Change for the Better - Shaykh Wasim Kempson

Change for the Better

I seek refuge with Allah from the evil of our souls and from the evil of our deeds. Whomsoever Allah guides, no one can misguide, and whomsoever He leads astray, no one can guide him. And I bear witness that there is no god but Allah, alone, no partner for Him.

And I bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.

O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared, and do not die except as Muslims.

O you who have believed, fear Allah and say the truth. He will correct your deeds and forgive your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great triumph.

Indeed, all praise and thanks is due to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah, subhanahu wa ta'ala. And I bear witness that Muhammad, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, is His final Messenger.

The Prophet's Desire for Change

We are all aware that our beloved Nabi, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, was born and raised in Makkah. Raised in a society where people worshipped idols — those idols made from rock, from wood, even from food. And as the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, grew up, this is something that he detested. Something that internally he was unable to deal with. Until, as we know, in his thirties, alayhi salatu wa salam, he began spending time on his own in the cave of Hira. And there, as Imam al-Bukhari, rahimahu allahu ta'ala, mentions in his sanad, that the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam, would worship Allah, jalla wa ala, in those solitary times.

No doubt the Prophet, alayhi salatu wa salam, wanted the best for his people. And worshipping these false idols would bring no good to them. But what to do? And how to make a change?

The First Revelation — A Shift from Ignorance to Knowledge

Now, we know that Allah, tabarak wa ta'ala, sent Jibreel, alayhi salam. And Jibreel, alayhi salam, revealed the first five ayat from Surah Al-'Alaq. If we think about these particular verses — how profound and how important they are, being revealed at this time, with respect to what was happening then.

Read, in the name of your Lord, who has created everything that exists. He created man from a clot. Read, and your Lord is the Most Generous. Who taught by the pen. Taught mankind what they did not know.

So there is an immediate shift — from ignorance and a state of not knowing, to having to know, and imparting knowledge to others.

Change Requires Action, Not Just Theory

So the Prophet, alayhi salam, wanted change for his people. And no doubt there are circumstances or situations in our own lives, in our minds, in our hearts, that we want to change. But that change is not going to come about by us just thinking about it. Making a situation better, improving our community, is not going to come about by just having board meetings or just having some mashara between people. There needs to be a physical change as well.

Any change that we require, or any change that needs to be done, is not just in theory. Yes, it starts with the theory, it starts with the knowledge. But ultimately there needs to be some action. There needs to be some proactivity from yourself to make sure that the situation changes.

So the beginning revelation given to the Prophet, sallallahu alayhi wa sallam — those ayat from Surah Al-'Alaq — spoke about the shift from ignorance into knowledge. And if you think about the following sets of ayat, from Surah Al-Muzzammil and Surah Al-Muddaththir, there is a relationship with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

Standing in prayer at night. So the changes begin in yourself and in your relationship with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

Stand up, be alert, and warn people. It means that there needs to be some physical effort, and that you need to do something about changing that particular situation. So the changes are not only internal within yourself — you need to manifest and show those changes, in line with the teachings of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, and in line with how the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa sallam would go about changing his people.

The change you may not even see immediately. How many people embraced Islam at the time of the greatest messenger of all time, the Prophet Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa sallam? The vast majority of people rejected the call. The people in Makkah didn't want to give up what they were holding on to — this idol worship. So don't feel as though the haq that you have is weak. You have done your effort and you have pushed forth and done what is necessary for you, so that you have an argument on Yawm al-Qiyamah in front of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala — that you established the truth against those who may reject it. So never be despondent about the outcome. The outcome is not in your hands. The outcome is in the hands of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala.

The Importance of Sound Knowledge

Whatever change you want to make will require that you gather some knowledge — knowledge which is not only of benefit to you but of benefit to others. And it has to be from authentic sources. Don't just think that you are going to acquire knowledge by skimming through books or listening to debates. Because this is a common practice amongst many of the shabab — that gaining knowledge means going through debates, listening to controversial statements and controversial social media platforms. Unfortunately, the only reason people have a following is because they are mentioning things which are controversial. And people love confusion, unfortunately. Ignorant people are drawn towards confusion.

So it is very important for us, if we are to make a positive change, that it must be based upon sound knowledge — taken from individuals who have sound knowledge, who have themselves taken their knowledge from sound people of knowledge. These are the important signs for us to look out for, to ensure that we are not part of the problem — spreading misinformation, false information. You may have a good niyyah, you may have a good intention, but the goodness of your intention is not always sufficient for you to be rewarded for the outcome, because the outcome must first and foremost be done in the correct way.

If you want to acquire knowledge, it requires you to study, to learn correctly, and to take it from the correct people.

Allah Does Not Change a People Until They Change Themselves

Remember that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will not change the state of a people until they change that which is in their own selves. A very powerful and profound verse in the Quran where Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us:

That Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will not change the state of a people — a qawm — until they change their own situation. In this very beautiful and profound ayah, there is no change that happens to a people hatta — until — there is a change within ourselves. And that change must be in line with what Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has directed us to. We cannot think we are going to be successful by making up our own plans and our own directions. Everything must be in line with the teachings of Allah jalla wa ala and the teachings of the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam.

We ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to change our hal, to change our situation to that which is better.

Second Part of the Khutbah — The Hadith of Changing Evil

بسم الله والحمد لله والصلاة والسلام على رسول الله وعلى آله وأصحابه أجمعين

All praise belongs to Allah. And may the peace and blessings of Allah jalla wa ala be upon His final messenger, Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam.

Now, it is a big topic to talk about change, and the verse that I mentioned — that Allah jalla wa ala will not change the state of a people until they change themselves. But where do we start on this particular topic?

Well, first and foremost, we can start with a hadith of Abu Sa'id al-Khudri, radiyallahu 'anhu, in which the Prophet sallallahu alayhi wa alihi wa sallam told us one of the most important principles for us to live by — in changing a bad situation and how to improve it. These are very important principles for us to follow.

(Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 84)

That if anyone of you sees an evil, then let him change it physically — بِيَدِهِ — with his hand. And if you cannot change it with your hand, then let him change it بِلِسَانِهِ — verbally, with his tongue. And if you are unable to do that, then فَبِقَلْبِهِ — at least in your heart. And that is the weakest of faith.

These are the stages that we go through. With your hand — if you cannot do that, meaning that by changing it the situation becomes worse or you are not in a position to do so, then with your tongue — verbally advise that person. And if you are unable to do that, then with your heart — that at least that munkar, that evil, that wrongdoing, that oppression that you see, at least in your heart you do not accept it.

The Danger of Normalising Evil

An important point, brothers and sisters: perhaps we live in a place where there is a lot of munkaraat, and we do not always have the opportunity to change that physically or even verbally. Those munkaraat that you see — you have to ensure that your heart hates them. Because Allah tabarak wa ta'ala despises them; they are hateful acts to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. So you likewise have to keep in line with that, and what is outlawed within Islam you have to also, within your heart, hate.

What are the consequences of not doing that? A time may come when those munkaraat — because you did not hate them for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala — become normal to you. So you have a statement: "I let people do what they do, it's okay, in this place where we are, that's what people do, that may be the practice, that may be the law, and that's fine for them to do what they do." But at least in your heart, from an Islamic perspective, that is a sin. If you don't have that, and you normalize it, then you will normalize it to those who are around you. And then you will find people not making inkar — not refuting or debunking that which is haram. And so then the haram becomes normal.

So it is an ongoing process for the Muslim to ensure that they are commanding the good and also forbidding the evil. And this is as Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala tells us:

That let there be a group from amongst yourselves who command the good and forbid the evil — and they are the successful ones.

We need to be a people who reflect. You want to make that change? This is a practical step for us now. In whatever good that we see, we encourage people to do that good, to uphold goodness and righteousness. And if there is a munkar and I am able to change it, then let me do that. Don't allow the shaytan to stop you from doing these things — this will only weaken our community.

So we ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to allow us to rise from this, and to allow us to be from those who command the good and forbid the evil. We ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to give us success in this world and in the Hereafter, and to meet Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in a state where He is pleased with us.