Tested By Wealth

Tested By Wealth

Brothers and sisters in Islam, the title of our khutbah today is Tested by Wealth. Allah tells us in the Quran that wealth is not always a blessing, and sometimes it is a test. Allah says:

Indeed your wealth and your children are only a trial — or a test.

Imam al-Tabari quotes Ibn Abbas (radiallahu anhuma) in his tafsir. Ibn Abbas says:

It is a trial that Allah tests you with — either you will be grateful, or you will be ungrateful.

And in any test, you can either pass or you can fail. So that means wealth — your wealth — can lift you and bring you closer to Allah, or it can destroy you and distract you away from Him. But what it really depends upon is the heart, not the money. It depends on the heart of the individual.

Wealth as a Lifter: The Righteous and Their Wealth

Examples of your wealth lifting you and bringing you nearer to Allah — the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) mentioned, as narrated by Imam Ahmad (rahimahullah):

(Musnad Ahmad, narrated by 'Amr ibn al-'As)

What a good thing is righteous wealth in the hands of a righteous man. He didn't just praise the wealth, and didn't just praise the man — but what a good thing is righteous wealth in the hands of a righteous man.

In Islam, there are few times where you can be envious of someone, and the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) mentioned as one of the three examples:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 73; Sahih Muslim, Hadith 816)

A man whom Allah has given wealth — this is one of the few times you can be jealous or envious of someone in a good way, not in a way where you wish it to be lost from him — a man to whom Allah has given wealth and he spends it in the truth, meaning he spends it in charity and in good causes, day and night. So these are examples of wealth bringing you closer to Allah and lifting you up.

Wealth as a Destroyer: The Slave of the Dinar

There are examples where wealth will destroy your iman, and there are examples when wealth is given to you as a punishment. Allah says:

O mankind, indeed the promise of Allah is true, so do not let this worldly life deceive you, and do not let the great deceiver deceive you about Allah. Here الْغَرُور is talking about Shaytan — so He is saying: do not let Shaytan deceive you about Allah.

There are times when wealth becomes a curse and not a gift. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said in Sahih al-Bukhari:

(Sahih al-Bukhari, Hadith 2886)

Destroyed is the slave of the dinar and the slave of the dirham. Destroyed, ruined, failed, and corrupted. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) didn't say the owner of the money, but he said the slave of the money — meaning the one whose heart is chained to the dunya, the one who becomes enslaved by money. And that happens when:

• The heart depends on the income more than Allah
• Charity becomes difficult
• Blessings stop giving joy
• The dunya becomes the dream and the afterlife becomes the afterthought

So the bottom line is that wealth is not evil, but the love of wealth, the obsession with status, the addiction to comfort — these are the diseases of the heart that can destroy iman.

Istidraj: Being Led to Destruction Through Blessings

Wealth is such a strong distraction that Allah uses it to further distract those who turn away from Him. In Surah al-An'am, Allah says:

So when they forgot what they had been reminded of — Ibn Kathir says: they abandoned what Allah commanded and they turned away — تَرَكُوا مَا أَمَرَهُمُ اللَّهُ بِهِ فَأَعْرَضُوا عَنْهُ — they rejected Allah's commands, turned away from His warnings, ignored the guidance that was sent to them, and persisted in sin and arrogance. When that happens:

We opened for them the doors of everything — all kinds of blessings. And this is what the scholars call istidraj — gradually leading them to destruction. Allah gave them more wealth, more comfort, more ease, more worldly success, and more pleasures.

Until, when they rejoiced in what they were given — they were arrogant, deceived, happy with the dunya and not with obedience to Allah. Imam al-Tabari says they assumed that this was an honor from Allah — they thought Allah was honoring them because He gave them the blessings of everything.

Then Allah says: We seized them suddenly — the punishment came to them suddenly, without warning, without preparation, when they least expected it, and at the peak of their worldly enjoyment.

Why Give First, Then Seize?

So here's a question: why did Allah first give them all the blessings of the dunya and then seize them suddenly? Why not just seize them? Because it makes it worse — when the punishment comes when you don't expect it, when it comes after you experience ease.

And you see this in the beginning of Surah al-A'raf, where Allah says:

Allah is saying: How many cities have We destroyed — their punishment came to them — notice the two times: bayatan, overnight, aw hum qa'ilun, or while they were taking their afternoon nap. Either sleeping at night or sleeping during the day. Why? Because they're in full rest — and when the punishment comes during full rest, it is more severe than when you're awake and active, or already experiencing some difficulty. So Allah made it that way.

So Allah gave them money, status, success, opportunity, comfort — not as an honor, but as gradual destruction. That is istidraj: they're being pulled in slowly, they become so unaware, and then suddenly they're shocked.

Wealth Is a Means, Not the End

As we said before, it is not all bad — but it is a means to an end. Many people, brothers and sisters, forget the end part. It's a means to an end. So we end up idolizing billionaires who are arguably among the worst people on the planet. These statistics change based on the population, but eight of the richest people in the world have as much wealth as 3.6 billion people. Eight of the richest have as much money as the 3.6 billion of the poorest people. And what did they need a billion for?

Last Friday, we mentioned the hadith — the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said:

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 2958)

The son of Adam says: my wealth, my wealth. But of your wealth you will only truly benefit from three things — what you eat and consume, what you wear and wear out, and the sadaqa you give and send ahead of you before the Day of Judgment. The rest you will simply leave behind for others to inherit.

What can a billionaire afford that a multimillionaire cannot afford? Which restaurant can he go to that the other guy can't go to? But they just sit on it. And that is our nature — we keep wanting more. The Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) said in Sahih al-Bukhari and Muslim:

If the son of Adam had two valleys filled with gold, he would wish for a third.

So we watch these shows where they interview billionaires. So many books on how to become rich, so many videos on how to become rich, so many rich young people that our youth look up to — influencers, athletes — everyone is consumed with thinking of business ideas that will make them millionaires, wanting better houses and cars.

Three Stories of Righteous Intention and Wealth

I'm going to tell you three stories of people who became extremely wealthy — not because they were brilliant minds, but because they had the right intention, and Allah made them millionaires. They didn't forget the end.

The First Story: The Zakah of a Millionaire

A young man told the Sheikh: "I want to become a millionaire." The Sheikh said: "Why do you want to become a millionaire?" — looking at his intention. He said: "I want to give the zakah of a millionaire." What's the zakah on a million dollars? It's $25,000. There are some people amongst you — may Allah bless your wealth — who give more than that a year, more than $25,000. But what's the difference? The difference is that what Allah made obligatory is greater in reward and more beloved to Him than that which you give in voluntary charity.

What's more beloved to Allah — the Asr prayer or the two Sunnahs after the Dhuhr? What's more beloved to Allah — your fast in Ramadan or your voluntary fast outside of Ramadan? What's more beloved to Allah — the sadaqa you give voluntarily, or the zakah that He obligated upon you? So this young man said: "I want to become a millionaire so I can give the zakah of a millionaire." And within a year, he became a millionaire.

The Second Story: Ten Percent to the Poor

The second story: this man started a simple food stand, but he made a vow and a promise to Allah that whatever dollar comes to him, 10% goes to the poor. If he earns a hundred, he gives ten dollars to the poor. If he makes a thousand, he gives a hundred to the poor. And in no time, he became a multimillionaire. He had the right intention.

The Third Story: One Riyal for Every Meal

The third story: this is a famous fast-food restaurant in the Muslim countries — even if you go to it at 3 in the morning, there is an insane line; at the airport there is an insane line. The owner of that business made a promise to Allah that every time he sells a meal, one riyal will go to the poor. Allah blessed his wealth.

So in these examples, these people became wealthy because they had the right intention. And some people just want wealth for the most vain of things — for watches that cost $30,000, for brand names that just have a letter on them and cost more, or for cars that are impractical and uncomfortable but cost millions of dollars. That's why they want their wealth.

The Dunya Is Not the Problem — The Heart Is

The dunya itself is not the problem. And that's why the Prophet (sallallahu alayhi wa sallam) in Sahih Muslim used to make this du'a:

O Allah, rectify my worldly life in which is my livelihood. He asked Allah to rectify his worldly life. And we know the verse in Surah al-Baqarah:

Our Lord, grant us goodness in this world and goodness in the hereafter, and protect us from the punishment of the Fire.

Conclusion

So in conclusion, brothers and sisters:

• Make sure that you are not consumed with thinking about wealth all the time — being a 'abd of the dinar, a slave of wealth.
• Make sure you have the right reasons for why you want wealth.
• Get it as a means to an end — the end is the akhira.
• Make sure it doesn't distract you from your acts of worship and your relationship with Allah.

Aqoolu qawli hadha wa astaghfirullah al-'Adheema li wa lakum min jami' al-dhunub, fa astaghfiruhu fa ya fawz al-mustaghfireen — Ask Allah for His forgiveness. Indeed those who ask for His forgiveness shall prosper.

Second Khutbah: The Story of Harun al-Rashid and Abu al-'Atahiya

Alhamdulillah rabbil 'alamin, wa salatu wa salamu 'ala rasoolihi al-amin, wa 'ala alihi wa sahbihi ajma'een. Amma ba'd.

We will conclude with this story. The Khalifah Harun al-Rashid built a magnificent palace, and on the day of the grand opening, all these poets came and each one of them would praise the palace and praise the Khalifah. One of the poets who stood there quietly was Abu al-'Atahiya. They finally asked him to say something. Everyone had been praising the palace and praising the Khalifah, but he surprised them — and made the Khalifah cry — because he recited the following verses:

He tells the Khalifah: Live however you wish, in safety, under the shade of lofty palaces. Let whatever pleasures you desire flow to you, in the morning and in the evening. And the Khalifah was saying: "Yes, yes!" — he was happy with that.

Then he says: But when the souls rattle in the throat as they exit from the chest — at that moment, you will know for certain that you were only in delusion.