Belief in the Last Day - Ustadh Anas Tayib

Khutbah al-Hajah — Opening

Indeed, all praise is due to Allah. We praise Him and ask His help and ask His forgiveness. And we seek refuge in Allah from the evils of our souls and from the evils of our deeds.

Whomsoever Allah guides, none can misguide him, and whomsoever He leads astray, none 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 His 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 your Lord, Who created you from a single soul, and created from it a wife, and spread among them many men and women. And fear Allah in Whom you ask for mercy. Indeed, Allah is ever watching over you.

O you who have believed, fear Allah and say the right words. He will amend for you your deeds and forgive you your sins. And whosoever obeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly attained a great success.

The Purpose of Creation and the Hidden Appointed Time

Allah has only created the heavens and the earth, and everything in between, for a purpose and an appointed time. And Allah has kept this appointed time within عِلْمُ الْغَيْبِ — the knowledge of the unseen. Only He knows, whether it is your personal appointed time — meaning your death — or whether it is the appointed time of all of creation, meaning the Day of Judgment.

And the reason Allah has kept this hidden is for wisdom — so that actions may be done with ihsan and perfection, and for repentances to be renewed, and for taqwa to be practiced, and for iman to be tested. Because only a true believer in Allah, whose knowledge Allah has kept hidden, is the one who follows the commands of Allah and stays away from the prohibitions.

The Believers Who Are Guided — Surah al-Baqarah

Allah says in Surah al-Baqarah about the believers:

Allah says about the believers — the first description:

They believe in the unseen. And they establish Salah. And they give from that which Allah has provided. So they do these actions because يُؤْمِنُونَ بِالْغَيْبِ — they believe in the unseen. And also they are certain of the Day of Judgment. And this certainty and belief in Allah is what pushes them to act.

And the weaker the person's Iman is, the weaker their actions become. And the Prophet ﷺ would encourage believers to do righteous deeds and good deeds by reminding them of Iman Billah — having belief in Allah and the Day of Judgment.

Believing in Allah and the Last Day — The Prophetic Hadith

Whoever believes in Allah and the Day of Judgment, let him say good or be silent. Whoever believes in Allah and the Day of Judgment, let him honor his guest. Whoever believes in Allah and the Day of Judgment, let him be good to his neighbor.

Why does the Prophet ﷺ mention the belief in Allah and the Day of Judgment? Because the one who truly believes in Allah and believes in that day is the one who is going to follow the commands of Allah, and obey them.

The Two Most Damaging Things for Iman

And the most damaging thing for a person's iman — which would result in them leaving actions for the sake of Allah — are two things that the Prophet ﷺ warned us about:

1. حُبُّ الدُّنْيَا — Loving the dunya.
2. طُولُ الْأَمَل — Having long, wishful hope.

And the children of Adam are equal in this. Nobody is different — they are all the same in having this love. The young and the old. The Prophet ﷺ said in a hadith narrated by al-Bukhari:

That the heart of an old person remains young in two matters: loving the dunya, and having long, wishful hope. Meaning the person becomes old; however, this love and wishful hope remain from youth up until old age. Allah made this natural for the son of Adam.

However, if these two things are not controlled and are not fought against, they cause immense evil for the person. حُبُّ الدُّنْيَا causes a person to sin and transgress the boundaries of Allah, and to neglect doing good deeds and remembering Allah. As for طُولُ الْأَمَل, it causes you to delay your tawbah, and it makes your heart harden.

The Hardening of Hearts — Surah al-Hadid

Allah says in Surah al-Hadid:

Allah says that the People of the Book who came before us — طَالَ عَلَيْهِمُ الْأَمَدُ — they had this issue of long, wishful thinking. فَقَسَتْ قُلُوبُهُمْ — and it caused their hearts to become hardened.

Ibn Abbas رضي الله عنه says about this ayah: مَالُوا إِلَى الدُّنْيَا وَأَعْرَضُوا عَن مَوَاعِظِ اللَّهِ — they turned towards the dunya, and they turned away from the reminders of Allah.

Waking Up from Heedlessness

So, Ibadallah, wake up from this ghaflah — wake up from this heedlessness. We are losing out on so much goodness because of this distraction. Why are we distracted? What is causing this?

Ibn al-Qayyim رحمه الله swears by Allah and says:

He says: By Allah, if the hearts were sound and safe, they would rip apart in sadness from being forbidden — losing out on good deeds, losing out on tawbah, being forbidden from khayr and goodness. But what is preventing them from feeling sad? What is preventing them from changing? He says: However, they are intoxicated — intoxicated by the love of the حَيَاةُ الدُّنْيَا. So they are unable to wake up, even if they are told. It is like speaking to a drunk person — they are unaware. And you will wake up soon. After some time you will wake up. Sooner or later, the reality will hit you.

Some people wake up in their youth. Others in old age. Some wake up on their deathbeds. And some never wake up until they see the reality of the grave, and the punishments, and the difficulty, and the situation on the Day of Judgment. And that is when it will be said to them:

It will be said to them: You were heedless of this — of this day that was coming. فَكَشَفْنَا عَنْكَ غِطَاءَكَ — We have lifted this veil from you. فَبَصَرُكَ الْيَوْمَ حَدِيدٌ — Your vision, your eyesight today is sharp. Everything that the believers were told, and they accepted without seeing, you see now in front of you today. And this — you seeing it and being certain of it now — has become a reality before your very own eyes, and it does not benefit you.

We ask Allah to allow us to wake up before it is too late. We ask Allah to rectify what is left in our lives, to allow us to rectify what remains, and to forgive us for what has passed.

Second Khutbah

All praise is due to Allah alone, and may peace and blessings be upon the one after whom there is no prophet. 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 His Messenger.

O servants of Allah — Allah says:

And remind, for indeed reminders benefit the believers. Only believers benefit from reminders. So it is a sign of Iman that you hear a speech and you follow that which is correct from it.

Allah says:

Follow the goodness that you hear. Implement the khayr that you hear in your lives. And actions are by their endings, as the Messenger ﷺ said. So there is still time left to rectify what remains from your lifetime — by doing something which will please you to see on the Day of Judgment: doing righteous deeds, staying away from haram, doing something to plant those trees for you in Jannah, to build that house for you in Paradise, and to protect you from the punishments and the difficulties of the Day of Judgment.

Seven Deeds Whose Reward Continues After Death

And from the mercy of Allah is that He gives time for people to repent and to do righteous deeds. And some of those righteous deeds — their rewards continue even after the person's death. It is from the mercy of Allah that your time ends in this dunya, you have gone to your grave, and your actions continue. Your righteous deeds continue.

And from that, the Prophet ﷺ guided us to seven righteous deeds. He said ﷺ:

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 242; classed as sahih by al-Albani)

Seven deeds — if a person does them, their reward continues even after the person passes away whilst they are in their grave. Their reward is being written for them:

1. مَنْ عَلَّمَ عِلْمًا — Whoever teaches knowledge: righteous, beneficial, Islamic knowledge — whether it is a hadith you pass on, an advice you give, or a verse of the Qur'an you teach to someone. This remains for you until the Day of Judgment, and whoever acts upon it, you receive the reward.

2. أَوْ أَجْرَى نَهْرًا — Somebody who facilitates canals for water to flow so people receive water.

3. أَوْ حَفَرَ بِئْرًا — Or digs a well for people to benefit from.

4. أَوْ غَرَسَ نَخْلًا — Or plants a palm tree.

5. أَوْ بَنَى مَسْجِدًا — Or builds a masjid.

6. أَوْ وَرَّثَ مُصْحَفًا — Somebody who leaves behind and passes on a copy of the Qur'an.

7. أَوْ تَرَكَ وَلَدًا يَسْتَغْفِرُ لَهُ بَعْدَ مَوْتِهِ — Or somebody who leaves a child who seeks forgiveness for him after his death.

These things continue for a person even after they have passed away. This is from the mercy of Allah. So everything you have neglected in your life up until this point, you can correct. And that correction can continue for you even after your death.

Work for the Akhirah — The Saying of the Salaf

We ask Allah to guide us to the best of deeds. We ask Allah to make us of those who are conscious of the Akhirah. As some of the Salaf would say:

Work for your Akhirah as if you will pass away tomorrow — meaning do not delay, get rid of طُولُ الْأَمَل, get rid of this procrastination: thinking that yes, in the future I will seek forgiveness, yes, I will make tawbah. Work for your Akhirah as if you will pass away tomorrow. And as for your dunya — work as if you will live forever. Prioritize the Akhirah.