(Allah alone lowers and raises through His mercy and justice – Faith and the Qurʾān are the standard of elevation – Whoever humbles himself before Allah, He raises him).
The First Sermon
All praise is due to Allah, who raised Islam and its people through His strength and mercy, and lowered disbelief and its people through His justice and might. I bear witness that there is no deity worthy of worship except Allah alone, without partner, and I bear witness that Muḥammad is His servant and Messenger. May Allah send abundant peace and blessings upon him.
To proceed:
Fear Allah, servants of Allah, as He truly deserves to be feared, and remain mindful of Him in private and in secret.
يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا اتَّقُوا اللَّهَ حَقَّ تُقَاتِهِ وَلَا تَمُوتُنَّ إِلَّا وَأَنْتُمْ مُسْلِمُونَ
“O you who believe, fear Allah as He should truly be feared, and do not die except as Muslims.” [Sūrat Āl ʿImrān: 102].
Servant of Allah:
Have you ever called upon Allah and said, “O Allah, raise me”?
Our Prophet ﷺ used to make this supplication every night.
ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ used to say between the two prostrations during the night prayer: ‘My Lord, forgive me, have mercy upon me, mend me, provide for me, and raise me.’” [Narrated by Ibn Mājah].
Allah raised the status of His Prophet ﷺ in both worlds. He says:
وَرَفَعْنَا لَكَ ذِكْرَكَ
“And We raised high your mention.” [Sūrat al-Sharḥ: 4].
He ﷺ fulfilled servitude to Allah and worked to raise His religion. The disbelievers and hypocrites sought to disparage him and extinguish his call. They said about him: “A sorcerer, a madman, a liar.”
But Allah placed them among the lowest of the low and raised the status of His Prophet ﷺ to the highest ranks, just as He did with His intimate friend Ibrāhīm (may peace be upon him). Allah says:
قَالُوا ابْنُوا لَهُ بُنْيَانًا فَأَلْقُوهُ فِي الْجَحِيمِ * فَأَرَادُوا بِهِ كَيْدًا فَجَعَلْنَاهُمُ الْأَسْفَلِينَ
“They said, ‘Build a structure for him and throw him into the blazing Fire.’ So they intended a plot against him, but We made them the lowest.” [Sūrat al-Ṣāffāt: 97–98].
Servants of Allah:
Allah alone is al-Khāfiḍ and al-Rāfiʿ—the One who lowers and the One who raises. No one can raise what He has lowered, and no one can lower what He has raised.
Lowering and raising belong to Him alone, both in His legislation and His decree, in this world and the Hereafter.
In this world, He, Glorified, decreed that some people should be raised above others while others are lowered, out of wisdom and as a test. Allah, Glorified, says:
وَهُوَ الَّذِي جَعَلَكُمْ خَلَائِفَ الْأَرْضِ وَرَفَعَ بَعْضَكُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ لِيَبْلُوَكُمْ فِي مَا آتَاكُمْ
“He is the One who made you successors upon the earth and raised some of you above others in degrees so that He may test you through what He has given you.” [Sūrat al-Anʿām: 165].
Among the wisdoms behind this is that some people make use of the services of others so that the order of life may be maintained. Allah says:
نَحْنُ قَسَمْنَا بَيْنَهُمْ مَعِيشَتَهُمْ فِي الْحَيَاةِ الدُّنْيَا وَرَفَعْنَا بَعْضَهُمْ فَوْقَ بَعْضٍ دَرَجَاتٍ لِيَتَّخِذَ بَعْضُهُمْ بَعْضًا سُخْرِيًّا وَرَحْمَتُ رَبِّكَ خَيْرٌ مِمَّا يَجْمَعُونَ
“We have apportioned among them their livelihood in the life of this world and raised some of them above others in degrees so that some may employ others in service. Yet the mercy of your Lord is better than what they accumulate.” [Sūrat al-Zukhruf: 32].
This lowering and raising are part of Allah’s management of His creation. No one besides Him possesses this power.
Indeed, you cannot even raise your side from your bed except with His permission. For this reason, among the supplications of our Prophet ﷺ when he went to bed was: “In Your name, my Lord, I lay down my side, and by You I raise it.” [Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim].
Our Lord decrees this lowering and raising according to the balance of wisdom and mercy.
In His right hand are generosity and benevolence, and in His other hand is the balance of justice.
The Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, the right hand of Allah is full, and spending does not diminish it. It pours forth continuously by night and day. Have you seen what He has spent since He created the heavens and the earth? Yet that has not diminished what is in His right hand. His Throne is upon the water, and in His other hand is the balance; He lowers and raises.” [Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim].
He lowers and raises according to His justice and places everything only in its proper place.
At the same time, His mercy encompasses all things. All good is in His hands, and evil is not attributed to Him. For this reason, the Prophet ﷺ said: “The balance is in the hand of al-Raḥmān. He raises some people and lowers others until the Day of Resurrection.” [Narrated by Ibn Mājah].
This world and everything within it are extremely insignificant to Allah. For this reason, He, Glorified, decreed that nothing from this world is raised except that He will bring it down.
One day, the Prophet ﷺ was riding his she-camel al-ʿAḍbāʾ, which was almost never outrun. Then a Bedouin came riding a young camel and outran her.
This was difficult for the Muslims, and the Prophet ﷺ noticed it. He said: “It is a right upon Allah that nothing from this world is raised except that He lowers it.” [Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim].
Such is this world—the abode of deception. Today there is youth and strength; tomorrow there is weakness and old age.
Today there is health and beauty; tomorrow there is illness and disappearance. Today there is wealth and well-being; tomorrow there is poverty and affliction. There is nothing of this world except that its end is decline and disappearance. Therefore, the believer’s goal should be that Allah raises his status with Him.
How many people are held in high esteem by creation while being insignificant before Allah and having no weight with Him. Whoever Allah humiliates, no one can honor. Allah, Glorified, has decreed that the human being is in a state of lowliness unless he is a righteous believer. He says:
لَقَدْ خَلَقْنَا الْإِنْسَانَ فِي أَحْسَنِ تَقْوِيمٍ * ثُمَّ رَدَدْنَاهُ أَسْفَلَ سَافِلِينَ * إِلَّا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَعَمِلُوا الصَّالِحَاتِ فَلَهُمْ أَجْرٌ غَيْرُ مَمْنُونٍ
“Indeed, We created man in the best form, then We reduced him to the lowest of the low, except those who believe and do righteous deeds, for they will have an unending reward.” [Sūrat al-Tīn: 4–6].
What elevation can there be for a person who does not believe in his magnificent Lord and does not submit to His upright religion?
So do not grieve, O believer, over any worldly elevation that has passed you by if you are a believing person of piety. Allah says:
وَلَا تَهِنُوا وَلَا تَحْزَنُوا وَأَنْتُمُ الْأَعْلَوْنَ إِنْ كُنْتُمْ مُؤْمِنِينَ
“Do not weaken and do not grieve, for you will be superior if you are believers.” [Sūrat Āl ʿImrān: 139].
Allah, al-Khāfiḍ and al-Rāfiʿ, has decreed elevation and high standing for this Ummah. The Messenger of Allah ﷺ said: “Give this Ummah glad tidings of splendor, elevation, victory, and establishment upon the earth.” [Narrated by Aḥmad].
But through what is this elevation attained? It is attained only through the Book of Allah and by following His religion and Sharīʿah.
Whoever holds firmly to them, Allah honors and raises him. Whoever abandons his religion, Allah lowers and humiliates him. Allah, Exalted, says:
فَاسْتَمْسِكْ بِالَّذِي أُوحِيَ إِلَيْكَ إِنَّكَ عَلَى صِرَاطٍ مُسْتَقِيمٍ * وَإِنَّهُ لَذِكْرٌ لَكَ وَلِقَوْمِكَ وَسَوْفَ تُسْأَلُونَ
“So hold firmly to what has been revealed to you. Indeed, you are upon a straight path. And indeed, it is an honor for you and your people, and you will be questioned.” [Sūrat al-Zukhruf: 43–44].
“And indeed, it is an honor” means dignity, elevation, might, and nobility. Allah will question us on the Day of Resurrection about this tremendous blessing.
Did we believe in revelation and act upon its rulings, thereby being raised through it among the nations?
Or did we cast it behind our backs and therefore become punished with humiliation and regret?
The great difference between us and the Companions is that they truly believed and acted upon that belief, so Allah raised them.
For this reason, Ẓuhayr ibn Rāfiʿ, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “The Messenger of Allah ﷺ prohibited us from something that had been beneficial to us, but obedience to the Messenger of Allah ﷺ is higher and more beneficial for us.” [Narrated by Aḥmad].
The Qurʾān, servants of Allah, is the standard by which people are raised and advanced. The Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, Allah raises some people through this Book and lowers others through it.” [Narrated by Muslim].
He raises them through it when they hold firmly to it in the course of their lives, when they cast aside their desires and judge according to the Book of their Lord.
Then they will attain elevation and honor. Otherwise, their condition will be like that of the one who cast aside the signs of Allah. Allah says concerning him:
وَاتْلُ عَلَيْهِمْ نَبَأَ الَّذِي آتَيْنَاهُ آيَاتِنَا فَانْسَلَخَ مِنْهَا فَأَتْبَعَهُ الشَّيْطَانُ فَكَانَ مِنَ الْغَاوِينَ * وَلَوْ شِئْنَا لَرَفَعْنَاهُ بِهَا وَلَكِنَّهُ أَخْلَدَ إِلَى الْأَرْضِ وَاتَّبَعَ هَوَاهُ فَمَثَلُهُ كَمَثَلِ الْكَلْبِ إِنْ تَحْمِلْ عَلَيْهِ يَلْهَثْ أَوْ تَتْرُكْهُ يَلْهَثْ ذَلِكَ مَثَلُ الْقَوْمِ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا فَاقْصُصِ الْقَصَصَ لَعَلَّهُمْ يَتَفَكَّرُونَ * سَاءَ مَثَلًا الْقَوْمُ الَّذِينَ كَذَّبُوا بِآيَاتِنَا وَأَنْفُسَهُمْ كَانُوا يَظْلِمُونَ
“Recite to them the account of the one to whom We gave Our signs, but he cast them aside, so Satan pursued him and he became one of the deviators. Had We willed, We could have raised him through them, but he clung to the earth and followed his desire. His example is that of a dog: if you drive it away, it pants, and if you leave it alone, it still pants. That is the example of those who reject Our signs. So relate the stories so that perhaps they may reflect. Evil is the example of those who denied Our signs, and it was themselves they were wronging.” [Sūrat al-Aʿrāf: 175–177].
Allah, al-Khāfiḍ and al-Rāfiʿ, possesses the balance of justice in His religious judgment, raising and elevating what deserves to be raised, and lowering and placing down what deserves to be lowered.
We therefore raise and exalt only what He has raised and exalted, and we lower and reject what He has lowered and rejected.
The Prophet ﷺ stood during his pilgrimage and delivered a sermon, saying: “Indeed, everything from the affairs of Jāhiliyyah is placed beneath my feet.” [Narrated by Muslim].
Islam does not coexist with Jāhiliyyah in its foundations and principles, for Jāhiliyyah contradicts Islam in both fundamentals and details. Look at the Arabs and how they lived in Jāhiliyyah in their beliefs, laws, and morals.
When Islam came, it cast all of that, with its filth, beneath the feet, and gave this Ummah an upright religion to be raised high in belief and practice, through which Allah raises the Ummah in might and glory.
Likewise, the modern systems of Jāhiliyyah that contradict Islam belong beneath the feet: secularism, liberalism, feminism, and all other irreligious systems.
It is not permissible to raise their status or glorify their adherents. How far apart are the earth and the Pleiades! And how far apart are the ignorant ideas of mankind and the Sharīʿah of the Lord of mankind!
May Allah bless me and you through the Magnificent Qurʾān and benefit me and you through its verses and wise reminder.
I seek Allah’s forgiveness for myself and for you, so seek His forgiveness. Indeed, He is the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful.
The Second Sermon
All praise is due to Allah. May peace and blessings be upon the Messenger of Allah, his family, his Companions, and all those who follow him.
To proceed:
The believer does not raise his nose in arrogance or consider himself great.
Rather, he humbles himself before his Lord, and then Allah raises his status and elevates his mention.
The Prophet ﷺ said: “No one humbles himself for Allah except that Allah raises him.” [Narrated by Muslim].
People do not possess the power to lower you or raise you. That belongs to Allah alone.
So be a believer who humbles himself before Allah, and He will raise your mention and elevate your rank and status.
ʿUmar ibn al-Khaṭṭāb, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “When a servant humbles himself before Allah, Allah raises his wisdom and says: ‘Rise up; may Allah raise you!’ He sees himself as insignificant, while in the eyes of people he is great. But when he becomes arrogant and transgresses, Allah crushes him down to the earth and says: ‘Be humiliated; may Allah humiliate you!’ He sees himself as great, while in the eyes of people he is insignificant, until he becomes more contemptible in their eyes than a pig.” [Narrated by Ibn Abī Shaybah].
Ibn Masʿūd, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “Whoever seeks to rise above others out of self-glorification, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, lowers him. And whoever humbles himself before Allah in submission, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, raises him.” [Narrated by Aḥmad].
There is no greater elevation than for Allah to raise your rank on the Day of Resurrection.
Paradise has degrees and ranks, so strive for the highest levels concerning which the Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, the people of Paradise will see the people of the chambers above them just as they see a brilliant star far away on the horizon, in the east or the west, because of the difference in rank between them.” They said: “O Messenger of Allah, are those the ranks of the prophets that no one else can reach?” He replied: “Yes indeed! By the One in whose hand is my soul, they are men who believed in Allah and believed the Messengers.” [Narrated by al-Bukhārī and Muslim].
Among the grace of Allah, al-Rāfiʿ, is that He raises the believer through his children and raises his children through him. Allah says:
وَالَّذِينَ آمَنُوا وَاتَّبَعَتْهُمْ ذُرِّيَّتُهُمْ بِإِيمَانٍ أَلْحَقْنَا بِهِمْ ذُرِّيَّتَهُمْ
“Those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith—We will join their descendants with them.” [Sūrat al-Ṭūr: 21].
ʿAbd Allāh ibn ʿAbbās, may Allah be pleased with them both, said: “Indeed, Allah, Mighty and Majestic, raises the offspring of a believer to his rank so that his eyes may be comforted by them, even if they were below him in deeds.” [Narrated by al-Ṭaḥāwī].
The Prophet ﷺ said: “Indeed, a man’s rank will be raised in Paradise, and he will say: ‘How did I attain this?’ It will be said: ‘Through your child seeking forgiveness for you.’” [Narrated by Ibn Mājah].
O Allah, help us and do not help against us. Support us and do not support others against us. Plan in our favor and do not plan against us. Grant us victory over those who transgress against us.
O Allah, grant us security in our homelands, rectify our leaders and those entrusted with our affairs, and place authority over us in the hands of those who fear You, are mindful of You, and follow what pleases You.
O Allah, support our oppressed brothers in Gaza and everywhere else, and decree for them victory and relief soon.
Servants of Allah: Remember Allah abundantly and glorify Him morning and evening. And the conclusion of our supplication is: all praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all worlds.
