Asalamu ‘alaikum,
Time comes and goes; some people grow, some people remain exactly same throughout time.
وَالْعَصْرِ
By the Time!
إِنَّ الْإِنسَانَ لَفِي خُسْرٍ**_
_** Indeed! Mankind is in loss__
Thus, Allah makes clear that by the passing time man is in complete loss. Why? Because they don’t take heed, they don’t learn, they don’t listen, they go on doing what their hearts desire without thinking twice. They (in general) don’t ponder about the real purpose of their life; they (in general) cover reality with their false notions and desires.
O Muslims! Allah says:
وَمَا خَلَقْتُ الْجِنَّ وَالْإِنسَ إِلَّا لِيَعْبُدُونِ
And I have not created the Jinn and Human beings except to worship Me (51:56)****
The ultimate purpose of our life is to worship the Creator of the heavens and the earth. Does this mean that Allah needs us to worship Him? No! Allah says:
قُلْ هُوَ اللَّهُ أَحَدٌ
Say: He is Allah! The One and Only
اللَّهُ الصَّمَدُ
_Allah, the Self-Sufficient
**
_ Allah is self-sufficient. He is not in need of anything; He is independent from us while we are completely dependent upon Him. Allah says after making clear our purpose of creation:**
مَا أُرِيدُ مِنْهُم مِّن رِّزْقٍ وَمَا أُرِيدُ أَن يُطْعِمُونِ
I do not want from them any provision, nor do I want them to feed Me.
إِنَّ اللَّهَ هُوَ الرَّزَّاقُ ذُو الْقُوَّةِ الْمَتِينُ
Verily, Allah is the All-Provider, Owner of Power, the Most Strong.****
So, Allah does not need anything from us. Rather, it is Allah who is the All-Providing, the Sustainer, the Nourisher. Thus, we are completely dependent upon Him. And so we worship Allah because truly He alone is worthy of worship; He alone possesses the qualities which inately drive us to worship Him. It is only He who is able to answer our calls when in distress; it is He who has created the heavens and the earth; it is He who merges the night into the day and the day into the night; it is He who has provided fruits, vegetables, and cattle for our sustenance; it is He who makes the rain fall from the sky; it is He who showers His Mercy onto all of mankind regardless of their believing in Him; it is He who is al-Wadood, the Most Loving; it is He who is al-Ghafoor, the Most Forgiving; it is He who is ar-Razzaq, the All-Provider; it is He who is al-Mussawir, the Bestower of forms; it is He who is ar-Ra’uf, the Most Kind; it is He who is Maleekee Yawmee’deen, the Master and Owner of the Day of Judgment.
O Muslims! What has preoccupied us from the worship of Allah? From the purpose of our creation? Allah tells us:
أَلْهَاكُمُ التَّكَاثُرُ
The mutual rivalry for piling up wordly things diverts you
حَتَّى زُرْتُمُ الْمَقَابِرَ
(It will do so) Until you visit the graves (i.e. till you die)
كَلَّا سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ
Nay! You shall come to know!
ثُمَّ كَلَّا سَوْفَ تَعْلَمُونَ
Again, Nay! You shall come to know!
Remember, this life is a test and know with certainty that you will meet Allah. We all want to gain Paradise. We all want to run away from the punishment of the Hellfire. Know O Slave of Allah! No matter what you have done in the past, you can always return to Allah. The contentment of the heart resides in this.
وَإِذَا سَأَلَكَ عِبَادِي عَنِّي فَإِنِّي قَرِيبٌ أُجِيبُ دَعْوَةَ الدَّاعِ إِذَا دَعَانِ فَلْيَسْتَجِيبُواْ لِي وَلْيُؤْمِنُواْ بِي لَعَلَّهُمْ يَرْشُدُونَ
And when My servants ask you concerning Me – indeed I am near. I respond to the invocation of the supplicant when he calls upon Me. So let them respond to Me [by obedience] and believe in Me that they may be [rightly] guided.
وَإِنِّي لَغَفَّارٌ لِّمَن تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ صَالِحاً ثُمَّ اهْتَدَى
_But indeed, I am the Perpetual Forgiver of whoever repents and believes and does righteousness and then continues in guidance.
_
إِلَّا مَن تَابَ وَآمَنَ وَعَمِلَ عَمَلاً صَالِحاً فَأُوْلَئِكَ يُبَدِّلُ اللَّهُ سَيِّئَاتِهِمْ حَسَنَاتٍ وَكَانَ اللَّهُ غَفُوراً رَّحِيماً
Except for those who repent, believe and do righteous work. For them Allah will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is Allah Forgiving and Merciful.