4 Steps To Deal With Sinners | Jumuah Khutbah | Ustadh Mohamad Baajour

Opening and Attestation of Faith

Amma ba'd. Yaqulu subhanahu wa ta'ala fi kitabihi alkarim:

Amma ba'd, fa inna asdaqa al hadith kitabullah wa khayran hadi hadi Muhammadin sallallahu alayhi wasallam wa sharra al umuri muhdathatuh wa kulla muhdathatin bid'ah wa kulla bid'atin dalalah wa kulla dalalahin finnaar.

Thumma amma ba'd.

A Story from the Time of Umar

My dear, beloved, respected brothers and sisters, I ask Allah azza wa jal to gather us in this masjid to gather us yawm al qiyamah wa sayyidil mursaleen Muhammad sallallahu alayhi wasallam. Ameen ya rabbal alameen.

Al-Imam Ibn Kathir, rahimahullah, in his tafsir of Surat Ghafir, he mentioned that during the time of the khilafah of Umar radiyallahu anh, there was a man who used to attend his gatherings. And then for a period of time the man did not come anymore. So Umar radiyallahu anh asked the people: "What happened to so and so? I haven't seen him anymore."

They said: يتابع في الشراب - he started drinking alcohol constantly.

So Umar radiyallahu anh said: "Get me a piece of paper." So they got him a piece of paper and he said: "From Umar ibn al-Khattab to so and so. After I thank Allah, the only one that deserves to be worshipped, I remind you that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala is the forgiver of sins, the accepter of repentance, and He is severe in punishment, and He is the bestower of all favors, and to Him we shall return."

He said: "Give this letter to the man." And he looked at the crowd of the people around him and he said: "Make dua for your brother."

The man took the letter and delivered it. When the person who was drinking read the letter, he said: غافر الذنب قابل التوب شديد العقاب - "He promised me He will accept my repentance, He will forgive my sins, and He warned me that He is severe in punishment." He kept on repeating it until he completely repented.

Umar radiyallahu anhu was informed of what happened, so he said: "This is the way you are supposed to treat a deviant brother - pray for him and do not be an aid for the shaytan against him."

Prophetic Guidance

My brothers and sisters, Umar radiyallahu anhu learned this from the prophetic guidance. Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam - a drunken man was brought to him and then he ordered him to be lashed. In the process, some people from the sahaba started beating him and some started throwing their shoes at him, and even some started cursing him: أخزاه الله - "May Allah disgrace him!"

Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam looked at them and said: "Do not assist the shaytan against your brother."

Many of us unfortunately look down on a sinner and we start saying things as if Allah assigned me as the judge on earth.

Four Steps to Deal with Sinners

In this short khutbah, we will learn how to deal with the sinners among us - four steps:

Step One: Thank Allah for Your Guidance

Number one: thank Allah that you are not doing that sin. Thank Allah that you are guided, you are not doing that sin. That one of the best blessings that Allah bestowed upon you is that He guided you - الهداية.

(Hadith Qudsi - Sahih Muslim)

Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam told us that Allah said in the hadith al-qudsi: "O My servants, every single one of you is going astray except the one I guided, so ask Me for guidance and I will guide you."

So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala blessed you with that guidance. So when you have a blessing, do you make fun of the one who does not have it? Is it possible, because Allah gave you vision, you make fun of the blind? Is it possible Allah gave you hearing, you make fun of the deaf? Is it possible that Allah gives you mobility, you make fun of the paralyzed people? IMPOSSIBLE!

Similarly, when Allah guided you to be from the people who pray, you do not make fun of the people who do not pray. When Allah guided you to wear the hijab, you do not make fun of the people who do not wear the hijab. When Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala guided you and you're reading and memorizing the Qur'an, you do not make fun. Allah blessed you with these ni'am. You do not look down and belittle the one who's not doing it. You do not know what they're going through.

A brother one time was telling me and making fun of his sister that's not wearing the hijab. We all know that the hijab is a fard. It's a must upon every muslima. We know that. So he was making fun of her. And it happened that I know - this does not happen much, but it happened that I know the sister and she came to me and she said: "Sheikh, my deviant husband told me if you wear the hijab, you are divorced. And I have four children. And my parents are gone. And I have no one in this country. What should I do?"

Should she put a sign on her chest about her story? You do not know what people are going through. So you don't go around and make fun of others that do not have your blessing.

Is it possible that a sane person will see a blind man crossing the street and he looks at him and he's waiting for him to be hit by a car or he's laughing at him? No sane human being would do that. Similarly, when Allah blessed you with a ni'mah of guidance, you do not look at the one who does not have it and make fun of him.

Listen to what Ibn al-Qayyim, rahimahullah, said:

"You looking down on your brother because he's committing a sin is worse of a sin than his sin. It is a greater sin than the sin he's committing."

Instead, you should be extremely grateful to Allah that He guided you. And when you are thankful to Allah for His guidance, He promised:

"When you are grateful, I will increase you."

Can someone increase in guidance? Absolutely. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala said:

"And Allah increases the guided ones with extra guidance."

First, do not show off with that blessing.

Step Two: Ask Allah for Steadfastness

Second, ask Allah to keep you steadfast on that blessing.

Umm Salama, our beloved mother, was asked: "O mother of the believers, what was the most frequent dua of Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam?" The man who's guaranteed Jannah. The man whom Jannah will not open to anyone before him. What is his most dua?

She said:

Allahu Akbar! The one who's guaranteed Jannah, his most dua: "O turner of the hearts, keep my heart steadfast on Your deen."

And me, I gave a khutbah, I came to Fajr three times, I memorized four hadith and one juz - I have Jannah in my pocket. And the most righteous man ever created, his most dua: يا مقلب القلوب - "O turner of the hearts, keep my heart steadfast on Your deen."

So second, ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to keep you steadfast. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala even told Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam:

Allah, you should shake when you hear this ayah. "If I, Allah, did not keep you, O Muhammad, steadfast, you would have inclined a little bit to them."

Who's He talking to? Surah al-Isra - who's He talking to? The most steadfast human being, the teacher of the deen, the originator of the deen. "If I did not keep you steadfast..."

So beg Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for steadfastness. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala blessed you that you come to fajr in jama'ah - ask Him to keep that ni'mah till the day you meet Him. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala blessed you, you fast optional fasts - Monday, Thursday, whatever - ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to keep you steadfast on this. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala made you بارًا بوالديك - you respect and honor your parents - ask Him to keep you steadfast on this. And similarly in every other ibadah.

Even Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala told us about الراسخون في العلم. Allahu Akbar, Surah Al-Imran - الراسخون في العلم - the ones who are deeply rooted in knowledge. What is their dua, ya Allah? Anchored in knowledge. What is their dua?

"O Allah, do not let our hearts move away from You after You have guided us."

These are the راسخون في العلم making this dua. What kind of ilm do I have compared to the راسخون في العلم?

So ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to keep you steadfast on that ibadah.

Step Three: Make Dua for That Brother or Sister

Then after that, remember to make dua for that brother or that sister. First, appreciate the ni'mah of guidance. Second, ask Allah to keep you steadfast on it. Third, make dua for that brother. Make dua for that sister.

Didn't Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam tell us: "You are not a true believer until you love for your brother what you love for yourself"?

Unfortunately, sometimes we feel so good that this person is not praying, smoking, drinking alcohol, and I don't - I am better than him. And that thought starts creeping into my mind: I am better than him. I am better than her. I wear niqab, she only wears hijab. I am better than her. Make dua instead of that feeling. Ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to guide that person.

Listen to how Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam dealt with something like this. A man came to Rasulallah sallallahu alayhi wasallam, and listen to the request that this man made. And I wonder what any shaykh on earth would react to such a request.

Imagine a man coming to any shaykh right now and saying: "Ya shaykh, can you please give me permission to go and commit adultery?"

What would the shaykh say? "Are you crazy? Are you out of your mind? Don't you know that this is a kabira from the biggest kabair? What's wrong with you?" And he might even call: "Come, come, come, listen to what he is asking. Come."

But what did the man بالمؤمنين رؤوف رحيم do? He said: "Come, come. أدن - come close to me. Sit down."

"Would you like this to be done to your mother?"

He said: "No."

He said: "Similarly, people do not like this to be done to their mother."

"Would you like this to be done to your daughter?"

He said: "No, ya Rasulallah."

He said: "Similarly, people do not like this to be done to their daughter."

And then sister. Then aunt.

Then, what did he do? He put his hand on his chest and he said:

He made dua for him. He said: "Ya Allah, forgive his sins. Purify his heart. Guard his chastity."

At the end of the hadith, it says: The man after that never inclined to any sinful act.

Make dua. Make dua for your brother. Ya Allah, I beg You, make my brother stop drinking alcohol. Make him stop selling haram. Make him stop the gambling. Ya Allah, make him stop cheating on his wife. Ya Allah, make him love the salat. Ya Allah, protect him from watching the haram. Ya Allah, this is the true brother. This is the real brother. This is the real sister.

Step Four: Understand Your Own Nature

By nature, human beings want to feel better than everybody. Because I am the standard. Anybody who is less ibadah than me is lousy. And anyone who is more ibadah than me is extreme. I am the standard.

Make dua for your brother. Make dua for your sister. And bi-idhnillah ta'ala, when you make the dua, the rest of the steps will apply to you.

Closing

I say this and I ask Allah for forgiveness. So ask His forgiveness. Indeed, He is the Forgiving, the Merciful.

Four Steps to Deal with Sinners

And peace and blessings be upon those who have no prophet after him. Appreciate the blessing. Stay, ask, beg Allah to keep you steadfast on that blessing. Make du'a for that brother or that sister, and the fourth and last one: order good and forbid evil.

I cannot just see all this and say, "Oh, I made du'a for you." No, no.

(Sahih Muslim, Hadith 49)

Whomsoever sees something evil, he has to attempt first to change it with his hand. If not, he could not, then with his tongue, which is the majority of us. Brother, how come you do not pray? How come you only pray Jumu'ah? Why did you pick Jumu'ah only? Allah prescribed all the salawat. Please brother, Allah blessed you so many things. You don't want to say thank you? 35 minutes out of 24 hours. My brother, wallahi, I love you.

Surah at-Tawbah: The believing men and the believing women are protectors to one another, are guardians to one another. What do they do? The first one:

If you are one of these people who are sinning, and you see someone who's claiming that he or she are close to you, and they never spoke to you about your sin, they are not your friends. They do not care about you. Because وَالْمُؤْمِنُونَ وَالْمُؤْمِنَاتُ بَعْضُهُمْ أَوْلِيَاءُ بَعْضٍ.

The Importance of Gentleness in Commanding Good

My brothers and sisters, ordering good and forbidding evil, like our scholars said, it could have been the sixth pillar of Islam. And just one point about ordering good and forbidding evil: gentleness. There are so many steps, but I want to pick only gentleness. Be gentle when you order good and forbid evil.

Do not see someone who does not pray and say, "Habibi, you're not praying? You're going to hell." He's not going to pray anymore. Like one brother told me one time, "I'm going to hell anyway." No, no, no, no. Be extremely gentle.

Brother, don't you know that smoking is very bad for you? You are wasting your money. You are ruining your health. You are ruining the environment around you. Wallahi ya brother, Allah said:

Do not kill yourself. And the box in your pocket, it says, "smoking kills." In a very gentle manner.

And when you give da'wah, no matter what the topic is, remember, remember, that you are not wiser than Musa, and the person you're talking to is not more evil than Fir'awn. Even Fir'awn, the worst man ever created, Allah told two prophets, Musa and Harun alayhim as-salam, He told them:

Ya Allah, you want me to talk to Fir'awn in a soft gentle manner? So when I'm talking to someone, I have to remember that I'm not wiser than Musa, and he or she are not more evil than Fir'awn, the one whom Allah said, speak to him gently.

My brothers and sisters, number one: appreciate the blessing of guidance, ask Allah to keep you steadfast on it, make du'a for the brother or the sister, and the last one: order good and forbid evil.

On Celebrating the Prophet's Birth

In the last minute or so, we are in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal, and in the month of Rabi' al-Awwal, many people or many even countries celebrate the birth of Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam said himself: there's nothing that will lead you to Jannah, I did not teach you. And there's nothing that will lead you to the Hellfire, I did not warn you about.

We ask the people who celebrate, very simple again, remember gentleness. When you celebrate and you gather and you do all these things, is that an act of ta'a, an act of worship, or an act of disobedience to Allah? Which one is it? Of course, they're going to tell you this is an act of worship. "How can we disobey Allah in such an occasion? It's an act of worship." Excellent. Did Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam perform this act of worship?

If they said no, they are in big trouble. Big trouble. How can it be a ta'a, an act of worship, that Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam did not perform? And if they said yes, Allahu Akbar, give me a weak evidence. Weak. Not authentic. Weak evidence that he or any of the sahaba did.

He, the best man ever created. When you take a statement, you have to know who you're taking it from. The best man ever created. What did he say? "The best people are my generation, and the generation after it, and the generation after it." So the three best generations declared the best by the best man ever created never celebrated this.

You want to follow Rasulullah sallallahu alayhi wa sallam and celebrate his birth? Follow his sunnah. Start fasting on Monday.

Closing Du'a

O Allah, forgive us our sins and our transgressions in our affairs. Make our feet firm and help us against the disbelieving people.

O Allah, grant us what we love and what we desire.

O Allah, help our brothers in Gaza, O Lord of the worlds. O Allah, grant them a mighty victory. O Allah, destroy their enemies.

O Helper, O Helper, O Helper, help our brothers in Sudan, help our brothers in Yemen, help our brothers in Pakistan, help our brothers in Bangladesh, help our brothers in India, help our brothers in every place, O Lord of the worlds.

O Allah, grant us a good life in this world, and a good life in the hereafter. Save us from the torment of Hellfire.

O Allah, do not let our hearts deviate after You have guided us. Grant us mercy from Yourself. You are the Bestower.

May Allah's peace and blessings be upon our Prophet Muhammad, and upon his family and companions. Stand up for your prayer.