collections khutbah Ramadan The Month Of Spiritual Revival
Ramadan The Month Of Spiritual Revival

Islamic Religious Council of Singapore

Friday Sermon

9 April 2021 / 26 Syaaban 1442H

Ramadan The Month Of Spiritual Revival

الحَمدُ لِلّهِ الَّذِي بَسَطَ لِعِبَادِهِ عَطَايَا وَهَدَايَا لاَ تُعَدُّ. وَأَشْهَدُ أَنْ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا اللهُ وَحْدَهُ لَا شَرِيكَ لَهُ، وَأَشهَدُ أَنَّ سَيِّدَنَا محمدًا عَبْدُهُ وَرَسُولُهُ. اَللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ عَلَى سَيِّدِنَا مُحَمَّدٍ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَأَصْحَابِهِ أَجْمَعِينَ. أَمَّا بَعدُ، فَيَا أَيُّهَا الـمُسلِمُونَ، أُوصِيكُم وَنَفسِي بِتَقوَى اللهِ عَزَّ وَجَلَّ، فَقَد فَازَ الـمُتَّقُونَ.

My dearest brothers,

In a few days, we will welcome the arrival of Ramadan, a month that will be filled with an abundant flow of Allah’s mercy and forgiveness. Therefore, let us strengthen our taqwa, as well as renew our intentions to make this year’s Ramadan one of the most meaningful ones, regardless of the situation we are facing. May Allah fulfil our hopes to achieve this. Amin.

My dear brothers,

The month of Ramadan is known as the month of al-Quran because of its first revelation to our Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.). In today’s context, it is timely that we reflect upon how Allah prepared our Prophet (s.a.w.) before receiving this sacred revelation.

Syaikh al-Mubarakfuri narrated that our Prophet (s.a.w.) secluded himself continuously in cave of Hira, until the night the Quran was revealed. At that moment, Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.) met the angel Gabriel for the first time and consequently received the first 5 verses of Surah al-‘Alaq.

Some scholars mentioned that the Prophet’s isolation is part of Allah’s plan to calm his blessed soul and spend his time alone to contemplate, while being away from the worldly affairs and distractions. It was a necessary process to strengthen and calm his soul in order to receive Allah’s revelation.

My dear brothers,

We should strive to emulate this. Let us follow the example set by our Prophet Muhammad (s.a.w.). In the coming days before Ramadan, we need to prepare ourselves by doing some self-reflection, increasing our remembrance of Allah and seeking forgiveness from Him. This process helps to revive our spirituality which may have been neglected for quite some time due to being too absorbed by our worldly affairs. Allah says in Surah Al-Baqarah verse 152:

Which means: “So remember Me (Allah) as I will remember you and be grateful to Me and do not deny Me.”

This is how it should be, my brothers. In our remembrance of Allah through performing dzikr, acts of worship and reflecting upon Allah’s greatness, He will surely honour us. And when we are blessed with His honour, that is when our souls will be nourished with faith.

My dear brothers,

Alhamdulillah, we are grateful that we will be able to perform tarawih, qiyam and read the Quran in our mosques despite some limitations and restrictions. One of the ways we can show our gratitude is by preserving these blessings and not misuse the precautionary steps just because we want to go to the mosques. If we can secure a place in the mosque, we should be thankful towards Allah and pray that others will also have their turns and be given the opportunity to do so.

This fits the sunnah of our Prophet (s.a.w.) that is narrated by Imam Muslim, in which our Prophet (s.a.w.) is an individual who is generous and will share his blessings more in the month of Ramadan as compared to other months. Thus, other than sharing our wealth this Ramadan, let us share the opportunity to perform good deeds in the mosque with others. InsyaAllah, this sacrifice will be counted as one of our good deeds.

However, my brothers, if we are unable to secure a place in the mosques, do not be disappointed. Take it as a chance to enliven our homes by performing acts of worship with our household members. In addition to the reward we will be getting for performing acts of worship, we will also be rewarded for strengthening our familial bonds. In fact, performing our acts of worship at home could also help us remain focused towards Allah. This is also a blessing from Allah that we must be thankful for.

Let us ponder upon the advice given by our Prophet (s.a.w.) that is narrated by Imam Bukhari and Muslim. Among the seven groups of people whom Allah will grant protection in the Day of Judgement, are those who perform good deeds in seclusion and in a state of calmness while shedding tears, whether they are tears of remorse or longing towards Allah (s.w.t.).

Therefore, my brothers, let us make the intention that all the steps we take to protect the safety of our mosques’ congregants as a religious deed, in which we sacrifice our individual wishes for the well-being of others. Seek forgiveness from Allah in our own homes this Ramadan. In a hadith narrated by Imam At-Tirmidhi, our Prophet (s.a.w.) said that the two eyes that will not be touched by hellfire are the eyes that shed tears due to the fear of losing the love of Allah and are true to the path of Allah. Indeed, these acts of worship can be performed wherever and the reward will be the same, insyaAllah.

My dear brothers,

Let us teach our soul to become a believer who does not only have high level of spirituality, but also someone who shows mercy and kindness towards others this Ramadan. Let us continue our effort to protect the safety of our community.

May our kindness towards others allow us to attain His mercy; by being grateful to Allah, Allah will increase His blessings. Hopefully, by giving others their turns and opportunities to perform acts of worship in the mosques, Allah will grant us the chance to dwell in the everlasting paradise. 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.

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 وَ بَارِكْ 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، يَارَبَّ 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.