another continent and yet when Ja'far arrived
what was his role in the Muslim community
after that great sacrifice that him and that
community had offered?
Did he retire?
The Prophet ﷺ immediately placed him in a
position of leadership for the campaign of Mu'tah
where Ja'far ﷺ would be martyred.
The sahaba radiallahu anhu went from one stage
of worship and sacrifice to another stage of
worship and sacrifice.
They didn't put in work for 10 years,
15 years and then retire from da'wah
because I've already put in my time.
I served in this capacity when I was
in university, I served in this capacity in
my 20s, I served in this capacity in
my 30s, I served in this capacity in
my 40s and now I'm resting on my
laurels and I become a consultant to Islamic
work.
I want to speak in this brief khutbah
about serving the deen.
It's as simple as that.
What we learn from the companions and what
we learn from the Prophets of Allah in
the Qur'an.
We learn that serving the deen is a
lifelong endeavor.
It doesn't matter what stage a person is
in.
We see Nuh ﷺ calling his people, فَلَبِثَ
فِيهِمْ أَلْفَ سَنَةٍ إِلَّا خَمْسِينَ عَامًا Allah ﷻ
says, that he was amongst his people for
a thousand years except for 50, 950 years
he's calling them to Allah ﷻ.
We see that it was the role of
Prophets who were parents, no matter how righteous
their children were.
Up until the last moment that they are
alive, Allah ﷻ says, أَمْ كُنْتُمْ شُهَدَائِذْ حَضَرَ
يَعْقُوبَ الْمَوْتِ Were you there when Ya'qub
was approached by death?
What did Ya'qub say to his children?
ما تَعْبُدُونَ مِنْ بَعْدِي What are you going
to worship after me?
Could you imagine a man who is a
Prophet, the son of a Prophet, the grandson
of a Prophet, a father of a Prophet,
and yet still as he's dying, he's asking
his children, what are you going to worship
after me?
As if he didn't spend their entire lives
teaching them what they should worship.
And yet they still say, نَعْبُدُ إِلَهَكَ وَإِلَهَ
آبَائِكَ And then that same son, Yusuf ﷺ
of Ya'qub, we learn that it is
independent of your status in society.
Yusuf ﷺ is a prisoner.
And yet when those two prisoners, fellow prisoners
come to Yusuf, and they're asking him for
the interpretation of a dream, what does Yusuf
ﷺ say?
He says, يَا صَحِبَيِّ السِّجْنِ أَأَرْبَابٌ مُتَفَرِّقُونَ خَيْرٌ
أَمِي اللَّهُ الْوَاحِدُ الْقَهَارُ He says, O prisoners,
they're coming to ask him for the interpretation
of a dream.
That's what they're there for.
But Yusuf ﷺ realizes in that moment that
he has their attention because they need to
hear his answer.
So before he answers their question about the
dream, what does he do?
He gives them a speech telling them, Are
multiple gods better?
Or Allah ﷻ, the one, the alone, the
overpowering?
Yusuf is in prison, yet he's still giving
da'wah.
We learn in the Qur'an, we see
that it is independent of a person's knowledge.
Some of us, we might feel like, you
know what, I would love to give da
'wah, but I don't know enough.
I would love to serve the deen, but
isn't that the role of people who have
studied for years and people who can give
speeches?
No, Allah ﷻ in fact tells us about
a people who had three messengers sent to
them in Surah Yaseen.
Three messengers.
Could you imagine if you had three messengers?
If you had three scholars in a city,
you'd feel like, ah, khalas, it's taken care
of, everything's taken care of.
I got three big sheikhs, mashaAllah, tawbarakAllah.
Sounds like click.
There's nothing for me to do.
But what does Allah ﷻ tell us?
He tells us of a place that has
three messengers.
And they're calling people to Allah ﷻ.
And yet Allah ﷻ tells us about a
man, وَجَاءَ مِنْ أَقْسَ الْمَدِينَةِ رَجُلٌ A man
came from the end of the city.
What did he have to add to the
conversation?
He said, يَا قَوْمِ اتَّبِعُ الْمُرْسَلِ He said,
oh my people, follow the messengers.
تَبِعُوا مَنْ لَا يَسْأَلُكُمْ أَجْرًا وَهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ Follow
those who are not asking you for any
payment and they're guided.
If I have nothing else to add, I
don't have any fiqh to add, I don't
have any theology to add, I don't have
anything to add other than to tell you,
come and listen to this person.
That's that person who's inviting, they come with
their car full.
When they come to an event, they don't
come alone.
They come with their car full and they're
telling people and they're saying, come and listen,
come and benefit.
تَبِعُوا مَنْ لَا يَسْأَلُكُمْ أَجْرًا وَهُمْ مُهْتَدُونَ Everybody
has something that they can contribute to the
deen of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
Everybody.
And so the question that we all have
to ask ourselves is, what am I doing
to serve the deen?
Rasulullah ﷺ he says, بَلِّغُوا عَنِّي وَلَوْ آيَةٍ
He says, narrate about me, even if it's
a single verse.
If all you know is قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ
حَتْ then teach قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ حَتْ Share
that with somebody else.
If all you know is الحمد لله رب
العالمين الرحمن الرحيم and I can teach it
to somebody, whether they are Muslim or non
-Muslim, then let me do that.
But let every single one of us contribute
to the preservation and the spreading of the
deen of Allah.
أَقُولُوا مَا سِمِعْتُمْ وَاسْتَغْفِرُوا اللَّهَ إِلَيْهِ وَلَكُمْ
فَاسْتَغْفِرُوا إِنَّهُ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ الحمد
لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله وعلى آله
وصحبه السلام سيماً كثيراً Not only do we
see those who are everyday civilians contributing to
the da'wah in the Qur'an but
we even see animals.
Allah سبحانه وتعالى tells us the story in
Surah An-Naml of a hoodhood, a bird
that comes to Sulaiman and says to him
أَحَطُّ بِمَا لَمْ تُحِتْ بِهِ وَجِئتُكَ مِن سَبَعٍ
بِنَبَئٍ يَقِيمٍ I recognize and I saw what
you did not see.
Saying to Sulaiman, someone who had control of
the wind, had access to the jinn and
could had a dominion the likes of which
no one had ever seen or will ever
have after him.
And this bird comes to Sulaiman and says
to him I recognize and I saw what
you did not see.
What did you see?
I saw that there was a community that
is worshiping the sun and they are in
need of da'wah.
You know what?
Maybe I have access to spaces and places
that the community otherwise doesn't have access to.
Maybe I go to the library and I
see that you know what?
This library is in need.
I'm looking and checking the section about Islam
in the local library and I'm not happy
with the books that I'm seeing.
So let me come back.
I don't have the resources necessarily to change
it myself.
Like the bird didn't have that resources to
change and give da'wah itself.
But it came back to Sulaiman and said,
hold on a second.
I see a space, I see a place,
I see a community that is in need
of da'wah and I see what you
do not see.
And so when you have people, an entire
community that is looking for opportunities to give
da'wah.
When all of us keep an eye out
for opportunities and places and moments where we
can take advantage of it.
Even if I don't necessarily have the resources
myself but I come back and I say
to the leadership of the community, I say
guys, this is an opportunity that we have.
Can we take advantage of it?
This is a resource that we have.
This is a community that is being neglected.
That is in our own backyard.
That should be in our jurisdiction that we
should be giving da'wah to.
That we act like the bird in Surah
An-Naml.
And so I want to end with what
are a few practical examples.
And I don't want to restrict to these
practical examples because the examples are way too
many.
But I just want to make one point.
There was a youth director that I met
one time.
He's a dosimetrist.
So he works in healthcare.
He's got a full-time job, a career.
But he was a youth director in his
community.
And I asked him, I said, why do
you do this as a volunteer?
Why are you a youth director?
It takes so much time.
And he said to me something that I
found to be profound.
He said, you know, I have a daughter
who's very young.
And right now I'm in a stage in
her life where she's very close to me
and my word is like the dominant thing.
Whatever Baba says, that's the truth.
And he says, I hope I always have
that great of a relationship with her.
But I also know that likely when young
men and young women reach 12, 13, 14,
15, 16, those who they prioritize around them
are not their parents anymore, but it's their
friends.
And so because there might be a time
when her friends are more influential on her
than even her parents, I want to make
sure that I'm influencing her friends.
And that's why I am a youth director
so that inshallah ta'ala in the future,
my daughter is protected by the community that
I'm investing in.
And so a few aspects here.
Having concern for the ummah, having concern for
the community.
That's the first step.
The second is sharing news of events and
programs.
Like I mentioned that a person not just
come by themselves to a program, but a
person comes and brings people with them.
Commanding good and forbidding evil.
The Prophet ﷺ says, whoever of you sees
an evil, don't let them change it with
their hand.
And if they can't, don't let them change
it with their tongue.
And if they can't, don't let them change
it with their heart.
Engaging munkar when you see it.
And interacting with people where they are.
Giving da'wah where you are.
The Prophet ﷺ, the majority of his da
'wah was not on the minbar.
The majority of the da'wah of the
Prophet ﷺ while he was interacting with people
in everyday spaces.
And so our da'wah cannot just be
in formal settings all the time in the
masjid.
But while you're in a car with somebody,
while you're shopping with somebody, while you're interacting
with someone, wherever you are.
That's the perfect time for you to remind
them about Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.
We ask Allah to allow us to hear
the speech and follow the best of it.
اللهم إنا نسألك الجنة وما قرب إليها من
قول وعمل ونعوذ بك من النار وما قرب
إليها من قول وعمل اللهم آتي نفوسنا تقواها
زكيها أنت خير من زكاها أنت وليها ومولاها
اللهم اخسم لنا من خشتك ما تحول به
بيننا وبين معصرتك ومن طاعتك ما تبلغنا به
جنتك ومن اليقين ما تهون به علينا مصائب
الدنيا ومتعنا اللهم بأسماعنا وأبصارنا وقواتنا أبدا ما
أبقيتنا واجعله الوارث منا واجعل فأرنا على من
ظلمنا وانصرنا اللهم على من عادانا ولا تجعل
مصيبتنا في ديننا ولا تجعل الدنيا أكبر همنا
ولا مبلغ علمنا ولا إلى النار مصيرنا واجعل
الجنة هي دارنا برحمتك أرحم الرحمن رَبِّ ارْحَمْهُمَا
كَمَا رَبَّيَانِ سَغِيرَةٍ رَبِّ ارْحَمْهُمَا كَمَا رَبَّيَانِ سَغِيرَةٍ
اللهم ارحمك بأهل المستضعفين المنكوبين في كل مكان
اللهم ارحمك بأهلنا في سوريا اللهم كن لهم
معينا يوم قل المعين اللهم انصرهم نصرا مؤزرا
اللهم ارحمك بأهلنا في فلسطين والسودان وسائر بلاد
المسلمين اللهم زلزل عرش التواغيط الظالمين وأذن بفرج
قريب لعبادك المحيدين واشفي صدور قوم المؤمنين وصلى
الله على سيدنا محمد أقوم إلى صراتكم يرحمها