Deeds are Judged by the Final Action

Deeds are Judged by the Final Action

There is no god but Allah, there is no partner for Him, and the most noble of them is Muhammad, His servant and His messenger.

O you people, fear your Lord, who created you from one soul, and created from it a wife, and spread among them many men and women.

This right now is the conclusion of these Jumu'ahs that we had in the month of Ramadan. Jumu'ah is a very special day. It's a day that Allah blessed, and now it's in the middle of Ramadan. And we are also coming to one very special night in the last 10 nights of the month of Ramadan — the 27th — that potentially could be Laylatul Qadr. All of this combined is one special time, one special season.

What are you going to be doing this Friday? What's your plan for it? How do you want to conclude your khair that you've been working on this month of Ramadan? It doesn't matter how much I miss, because many people nowadays, as Ramadan comes closer and closer to its end, we start auditing ourselves. And a lot of us are focusing probably on the missed opportunities. I didn't finish my khatm. I did not fulfill my promise. I did not do this. I did not do that. A lot of us start working on remorse and regret to the extent that they lose golden opportunities in the last — not just days — the last hours and minutes of the month of Ramadan.

Khawāteem al-A'māl — Deeds Are Judged by Their Final Action

Brothers and sisters, I would like to talk to you in this khutbah about the importance of focusing on khawāteem al-a'māl — the end of your good deeds. In the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ, reported by Ibn Hibban and others, he said:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6607; also reported by Ibn Hibban)

"Deeds will be judged by the final action." Your deeds will be judged by their final action. Although the scholars of hadith say that this speaks specifically about the end of your records altogether — which means towards the end of life, our death — our scholars also say that it counts towards whatever good deed one is establishing, whatever journey one is on. It always counts towards the end.

So Ramadan began, and I might have been a little slow. I did not do what I was hoping I would be doing in the month of Ramadan. So now the Shaytan comes to you — or your own thoughts come to you — saying: since you didn't do much, why bother? Don't even try. Just keep it at this and move on. Ramadan is going to come to an end anyway. Don't you ever listen to these thoughts.

I want you to make sure that you make every minute of Ramadan count. Every breath from that moment on until the end of Ramadan — I want this to count for you, and count in the best way possible, insha'Allah.

Brothers and sisters, some of us focus again on despair — feeling we have not done good enough, so we won't be forgiven anyway. But be careful what you're thinking. And others perhaps start slacking. Why? Because they think they've done enough, alhamdulillah. "Oh, masha'Allah, I've done great this month. I exceeded my goals, alhamdulillah. So now in the last few days of Ramadan, I don't have to do much anymore. Let me just go on autopilot." Be careful with these thoughts — whether it's the desperate one or the over-optimistic one. Make sure to make every breath in these last few days of Ramadan count, my dear brothers and sisters.

The Hadith of Switching — People of Jannah and Jahannam

In the hadith of Sahih al-Bukhari, the Messenger of Allah ﷺ mentioned: some of you will be working and doing the work of the people of Jannah. You look at them — masha'Allah, they are doing great, alhamdulillah. Allah has put them on the right path. You feel proud of them. You feel proud of yourself, you feel proud of the people around you. But then, somehow, they flip.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6594; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2643)

There will be that moment — God knows why. A crisis they go through, a trauma they had to endure, or just a moment of change of heart, subhanAllah. And Allah is the One who controls the heart. So this person flips, and the end of their records — the end of their deeds — is something from those who will be admitted to Jahannam. All the good deeds they did before, they ruined in the last few hours, few days, few months of their lives.

But he also gave us good news. Another person will be on a path towards Jahannam. You look at them — the way they talk, the way they behave, the way they interact with people — they seem doomed. This is it, they're done. Until this person becomes so close to Jahannam — but then they switch, subhanAllah. A light of guidance appears in their hearts. Maybe they heard something, maybe they saw something, maybe they reflected on something, subhanAllah. And suddenly there is a change of heart. They try to catch up. They go back and try their best to find their way back to Allah. And this person will enter Jannah — even though they hadn't done much at the beginning. It is the quality of the heart that Allah focuses on and rewards you for.

My dear brothers and sisters, don't look back at what you've done in the month of Ramadan. If you've done well, alhamdulillah, I am sure you can do better. And if you did better than last year, alhamdulillah, I am sure you can exceed that and do the best, insha'Allah.

So don't slack right now saying, "alhamdulillah, once this is over I'll start preparing for Eid" and begin neglecting your ibadah, your ta'ah, your istighfar, your dhikr. And if you haven't done well either, don't despair of the mercy of Allah. Don't say: "Ramadan slipped away from my hand again," and start blaming yourself, self-loathing, saying "I'm a failure, I knew it, I don't deserve this." Beating yourself down and giving yourself no hope to return to Allah — that is not the way of the believer.

Ramadan, alhamdulillah, is still on. We still have a few more days. And this is the last Jumu'ah we have in this month of Ramadan. The Prophet ﷺ said that on Friday there is an hour — a window of time — in which:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 935; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 852)

No servant who in that moment raises his hands making du'a to Allah, except that Allah will answer their call. So you still have the opportunity. You can turn things around. Even just by making du'a to Allah: "Ya Rabbi, help me make the rest of Ramadan better than what I missed already." Ask Allah to make the best of Ramadan yet to come for you, my dear brothers and sisters.

The Story of the Man in Ihram at Hajjatul Wada'

Some of the things we know about how the end result of our deeds can be the highlight of your akhira: in the hadith of the Prophet ﷺ during Hajjatul Wada' — when the Prophet was going for hajj and the whole ummah was almost going with him. As they were marching towards Mecca, a man fell off his camel, and the camel accidentally stepped on him, killing him. This man was wearing ihram, and the last thing he was saying was:

Saying to his Lord: "In Thy service, my Lord, I am coming to You." So the Prophet ﷺ, when he heard the news — and of course it was sad news for people, subhanAllah, they had lost a loved one — he said: do not cover his head, do not cover his face, and do not put perfume on him, because he is still technically in a state of ihram, and he will be resurrected on the Day of Judgment still answering his call to Allah.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 1267; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 1206)

What a beautiful way to be resurrected. Because when the Prophet ﷺ spoke about the Day of Resurrection, people will be worried. Everybody is there, wondering what has happened:

"Who has raised us from our resting place?" And Allah brings everyone together, and people are looking around wondering what has happened — and this man will be saying: لَبَّيْكَ اللَّهُمَّ لَبَّيْكَ — still busy on his journey to Allah. Why? Because the last thing he had done was worshipping Allah.

Lessons — What We Must Do in These Final Days

First: Self-Accountability (Muhasaba)

Brothers and sisters, a few lessons we can take from this. Number one: you need to always, always have this self-auditing and muhasaba. You have to keep yourself accountable. Don't just let things slide and say, "It happens, it happens." Don't rely too much on the mercy of Allah for that matter, and don't be too desperate either. Al-muhasaba — self-accountability. Take responsibility for what you do. And think about your meeting with your Lord.

Second: Constant Tawbah (Repentance)

Number two: if I know that I still have an opportunity, then I need to maximize that opportunity to be forgiven. What do I do? Constant tawbah. Brothers and sisters, in the last few days, in the last few hours of Ramadan, continue talking to your Lord and admitting yourself to Allah and repenting to Him. Think about what you need tawbah for. What have I done that I need repentance for — not just in this Ramadan, but before? Always, always coming back to Allah, because Allah is Tawwabur Rahim — Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. There is a golden opportunity to keep coming back to Him.

Third: Do Not Be Overconfident

The other thing I need to think about in these last few days is: do not be overconfident about what you have done. Because a lot of us will be deceived by that. "Alhamdulillah, masha'Allah, I finished my Qur'an on time. I beat the clock this year. I was able to pray all the taraweeh, every single night. Masha'Allah, I did not miss Fajr." And may Allah reward you for all these good deeds. But don't rely too much on this, thinking it's okay to take a break now. Not yet. You need to continue doing your best, insha'Allah.

Fourth: Use Ramadan's Momentum to Upgrade Yourself

In addition to that, my dear brothers and sisters, we need to keep in mind that even though Ramadan is coming to an end, we must use the momentum built in this month to upgrade ourselves to the next level. Take heed of this moment. What were you able to do in Ramadan that even surprised yourself? What did you do this month of Ramadan that you are so proud of, alhamdulillah, that you think was an improvement in your life? Now, don't lose that improvement. Build on it.

For example, somebody might say: "Alhamdulillah, this month of Ramadan I made a very good connection with the Qur'an. I put it on a schedule. I finished on time." What is your next step with the Qur'an? Someone might say: "Alhamdulillah, I made a good connection with the house of Allah, with the masjid. I came more frequently. I built good friendships with new people in the community." Don't lose these connections. Don't lose your way back to Allah. "Alhamdulillah, I was able to wake up for every Salat al-Fajr this month of Ramadan." That's brilliant. What can you do after Ramadan?

My dear brothers and sisters, take the opportunity right now in the next few days and see for yourself — what is it that I need to do after the month of Ramadan? Because this is a golden opportunity, wallahi.

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 6607)

Deeds will be judged by the seal — by the last thing that you do. And may Allah make the last thing we do in this month of Ramadan the best. Ya Rabb al-alameen.

I say this and I seek forgiveness from Allah for myself and for you, and for all the Muslims. Verily, He is the Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful.

Second Part of the Khutbah

All praise is due to Allah, Lord of all the worlds. May blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, his family and his companions.

The Concern of the Salaf: Will Allah Accept Our Deeds?

My dear brothers and sisters, the Sahabah and the righteous predecessors — may Allah be pleased with them and have mercy upon them — when Ramadan came to an end, they worried about the acceptance more than anything else. They worried about Allah accepting their deeds from them. And that is something that should stay in our hearts too. "I hope that Allah will accept that from me." You make everything in your power to please Allah, so that at least you have that sense of relief: "I've done good enough, and I hope Allah will accept that from me."

Why is it so important? Because Allah says in the Qur'an:

"Allah accepts only from the righteous." That is why Ali ibn Abi Talib, may Allah be pleased with him, said: "If I have known that Allah accepted two rak'ahs from me, that is sufficient for me — because I know that Allah accepts only from the righteous, and if those two rak'ahs were accepted, then you have been counted among the righteous." And may Allah count us all among them, Ya Rabb al-alameen.

Increase Your Istighfar

Brothers and sisters, this is the time when we increase our istighfar. In every good deed that you do, it is always better that you seek forgiveness from Allah. So increase the pronouncement of أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّه, astaghfirullah, astaghfirullah, astaghfirullah. Remember this until the end of the month of Ramadan — increase your istighfar. May Allah accept from you, Ya Rabb al-alameen.

Du'a

I ask Allah to accept our Ramadan from us, Ya Rabb al-alameen. Give us the ability to be among those who witness Laylatul Qadr. And I ask Allah to make the best of our deeds the last, Ya Rabb al-alameen. We ask Allah to make the best time in our lives the moment we meet Him. And I ask Allah to make it easy on our brothers and sisters in Gaza, Ya Allah. We ask Allah to end this month of Ramadan for them with goodness, Ya Rabb al-alameen, with peace and tranquility in their lives, Ya Allah, Ya Rabb al-alameen. We ask Allah for their protection, Ya Rahman, Ya Raheem.

O servants of Allah, Allah and His angels send blessings upon the Prophet. O you who believe, pray upon him and send him peace and blessings.