Friday Sermon – Khalifatul Masih V – Mirza Masroor Ahmad – Year 2017
Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah I bear witness that Muhammad (saw) is the Messenger of Allah. Come to Prayer. Come to success.
Allah is the Greatest, Allah is the Greatest. There is none worth of worship except Allah. May the Peace and Blessings of Allah be upon you. I bear witness that there is none worthy of worship except Allah
He is alone and has no partner and I bear witness that Muhammad (saw) is His Servant and Messenger After this I seek refuge with Allah from Satan the accursed. In the name of Allah, the Gracious, the Merciful.
All praise belongs to Allah, Lord of all the worlds. The Gracious, the Merciful. Master of the Day of Judgment. Thee alone do we worship and Thee alone do we implore for help. Guide us on the right path.
The path of those on whom Thou hast bestowed Thy blessings, those who have not incurred Thy displeasure, and those who have not gone astray. We observe in the world that man is generally becoming increasingly steeped in worldliness.
There is turmoil and disorder in the race to attain materialistic pursuits. God and religion are given secondary importance and in fact, a growing number of people in the world deny the existence of God altogether. They consider religion to be a useless endeavour, God forbid.
However, even within such a time, there are those who are in search of God. They are in search of the religion which can connect them with God. They wish to develop a relationship with Him and to recognise true faith.
After identifying the true religion they desire to join it. They pray restlessly in this quest. Certainly when a pious person passionately strives in this search, he is ultimately guided by God the Almighty and shown the straight path.
Through different ways, God guides such people to attaining peace and understanding of the true religion. God increases their faith and conviction. To attain nearness to Him and recognise the true religion in this era, Allah the Almighty has sent,
according to His promises, the True Servant of the Holy Prophet (saw) who was conferred the status of the Promised Messiah and Imam Mahdi. And the world was informed that if they wanted to find the object of their longing and their search for peace,
they should enter the fold of Bai’at [oath of all egiance] of the Promised Messiah (as). They would attain the path to nearness to God, the reality of worship and see the manifestation of their prayers being heard.
As I have said, through different means Allah the Almighty guides to the truth those who yearn for it and He strengthens their faith. Both the past and present of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Community are filled with such accounts.
On a daily basis such incidents occur in some village, city or country of the world. Not only do these accounts become a way to increase the faith of those who newly enter the Community of the Promised Messiah after attaining guidance, rather it also serves to reinvigorate
and strengthen the faith of the born Ahmadis and Ahmadis of old. At this time I will present some accounts or personal experiences of people, which display how Allah the Almighty facilities guidance merely through His Grace.
Ameer Sahib [National President of the Ahmadiyya Community] The Gambia relates: Kanni Fatti is a 65 year old sister from the Niamina Village in the East District. She has suffered from a foot pain (ailment) for the last ten years
which was unable to treat from anywhere she tried. This pain rendered her unable to walk around. She travelled far away from her village to place a called Bansang in search of treatment. By chance there she watched MTA on which my sermon was airing.
After this the lady returned to her village and saw in a dream that she is being told ‘follow the one you saw on TV, because he is informing you of the right path that
will lead to salvation’. Thus, after this dream the lady took the Bai’at [oath of allegiance]. Ameer Sahib (the National President) relates: “The lady herself informed us that after the Bai’at (pledge of allegiance),
“the pain in her feet gradually subsided and this greatly strengthened her faith. “Now she preaches in the entire village and tells everyone that “her pain was alleviated through the blessings of joining the Jama’at (Ahmadiyya Community).”
Allah the Almighty guides in astonishing ways those whose piety He wants to safeguard or whose goodness pleases him. A worldly person may say that this is just an ignorant and uneducated village lady who is delusional.
However one who is bestowed the treasure of firm faith by Allah the Almighty, considers these worldly people to be ignorant. Burkina Faso is a francophone country in Western Africa. It is near the Sahara, or rather part of it actually runs through.
Observe how Allah the Almighty guided an individual in this far-off country. And this is not just within a far-off country, but further in a remote and tiny village within in. The Missionary In-Charge writes: Sawadogo Sahib is from a Jama’at in the Leo region
and accepted Ahmadiyyat after the Jalsa Salana (Annual Convention) Germany. He related that he regularly listened to the Ahmadiyya radio station. Whenever any delegation of the Jama’at came to his village for preaching,
then because he was an influential member of the village he felt the need to extend a lot of help and facilitated their preaching (even though he was not an Ahmadi, he had sympathy for them).
Some time later the Maulvies [Muslim clerics] learned of this and came to him to say that he should not listen to the Ahmadiyya radio station at all and nor should he interact and mingle with Ahmadis,
because if he did they would ruin his belief in Islam. He says that: “Incited by the Maulvies [clerics], I stopped meeting with any Ahmadis and also listening to the Ahmadiyya radio. “Some time later it so happened that once I was returning from a journey
“and I stopped at a mosque to offer my prayers. “It was a small village where there was a mosque, and the prayer had already started “so I quickly went to perform my Wudu [ablution]. “During this time another man entered the mosque and said that
“this is an Ahmadi village and this mosque belongs to them. “Hearing this I thought to myself, where have I ended up? “I was avoiding them for such a long time. I started doing my ablution really slowly so that
“the prayer would finish and I could say my own prayer afterwards.” However he ended up having to do the prayer there. Allah the Almighty was pleased with an act of piety on his part and thus obliged him to offer the prayers in our mosque.
He continues and says: “I saw a dream that night there is a huge crowd of people “and I am moving people aside. “I advance forward and see that there are thousands of people surrounding one individual.
“I enquire from someone who that person is. He replies to me that ‘this is he who you should listen to, but the Maulvies have moved you away from the right path.’ He says: “This is when I woke up. This dream had such an impact on me that
“I reestablished contact with the Ahmadis. “One day I phoned the mission house and said to the missionary that I want to take the Bai’at. “The missionary replied that on such and such day, I should come to the mission house.”
He says “when I reached the mission house on the assigned day, “everyone was watching something on the TV. “When I went forward to see I was astounded to see the scenes on the TV.
“The exact same scenes that I had seen in my dream were being shown on the TV. “When I asked, the missionary told me that this was the concluding session of the Jalsa Salana “and that the Khalifah was addressing it.
“I said to the missionary to immediately take my Bai’at (pledge of alle giance ). “I swear by God, these scenes and this person is exactly what I saw in my dream.” With the Grace of Allah, he along with his family have become Ahmadis
and he is preaching to others in the village. Surely a person who personally experiences this and has been granted guidance from Allah the Almighty continues to grow stronger in his faith.
Many people write to me and say that nothing can deter them from their faith [in Ahmadiyyat] because they have done the B ai’at after receiving affirmation from God Almighty and witnessing His clear signs. They no longer require any further proof.
There are some people who are so fiercely stubborn in their opposition that they refuse to listen to any rationale argument that is presented to them. However, there are also some people who are free from arrogance and are extremely compassionate
and such people who are not arrogant and are compassionate are then guided by Allah Almighty. And, if they avail from this guidance then they become the recipients of Allah Almighty’s grace. A similar incident was experienced by someone in Syria, who initially opposed the Jama’at
but was told seek guidance from Allah the Almighty and ultimately received guidance from God Almighty Ahmad Sahib is this person who from Syria says: “I had some Ahmadi friends and would often meet them outside and also invite them to my house.
“I accepted much of their beliefs except when it came to the topic of the death of Jesus (as). “The reason for this was because for a long time “I had been waiting for the Messiah [Jesus(as)] to descend from the heavens
“and had a long-felt desire to join his army “and free Bait-ul-Maqdis [Mosque of the Holy City in Jerusalem]. “After hearing about the death of Jesus (as), all my aspirations of doing Jihad were shattered “because if the Messiah was not to descend from the heavens
“then how was I to take part in the Jihad?” He says that “One day, some Ahmadis were sitting in my house “and Mutazil Qazaq Sahib was also among them. “A discussion ensued on the subject of the death of Jesus (as)
“and I told the Ahmadis that for the sake of God as of today “do not ever speak to me about the death of Jesus (as) or even mention this subject in my house. “Hearing this, Qazaq Sahib said that he had one request from me that
“I should pray to Allah the Almighty to guide me on this issue. “I really liked this suggestion of his “and on that same evening I fervently prayed to Allah the Almighty while prostrating before him.
“When I fell asleep in the night, I saw in a dream that I was ascending to an elevated station “when a very soft piece of ground appears [like a sinkhole]. “The moment I placed my foot upon it, it immediately gave way
“and felt as if was falling into a deep pit. “While in this state of extreme anxiety, a person appeared and grabbed hold of my shoulders “and said ‘Abu Hasan! (Ahmad Sahib’s family title) do not ever come here to this place again
and know that Jesus (as) has passed away.” He then said, ‘now, continue on your way.’ ” He says: “When I woke up, I phoned one of my Ahmadi friends and told him that “I wanted to go to Mutazil Qazaq Sahib’s house.
“We both arrived at his house and as soon as we entered inside, I was left astounded “when I saw a picture hanging on the wall. “I enquired who the person was in the picture and he said that
“this was the Promised Messiah and Imam Mahdi (as). “Upon hearing this, I immediately said that I would wanted to do the Bai ’at (o ath of allegianc “because the person in the picture was the same person who grabbed hold of my shoulder in my dream
“and saved me from the small piece of the soft crumbling earth “and also said that Jesus (as) had passed away. As I mentioned earlier that Allah the Almighty opens avenues through various means in order to guide people
and enable them to search for the truth such as dreams, Tabligh [preaching] or sometimes learns about Ahmadiyyat, the true Islam, by reading a book or a piece of literature. At times, people are impressed by observing the good moral conduct of other Ahmadis
and thereby accept Ahmadiyyat and the true Islam. These days there are many people who are learning about true Islam through MTA and are entering into the fold of Ahmadiyyat. A missionary from Benin writes:
“A local chief used to be a Mushrik [idolater] but after preaching to him, “he became Ahmadi and began following the teachings of Islam. “The heart which was one immersed in Shirk [idolatry] “now began to prostrate before the One God.
“In fact, he also started preaching and inviting the local Muslims in the area “about the true message of Islam. “Thus, when a mosque was opened in their area, “he delivered a speech and I shall relate a part of his speech in his own words.
“The chief who was an idolater and became a Muslim, said: ‘I cannot understand that why do non-Ahmadis oppose the Ahmadiyya Community ‘since today it is only the Ahmadiyya Community ‘which is spreading the message of Islam to the corners of the world.
‘Until a year ago, I was a M ushrik [idolater] and was the leader of the M uskriks ‘but the missionary of the Ahmadiyya Community completely transformed my views ‘and revealed to me the true image of Islam and I accepted Islam.
‘Why do you have a problem if the Ahmadiyya Community ‘is bringing Christians and Mushriks [idolaters] towards Islam? ‘This mosque is opened for everyone to worship Allah the Almighty ‘and even if a Christian enters this mosque, he shall not be stopped.
‘You people should stop opposing and come inside and see for yourself that ‘you will only receive the message of love, peace and brotherhood. ‘The Ahmadiyya Community only wishes for the well-being of this world.’ ”
The chief also stated: “I wish I could build a house beside the mosque and tell everyone passing by that Ahmadiyyat is the true Islam.” On the one hand, we have religious leaders who are creating chaos and disorder in the name of Islam
and owing to their arrogance and personal egos are causing Muslims to shed the blood of one another. While on the other hand, there are people who were once idolaters
and Allah the Almighty guided them due to a good deed of theirs or simply out of His sheer grace and has appointed them to now propagate the message of true Islam to others and also teach others how to save themselves from the disorders.
This is the way Allah the Almighty treats those who are humble and showers His grace upon them, but if one is full of arrogance then even if he offers thousands of prayers and supplications, claims to be pious and even calls himself a ‘Hajji’,
he cannot receive true guidance from Allah the Almighty. How do people undergo a complete transformation after they enter into the Bai’at of the Promised Messiah (as) and experience the delight of the true teachings of Islam,
how does Allah the Almighty guide them and how do they begin to excel in their sacrifices? Relating this, a missionary writes: “During an official visit in Cameroon, a person who was retired from the army accepted Ahmadiyyat. “This army individual belonged to the Bamum tribe.
“The King joined the Jalsa Salana (Annual Convention) taking place in the UK a few years ago (this account is from a few years ago).” He writes: “When I visited Cameroon this time I met the same gentlemen once again.
“He said that he wished to donate a plot [of land] to the community in order to use it to build a mosque.” He continues by saying: “Myself and the Sadr [President] of that local Jama’at went to see the plot of land.
“We noticed that a basement was already constructed on the plot “and the abovementioned gentlemen had the intention of constructing a house on top of it. However, he stated that “I saw my deceased father in a dream.
“He came to me and said to construct a mosque on this piece of land instead of my own home. “Therefore I have made my decision to donate this building, “including the portion I have started constructing, to the Jama’at,
so that it can be used to construct a mosque.” This piece of land was quite vast spanning approximately one thousand meters squared. He changed the name on the documentation to the Jama’at’s name and soon, God willing, there will be a mosque constructed here.
Then I will narrate another incident in which it will demonstrate just how God Almighty accepted the prayer of an individual who had a yearning for Islam. Residing in a distant village God Almighty sent an Ahmadi Missionary to him
in order to instil the true teachings of Islam. A Mu’alim [Local Missionary preacher] from the Ivory Coast has narrated this incident. He states that Saeedo Sahib who lives in a remote village called Yaoukro, in the Abengorou region of the Ivory Coast writes:
“Islam was spread in this village through my paternal grandfather, “however, over time people started to abandon Islam “and eventually the people residing here were Muslims only by name.” As is the general state of Muslims.
Saeedo Sahib further writes: “I would often pray for God Almighty “to make the circumstances such that these people would once again follow the true teachings of Islam.” He continues to say: “In the beginning of the blessed month of Ramadhan in 2016,
“in my state of prayer my eyes began to flood with tears. “I prayed with great anguish in this regard. “Only two or three days had passed when a missionary of the Ahmadiyya Community “came to the village and introduced the people to Ahmadiyya Community.
“This incident was truly faith inspiring for me to see someone visiting this remote village “and calling people towards the path of Allah. “After this visit of the missionary, 55 people from the village entered the fold of Ahmadiyyat by performing the Bai’at.”
Saeed o Sahib continues: “Thus, through the Ahmadiyya Community, this day we are practicing the true teachings of Islam.” Ponder over this fact that on the one hand, people residing in developed countries
are abandoning religion all together and are restless in their pursuit for worldly things. On the other hand an individual living in a remote part of Africa – which does not even have proper roads leading to the village and is bereft of basic worldly commodities
yet on seeing the practice of Islam being forsaken in his village, he has one longing in his heart and prays fervently for God Almighty to send someone who would revive the teachings of Islam once again.
Consequently, it was divinely destined that a servant of the Messiah and Mahdi reached this village and informed them about Islam, because in this day and age, the true Islam can only be taught by the one who has accepted the Promised Messiah (as)
and understood and recognised the reality of Islam from his teachings. Thus, it is the task of every one of us to spread the true teachings of Islam with great concern to the entire world.
We should make an effort and pray so that this message reaches every individual. Although there are many groups and organisations who are making an effort in this regard, some sects are working in the name of Islam
such as the Tablighi Jama’at [a movement which preaches Islam actively], however, almost every single one of them is after personal gains. In order to oppose each other they are ever ready to brandish the other with the edict of being an infidel.
What kind of service will they render to Islam? Today, this responsibility of spreading Islam rests with the servants of the Messiah of Muhammad (saw) alone. God Almighty is making our work easier Himself by guiding some through dreams and others through various other means.
Thus, if we wish to do justice to our B ai’at (pledge of allegiance), then we must strive to become one of the helpers of the Promised Messiah (as). Explaining what our role must be having performed the Bai’at , the Promised Messiah (as) states:
“The formality of the Bai’at alone cannot be of any benefit “and it is difficult for one to derive benefit of such a thing [which is just done ceremonially].” (i.e.to be part of those blessings
that have been attached to being associated with the Promised Messiah (as).) He continues to say: “One can only be considered truly part of it “when they forsake their own existence and become one with him [the Promised Messiah] “with the utmost love and sincerity.
“The hypocrites never formed a relationship with the Holy Prophet (saw) in earnestness, “as a result they were bereft of faith. “They never developed a relationship based on sincerity and love, “hence their mere profession of “La Ilaaha Illalah”[Muslim declaration of faith]
“did not benefit them in any way. “It is vital to build on these relationships. “A connection formed on the basis of love and sincerity is crucial. “They should strive to become one with him – (i.e.their spiritual leader)
“with respect to belief and doctrines – to the utmost of their ability. They should strive to emulate the individual they have chosen to accept.” The Promised Messiah (as) continues by saying: “We do not know how long we will live.
“We should quickly incline towards righteousness, truthfulness and worship. “From the morning till the evening one should account as to how we are spending our lives.” May God Almighty enable those newly joining to increase in their faith and conviction.
May they progress with respect to their beliefs and practices. May the spark of faith that God Almighty ignited in their hearts continue to burn even after accepting Ahmadiyyat, the true Islam. May Satan never tempt them to stumble
and may God Almighty always grant them steadfastness. May Allah enable us – those who are Ahmadis by birth or Ahmadis for a long time to increase and always faith passion in our faith. May we strengthen our relationship with Allah the Almighty.
May we never become the means for those who are joining the community to falter and may we always guide the world towards the right path. We should never be content with the fact that we are Ahmadis of old,
rather, we should aim to fulfil the purpose of our Bai’at. Our aim should not be on attaining worldly objects, but instead should be solely to gain the pleasure of God Almighty. May we witness the rapid spread of the true Islam throughout the world so that
we are able to explain to the people of this world that the very thing they deem to be harmful, is in fact the true path for the salvation of this world. All praise is due to Allah.
We laud Him, we beseech help from Him and ask His protection. We confide in Him, we trust Him alone and we seek protection against the evils and mischief of our souls and from the bad results of our deeds.
Whomsoever He guides on the right path, none can misguide him; and whosoever He declares misled, none can guide him onto the right path. And we bear witness that none deserves to be worshipped except Allah. We bear witness that Muhammad is His servant and Messenger.
O servants of Allah! May Allah be merciful to you. Verily, Allah commands you to act with justice, to confer benefits upon each other and to do good to others as one does to one ‘s kindred and forbids evil which pertain to your own selves
and evils which affect others and prohibits revolts against a lawful authority. He warns you against being unmindful. You remember Allah; He too will remember you; call Him and He will make a response to your call. And verily divine remembrance is the highest virtue.
