Mufti Menk – How to attain Allah’s mercy

			Salam Alaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh
		

			Bismillah al Rahman al Rahim al hamdu Lillah wa salatu salam ala rasulillah. Allah, Allah, he was
happy in my beloved brothers and sisters, the punishment of Allah subhanho wa Taala is something
that we should all fear. And the truth is, every time a calamity strikes every time something
happens, it's only natural for us to ask ourselves is this the punishment of Allah? You see dark
clouds, Allah has sent dark clouds in the past to nations to destroy them. So it is only a good
question to ask yourself, are these dark clouds coming to me as a punishment? Or are they coming to
us as a Rama and the mercy of Allah? Or is it actually going to come with destruction, but not a
		

			punishment? A test? So these are three things we need to understand. How do we look at this? Now the
only answer can be from Revelation. I cannot come up with an answer from my pocket, nor can you so I
have to turn the pages of the Quran and the Sunnah of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, and I
have to look at what Allah says about the punishment and the mercy of Allah, because those are two
that are qualities of Allah subhanho wa Taala. And it is something Allah has promised. So let's take
a look at surah to the era, verse number 156, where Allah subhanho wa Taala speaks about.
		

			Allah says, Allah, Allah be also a boogie man.
		

			He says, It is my punishment, and I will inflict it on whomsoever, I wish.
		

			That this brings about a lot of fear. Because Allah says my punishment, I will inflict it on
whomsoever I wish.
		

			But now we have something else that Allah says to us that I will never punish a person unless he or
she deserves the punishment. So behind Allah, so I need to know Allah is not going to punish me
unless I deserve the punishment. And if I deserve the punishment, Allah says, still, I may forgive
you, and I may just wipe out your sins, by my mercy,
		

			even though you had deserved to be punished Subhana Allah, so let's understand, Allah is not going
to punish an innocent person. Do you know why he is just, if you want to be saved from the
punishment of Allah subhanho wa Taala you need to seek the forgiveness of Allah every day.
		

			You need to be in the company of good people. Where do we get this from? Again, the Quran, Allah
speaks about the co founder of Quraysh. They were harassing the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi
wa sallam, they were doing so much against the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. And it's so
simple to understand that if this is the most loved of creation unto Allah, and you are troubling
him, you harassing him, Allah can wipe you out, right? But Allah subhanho wa Taala speaks about
something amazing. Allah says Ganon
		

			warmer can Allah
		

			Allah will not punish them for as long as you are in their midst. Notice how I said you must have
good company, it will bring about the mercy of Allah. Your friends must be better than you. Your
friends must have language with no F's and Bs Subhana Allah, your friends must speak the truth. They
must be upright individuals, they must remind you of Allah, you will never regret that the minute
your circle is dirty, you may deserve the punishment of Allah, when your circle is clean, will law
he My beloved brothers and sisters, sometimes Allah does not punish us because of one man in our
community whom he loves. Evidence of it is this verse, this verse, Allah says, You know what, how
		

			can we punish them? When you are there? You are right in their midst, Allahu Akbar, may Allah grant
us the love of one another. You never know who is the Valley of Allah. You never know who is the
friend of Allah subhanho wa Taala. So we have that. Allah says, while you are in their midst, we're
not going to punish them. So punishment cannot come in that condition. Secondly, we will never
punish them while they are seeking the forgiveness of ours while they are seeking the forgiveness of
Allah. That means if I want to divert or avert punishment that is coming in my direction. First
thing I need to seek the forgiveness of Allah. The problem with men is man says people are bad.
		

			That's why Allah is punishing them. But he doesn't look at himself being bad. You see, we point
fingers at others. That man is like this.
		

			This woman is like that that one is committing that this one is coming. What about you and I? in
Allah, Allah yovani Roma be comin
		

			ye Roma be
		

			fusi him, Allah won't change the condition of a community or a nation until and unless every
individual changes his own condition, May Allah help us change our conditions. So this is as far as
I'm going to go speaking about the punishment of Allah. But let's continue with the verses because
when we talk of the mercy of Allah, we will automatically understand how to protect ourselves from
the punishment. So Allah says in the very in the same verse, Allah says, After speaking about the
punishment, and saying, I will inflict with it, whoever I wish, and I explained to you who that is,
then Allah says, what it was he had shown me As for my mercy, it has encompassed everything. My
		

			brothers and sisters, what ever you and I have, is because of the mercy of Allah, we don't deserve
it. We don't deserve it. If I were to tell you, do you know that you are your heart beats 136,000
times a day, if you were to pay one grand for every heartbeat. And I'm sure we would, I mean, if we
had to people do pay an arm and a leg when the heart goes wrong, when your heartbeat is not right,
you go to every cardiologist on earth in order to find out what's going on. And that's it, you will
pay 1000s you'll want to borrow or whatever else, because your heartbeat is going wrong. Did you
ever praise the one who gave you 136,000 heartbeats on average, on a daily basis? Imagine 136,000
		

			rounds a day. You can't do that even if he gave you 50% discount, even if he told you 90% discount
you and I cannot afford that. May Allah subhanho wa Taala forgive us. So my beloved brothers and
sisters, Allah says
		

			the whole world the entire creation is standing upon the mercy of Allah. It is because of the mercy
of Allah, It is reported that Israel field will blow the trumpet, declaring the end of the entire
creation and world meaning this particular world before it we are resurrected again into what Allah
wills when Allah is angry with the people on earth. So it's our field will blow the trumpet, ending
this worldly life that we know completely. And Allah subhanho wa Taala will resurrect us later but
when will that happen? When allies angry with us? So whatever we are having right now is because of
the mercy of Allah. That's why when someone says how are you my brother? What's the good answer? And
		

			hamdulillah even though you're suffering, people say everything okay? It's not okay, but what's the
answer? Alhamdulillah right around. What's another answer? Sugar, what's sugar? It means gratitude.
Thanks to Allah. People say how's business you suffering a loss, but you say sugar, what does that
mean? I'm thanking Allah.
		

			May Allah subhanho wa Taala grant us his sugar, meaning the ability to be thankful and show
gratitude. So this is something amazing that Allah is telling us rahmati My Mercy encompasses
everything, but who will I write it for? who deserves it? For socktober ha Lin Nadine Taku tuna
cerca de la? Vina wubi Tina, you know, I will write it for those. And when Allah says I will write
it, he has written it. He says I will write it for those little Latina akun those who have Taqwa,
I'm going to translate that just now. What are you doing as Zakat those who give charities to the
poor and Zakah also means to develop yourself as gear. It means to develop yourself, your character,
		

			your conduct, and your qualities. The heart needs to be cleansed when it comes to how it interacts
with the rest of creation. So taqwa Zakat, and those who believe firmly in our science, when Latina
home big now you know, those who believe in our science, they have Taqwa and they have and they give
Zakat, those are the ones who we will write our mercy for
		

			my brothers and sisters, these things depict two major aspects of our relationships. taqwa is to
develop the correct relationship with Allah, to have
		

			enough love of Allah that would keep you away from that which is bad and harmful to you, as well as
displeasing to Allah.
		

			I love Allah so much. I don't want to displease him. So it is, it is something it is a fear that is
born out of love. That's something people don't explain. Usually, when someone says fear Allah, I
mean, I'm not scared to the degree that I am petrified of meeting him. No, I must love him to the
degree that I don't want to disobey Him because I fear his displeasure and his anger. It's true. I
fear his punishment as well out of love. Imagine when you love
		

			Someone and I always give this example a spouse, you just newly got married and you really love your
spouse. Notice I said newly married because later on only Allah knows what happens.
		

			May Allah bless us all and grant us all the happiest of marriages. I mean, so you know when you
newly married and you don't want to say anything that will actually hurt your spouse, not because
you fear them but because you fear hurting them, you fear upsetting them out of love, it's love. So
it's the love of Allah. The love of Allah is everything. That love of Allah. The taqwa is born out
of love of Allah. And that includes fear. Because you actually fear the displeasure of Allah, the
Wrath of Allah, the anger of Allah, the punishment of Allah. So Allah subhanho wa Taala is telling
us quite clearly he is saying something amazing. He says
		

			taqwa alladhina takuna On one hand, they develop the correct relationship with Allah. And on the
other hand, you tuna czaka they develop the correct relationship with the human beings around them,
the poor, the downtrodden, the people who don't have as much as you, the people around you, how do
you treat them? Do you give them and notice a charity in Islam as much as Zakah is monetary and
material? Without a doubt, but charity in Islam goes beyond material giving. Tabasco coffee, Africa
sadaqa the Hadith says your smile at the face of your fellow brother is a charity Subhanallah your
expression on your face. Come in half Ashutosh Bashar, you're happy, you're smiling Salam Alaikum
		

			How are you, my brother, etc, etc. And you're looking so good, Mashallah. And that is actually a
charity. It is a huge charity. Sometimes it is priceless. Sometimes people don't need your money.
The people in your Masjid, for example, in your locality in your areas, they may not need your
money. They just need you to be a genuine sincere person who cares for them as much as they care for
themselves. Today, westernization is taking over and one of the weaknesses is people are becoming
selfish. It's all about me, myself and I, I must grow, I must have the money. I must have the
business. I must have the goodness and everybody else nothing. I don't care and I'm not bothered.
		

			But if I'm doing well, I am okay. I'm sitting in my house. Me and my kids are doing well. And that's
it. No, a true moment. alladhina you tuna? sakata? Did you look for the poor? Did you find them? Did
you reach out to them? Did you give them with respect and dignity. That's what it is. Today we have
organizations and in that Abdullah aid, whoever else it may be across the globe, genuine people who
are doing our work for us. So we are lucky by right we were supposed to look out for the poor search
for them, hunt them, respect them, honor them, give them with dignity because my pillar of Islam is
being fulfilled by your presence in our community and society. If you are not here, how would I have
		

			fulfilled Zakat, even if I have the millions and there is a sign of the AMA that tells us there will
come a time when nobody will be accepting Zakat because everybody's going to be loaded.
		

			The youngsters say hey, I can't wait for that time Hey, I need the money when Subhana Allah but you
don't realize a door will be closed Mashallah, may Allah make this rain that we're having right now.
The rain of mercy, beautiful rain, Mashallah. May Allah make it rain Have mercy and not the rain of
others.
		

			So as I'm saying, zeca What is that all about? Why does Allah say my Rama, my Rama will descend on
those who have a good relationship with me. Your taqwa will lead you to your proper dress code, your
taqwa will lead you to leaving things that are doubtful something you're doubting critics. People
ask me, you know, am I allowed to do this, for example? And I say SubhanAllah. You know, they will
ask you, I'm just giving you an example. They'll ask you, you know, there is a nail polish that I
		

			came across him they've sworn that it's permeable. And so can I use this nail polish and I will tell
them, You know what,
		

			if you if you use it, and you believe that it's permeable, because they told you that and half the
world is telling you it's not. If you have Taqwa, you're going to say, Listen, I'm not going to
compromise my relationship with Allah because of one inch of paint. I'll use something else. I'll
use henna. That's the best answer. I don't want to get into the debate as to whether it's permeable
or not. I have enough taco I should be having enough taqwa. May Allah strengthen us to say you know
what my relationship with Allah is more important. Leave it you find a place people are saying
halaal people are saying haram eat veggies that day. You know why? Because my relationship with
		

			Allah is far greater than a burger. It's far greater than the chips but sometimes people are
prepared to compromise that relationship. May Allah strengthen us. My beloved brothers and sisters,
that is taqwa taqwa is when you can take your time in sala de quoi is when you can enjoy what he
Bader you are fulfilling for the sake of Allah. When you do that Allah says my Rama will be written
for you.
		

			Automatically you need a relationship with who, with the other people, Allah created them, your
neighbors, the people who you might not have liked. It's easy to be good to someone you like. What
about those who don't really get along with you? Are you good to them? Are you genuine to them? Are
you okay? Will you reach out to them? Will you go out and look for them and be kind to the poor and
so on. That is called your tuners aka you know what Allah says when Medina whom big Now you may know
those who believe in our science, and you know who are those
		

			and levena Tabby Oh Nara Solon Abbey.
		

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			amazing verse
		

			where Allah subhanho wa Taala says they are the ones who follow the messenger
		

			who was unlimited. Unlimited by the way does not refer to an educated as though there are a lot.
Nabi sallallahu Sallam was the most highly educated He was educated by Allah he was given the gift
he knew more than everyone put together.
		

			So Allah didn't want him to read and write simply because he didn't want them to say that he read
from elsewhere and he wrote something. And that's quite clear in the Quran, Allah says he didn't
learn to learn, had he been able to read or write
		

			then some people might have come to create doubts. But Allah says you know what he was the most
highly educated to this day. We have teachings that will bold midwicket will bow out any
		

			educated person.
		

			Look at the virus that has taken over by storm. Tell me the role of the black seed. Tell me the role
of the oil, the black seed oil and what it played and continues to play and where did it come from?
Subhan Allah? What did they find its contents?
		

			Did they not find the contents of it, including some chloroquine? Subhan Allah, Who taught us when
we say Unlimited, we are never ever referring to something derogatory or something blasphemous. May
Allah grant us ease.
		

			Those who want to achieve the Wrath of Allah, they will follow them maybe
		

			they will follow his path, they will follow his way.
		

			And why? Because whatever he brought was good. Whatever he does, whatever he told us not to do was
bad.
		

			And he enjoined that which was good, and he told us to enjoy what is good. He discouraged and
prohibited evil and he told us to prohibit evil.
		

			If you follow his path,
		

			you will definitely be successful. Allah says Allah a homophone.
		

			Those are the ones who are successful. So I end on this note, and I just want to recap and remind
myself and yourselves to see if we would like to be protected from the punishment of Allah. We need
definitely.
		

			If we want to be protected by the from the punishment of Allah, we need to seek the forgiveness of
Allah May Allah forgive us.
		

			If we want the mercy of Allah, we must develop a relationship with Allah be kind to fellow human
beings
		

			and follow the Sunnah of Rasulullah saw Salah
		

			May Allah subhanahu wa taala grant us every success of Guru Cody hava also Allahu wa salam ala
nabina Muhammad