The Most Stunning Aspect of Jannah | Jumuah Khutbah | Ustadh Mohamad Baajour | EPIC Masjid

Community Announcements

As-salamu alaykum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu. Just a couple of announcements before we start, inshallah. We have brother Nu'man Shakeel, he is having liver problems. May Allah give him complete shifa. We ask Allah, the Lord of the Great Throne, to heal him. O Allah, heal our sick and the sick of the Muslims. And also we have brother Imran Hafeez from our community. His wife, his brother Ali Hussain, has passed away. We ask Allah to grant him the highest place in Jannah and give his family the patience.

The Most Stunning Reward in Jannah

My dear respected beloved brothers and sisters, I ask Allah Azza wa Jal who gathered us in this masjid to gather us Yawm al-Qiyamah with Sayyid al-Mursaleen Muhammad Sallallahu alayhi wa sallam. Ameen. Ya Rabbal Alameen.

Every once in a while, we need to be reminded of the prize, of the reward. Every once in a while, we need to be reminded of Jannah. And I won't be talking about all the luxuries of Jannah. I will be discussing only one of them, which is the most stunning reward ever in Jannah. The wish of every true believer. The best, the best of the best in Jannah.

And it's not the mansions that are made of gold, and it's not the rivers of honey, and it's not Hur al-Ayn, and it's not the pebbles that are pearls. It is looking and having the ability to see Allah Azza wa Jal. That is officially the best gift and the best reward in Jannah. May Allah make us from the people who see Allah Azza wa Jal. Ameen. Ya Rabbal Alameen.

What are the things that I can do now in this dunya to increase the possibility and the opportunity to look at Allah in the Akhirah?

(Sahih Muslim, Book 1, Hadith 297)

The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: When the people of Jannah enter Jannah, Allah says, "Do you want anything that I may increase for you?" They say, "Did you not whiten our faces, and enter Jannah for us, and save us from the Fire?" The veil is raised, and they look at Allah. They were not given anything that they loved more than looking at their Lord.

Then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "To those who do good, good and more."

When the people of Jannah enter Jannah, and I beg Allah from this minbar on this day of Jum'ah, to make us, all of us, hear this statement. So when the people of Jannah enter Jannah, Allah will tell them, "Do you want anything more?" May Allah make me and you hear this statement from Allah. "Do you want anything else?" So the people will say, "Did you not brighten our faces, admit us to Jannah, and protect us from the Hellfire?" In other words, what else could we ask for?

So the veil will be lifted, and they will have the opportunity to see Allah. And the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: That will be the best thing that anyone in Jannah has been ever rewarded.

And then the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, recited: "To those who do good." For the ones who have had Ihsan in this Dunya, they will get Al-Husna, which the scholars said is Jannah, and Ziyadah. The Ziyadah, the scholars said, Ziyadah means extra. Ziyadah means looking at Allah.

First: Excellence in Worship and Character (Ihsan)

So the first thing that me and you can do in this Dunya right now, to get that great reward, is Ihsan. Is to have Ihsan. Ihsan, which probably the closest translation is excellence. Ihsan is the highest level of Iman.

We all know the Hadith of Jibreel, peace be upon him, when he came to Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, and he asked him: "What is Islam? What is Iman?" And then he asked him: "What is Ihsan?" And Rasulullah, peace and blessings be upon him, he said:

Ihsan is to worship Allah as if you are watching Him. And you're not gonna be able to watch Him, but know for a fact that He's watching you.

Ihsan with the Creator

Ihsan with the Creator, and Ihsan with the creation. Ihsan in everything that we do. Ihsan with the Creator, is to perfect to the best of our ability, every ibadah that we perform. Ihsan with Allah, is to perfect the acts of worship that we do.

To perfect my... to have Ihsan in my salat. How's your salat, honestly? Do you feel you have Ihsan in your salat, or you're just performing salat? A huge, huge difference.

Performing salat is... الحمد لله رب العالمين الرحمن الرحيم مَلْكَ يَوْمِ الدِّينِ إِيَّاكَ نَعْبُدُ وإِيَّاكَ نَسْتَعِينُ Yallah, I just wanna get it over with.

Ihsan: الحمد لله رب العالمين And I'm living every single ayah.

Regular salat: سبحان ربي العظيم سبحان ربي العظيم سبحان ربي العظيم Yallah, what kind of praise is this? What kind of praise is this? التحيات لله والصلوات والطيبات Yallah, yallah, I wanna get it over with.

While Rasul Sallallahu Alaihi Wasallam, he used to say: أرحنا بها يا بلال Ya Bilal, make the iqama, so we can feel at ease, so we can rest. We want to rest from the salat, not in the salat.

Ihsan in the salat is to give it its proper khushu', its proper time. Why are you rushing, ya akhi? My beloved brother, my beloved sister, sometimes when you stand here and you're just watching the people pray, you will feel that you are in a gym. People are exercising, up and down, up and down, yallah, yallah. You are, we are, in a meeting with Allah Azza wa Jal, while we are performing the salat.

Have ihsan in your tasbih. سبحان ربي الأعلى. سبحان ربي الأعلى. From the bottom of your heart, you are praising Allah Azza wa Jal.

Ihsan in our charity. When we give the sadaqa, and we thank, we thank the brother or the sister who took the sadaqa for giving us this opportunity. Ihsan in our hajj. Ihsan in our siyam. Ihsan in every single ibadah. Ihsan in reading the Quran. This is the ihsan with Allah Azza wa Jal.

Ihsan with the Creation

The ihsan with the creation is number one on the top of the list. Ihsan to your parents.

To have ihsan with the parents. Allah Azza wa Jal, He left that open. He did not say ihsan only in the way you talk to them. No, no, no. He left it open. What does that mean? That means, every mu'amala with my parents has to have ihsan. The way I talk, the gift I get them, it has to have ihsan. The way I behave in front of them, I have to have ihsan.

Sometimes, many of us, they go visit their parents because it's a duty upon them. And while they are visiting their parents, they are always on the phone. What kind of visit is this? What kind of birr is this? This is disrespect to the parents. Dedicate all your ihsan to the parents is to dedicate all that visit. Baba, what do you want? Mama, just tell me. Order me. Command me. Take advantage why they're still alive. Take advantage. There will come a day and you would say, I wish my parents are back so I can do something for them.

Ihsan to your spouse. The sister, my dear sister, have ihsan to your husband. He's your door to Jannah. And my brother, have ihsan to your wife. Rasulallah told us, the best of you, the best to their wife.

Now the houses are turning into battlefields. Why, ya akhi? Overlook. التغافل تسعة أعشار السعادة. Ibn al-Qayyim, rahimahullah, he said: Overlooking is 9 out of 10 of earning and gaining happiness in your life. Overlook. Don't pick on every single thing. She did this. He did this. Look at that. SubhanAllah. Why we expect perfection when we are not perfect ourselves?

What happened to the sakinah that Allah have inserted? What happened to the mawaddah? What happened? Where are they? Allah have put them in there.

Ihsan to the children. Ihsan to our children. It's not only because the children all they hear is the birr of the walidayn. No. The parents also have to have ihsan with their children by the way they raise them. They raise them to be Allah-fearing. They raise them to know their deen. They raise them to know how to read the Quran.

Ihsan to my neighbor. Ihsan to the people who work for me. Ihsan in every aspect of my life that Allah said:

And that ziyadah is looking at Allah azza wa jal.

Second: Fearing Allah in Private

So number one is ihsan. Number two, fearing Allah in private. Fearing Allah in private. What is the dalil?

Allah said: وَأُزْلِفَتِ الْجَنَّةُ لِلْمُتَّقِينَ غَيْرَ بَعِيدٍ The jannah has been prepared for the mutaqeen. اللهم اجعلنا منهم

Who are they ya Allah? The one who fear Allah bilghayb. Two meanings. They fear Allah, they did not see Him. And the other meaning, which is they fear Allah in privacy. When they are alone.

Allah said few ayat, and then He said, they will enter jannah, and they will be there forever. And in jannah, لَهُم مَّا يَشَاءُونَ فِيهَا Look at the mad here is a must. Whatever you could think about and you cannot think about, you will get in jannah. And what is the dalil about seeing Allah? وَلَدَيْنَا مَزِيدٌ Over there was ziyadah, here mazeed. Mazeed means seeing Allah. That is the extra in jannah.

طيب How are you when you are alone? كيف حالك وأنت لوحدك How are you when you are alone?

Now in the masjid you stand up here and you see Allahu Akbar Beautiful faces, everybody looks mashallah pious. But how are you when you are alone? The wife is not home, the husband is not home, the parents are not home. What are you doing? What are you watching? What are you listening to? What are you smoking? What are you drinking? That is you.

When you are alone, that is you. Because in front of the people you're trying to put another face. But when you're alone, this is you. The reward of the people who fear Allah, listen to what the ulama said. They said if you stopped a sin, listen carefully, if you stopped a sin because you know that Allah is seeing you, there is no more reward for you in the akhira than seeing Allah. The reward because you stopped something that Allah is seeing you. You don't want to do it because Allah is watching. Your reward in the akhira is seeing Allah because you lived it.

One of the scholars said, he said be very careful of the sins that you commit in private. Be very careful from the sin you commit in private because the judge is the only witness. The judge is the only witness.

My brothers and sisters, one of the scholars said: The hardship that we go through when we perform ibadah will go away, but the reward stays forever. And that joy that we get while performing a sin will go away, and the punishment will stay forever unless you repent. And the reward stays forever.

The Consequence of Private Sins

(Sunan Ibn Majah, Hadith 4245)

Rasulullah said: I know, Rasulullah is saying, I know people of my ummah that will come on the day of judgment with mountains of hasanat. Mountains. Salat, siyam, hajj, umrah, zakat, Quran, you name it. Mountains. But when they come on the day of judgment, Rasulullah said, Allah will make it into scattered dust. Scattered dust. Mountains become scattered dust.

ثوبان صفهم لنا جلهم لنا Ya Rasulullah, the sahaba are trembling. Ya Rasulullah, who are these people? Explain. Tell us who they are. We don't want to be among them.

أَلَا إِنَّهُمْ مِنْ إِخْوَانِكُمْ They are your brothers. And listen to this, they perform tahajjud just like you. Allahu Akbar. They perform tahajjud. Yeah, they perform tahajjud.

لَكِنْ إِذَا خَلَوْا بِمَحَارِمِ اللَّهِ انْتَهَكُوهَا This is their problem. It was very easy to earn all these hasanat, but their biggest problem is when they are alone, they transgress the sacred limits of Allah Azza wa Jal.

They transgress the sacred limits of Allah Azza wa Jalla.

بسم الله وحده والصلاة والسلام على من لا نبي بعده

Seeing Allah as Clear as the Full Moon

One night, when it was the middle of the hijri month, Rasulullah صلى الله عليه وسلم was outdoor and he looked - and we all know in the middle of the hijri month the moon is full. It's a full moon just like a couple of days ago. So he looked at the moon عليه الصلاة والسلام - full, bright - and said:

"You will see your Lord just like you're seeing this moon without any problem. Very clear, very clear."

And then he gave عليه الصلاة والسلام a tip in order to be from the people who see Allah this clear. He said avoid missing a salat before sunrise and a salat before sunset. Fajr and Asr.

How's Your Fajr?

My sister, how's your Fajr? My brother, my beloved brother, how's your Fajr? Fajr.

Our kids are growing up thinking the salawat are four because everybody in the house is sleeping at Fajr. "Baba, when is Fajr?" "Fajr, Habibi, when you wake up. You wake up at 8, Fajr is at 8. You wake up at 11, Fajr is at 11."

This is one kid from the Sunday school, he told me. "This is Fajr, when you wake up." Because the father doesn't want to be embarrassed in front of his children. So he told him, "Fajr when you wake up." Homemade Fajr, custom made. Whenever you want to pray, Bismillah. Allahu Akbar.

The Immense Reward of Fajr

Ya Rijal, هل تعلمون أجر أهل الفجر؟ Do you know the reward of the people who come to the masjid for Fajr? Under the protection of Allah Azza wa Jal. Complete noor, complete light on the day of judgment. The same reward as if you stayed up all night in salat. And the best reward, they will be able to see Allah Azza wa Jal as clear as the full moon.

That by itself should be an incentive for us. To come to the Fajr, to wake up for Fajr, and wake up our families for Fajr. The minute your child hits puberty, boy or girl, you must wake them up for Fajr. They become as responsible as you are.

When the mother was waking up her 14-year-old daughter for Fajr, the daughter said, "Mama, leave me alone, I want to rest." The mother told the daughter, "Wallahi, I'm only waking you up so you can rest. Because the rest is in the qabr and in the akhirah. Here is no rest."

Angels Attend Fajr

How's your Fajr? إن قرآن الفجر كان مشهودا The angels traveled from seventh heaven to come to the masajid and attend the recitation of salat al-fajr. And I live seven minutes away, and I'm snoring.

The minute you start becoming from the people of Fajr, Wallahi, it changed personally, changed my life. The day that you do not pray Fajr in jama'ah is not counted in your life. You will feel so weird. Everything is blocked that day. Because khalas, it became part of you.

Do it for 20-25 days, and I guarantee you will be addicted. And what an addiction. What an addiction.

A Du'a to See Allah's Face

And finally, one of the ways to see Allah Azza wa Jal is to ask Him:

Say this du'a: "Ya Allah, do not deprive me from the joy of looking at your face."

Why? Because the biggest punishment, the biggest punishment for the people in Jahannam, it's not the 24-7 fire. It's not the boiling water. It is not the thorny food. It is being deprived from seeing Allah Azza wa Jal.

That is their biggest punishment. Allah said, on that day, they will be deprived from seeing Allah Azza wa Jal.

Closing Du'a

وصلى الله على نبينا محمد وعلى آله وصحبه أجمعين. وقوموا إلى صلاتكم.

Please come from the hallway and fill up the main hall. Also from the two rooms on the side. There's a lot of space in the main hall. Look down, make sure heels on the line, foot to foot, shoulder to shoulder. Sisters, please do the same.