Our Lord, the Most Merciful

First Sermon: Praise be to Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate, whose mercy encompasses all creation. We bear witness that there is no god but Allah, and we bear witness that our Prophet Muhammad is the Messenger of Allah. May Allah send His prayers, peace, and blessings upon him, his family, his companions, and all who follow in their path. To proceed: I advise you, servants of Allah, as well as myself, to be mindful of Allah. The Exalted said: ﴿وَهَذَا كِتَابٌ أَنْزَلْنَاهُ مُبَارَكٌ فَاتَّبِعُوهُ وَاتَّقُوا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ﴾. “And this is a blessed Book which We have sent down, so follow it and be mindful of Allah so that you may receive mercy”. O believers: Allah is the Most Merciful. The Most Merciful is one of the beautiful names of Allah. It is a name that hearts find comfort in when they hear it, and souls find tranquility in its meanings. By this name, our Lord introduced Himself to His servants, saying in His Book: “Your God is one God. There is no god except Him, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate”. ﴿وَإِلَهُكُمْ إِلَهٌ وَاحِدٌ لَا إِلَهَ إِلَّا هُوَ الرَّحْمَنُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾ He mentioned this name twice at the opening of the Quran, saying: “In the name of Allah, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate. Praise be to Allah, Lord of the worlds, the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate”. ﴿بِسْمِ اللَّهِ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ* الْحَمْدُ لِلَّهِ رَبِّ الْعَالَمِينَ* الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ﴾ And why would it not be so, when the Quran is “a revelation from the Most Merciful, the Most Compassionate”. ﴿تَنْزِيلٌ مِنَ الرَّحْمَنِ الرَّحِيمِ﴾ Sent down to be a mercy for all people. And in mercy He sent our noble Prophet: “We have not sent you except as a mercy to the worlds”. ﴿وَمَا أَرْسَلْنَاكَ إِلَّا رَحْمَةً لِلْعَالَمِينَ﴾. Among the manifestations of His mercy, exalted be He, is all that He has prepared for us to enable life upon His earth: “Do you not see that Allah has subjected to you whatever is on the earth, and the ships that sail through the sea by His command, and He holds back the sky from falling upon the earth except by His permission? Indeed, Allah is Most Kind, Most Merciful to mankind”. ﴿أَلَمْ تَرَ أَنَّ اللَّهَ سَخَّرَ لَكُمْ مَا فِي الْأَرْضِ وَالْفُلْكَ تَجْرِي فِي الْبَحْرِ بِأَمْرِهِ وَيُمْسِكُ السَّمَاءَ أَنْ تَقَعَ عَلَى الْأَرْضِ إِلَّا بِإِذْنِهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ بِالنَّاسِ لَرَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ﴾ Glory be to You, our Lord. How abundant is Your mercy. It has overflowed upon all existence and encompassed every creature. True indeed is Your saying: “My mercy encompasses all things”. ﴿وَرَحْمَتِي وَسِعَتْ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ﴾ The messengers and prophets sought Your mercy and raised their hands in hope. Moses, peace be upon him, supplicated: “My Lord, forgive me and my brother, and admit us into Your mercy, for You are the Most Merciful of the merciful”. ﴿رَبِّ اغْفِرْ لِي وَلِأَخِي وَأَدْخِلْنَا فِي رَحْمَتِكَ وَأَنْتَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ﴾ Solomon, peace be upon him, asked: “Admit me, by Your mercy, into the company of Your righteous servants”. ﴿وَأَدْخِلْنِي بِرَحْمَتِكَ فِي عِبَادِكَ الصَّالِحِينَ﴾ And Your beloved Prophet Muhammad, peace and blessings be upon him, pleaded: “Have mercy on me with a mercy that makes me needless of the mercy of anyone besides You”. «‌ارْحَمْنِي رَحْمَةً تُغْنِينِي بِهَا عَنْ رَحْمَةِ مَنْ سِوَاكَ» Glory be to You. All creation hopes for Your mercy, each according to its state. And You are the One who said: “Our Lord, You encompass all things in mercy and knowledge”. ﴿رَبَّنَا وَسِعْتَ كُلَّ شَيْءٍ رَحْمَةً وَعِلْمًا﴾ You saw the sinners and covered their faults, showed them mercy and forgave, and upon Your Throne You decreed: “My mercy preceded My wrath”. «إِنَّ ‌رَحْمَتِي ‌سَبَقَتْ ‌غَضَبِي» And in the Quran, You called out: “O My servants who have wronged themselves, do not despair of Allah’s mercy. Indeed, Allah forgives all sins. He is the All-Forgiving, the Most Merciful”. ﴿يَا عِبَادِيَ الَّذِينَ أَسْرَفُوا عَلَى أَنْفُسِهِمْ لَا تَقْنَطُوا مِنْ رَحْمَةِ اللَّهِ إِنَّ اللَّهَ يَغْفِرُ الذُّنُوبَ جَمِيعًا إِنَّهُ هُوَ الْغَفُورُ الرَّحِيمُ﴾  Glory be to Him, the magnificent Lord whose mercy is vast. He has opened the gates of the heavens with generosity and spread out every path of bounty. “Your Lord says: Call upon Me; I will respond to you”  ﴿وَقَالَ رَبُّكُمُ ادْعُونِي أَسْتَجِبْ لَكُمْ﴾ So, if you call upon Him, He will answer your supplication, hear your whispered prayers, mend your heart, and envelop you in His mercy, for “He is the Most Merciful of the merciful”.  ﴿وَهُوَ أَرْحَمُ الرَّاحِمِينَ﴾ How often, O servant of Allah, He has blessed you with a favor prepared just for you. How many times your eyes have wept from distress, then He relieved it? How many burdens weighed on your heart until He lifted them? And all of that is “nothing but mercy from your Lord; truly His favor upon you is immense”. ﴿إِلَّا رَحْمَةً مِنْ رَبِّكَ إِنَّ فَضْلَهُ كَانَ عَلَيْكَ كَبِيرًا﴾ Among His mercy is that after hardships and trials, He grants gifts, blessings, and relief, and He strengthens His servants with His words: “Allah will bring about ease after hardship”  ﴿سَيَجْعَلُ اللَّهُ بَعْدَ عُسْرٍ يُسْرًا﴾ So do not grieve or fear. Above you is a sky from which mercies descend.  You have a merciful Lord who brings calm to your heart, eases your pain, and heals your ailments. He takes from you in order to give you, withholds from you in order to grant you, and closes one door only to open many others. “Indeed, your Lord is Most Kind, Most Merciful”. ﴿إِنَّ رَبَّكُمْ لَرَءُوفٌ رَحِيمٌ﴾ He grants you success in your deeds, makes your responsibilities easier for you, and manages your affairs in the best, most complete, and most fitting ways. So, if something troubles you, place your trust in the mercy of your Lord. Know that for your efforts you are rewarded, for the trials you endure you are rewarded, and for your patience you are rewarded. For “nothing afflicts a believer, even the prick of a thorn, except that Allah writes for him a good deed because of it, or wipes away a sin because of it”. «مَا مِنْ شَيْءٍ يُصِيبُ الْمُؤْمِنَ، ‌حَتَّى ‌الشَّوْكَةُ تُصِيبُهُ، إِلَّا كَتَبَ اللَّهُ لَهُ بِهَا حَسَنَةً أوْ حُطَّتْ عنْه بها خَطِيئَةٌ» “As a mercy from your Lord; indeed, He is the All-Hearing, the All-Knowing”. ﴿رَحْمَةً مِنْ رَبِّكَ إِنَّهُ هُوَ السَّمِيعُ الْعَلِيمُ﴾ “O you who believe, obey Allah, obey the Messenger, and those in authority among you”. ﴿يَا أَيُّهَا الَّذِينَ آمَنُوا أَطِيعُوا اللَّهَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ وَأُولِي الْأَمْرِ مِنْكُمْ﴾.  I say these words of mine and ask Allah’s forgiveness for myself and for you. So, seek His forgiveness. Second Sermon: All praise is due to Allah; there is no god but Him. And blessings and peace be upon our Prophet Muhammad, after whom there is no prophet. To proceed: O believers, all the manifestations of Allah’s mercy that exist in this world are but one part out of a hundred parts of His vast mercy. The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “Allah made mercy into one hundred parts. He kept ninety-nine parts with Himself and sent down one part to the earth. From that single part, all creatures show mercy to one another”. «جَعَلَ اللَّهُ الرَّحْمَةَ ‌مِائَةَ ‌جُزْءٍ، فَأَمْسَكَ عِنْدَهُ تِسْعَةً وَتِسْعِينَ، وَأَنْزَلَ فِي الْأَرْضِ جُزْءًا وَاحِدًا، فَمِنْ ذَلِكَ الْجُزْءِ تَتَرَاحَمُ الْخَلَائِقُ» So, whoever wishes to be encompassed by the mercy of his Lord must be merciful toward others. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “The merciful are shown mercy by the Most Merciful. Be merciful to those on earth, and the One in the heavens will have mercy on you” «الرَّاحِمُونَ ‌يَرْحَمُهُمُ ‌الرَّحْمَنُ، ارْحَمُوا مَنْ فِي الأَرْضِ يَرْحَمْكُمْ مَنْ فِي السَّمَاءِ». Let us make mercy the foundation of our behavior toward our parents, in obedience to His command: “Lower to them the wing of humility out of mercy”.  ﴿وَاخْفِضْ لَهُمَا جَنَاحَ الذُّلِّ مِنَ الرَّحْمَةِ﴾ And let us adorn our family life with mercy and affection toward our spouses, acting upon His words: “He placed between you affection and mercy”. ﴿وَجَعَلَ بَيْنَكُمْ مَوَدَّةً وَرَحْمَةً﴾ If affection fades, mercy remains. Umar, may Allah be pleased with him, said to a man who wanted to divorce his wife because he no longer loved her: “Not every household is built upon love” لَيْسَ كُلُّ ‌الْبُيُوتِ ‌تُبْنَى عَلَى الْحُبّ meaning that mercy endures even when affection weakens. Our children are among the most deserving of our compassion and tenderness. This was the practice of our Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him. Anas, may Allah be pleased with him, said: “I have never seen anyone more compassionate toward his family than the Messenger of Allah” «مَا رَأَيْتُ أَحَدًا كَانَ ‌أَرْحَمَ ‌بِالْعِيَالِ مِنْ رَسُولِ اللَّهِ ﷺ» So let mercy be a clear quality in your community, in all your conduct and dealings. Raise your children upon it. And seek your Lord’s mercy through supplication, just as the prophets did. And increase in obedience and doing good, for “Indeed, the mercy of Allah is near to the doers of good”. ﴿إِنَّ رَحْمَتَ اللَّهِ قَرِيبٌ مِنَ الْمُحْسِنِينَ﴾ “Establish prayer, give zakah, and obey the Messenger so that you may receive mercy”. ﴿وَأَقِيمُوا الصَّلَاةَ وَآتُوا الزَّكَاةَ وَأَطِيعُوا الرَّسُولَ لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ﴾ “When the Quran is recited, listen to it and be attentive so that you may receive mercy”. ﴿وَإِذَا قُرِئَ الْقُرْآنُ فَاسْتَمِعُوا لَهُ وَأَنْصِتُوا لَعَلَّكُمْ تُرْحَمُونَ﴾ “Seek forgiveness from Allah; indeed, Allah is Most Forgiving, Most Merciful”. ﴿وَاسْتَغْفِرُوا اللَّهَ إِنَّ اللَّهَ غَفُورٌ رَحِيمٌ﴾ O Allah, send Your blessings and peace upon our beloved Prophet Muhammad, the Seal of the Messengers, and upon his family, his companions, and those who follow them. O Allah, be pleased with Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman, and Ali, and with all the noble Companions. O Allah, Lord of Mercy in this world and the Hereafter, envelop us in Your vast mercy. O Allah, make us among those whom You have shown mercy, whose hearts You have opened, whose affairs You have eased, and whose sins You have forgiven, O Most Merciful of the merciful. O Allah, make us believers in You, worshippers devoted to You, compassionate among ourselves, and dutiful to our parents. Have mercy on them as they raised us when we were young, O Most Merciful. O Allah, have mercy on our deceased, O Most Compassionate. Treat them with mercy and kindness, fill their graves with mercy, make their reckoning gentle, increase the weight of their good deeds through Your mercy, and admit them into Paradise through Your grace. O Allah, protect the United Arab Emirates, surround it with Your care, and guard it with Your watchfulness, O Lord of the Worlds. O Allah, preserve Sheikh Mohammed bin Zayed, President of the State. Grant him continued wisdom and sound judgment, and bless him, his deputies, his brothers the rulers of the Emirates, and his loyal Crown Prince with success in all that You love and are pleased with. O Allah, have mercy on Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Rashid, and all the leaders of the Emirates who have passed on to Your mercy. Admit them, through Your bounty, into the expanses of Your Gardens. Encompass the martyrs of the nation with Your mercy and forgiveness. O Allah, have mercy on the Muslim men and women, the living and the deceased. O Allah, you whose mercy is vast and whose generosity is immense, grant us abundant rain and do not make us among the despairing. O Allah, send us rain, send us rain, send us rain. O Allah, we seek Your forgiveness; You are indeed Ever-Forgiving, so pour down from the sky upon us plentiful rain. O Allah, grant us blessed, beneficial rainfall that revives the land, brings mercy to the people, and serves as strength and provision for a time. Servants of Allah: remember Allah, the Almighty and Majestic, and He will remember you. Be grateful for His blessings, and He will increase you. And establish the prayer.