collections khutbah Emulating the Prophet s.a.w.: Encouragement to Seek Knowledge
Emulating the Prophet s.a.w.: Encouragement to Seek Knowledge

Islamic Religious Council of Singapore

Friday Sermon

2 October 2020 / 14 Safar 1442H

Emulating the Prophet s.a.w.: Encouragement to Seek Knowledge

 

Beloved brothers,

Let us together have taqwa towards Allah s.w.t. by obeying all His commands and avoiding all His prohibitions. May Allah s.w.t. grant us unwavering hearts and faith. Amin.

Brothers,

Every one of us surely yearns for the mercy and love of Allah s.w.t. His love can be attained through our love for Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. Let us observe Allah’s words in Surah Ali-Imran verse 31:

 

Which means: “Say (o Muhammad), ‘If you love Allah, follow me, and Allah will love you and forgive you your sins; and Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful.’

My brothers, know that our love for the Prophet s.a.w. must be proven by our efforts in practising his teachings, increasing our prayers and salutations upon him, and emulating his character to the best of our abilities. As the Malay proverb goes, “tak kenal maka tak cinta”  which means, you cannot truly love someone until you get to know them – therefore, the sermons for this month would like to invite all of us to observe and appreciate the teachings of our Prophet s.a.w.

Brothers,

Prophet Muhammad s.a.w. is the Messenger of Allah sent as a mercy to humankind. Hence, every believer should strive to emulate the Prophet in all aspects of his life. We can achieve this by learning and reflecting upon the life of the Prophet and understanding the lessons from the prophetic tradition. All of these are guidelines for us to achieve success in this world and in the hereafter.

Brothers,

I would like to take this opportunity to share with you one of the teachings of our Prophet s.a.w. – which is also a recurring theme in the Quran as well as in the hadiths. Let us ponder upon a hadith which means: “Whoever treads a path in search of knowledge, Allah will make the way to heaven easy for him.” [Hadith reported by Imam Muslim].

This hadith is an encouragement from the Prophet s.a.w. for every Muslim to seek and increase knowledge throughout our lives. Not only does knowledge bring us closer to Allah, but it also helps us in finding solutions when we face challenges in life. With knowledge, a believer will remain guided in this world and hence be protected in the hereafter.

Brothers,  

This prophetic guidance in seeking knowledge is even more relevant nowadays, due to the current uncertain economic climate. Some of us might have been forced to make certain adjustments. Adjustments in our expenditures, in our plans as well as our needs and priorities. Apart from increasing our faith in Allah, such situation teaches us to always be prepared to adapt and adjust. This is because life will continue to throw challenges at us. And those who believe in Allah will strive to find a way out.

This includes increasing knowledge and learning more life skills to open doors to new opportunities. This is the spirit that needs to be nurtured within ourselves.

Brothers,

Let us together make the Prophet s.a.w. as our role model. May Allah grant us love towards our Prophet s.a.w. and guide us to emulate his teachings. May Allah s.w.t. bless us and protect us from any harm or evil. Amin Ya Rabbal ‘Alamin.

أَقُوْلُ قَوْلِي هَذَا وَ أَسْتَغْفِرُ اللهَ العَظِيْمَ لِي وَ لَكُمْ، فَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ إِنَّهُ هُوَ الغَفُوْرُ الرَّحِيْمُ

 

Second Sermon

 

الْحَمْدُ للهِ حَمْدًا كَثِيرًا كَمَا أَمَرَ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَن لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشْهَدُ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا مُحَمَّدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ. اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَأَصْحَابِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ. أَمَّا بَعْدُ، فَيَا عِبَادَ الله، اِتَّقُوا اللهَ تَعَالَى فِيمَا أَمَرَ، وَانتَهُوا عَمَّا نَهَاكُم عَنْهُ وَزَجَرَ.

My Brothers,  

The first sermon has highlighted the importance of seeking knowledge, hence I would like to share with you that Mendaki will be organizing several events and activities online throughout the month of October 2020, with the theme “Raikan Ilmu” or “Celebrate Knowledge”.

It aims to inspire families and children to embrace lifelong learning. Let us grab this opportunity to pursue new knowledge and skills. More information is available on the Raikan Ilmu SG website or @MendakiSG social media.

May Allah s.w.t. grant us knowledge that is beneficial and will bring us closer to Him. Amin.

أَلَا صَلُّوا وَسَلِّمُوا عَلَى النَّبِيِّ الْمُصْطَفَى، فَقَدْ أَمَرَنَا اللهُ بِذَلِكَ حَيْثُ قَال فِي كِتَابِهِ الْعَزِيزِ: إِنَّ اللهَ وَمَلَائِكَتَهُ يُصَلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ يَـا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ ءَامَنُوا صَلُّوا عَلَيْهِ وَسَلِّمُوا تَسْلِيمًا. اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَبَارِكْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِ سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ.

وَارْضَ اللَّهُمَّ عَنِ الخُلَفَاءِ الرَّاشِدِينَ المَهْدِيِّينَ أَبِي بَكْرٍ وَعُمَرَ وَعُثْمَانَ وَعَلِيِّ، وَعَن بَقِيَّةِ الصَّحَابَةِ وَالقَرَابَةِ وَالتَّابِعِينَ، وَتَابِعِي التَّابِعِينَ، وَعَنَّا مَعَهُم وَفِيهِم بِرَحْمَتِكَ يَا أَرْحَمَ الرَّاحِمِينَ.

اللَّهُمَّ اغْفِرْ لِلْمُؤْمِنِينَ وَالمُؤْمِنَاتِ، وَالمُسْلِمِينَ وَالْمُسْلِمَاتِ، الْأَحْيَاءِ مِنهُم وَالْأَمْوَاتِ. اللَّهُمَّ ادْفَعْ عَنَّا الْبَلَاءَ وَالوَبَاءَ وَالزَّلَازِلَ وَالْمِحَنَ، مَا ظَهَرَ مِنْهَا وَمَا بَطَنَ، عَن بَلَدِنَا خَاصَّةً، وَسَائِرِ الْبُلْدَانِ عَامَّةً، يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ. رَبَّنَا آتِنَا فِي الدُّنيَا حَسَنَةً، وَفِي الْآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً، وَقِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ.

عِبَادَ اللهِ، إِنَّ اللهَ يَأْمُرُ بِالْعَدْلِ وَالْإِحْسَانِ، وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي الْقُرْبَى وَيَنْهَى عَنِ الْفَحْشَاءِ وَالْمُنكَرِ وَالْبَغْيِ، يَعِظُكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَذَكَّرُونَ، فَاذْكُرُوا اللهَ الْعَظِيمَ يَذْكُرْكُمْ، وَاشْكُرُوهُ عَلَى نِعَمِهِ يَزِدْكُمْ، وَاسْأَلُوهُ مِنْ فَضْلِهِ يُعْطِكُمْ، وَلَذِكْرُ اللهِ أَكْبَرُ، وَاللهُ يَعْلَمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ.