“Umar ibn Al-Khattab Comes Running…”⌛️

Umar ibn Al-Khattab Comes Running…

When Allah describes believers in the Qur'an, He says:

They are people who submit things to Allah while their hearts are trembling in fear. وَقُلُوبُهُمْ وَجِلَةٌ أَنَّهُمْ إِلَىٰ رَبِّهِمْ رَاجِعُونَ — their hearts are trembling in fear that "if I return to Allah, will He even have accepted this deed? I don't even know."

The Fear of Hypocrisy in Madinah

In Madinah, there is this idea of the hypocrite — the pretend believer. Somebody who does all the actions but inside they're a disbeliever. And the Prophet, peace be upon him, Allah reveals to him the names of the disbelievers. And he goes and tells one person, Hudhayfah ibn al-Yaman.

And Umar ibn al-Khattab comes running. And he asks Hudhayfah: "I don't want to know who's on the list — but just tell me, am I on the list? Am I a hypocrite?"

Can you imagine? Umar ibn al-Khattab thought he was a hypocrite. He underestimated himself — and we overestimate ourselves.

The Spirit of Allahu Akbar

This is the spirit of Allahu Akbar. Any good that you do — it was because of the greatness of Allah. You are not great. It was the greatness of Allah reflecting in your deeds, but you are not great.

Humble yourself. Stand down. Bow down. Put your head on the ground.