This talk starts with understanding the term “Faith”- an extensive explanation. A comprehensive understanding of the below mentioned topics makes this an engaging lecture.
•Distinction between faith and knowledge.
•How authentic knowledge helps build up faith.
•Fluctuation of faith and its renewal process.
•Steps to increase faith.
•Focus on worldly life and hereafter – its consequences.
•To ponder about death and arrive at a decision to make a better hereafter.
Bilal Philips – Increasing Faith In Difficult Times
AI: Summary ©
The importance of faith during difficult times is discussed, along with the need to practice Islam to erase evil deeds and improve one's chances of reaching their goals. The speaker emphasizes the importance of practicing Islam and making decisions based on the creator's creation. The segment also highlights the importance of not just saying it, but making things that bring joy and happiness. The segment emphasizes the need to reflect on the experience and prioritize pursuing joy and happiness in one's life.
AI: Transcript ©
Faith increases by good deeds by doing righteous deeds enough.
When we do righteousness, faith increases
in repentance by committing sins, faith decreases
in reap and that's the general formula is enough
is enough
patience in real
estate enough for me
is enough
patience in repentance
is enough.
Slowly
All praise is due to Allah. I welcome you all to this evenings lecture by Dr. abominable Phillips. inshallah, today's topic will be increasing faith during difficult times, I would request Dr. abominable Phillips to deliver a speech Alhamdulillah
wa salatu salam ala rasulillah
operates due to a law and realize Peace and blessings on the last messenger of Allah.
Increasing faith
in difficult times,
is a topic which begins by assuming that we understand what faith is he man, we use the term
faith, we translate the term
but what actually does a man or faith mean and the Islamic context? The definition is belief in the heart, a statement by the tongue and action upon the Pillars of Islam. Faith or Eman is belief
in the heart,
which is stated by the tongue
and acted upon
by the limbs
through the Pillars of Islam.
Now, this definition distinguishes between
knowledge and faith.
Knowledge and faith are knowledge and belief.
There is a distinction here, which is an important distinction, because the person might have very strong faith
which lacks a knowledge base
leading to commitment to falsehood.
One may strongly believe in what is incorrect.
You have people who believe that God is a tree
or the moon
or people believe that they are themselves gods.
And they believe it very
strongly. They can have very firm faith in it.
But without true knowledge, it's firm faith in the wrong thing.
So when we talk about increasing faith, we're talking about increasing true faith,
true faith, which must be preceded by knowledge.
Knowledge provides the foundation for true faith. It's not blind. Yes. Atheists and others like to say
you have blind faith. Your faith is blind. It's not based on reason and knowledge.
It's just something you believe in. But no, that's not correct.
True Faith is based on knowledge.
real knowledge, knowledge, which is authentic knowledge, knowledge which originates with God
With a law subhanho wa Taala. This is where True Knowledge originates.
We have a lot of knowledge in this world.
But not all of it is true.
We have false knowledge, propagated for a variety of purposes.
Whether it is to
remove from people's mind, the need to think about God. So we propagate evolution, we evolved.
We were not created, we evolved. That's false knowledge, but it is popular, it is widespread.
So, True Knowledge originates with the Creator, with that true knowledge, revealed in the form of revelation scriptures to the prophets of God.
That true knowledge is the foundation of true faith.
Now,
we find
this stated very clearly in the Quran in surah, Mohammed, verse 47, verse 1947, Chapter farlam, and who
know that none has the right to be worshipped except a law. No it have knowledge of it, editing it, because your parents said it.
Because somebody told you to say it. This is not faith, not the basis of faith.
That is the basis of custom habit.
But real faith, it comes from knowledge. That's why Prophet Mohammed Salim said, Man Mata, yy Allah mo anahola, la la la de Hernan, Jana,
whoever dies, knowing that none has the right to be worshipped, but the law will enter Paradise.
Whoever dies knowing not to ever dies saying
or people saying for him,
or saying around him, but whoever dies, knowing
that none has the right to be worshipped, except a law will enter Paradise.
That is the criterion
based on knowledge. So
having understood that,
we need to look at
the state of our faith.
How is our faith today?
Does faith remain at a constant? Or is faith fluctuating going up sometimes going down at other times?
I think most of us will say that's true.
We're not always at the same level of faith, it's going up and it's going down.
The prophet may God's peace and blessings be upon him and said, Every heart is covered by a cloud.
Like a cloud, covering the full moon, which causes it to suddenly go dark. But when it passes, the moon shines again.
Every heart is covered by a cloud,
like the cloud, which covers the moon, the full moon, causing it to suddenly go dark. But then the cloud passes. And the moon shines again. That's the faith. Sometimes false to a low and sometimes it comes back again when the cloud passes.
And he said in another simile, faith wears out in your hearts, just as clothes wear out. So ask a lot to renew the faith in your hearts.
Faith wears out in your hearts just as clothes wear out. So ask Allah to renew the faith in your hearts.
So faith fluctuates, it goes up and it goes down and wears out. It's blocked.
So what do we need to increase it? in general? What's the general
Principle before looking at difficult times, let's look at the general principle what is the general principle which causes faith to increase
and decrease?
Somebody tell me
what causes faith to increase and decrease
sin suffering, faith increases by good deeds by doing righteous deeds. When we do righteousness, faith increases by committing sins, faith decreases. That's the general formula.
We find that the international media, they are bombarding misinformation about Islam. They give a wrong meaning of the verses the code is of the Quran, or the Hadith of the prophets of Allah. The media says that Muslims are extremists. I said, Yes, I'm an extremist. I'm extremely kind. I'm extremely merciful. I'm extremely honest. I'm extremely just throughout the world. There are hundreds of Christian journals, there are Hindu channels, there are Janus channel, how many Islamic how many channels we have?
What we should do, we should utilize the science and technology and turn the tables over and utilize it for good work.
This media means of mass communication,
media and Islam, war or peace in truth exposed.
Why the West is coming to Islam. Islam has the solution to the problems of the West, whether it be atheism, secularism, Marxism, communism, Western ism, Islam is the standard to proceed or master them or overcome them all. Islam is not a religion, only for the West. It's a religion for the whole of humankind. Dr. Knight speaks on why the West is coming to Islam, in truth exposed.
Now Satan fits in this picture, in the same category, suggesting sins, encouraging sins, promoting sins, but it's still you who has to do this in for your faith to decrease.
And that's why prophesied Selim had said, Follow up your sins with good deeds.
If you commit a sin, follow it up with a good deed.
And it will wipe it out in AlHassan, at use the hipness say at a law said in the Koran, indeed, righteous deeds, erase evil deeds.
And this is the grace of God. This is the mercy of a law, the good deed is multiplied in its value, so it can wipe out evil deeds. Of course, this is not when you plot and plan. I'm going to do this evil deed. So let me plot plan a good deed afterwards.
No, that's not the one which wipes out evil deeds. Where we commit a sin, we do an evil deed. And then we catch ourselves we realize we shouldn't have done this, this was evil, it was wrong. Then we decide let me do some good to try to erase it. That's the one that erases it, not the ones we plan ahead.
As I spoke before, when people delay their Hajj, delay the pilgrimage to the later years, that's a good deed, which they're hoping to wipe out the evil deeds they're doing now. So they say, you know, we do it later, when we can't do any more evil deeds, we've run out of evil deeds, then we go and make Hajj and wipe it out.
That kind of thinking will not
purify us from sin. Those good deeds will not erase sin, because we have planned it ahead. It has to be sincere. So knowing that
good deeds, erase evil deeds, then considering our circumstance, in our times of trial, whether it's due to the tsunami or other trials which exists within the society, in the country, around the world, whether it is what is happening to people in Iraq or
Kashmir or Chechnya, or whatever, wherever Muslims are suffering.
These are the trials that Muslims are facing. How do we increase our faith?
Fundamentally, it is by practicing Islam, quite simply, not very complicated. Just practice Islam. If we do what Allah tells us to do, then our faith will increase,
our communities will come together, and we will be able to change our situations, and change the world, bring good to the world, be known for good in the world as we were in the past.
And the distant past, we were known as the centers of civilization, where knowledge and learning thrived and flourished. We had no contradiction between science and religion. No, it was all from God.
So people flocked to our universities and to our centers, from all around the world.
The knowledge that is available today of technology, modern science, etc, is built on the knowledge that we taught the world.
But today, we have lost our way.
So how to get back?
Well, the starting point has to be Revelation.
Revelation has to be the starting point, meaning the Quran This is our starting point, there is no other starting point. But the Quran itself the last revelation of God, to humankind, Allah revealed his word, his will.
He showed us the way
in the Koran,
the way
to raise faith, to purify it,
to remove sin
to cure the hearts of their diseases, as he said in Surah, Al Isra verse 80 to 100 luminol or Anima, Hua Shiva, Rama Lal movement in I sent down from the Quran.
What is the cure and mercy for the believers?
I sent down
from the Quran, what is the cure and mercy for the believers? And in Surah Yunus verse 57 he said yeah, are you a nurse? Are the outcome our mirror become? What Shiva Lima, pseudo
what who they are downward
movement in all humankind. Good advice has come to you from your Lord, and the cure for what is in the chests, what is in the hearts and guidance and mercy for the believers. So the primary medicine for our current state of illness, our disease, the hearts, the primary medicine is the Quran itself, which Allah describes as Shiva on a cure for what is in the hearts. But how do we use this cure? A lot tells us if Allah Tada, Bruna Quran, Allah, Allah Subhana Allah, will they not reflect on the meanings of the Quran? Or are their hearts locked up?
Kitab Bonanza na who la cama barra de baru iottie Aleta de cara, oluwole Al Bab, a blessed book, which I have sent down to you that they may ponder over its verses, and that men and women of understanding would remember.
The Quran is for reflection pondering over its verses a law has revealed in its guidance
and the cure for what is in the hearts.
So
our first step towards increasing our faith in these difficult times is to go back to the Quran.
To read it, in Arabic, and in our local languages. The translation of its meanings we should read at the same time, because how can we ponder over it if we read it in the Arabic
Text then we don't know what it says, then we cannot ponder over it.
So we must know what is it Allah is saying to us, so it can have an impact on us. Secondly, we need to seek greater knowledge about Islam as a whole about a law to know who he is correctly, to remove from our hearts and the misunderstandings and the misgivings, and the false
knowledge and the false information.
When need to seek knowledge as the prophet SAW Selim said tolerable enemy for either Allah, Allah Muslim, seeking knowledge is compulsory for every Muslim, primarily knowledge of a law of the creator of this universe, know who he is, accept him in your hearts. Because if you don't accept him in your hearts,
and you only speak about him with your lips, and your tongues, then we will not benefit from anything that we have gained, whether it be knowledge, or in any form of information that we managed to acquire, it will only be for show or to fulfill some rituals, etc. But it will not be beneficial to us, according to a man, according to our hearts, it will not raise the level of our man. And this is why
this is why a last minute Allah said in the Koran, and the 20 and the 35th chapter that's sore on fault here, verse 28. And then if Sham law min a body healer,
indeed, have a lot of servants. It is the scholars who truly fear Him,
indeed, of a law servants, it is the scholars, scholars, the knowledgeable ones, people of knowledge, who fear Him, even
those who
belong to other systems who are scientists, etc. You find that science leads them ultimately to recognize a law because their knowledge of the stars the knowledge of the earth, of biology, etc. It leads them in their heart of hearts, to recognize and to accept
a law. The third
principle that we need to develop
is to remember a law
regularly,
what we refer to as the cruel law,
to remember a law often, as he said, In surah, Herzog verse 41 yojana Dena amanu oscura law has the Quran kathira. Or you who believe remember Allah often
remember, Allah, often,
the prophet SAW sell them. On one occasion when a man complained to him,
that the duties of Islam were too much for him, the prophet SAW Selim told him, keep your tongue moist, with the remembrance of Allah.
And as we mentioned earlier, in the previous lecture, about
the quest for inner peace, allow me the correlator to mine oluwo there is only with the remembrance of a law that hearts can find rest.
So if our faith is to increase, it has to increase with a sense within ourselves of peace, we have to have inner peace, peace within ourselves for that faith that a man to grow. So remembrance of Allah, we have to come to, we have to commit ourselves to it is the purpose of prayer. It's the purpose of fasting. It's the purpose of giving Zakah or charity. It's the purpose of Hajj.
Islam is about remembrance of Allah. So we have to keep that focus there, remembrance of Allah. Remember, there's a goal behind Salah it's not that the the Salah the prayer itself is a means it's not an end. What happens to us is that we may turn it into an end. So we do it it's over. Okay, finally we get on to my business. We're not thinking that
is a means to an end, the end being remembrance of Allah. The Prophet sallallahu I didn't send them preached the number, and many are the miracles that He has given. We think we can talk hours and hours about the number of miracle. They don't number in the hundreds, the number in the 1000s but his greatest miracle was the miracle of
ever used to worship Allah azza wa jal, then Allah is at a high the EverLiving who never does fundamentals of faith.
Allah
all Muslims believe in the one and same load amongst
all Muslims believe in the final and same messenger of Allah Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam for and it is the last revelation of Allah. Allah Himself said, right, I'll take care of preserving myself I would not entrust it to anyone, Dr. Jamal batavi they were no wealth or children would be of any help accept those who come to Allah with a clean hurts because after all, we came from the dust and to dust we are returned.
Faith increases by good deeds by doing righteous deeds enough.
When we do righteousness, faith increases
repentance by committing sins, faith decreases.
Sin repeat that's the general formula is enough.
is enough.
Patience in repentance
is enough for me
is enough.
Patience and repentance
is enough.
A law set in the Koran, Ottomans Sala Lee decree, Ottomans Sala Lee decree established the prayer for my remembrance in order that you remember me. So that is the goal. The goal of worship, is remembrance of a law. So our faith can only increase in these times if we are conscious of a law. If we remember a law in all aspects of our lives, not just sitting after salah and saying Subhana Allah, Al hamdu Lillah Allahu Akbar, yes, that is a form of remembrance of Allah and making dua.
But
remembrance of Allah should not be restricted to this. That is only one aspect. remembrance of Allah should be in whatever we say. bra Sallam said,
Whoever fears or law on the last day will either speak good or remain silent.
So even in our conversations,
even in our conversations, when we choose to be silent, when we have nothing good to say, we are remembering a law. It is a part of remembrance of a law. And when we raise our children, when we consider the education of our children, where should they be educated, we need to find the best place for them to be educated, where they will receive proper Islamic teaching and training.
That this is our duty we owe it to them.
When we think like that, that is remembrance of Allah, remembering our duty to our children, that we give them proper Islamic upbringing. So we are concerned about our children.
We're concerned about our business.
When we have the choice between doing honest business and making a moderate profit, and doing dishonest business and making a great big profit. We remember a law and we're honest,
we do honest business. Because the prophet SAW Salomon said that the best of us are those who are best in character
Heroku
as a no komolika the best of you are the
Best in manners in moral character. This is what is pleasing to Allah. So we remembered a law
and so on and so forth in every aspect of our lives. We remember a law
and in remembering a law,
our faith increases.
The other point that we need to reflect on
for increasing faith is that
we need to reflect on death.
Usually people don't like to hear death, it's a bad omen. Get away from it. And this society, if somebody will step out of your house and somebody goes walking by with a dead body, oh,
death. You don't want to think about it. But the profits are seldom, he said,
Remember the destroyer of pleasures, often?
The destroyer of pleasures, his death, because pleasures and at that point, so remember it often. He said, I used to forbid you from visiting graves, but now you should visit them. For it softens the hearts. It fills the eyes with tears, and it reminds one of the hereafter. But don't do anything false.
visit them often. For it softens the hearts. It fills the eyes with tears and reminds one of the hereafter.
Visit the graveyards.
Be involved in the janazah don't just pray in the masjid when they bring someone for the prayer, the funeral prayer follow the janazah there is more reward to the graveyard until people are buried
and reflect on death, which is around the corner. And it is our forgetting it. Which oftentimes leads us to many sins, we forget that death is around the corner, we keep thinking I'm still young,
at 30 I'm still young, at 40. I'm still young at 50. And as we get older, we still think we're young.
There's still plenty of time that we can repent later, no
death is upon us is upon each and every one of us. Every time that we lie down in our beds and we go to sleep. We are ventured into the state which the Prophet called salatu salam, the sister of death
and it is up to a law whether he will allow our souls to come back to our bodies from our sleep or whether he will keep them
every night.
We have a brush with death.
Every night we have a brush with death.
If we wake up in the morning,
the prophet SAW Selim told us to say Alhamdulillah Allah The ohana.
All praise is due to Allah who gave us life by the AMA matana. After causing us to die.
For la in new Sure. And to him is the return.
The Gathering will be gathered all back to him.
That do is something we should be reflecting on but we don't we just say it. If we manage to say it.
We need to reflect on it. Death is tonight. We're going to meet death tonight.
And if we make it to the morning, let's make that supplication which the brothers also taught us sincerely Alhamdulillah Allah The ohana bioderma matana ya know, sure. All praise is due to Allah
who gave us life brought us back to life after causing us to die
and to Him we will be gathered. So brothers and sisters, remember death.
Let us do
what it causes or what is necessary to help us to remember death and in remembering death. We
should remember the here after in general,
what we will meet,
when we are raised up, when we come before a law, what will be our fate, we should think about it and make it
the basis for our
program in life.
Think about the hereafter. And that's the point I would like us to focus on now.
as Muslims, we all know that this life is a transition.
The Greater Life, the eternal life is the life to come.
This life is only a test.
So therefore, if that is the case, then the life to come, should be where our focus lies.
That is common sense. That is reason that is logic.
But we have to look into our lives and see where the focus is. Is it really on the hereafter? Is it really on the life to come? Or are we lost in the dunya lost in this material world?
Where our greatest concerns about this material world?
Well,
the prophet may God's peace and blessings be upon him,
taught us in a hadith found in synonyms imagine
the principle enunciated by that well known motivational speaker Stephen Covey. In his book, Seven Habits of Highly Effective People. He mentioned among them habits or principle of First things first,
and that's what I'd like us to reflect on right now. First things first, Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu Sallam said,
Men can dunya woman candidate dunya Hama farrakhan Allahu alayhi
wa Jalla fakra, who by na na
wala Mia t Mina dunya. In coochie, Bella,
whoever makes this material world is goal, a law will scatter his affairs.
A law will scatter his affairs, and he will place poverty between his eyes. And he will not get from this world except what a law has written for him.
Dr.
Phillips, doubts about the existence of a law. He has this belief that belief is based on truth, worship God's creation. This is called if we really fear the loss of one to Allah.
Allah looks into an individual's level of faith. And if he sees that his faith is strong when he puts a strong trial on
the best time for a person who's fasting to make his while breaking his fasting, there is nothing that draws you closer to Allah better than obligatory acts. I want to fast every single day of the year. This is not acceptable. in Ramadan, there is little cuddle the night of destiny. So one night is equivalent to 1000 months, whatever you do, and that night, Dawn issues.
Islam is still spreading because it is not the religion of paper. Islam is a way of life. Words of warning on the Day of Judgment, every human being is vulnerable to be touched by him fire. Abdullah Hakim, quick men have rights over women, but women also have rights over. Man we should remember what have we prepared for that? reminder
is
whoever makes this world his goal
How do we know when somebody has made this world his goal? When the only thing he talks about is this world, when you sit down and talk with him, he only talks about his car, his house, his children, his money, his vacation.
That's all he talks about.
That means this world is his goal. He might say, yes, there's an aka. And yes, we are supposed to, you know, come before God, and we will be judged, and there's Heaven and *, but that's not what he talks about.
So if the only thing he talks about is
the things of this life, that is the extent of his conversation,
then we say this life has become his goal.
So a law said that he will scatter his affairs, meaning
he has made this life his goal, so he's only focused on money, how I can get money, how I can make money, how I can save money, you know, how I can spend money, that is his focus.
But what happens is that, though that is his focus, he is not able to deal with it systematically and consistently, what you find is running here is running there is running over here is running over there is
no rest,
his affairs are scattered. And a law will put poverty between his eyes. So even though he's gathering money is increasing, bank account is increasing, etc. But there will be poverty between his eyes, meaning he's fear, he fears, loss of his wealth.
Anybody who he sees who smiles at him, he thinks, oh, he must want something from me.
What is he after?
He cannot treat the smile as a friendly gesture. No, that person's got something in the back of his mind. His planning is plotting to get some of my money. She is always thinking.
So he's suspicious of everybody around him. Poverty is between his eyes. It may be so much so that when the stock market crashes, we read about it in America.
a stockbroker, he's he has a fortune of $8 million stock market crashes, he loses $5 million.
That hits him so hard. The loss is so great. He jumps out of the window. He still has 3 million left. Hey, you what you could do with three? No, but for him that loss is so devastating, he takes his life.
And we see it among the rich and famous, how many of them take their lives. They seem to have everything that we're supposed to have, or that people want and desire. But yet they're killing themselves committing suicide, their lives are in shambles.
Because we cannot achieve
happiness,
peace of hearts, through the dunya we can't.
It is a false story, an image which is promoted through the media, through the newspapers, the magazines, the television promotes this beautiful picture, which is only a facade it's fake. What is behind it is corruption, on happiness, wretchedness, because people have made this world their goal.
And even after all of that, after running around here, there and everywhere, trying to gather whatever we can of this world.
We will only get what God, Allah subhanho wa Taala has already written for us no more. What God already wrote before He created us is going to be our lot. We will not get any more than that.
So then, what is the alternative? Prophet Muhammad Sallallahu wasallam said
woman can Attila Hara, Nieto, Gemma Allahu Allahu amre wa Jalla Hina houfy can be
attached with dunya we're here all Hema
Omen cannington Akira tonita whoever makes the hereafter his intention
Jama Allahu Allahu Allah, Allah will bring his affair together.
How do we know when somebody is Nia or his intention is the Hara, you will see how he conducts his life, he or she conducts his life. They are not tied up with all of the trappings of this life.
They're not focused on gaining and getting and going and taking and
living a high life, and enjoyable life. No, they take from this world, what is necessary, they live simple lives.
And when you talk to them, about the things of this world, they talk about it as if it is something temporary. Yes, we have this, but Allah could take it away anytime. We have it for a time. And so I'm going to try to use this in a way that's pleasing to Allah. Allah has blessed me with a car, then I will use that car part of the time, to spread his word,
to distribute information about Allah, and about Islam to the society, I will use it to help the needy, I use it some time for things other than just myself. And so I will deal with all of the various properties that I have.
I will look at four ways and means that I can use it to earn blessings for myself, not just to consume it.
We shouldn't be consumers. Yes, we consume, but we shouldn't be consumers meaning that's the sum total of our lives No, we should utilize, we should exploit
this world and the things of this world in order to benefit us. In the next world. That should be our focus. How can I use this which Allah has given me to benefit me in the world to come? That should be our focus?
Such a person, then the ashira is his or her intention?
Gemma Allahu Allahu Allah. In such a case, then a law brings their affair together, all of their affairs come together, they are relaxed, they can deal with the issues of life. They're not confused. You ask them where you're going, what are you doing, what are you planning to do, etc, they're able to give you answers just like that. Very easy, because the way is clear.
The way ahead is clear, where they're headed, what they want to do is clear.
And a law said, through His Messenger, that
a law will put richness in his heart, what jala he now who will be, he will put his richness, his wealth, his wealth and richness will be in his heart.
There will be something around him also. But the real wealth and richness will be in his heart. As the prophet SAW Selim said, it cannot be achieved through drugs. It cannot be achieved through music. It cannot be achieved through yoga. It cannot be achieved through anything of this world.
It can only be achieved through the heart, linking itself with a law, remembering a law,
focusing on the hereafter. So to increase our faith, back to the beginning.
We need to know what faith is.
There's a difference between knowledge and faith.
Satan had knowledge.
Satan knew a law
better than you or I.
But he didn't have faith.
So there's a difference between the two.
We need to have faith, but that faith should be based on knowledge.
Let's increase it by righteous deeds. This gathering is a righteous deed.
If we have come here to gain
Some knowledge about a law, about God about Islam about the way of life which Allah has prescribed for men. So I asked her last one was Allah
to not let any of us leave this gathering, without renewing our faith,
without renewing our faith and our commitment,
to First things first to the Hereafter, to making the hereafter our goal and our intention and to changing our lives so that it reflects that goal and intention.
As it said, actions speak louder than words. You've heard me. You agree, and you can repeat what I said. What will you do? According to what I said, and you heard?
And you said, that is the question. I asked a lot to help each and every one of us leave this gathering with a renewed intention to make the AF era. Our goal, to step out of here and to try to turn our lives around into lives that are pleasing to Allah subhanho wa Taala to lives which reflect focus on the hereafter. Salaam Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
is enough for me patience and repentance
is enough for me, patience and repentance
is enough for me
is enough for me.