Khutbah: Lessons From the Story of the Sacrifice

Praise be to Allāh who has sent the Qur’ān as clarification for all things, and as guidance and mercy and for the Muslims good tidings. And may peace and blessings be upon the one to whom the Qur’ān was revealed, Muḥammad, and upon his family and companions revered. To proceed: O you who have believed! Fear Allāh the way He deserves to be feared, and do not die except in a state of submission to Allāh.

Among the stories Allāh relates to us to ponder upon is the story of Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) being commanded by Allāh to sacrifice his son Ismāʿil (ʿalayh al-salām) , which can be found in Sūrat as-Sāffāt (37) āyāt 99-111.

This story in a nutshell is as follows: Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) returns to visit his son Ismāʿil, now in his adolescent years, years after Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) abandons Ismāʿil and his mother Hājar in the middle of the desert. Now imagine how happy he is at reuniting with his then only son, the quality time they're spending together, the time they're spending catching up on things. And then Allāh orders Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) to slaughter this beloved son of his. Without question, Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) submits to the command of his Lord. But first Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) decides to consult his son to see what he thinks. His reply? Was it to the tune of, "Dad, I'm not ready to die yet?" "Dad, why do you want to kill me?" No. He replied, "O father, do what you were ordered..." Subhān Allāh, this kind of īmān and taqwā is rarely found nowadays Muslims today, let alone our youths, may Allāh rectify us all. So they both surrender to His Commandment without complaint.

Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) heads to place of slaughter. On the way there, Shayṭān tries three times to persuade Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) not to sacrifice his son. Ibrāhīm's response? He pelts Shayṭān with seven stones at each of these three occasions. So, once Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) arrives at the place of slaughter, he lays down his son and binds him up. He raises the knife. Just when he is about to put the knife down Allāh calls him.

وَنَادَيْنَاهُ أَن يَا إِبْرَاهِيمُ قَدْ صَدَّقْتَ الرُّؤْيَا

“We called to him, "O Ibrāhīm, You have fulfilled the vision.” (Qur’ān 37:104-105)

"You have passed the test". A great test indeed. And at the end Ismāʿil is saved and Allāh sends a ram to Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) to sacrifice in place of his son. Allāh says:

وَفَدَيْنَاهُ بِذِبْحٍ عَظِيمٍ

“And We ransomed him with a great sacrifice.” (Qur’ān 37:106)

So what lessons can we extract from this story that we can apply to our own lives?

• Every one will be tested. There's no M4 or Hume Hwy to Jannah. The road to Jannah has many obstacles. Jannah has to be earned. And one way we can earn it is by passing the trials Allāh tests us with with patience and steadfastness.

وَلَنَبْلُوَنَّكُم بِشَيْءٍ مِّنَ الْخَوْفِ وَالْجُوعِ وَنَقْصٍ مِّنَ الْأَمْوَالِ وَالْأَنفُسِ وَالثَّمَرَاتِ ۗ وَبَشِّرِ الصَّابِرِينَ

“And We will surely test you with something of fear and hunger and a loss of wealth and lives and fruit, but give good tidings to the patient.” (Qur’ān 2:155)

Allāh says that life and death has been created so that He may test us as to who is the best in deed. Even the Prophets, these chosen ones of Allāh, even they were tested. So what about us? Every person shall be tested in one way or another, some with hardship and some with luxury. Some tests will be big, e.g. oppression, some will be small, e.g. someone abusing you.

This brings us to another lesson we can bring out of this, and that is the Mercy of Allāh upon us. Such heavy tests were reserved for the Prophets. These special people were tested in ways we aren't tested. And this is a gift from Allāh to us, that Allāh tests those who are closest to Him the hardest, so that when these people pass these tests, Allāh says to us, "Look at these people." See what they went through? You've got nothing on them. Compare what they went through to what you're going through. You think your school-load or workload is tough? You think that staying away from ḥarām is hard? You think your five daily prayers are hard? Go imagine yourself being commanded by Allāh to kill the person you love the most: your mother, your father. Think your family situation's tough? Think about Ibrāhīm's one at the time. You'll realise, "Man, I've got it easy!" This is Allāh's Mercy upon us.

The heavier the test, the greater the reward is if you pass it. Ibrāhīm's life was full of trials and tests, including the test of the sacrifice of his son, and he passed them all. He demonstrated that his love for Allāh was above his love for anything else, even his beloved son. What did Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) get in compensation for this? For a start, his son was saved. He was blessed with another son, Isḥāq. He became the khalīl of Allāh. All the prophets that came after him was from his progeny. He is the only prophet Rasul Allāh ﷺ, the most exemplary of humans, is explicitly ordered to look up to and to take as an example. What an honour for Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām). His name and legacy is remembered and upheld to this day by every single Mu'min, for example in the ṣalāh, during the Ḥajj, and on ʿĪd al-Aḍḥā, when the animals are sacrificed. He is respected to this day not only by the Muslims of this world, but also by the Jews and Christians. Tell me of anyone who was respected more than Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) was. No one. Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) is the most respected person in history.

And what about his son, Ismāʿil, who willingly submitted to the command of Allāh to have him sacrificed? What was his reward? Not only was he saved, but he had the honour, along with his father, of building and maintaining the first ever house built for the worship of Allāh, a house venerated and respected to this day by all Muslims around the world. And from his progeny came the best of creations, the master of the children of Adam, Muḥammad ﷺ. Such is the reward of those who truly submit to their Creator.

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Praise be to Allāh, who has not taken a son and has had no partner in [His] kingdom and has no [need of a] protector out of weakness; and magnify Him with [great] magnification. Allāh is Greatest, Allāh is greatest, there is no god but Allāh, Allāh is greatest, Allāh is greatest, and Allāh belongs all Praise and Thanks. To proceed: O mankind! Fear Allāh, obey Him and do good. Indeed, Allāh is with those who fear Him and those who are doers of good.

O Slaves of Allāh! Rearrange your priorities and Allāh will help you.

وَمَن يَتَّقِ اللَّهَ يَجْعَل لَّهُ مَخْرَجًا وَيَرْزُقْهُ مِنْ حَيْثُ لَا يَحْتَسِبُ ۚ وَمَن يَتَوَكَّلْ عَلَى اللَّهِ فَهُوَ حَسْبُهُ ۚ

“And whosoever fears Allāh and keeps his duty to Him, He will make a way for him to get out (from every difficulty). And will provide for him from where he does not expect. And whoever relies upon Allāh - then He is sufficient for him.” (Qur’ān 65:2-3)

Put Allāh first before everything else and Allāh will take care of the rest, no matter how bleak the outlook, how impossible things might look to seem. Look to Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) as an example of this: after all, the Prophet ﷺ was ordered to do the same. Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) put Allāh before everything else including his son. However, realise, may Allāh guide you, that you have an enemy waiting in your path. The same way Shayṭān tried to avert Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām) from slaughtering his son, from placing Allāh before anything else, Shayṭān will try to do the same to us. So beware of him, his sneaky tactics and his devilish whispers; indeed, he will present to you sin as a sweet-tasting fruit, but know that whoever eats from this fruit has eaten a poisoned fruit, a fruit that makes oneself eligible for the Blazing Fire of Jahannam.

Know, may Allāh grant you success in the two worlds, that Allāh wants sincerity and effort from us in our acts of worship. After all, at the end of the day it’s not about the quantity of your deeds: it’s the quality that matters most. As the famous ḥadīth goes, “Indeed, actions are but by intentions”.

Know that when you perform an act of worship, Allāh looks at whether you worship Him out of your love for Him or otherwise. Many people pray not out of their love for Allāh but because they have to; it's a duty upon them. They pray for the sake of it. Just go to the masjid and observe how many people just want to get things over and done with. This holds true for other acts of worship too. This is not how things should be. When we worship Allāh, we do it out of our love for Him, not only because we have to but because we want to. Indeed, the heart of a worshipper devoid of the love for Allāh is like a book with no writing it: of what benefit is it? Realise that once we worship Allāh with sincerity, full effort and love, you shall see the blessings, the benefits and the rewards of this, just like what we have seen with Ibrāhīm (ʿalayh al-salām).