"Remember Me & I Will Remember You" - Sheikh Ahsan Hanif

Opening — Khuṭbah al-Ḥājah

إِنَّ الْحَمْدَ لِلَّهِ تَعَالَى نَحْمَدُهُ وَنَسْتَعِينُهُ وَنَسْتَغْفِرُهُ، وَنَعُوذُ بِاللَّهِ مِنْ شُرُورِ أَنْفُسِنَا وَمِنْ سَيِّئَاتِ أَعْمَالِنَا، مَنْ يَهْدِهِ اللَّهُ فَلَا مُضِلَّ لَهُ، وَمَنْ يُضْلِلْ فَلَا هَادِيَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ، صَلَّى اللَّهُ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا.

The Certainty a Muslim Has in the Words of Allah

Allah says in the Quran, and his speech is true, and his words are true. And any time we come across a verse of the Quran, whether we read that verse or hear that verse being read to us, it is the mindset of the Muslim that every single verse and every single word in that Quran is true — because it is from Allah. And we have complete and full certainty in every single thing that Allah says: be it a story from the stories of the past, be it one of the commandments that Allah gives to us, or be it a verse that is conditional — that if you do something, then Allah will respond in a certain way.

That is the Iman and the Aqidah of a Muslim.

The Central Verse: "Remember Me and I Will Remember You"

Allah says in one of those conditional verses — verse 152 of Surah al-Baqarah — a verse that addresses our situation. Because we, in the society and the time that we live in, live in an increasingly materialistic society, a society which is very much surface in the sense that the way that we look at people and the way that we judge other people is dependent upon the way that they dress, or the way that they look, or the title that they hold, or the car that they drive, or the house that they live in. This is the way that society has formulated our minds to think.

We think in a certain way, and we behave in a certain way. We expect everything to be done instantly, because we live in a world where you can get more or less anything at the click of a button or the swipe of a screen. We live in a world where everything is instantaneous. So when we have problems in our lives — when we have issues that we need to deal with, when we have problems with our health, or our wealth, or our family, or our children — or when we look at the general situation of the Muslim Ummah, whether it's the Muslims in this country or beyond, we expect things to happen instantaneously.

We expect instant results. One of the things that we learn from Allah, and one of the things that the Quran constantly reminds us of, is that as the Muslim — even though we place importance upon the physical, practical means that are within our capabilities — Allah always reminds us of the spiritual component as well. The component that tells me and you as Muslims that we must trust in Allah, that we must have certainty in the promise of Allah, that we must hope in Allah and fear Allah. Allah combines between the two.

So Allah says in this verse — verse 152 of Surah al-Baqarah — the portion of this verse that I want to explain to you in this khutbah:

Remember me and I will remember you.

This is a khutbah that is being addressed to every single person who is going through some difficulties, some problems, some fitnah — whether it's to do with their health or their wealth or their family. They are going through some difficulty, and despite the people that they may have around them, the support that may come from those people, the people who may try to sympathize with them, they know that no one can truly relate to their circumstances and their situation except Allah alone. So Allah says to such people: فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember me and I will remember you.

This is a khutbah for those people who, even though they themselves may not be going through those problems, are the family members — the wives and the children and the husbands and the parents — of those who are going through those difficulties. And even though they try to support them and sympathize with them and help them to the best of their ability, they too have problems and they too have concerns and worries that weigh upon them during the night and during the day. Allah says to those people: فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember me and I will remember you.

This is a khutbah that is being addressed to every single one of us. When you switch on the TV, or read the newspaper, or come across something that speaks about the situation of the Muslims in general — in this country, in the west, and across the world — and our hearts pain and we are saddened because of what we are going through collectively as an ummah. Yet our religion also tells us not to do something which is haram, or something which is illegal, or something which has more harms than it has benefits. But still, those images, those words, those things — they pain us. And no one understands that pain and that sadness except Allah. So Allah says: فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember me and I will remember you.

For every single person who has no other person that listens to them, no other one that takes notice of them — remember that Allah listens, that Allah is there, that Allah is the one who knows everything that is apparent and is hidden. فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember me and I will remember you.

The Context of the Verse: Two Great Blessings

This is a conditional verse — it is made up of two components: that you remember Allah first and foremost, and in return Allah will remember you. If you were to look at the context of this verse and the verses that come before and after it, Allah mentions the importance of His remembrance in relation to two of the greatest blessings that He has bestowed upon this ummah.

Allah says at the beginning of this passage:

And thus We have made you a middle and a balanced nation.

That in and of itself is the greatest blessing that Allah could ever have bestowed upon any one of us. Despite how poor you may be, how rich you may be, how healthy or unhealthy you may be, how difficult your life may be or how easy it may be at this time — the single greatest blessing of Allah is this religion upon you. That Allah made you from amongst this balanced nation. That Allah chose me and you from amongst the billions of people that are living now, that were living before us, or that will come to live after us, and He has chosen us to be from amongst this ummah, this blessed nation.

And then Allah mentions the second of those blessings:

Just as We sent from amongst you a messenger — not that Allah sent to us a messenger from outside, but from amongst us came a messenger. Because Allah is speaking about His blessings. That Allah chose from amongst us a person who all of us — even though we have lived hundreds of years after that man, the Prophet ﷺ — we still love him more than we would love ourselves, our parents, our families, our children. Allah chose him so that not only would we be from the nations that came before — the nations of the other prophets — but that we would be from this nation, the best of nations, the nation of our Prophet ﷺ.

When you remember the blessings of Allah, you remember Allah. And that remembrance of Allah increases you in the love of Allah, in the glorification of Allah, and in your closeness to Allah. And as it increases you in those things, then when you read through the Quran and you find that Allah commands you to do something, you know that Allah only tells you this because it is good for you — out of His love for you, because Allah wants to reward you. So you obey His commandments. And when you come across in the Quran that Allah is prohibiting you from something, then again it is because Allah loves you and Allah wants good from you and for you, and Allah wants to keep you away from evil. So then you stay away from His prohibitions.

The Hadith Qudsi: Allah Is as His Slave Thinks of Him

The Prophet ﷺ told us in the hadith qudsi that Allah says:

I am to My slave as he thinks of Me. I am with him when he thinks of Me. So if he thinks of Me privately, then I will remember him privately. And if he discusses Me and remembers Me openly in a group, then Allah says that He remembers that person in a group that is far better than them.

What Does Dhikr Truly Mean?

The dhikr that Allah is speaking about in this verse is not just the remembrance of the tongue. It is not simply the remembrance of the tongue, but it is anything that brings you closer to Allah. When you contemplate over the creation of Allah, when you remember the greatness and the magnificence of Allah, when you remember the blessings that Allah has bestowed upon you, when you remember the favor of Islam — even though you may be going through so many difficulties, so many problems and hardships — yet still you know that Allah loves you because Allah gave to you Islam. And that blessing is more precious than all of the other blessings combined. So you remember Allah.

But such remembrance is not easy. It is not something which comes naturally, but rather it is something which you must strive to attain and strive to remind yourself of. Which is why Allah then says in the following verse:

O you who believe, seek assistance with the prayer and with patience.

Prayer, because prayer consists of some of the greatest remembrance of Allah — the recitation of the Quran, the glorification of Allah, the praise of Allah, and so on and so forth. And Allah says in another verse in the Quran:

Indeed the prayer prevents you from doing evil and from doing sin, and indeed the remembrance of Allah therein — meaning in the prayer — is even more befitting, meaning it is even greater in warding off evil from you.

The Stories of the Prophets: Trials and Turning to Allah

And that is why when we look through the book of Allah — the Quran — we find that it is replete with the stories of the prophets of Allah. Those prophets who during their lifetimes went through so many trials and tests. And this in and of itself shows that Allah tests the people that He loves and the people that He doesn't love. That Allah tests the believers and the disbelievers alike. Because if anyone was to have been saved from those tests and those trials and difficulties and hardships, it would have been the prophets of Allah. And it would have been our own Prophet ﷺ. But Allah mentions their stories.

Whether it's the story of Nuh (alayhi salam), who called his people for 950 years. Or the story of Ibrahim (alayhi salam), who called his father and his people until they threw him into a raging pit of fire. Or the story of his son Ismail (alayhi salam), who when he's a young boy is told by his own father that he must take him into the desert and sacrifice him. Whether it's the story of Yaqub (alayhi salam), who loses his son Yusuf and for years upon years doesn't know where he is or what situation he is in. Or the story of his son Yusuf (alayhi salam), who when he refuses the advances of his mistress, is thrown into prison. Whether it's the story of Ayub (alayhi salam), who through many years suffered from illness and ailment — to the extent that it is said that the vast majority of people in his life shunned him, that the people of his town exiled him to the outskirts because of the illness he was suffering. Whether it's the story of Yunus (alayhi salam), who is swallowed in the belly of a whale and stays there for a number of nights in perpetual darkness. Whether it's the story of Zakaria (alayhi salam), who is an old man to whom Allah gives a son in old age. Whether it's the story of Musa (alayhi salam) and the way that he overcame the tyranny and the might of Pharaoh. Or the story of Isa (alayhi salam) and his mother Maryam, who was a virgin who gave birth and then people slandered her honor. Or the countless occasions found throughout the life of our own Prophet ﷺ — the test that he faced — whether it was the slander of his wife Aisha, or the battles he faced at Uhud and Badr and so on, or the loss of his own children.

All of them have a single theme that runs through them. All of them have a pattern that is emerging: that in these most difficult of times, they would turn to Allah. Their remembrance of Allah would become stronger. They would come closer to Allah through these trials. These trials would bring them closer to Allah. It would not drive them further away.

So a person whose heart is filled with the remembrance of Allah, a person who within themselves has that remembrance of Allah — it will manifest itself on your tongue and upon your limbs. When it is so deeply ingrained within your heart, it has no other option except to manifest itself. So you remember Allah: فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember Allah and Allah will remember you.

The Mufarridun: Those Who Remember Allah Much

You make dhikr of Allah. As the Prophet ﷺ told us in the hadith in Sahih Muslim:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2676)

He said ﷺ: "The Mufarridun are at the forefront — they have won." So they said, "O Messenger of Allah, who are the Mufarridun — who are these people?" He said, "Those people from the believing men and women who remember Allah much and remember Allah often."

In another hadith, narrated by Abu Musa al-Ash'ari (radiallahu anhu), also in Sahih Muslim, the Prophet ﷺ said:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 779)

The example of the house in which Allah is remembered and the example of the house in which Allah is not remembered is like the example of the living and the dead.

Such was the custom of the Prophet ﷺ and his habit — that during a single day, his tongue would constantly be moist with the remembrance of Allah. His tongue would constantly be rolling with the dhikr of Allah, whether it was the tasbih, the tahmid, saying la ilaha illallah, or reciting the Quran.

Even when you speak about the religion of Allah or remind someone of Allah, that is a form of the remembrance of Allah. When you use your tongue or your limbs in a way that pleases Allah — be it working for your family, be it earning a living, be it studying for a greater and more noble purpose — so long as your intention is to please Allah, that is a form of the remembrance of Allah.

A Hundred Times a Day: The Virtue of This Dhikr

The Prophet ﷺ told us in a hadith in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim that whoever says a hundred times a day:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 3293; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2691)

Then Allah will give him the reward as if he freed ten slaves. And He will write for him one hundred good deeds. And He will wipe away, expiate for him, one hundred sins. And it will be a protection for him from Shaytan for that day until the evening. And no one will bring something better than what this man brought, except someone who does more than him.

Dhikr as Our Connection to Allah — Through Prayer, Hajj, and Du'a

The remembrance of Allah is our connection to Allah. So Allah tells us in the Quran to remember Him. And reciting the Quran is one of the greatest forms of remembrance of Allah, especially when you contemplate it. Allah tells us how to remember Him in the Quran — He tells us to use the prayer and to be patient upon the prayer.

A number of verses later, Allah begins to speak about the hajj. And in the hajj He mentions that it is one of the greatest acts of worship in which you remember Allah. But within the hajj, Allah says:

When you finish from your rites of hajj, then remember Allah just as you would remember your forefathers — or even more so.

And then Allah tells us how to remember Him more. He gives us a du'a — one of the greatest and most comprehensive du'as in the Quran:

Oh our Lord, give to us in this life goodness, and in the next life goodness, and save us from the punishment of the fire. (Quran 2:201)

One of the greatest forms of remembrance of Allah is to make du'a to Allah. And that is why the Prophet ﷺ would make du'a so much, especially in times of difficulty. Whether it was before the battle of Badr, where the Prophet ﷺ made du'a and raised his hands so high, and continued to make du'a for so long that his robe fell off his shoulders — and Abu Bakr (radiallahu anhu) came and picked up his robe, placed it back upon his shoulders, and said, "Enough, O Messenger of Allah, for Allah will never forsake you."

The Prophet ﷺ, through every difficult time, would make dhikr of Allah. When you are conscious of that, when your heart is so closely attached to Allah, when that is the strength of your iman — then you remember Allah in times of ease, in times of felicity and happiness. And when you do so, when that difficulty and hardship and trial comes upon you, then Allah will be there as well.

The Promise After the Trial: Inna Lillahi wa Inna Ilayhi Raji'un

And that is why Allah says — after فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ:

This verse is mentioned after the commandment to remember Allah. Those whom We will try — We will try with fear and with loss in provision and life and with hardship. Those are the ones who, when some calamity befalls them, say:

To Allah we belong, to Him we shall return.

That is the first thing that utters from their lips when they hear of some calamity or hardship. That is the first reaction they have — because their hearts are so closely linked to Allah. Such is their remembrance of Allah that they have patience, and they know that the way to overcome this difficulty is to turn to Allah, to come closer to Allah, to worship Allah even more.

So Allah commands us in the midst of all of these verses to remember Him:

Remember me and I shall remember you.

First Half Closing — Istighfar

بَارَكَ اللَّهُ لِي وَلَكُمْ فِي الْقُرْآنِ وَالسُّنَّةِ، وَنَفَعَنِي وَإِيَّاكُمْ بِمَا فِيهِمَا مِنَ الْآيَاتِ وَالْحِكْمَةِ. أَقُولُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ لِي وَلَكُمْ وَلِجَمِيعِ الْمُسْلِمِينَ مِنْ كُلِّ ذَنْبٍ، فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ.

Second Part of the Khutbah

الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ عَلَى إِحْسَانِهِ، وَالشُّكْرُ لَهُ عَلَى تَوْفِيقِهِ وَامْتِنَانِهِ. وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَٰهَ إِلَّا اللَّهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ تَعْظِيمًا لِشَأْنِهِ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ نَبِيَّنَا وَسَيِّدَنَا مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ الدَّاعِي إِلَى رِضْوَانِهِ. صَلَّى اللَّهُ وَسَلَّمَ وَبَارَكَ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ وَإِخْوَانِهِ وَسَلَّمَ تَسْلِيمًا كَثِيرًا. أَمَّا بَعْدُ:

When we look at the first condition mentioned in this verse — verse 152 of Surah al-Baqarah — that you remember Allah, and then Allah in the second part of this verse gives you the fruit of that remembrance — فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — and I shall remember you. When Allah remembers a person, that means that Allah has mentioned them in the company of the noble angels, that Allah is taking care of them, that this person has the protection and the guardianship of Allah. And what more could a person need or want — if Allah is by their side, if Allah is the one who listens to their du'as, their requests, and their remembrance?

As Yaqub (alayhi salam) said in the Quran — as Allah mentioned his words:

I only complain of my grief and my sorrow to Allah, and I know from Allah what you do not know.

I only complain of my grief and my sorrow to Allah alone. Because when we have difficulties and problems and we are seeking the du'a of others, trying to get help from others — this is something that is permitted in our religion. But when you ask du'a from someone, you have to first explain your situation to them. You must give them all of the feelings, the story, and the events that have happened up to that point. And even when that person responds, they can only do so based on the limit of their knowledge and understanding and feelings — and sometimes they may help you, and sometimes they may not. But when you turn to Allah, Allah has complete and perfect knowledge of everything that is happening.

Allah is Al-'Alim — the All-Knowing. Allah is Al-Khabir — the All-Aware. And so when you remember Allah and you turn to Allah, and you make that remembrance of Allah — فَاذْكُرُونِي أَذْكُرْكُمْ — Remember me and I will remember you — know that Allah is responding to you, and know that Allah is with you, and know that Allah is listening.

Closing Du'a

Announcements

Just a few announcements. Firstly, please donate generously on your way out. This masjid relies on the will of Allah and your financial support so that we can keep providing the activities for the community.

Today, after Isha, there will be a lecture by Sheikh Ahsan Hanif, entitled Islamic Rulings Regarding the Quran. This lecture will cover the various fiqh issues and common questions related to the Quran. We encourage you all to attend and bring your family and friends with you.

Just a quick reminder: there will be a funeral prayer (janazah) right now, so please hold back your sunnahs insha'Allah. We are going to be praying the janazah prayer for a young child who passed away. The janazah prayer consists of four takbirat. After the first takbir, you will recite Surah al-Fatihah and another surah. After the second takbir, we send salat upon the Prophet ﷺ, as you do in the salat:

After the third takbir, you make du'a. And because we are praying over a child — and the child is not held accountable for anything until the age of maturity — the Prophet ﷺ told us that when we pray over children, we make du'a for their parents. As he said in the hadith in Musnad Imam Ahmad:

(Musnad Imam Ahmad)

You pray over a child and you make du'a for their parents. So at this time, make du'a for the parents. Then after the fourth takbir, we make the salam.

This Saturday's lecture after Isha is entitled The Resurrection and will be delivered by Ustadh Wasim Kempson. The regular Urdu lecture will take place on Sunday after Isha. The Islamwise Academy will be held every Friday at 6:30, taking the new Muslim brothers and sisters through the five pillars of Islam. This will take place in the masjid basement. Islamwise Sisters will be holding a gathering for new Muslim sisters on Sunday the 28th of February from 1pm to 3:30pm. The topic this month is The Key to Happiness.

Our food bank services urgently require food donations. Please leave your donations during office hours at the masjid reception via Door C.

Alhamdulillah, the work in the wudu area and toilets is now almost completed. It will now undergo a test phase this coming week, and by the will of Allah, the opening for our brothers and sisters will be next Friday.

We have received requests for du'as for brothers and sisters who are currently going through difficulties. Please remember them in your du'as that Allah may alleviate from them any hardships.

Once again, please donate generously on your way out. Jazakumullah Khayran.