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Allah’s Name: At Tawwab - The One Who Accepts Repentance | Khutbah

December 20, 2021Dr. Tahir Wyatt

Have you ever had the feeling that you made a wrong turn? And in order to feel secure, you had to turn around? Allah (swt) constantly invites us to turn back to Him in the Qur’an. In this khutbah, Dr. Tahir Wyatt goes over the significance of Allah’s name At-Tawwab - The One Who Accepts Repentance and how we can start turning back to Allah.

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Transcript

This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings.
Brothers and sisters in Islam, have you ever had that feeling that you made a wrong turn somewhere? Physically, like you actually made a turn and you felt like that wasn't the turn that you were supposed to make. You're in the wrong place. And in order to feel safe and secure, you actually need to turn around, to not keep going down that path. But in order to turn around, you have to feel like you know where you're going. In other words, there has to be a place that you turn to. A refuge, a place of safety and security. Allah Azza wa Jal invites us to that place of safety and security. Wallahu yad'u ila dar al salam, wa yahdi man yashau ila sirat al mustaqeem. Allah calls to dar al salam, to the house of peace. And He guides whom He wills to a straight path. Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala invites us constantly throughout the Quran to turn to Him. To turn to Him, to turn away from other than Him and to turn to Him Subhanahu wa ta'ala. He puts that in our hearts and if we respond to that, then Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala accepts that from us. Wallahu yuridu an yatubu alaykum, wa yuridu alladhina yattabi'una ash-shahawati an tamilu maylan azeema. Allah wants to and He says, yatubu alaykum.
It doesn't mean that Allah repents to you. It means that Allah wants to turn to you. And those who follow their desires want you to go astray. They want you to deviate greatly from the path. And from here, we learn that Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is at-tawwab. One of the beautiful names of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is at-tawwab. Often translated as the one who accepts repentance or who grants repentance or the ever-relenting, Subhanahu wa ta'ala. But translations, honestly, they don't do this name of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala justice. It doesn't allow us to fully understand what it means that Allah is at-tawwab. And before going any further, brothers and sisters in Islam, recognize that there is no knowledge that is better than knowing who Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is. And this is why He has emphasized that in the Quran. If someone had called us right now and they said, you got an opportunity in front of you, I guarantee you, all you have to do is put up $10 and we'll turn it into $10 million. Many people wouldn't be here at Jum'ah. They'd be trying to get that knowledge of how to turn that 10 into 10 million. This knowledge, the knowledge of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, there is nothing greater than that. It defines our relationship as slaves of Allah with our master. And it defines our purpose in life and how we move in this life. Knowing who Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is. So Allah Azawajal tells us that he is at-tawwab.
That comes from the root ta-wa-ba, which means to return. Which means to return. When we talk about this in light of the name of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala, then there's two broad meanings. And the first is the one that many of us fail to understand. And that is that Allah Azawajal constantly, repetitively turns to his slaves. He turns to his slaves. That means that he facilitates the means in you for tawbah. That feeling of remorse that you get when you do something wrong, that's from at-tawab. When you do something wrong and Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala puts someone in your life that says, look I don't think that's the right way to go about that. That's from at-tawab. Maybe you've done something that you shouldn't have done. Or you left off something that you should be doing. And so Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala causes some hardship for you to remind you to get back on the right path. That's at-tawab, Subhanahu wa ta'ala. Allah Azawajal is putting in us by turning to us through his mercy. Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala is reminding us that that door is open. No matter how much, no matter how far you've gone, that you can still turn. It doesn't matter how far away you are. That's not the question. The question is, will you turn around and come back?
If it takes you a year, if it takes you two years, less or more, are you willing to turn back? Allah is at-tawab. He puts that in us, that feeling of remorse. And Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala time and time again instructs us in the Quran to turn to him. Wa tu'bu ila Allah. Turn to Allah. And oftentimes, oftentimes, brothers and sisters, it's important to understand this concept. Because we usually think of tawbah as repentance. It's normally how it's translated. And we think of repentance as just saying, I'm sorry. Like, how do you repent to a person that you've done something wrong to? You say, I'm sorry. But repentance is a lot more than that. Repentance is reconciliation. It's to make things right. That is actually what it means to do tawbah, is that you make things right. That may be between you and the creator. That may be between you and the slaves of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala. You have to make things right. And when Allah Azza wa Jal opens up that door for us, every single one of us needs it. There's nobody that is free from tawbah. Nobody that doesn't need to make tawbah. Yes, alhamdulillah, there are many Muslims who are not out there committing major sins. But slip-ups? Absolutely. There are things that we could be doing better? Absolutely. The prophet, alaihi salatu wasalam, none of us have recorded. There's no recorded sins that the prophet, alaihi salatu wasalam, has done. But yet he would seek Allah Azza wa Jal's forgiveness and repent, turn to Allah more than a hundred times in a sitting. So all of us, all of us are in need of tawbah.
And Allah, at-tawwab, puts that in our hearts. The second meaning, and this is the meaning that many of us may be familiar with, is that Allah Azza wa Jal accepts us when we turn to Him. Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala, in His magnificence, still accepts us slaves when we turn back to Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala. And here's a story that all of us know, but maybe have not contemplated in light of the meaning of Allah's name at-tawab. All of us are familiar with the story of the father and mother of humankind, Adam and Eve, who Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala placed in Jannah for them to enjoy everything except for one tree that they were forbidden from. And shaitan whispered to them, and they ate from that tree. And what happened after they ate from the tree? Notice, Allah Subhanahu wa Ta'ala inspired in them to feel remorse because they did something wrong. And not only inspired in them that remorse, but taught Adam how to repent. فَتَلَقَّ آدَمُ مِن رَبِّهِ كَلِمَاتٍ فَتَابَ عَلَيْهِ إِنَّهُ هُوَ التَّوَّابُ الرَّحِيمُ And so Allah accepted those words from Adam. What words? They're explained in Surah Al-A'raf. رَبَّنَا ظَلَمْنَا أَنفُسَنَا Oh our Lord, we have wronged ourselves. وَإِن لَّمْ تَغْفِرْ لَنَا وَتَرْحَمْنَا لَنَكُونَنَّ مِنَ الْخَاسِرِينَ
And if you don't forgive us and have mercy on us, then we will be from the losers. Where did Adam get that from? Where did Eve get those words from? They got them from Allah, التوَاب. Out of His رَحْمَةِ Because Allah is التوَاب الرَّحِيم Out of His رَحْمَةِ Out of His mercy Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى Instilled in them that remorse Then taught them how to make tawbah And then accepted that tawbah from them. This is التوَاب سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى And notice this name of Allah عز و جل Comes in the Quran 11 times 9 of those 11 times it is paired with Allah's name الرَّحِيم So that we know that Allah عز و جل Doesn't just turn to us but that He's merciful to us That if we turn back to Him It won't be like when we go back to somebody that we've done wrong And they still hold a grudge and they still have it inside of them Forgive but not forget It's not like that Allah عز و جل is التوَاب If you turn to Him He is also رحيم He's merciful سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى He doesn't deal with you like the creation deals with you Wallahi we get annoyed Somebody keeps doing something wrong to you Once, twice, three times خلاص Three strikes and you're out That's how we are as human beings We don't just keep giving a person a chance Over and over and over again We don't want to be seen as being gullible and naive and suckers at the end of the day Oh we're not going to let that go down Once, twice, three, okay that's enough Allah عز و جل is التوَاب Over and over and over again Accepting our repentance سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى Turning to us
Helping us to see that we need to turn to Him سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى So Allah is التوَاب الرحيم One time in the Quran When Allah عز و جل mentions His name التوَاب He also mentions His name حكيم الحكيم The wise وَلَوْ لَا فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ وَأَنَّ اللَّهَ تَوَّابٌ حَكِيمٌ And if it was not for Allah His virtue, His mercy for you وَلَوْ لَا فَضْلُ اللَّهِ عَلَيْكُمْ وَرَحْمَتُهُ The grace and mercy of Allah سُبْحَانَهُ وَ تَعَالَى Had it not been for that and the fact that He is توَّابٌ حَكِيمٌ That He is التوَاب and He is the all wise You would have been destroyed, you would have suffered much What we get from this brothers and sisters in Islam is a very important lesson And that is that just because you turn to التوَاب It doesn't mean that things are going to get immediately easier Allah out of His wisdom May test you with difficulty even after you turn to Him Because it is that difficulty that is going to make you a better person It's going to make you more virtuous And you come out on the other side of that difficulty a better person And maybe Allah عز و جل knows that you can't handle that test And so from His hikmah, from His wisdom When you turn to Him things get immediately easier And Allah is الحكيم and He knows best سبحانه وتعالى
How to accept the توبة of His servants Allah عز و جل doesn't just encourage us or command us To turn to Him in repentance But He also lets us know that He loves the people who repent إِنَّ اللَّهَ يُحِبُّ التَوَّابِينَ وَيُحِبُّ الْمُتَطَحِّرِينَ Allah loves those who constantly return to Him Seeking His repentance and He loves the متطحرين Those who purify themselves And توبة is in fact a means of purification It's a means of purifying your soul It's a means of cleaning your slate And that is something that each and every single one of us has to do And the Prophet عليه السلام gave us the example of a man Who goes out into the desert And he's with his camel and it's just him and his camel And everything that he needs is with the camel His water, his provisions, everything he needs for that trip And he goes to sleep And when he wakes up that camel is not there There's nothing left for him but death He's stuck in the middle of the desert There's nobody coming out there And there's no triple A to call or anything like that There's nothing, that's it He's done From that emotion that overcomes him he gets extremely tired And he goes back to sleep waiting for death When he wakes up that camel is there
He went from being sure that he was going to die To now having a chance at life again And he is ecstatic, not just happy but ecstatic To the point that he says, Allahumma anta abdi wa ana rabbuk Oh Allah, you are my slave and I am your lord Akhta min shiddat al farah He just made a mistake because of how happy he was The Prophet صلى الله عليه وسلم said لله أشد فرحاً بتوبة أحدكم Allah سبحانه وتعالى is more delighted Is happier with the toba of one of you Than that one is when he lost his camel Allah is happy for us When we turn to him سبحانه وتعالى Brothers and sisters in Islam, Wallahi Each and every one of us knows in ourselves That we're struggling with something Don't think that you're not Don't think that because you pray your five a day And you fast in Ramadan And maybe you fast on Mondays and Thursdays Maybe more, maybe less And you pray a little bit more Know that Allah سبحانه وتعالى knows what's in your heart Wallahi, just a little bit of kibbeh Just a little arrogance, just looking down on people a little bit Because you know more than them Because you look better than them Because you have more money than them That sin is a great sin in Islam It's called kibbeh, arrogance And it prevents people from Jannah And if you have that in you, you have to turn to Allah سبحانه وتعالى Don't think that because you protected your limbs
From zina, from adultery and fornication You protected your sight Do you protect your tongue From speaking about other people in a manner that they wouldn't like Each and every single human being on this planet Is in need of tawbah And Allah عز و جل loves for us to make tawbah And we should turn to Allah سبحانه وتعالى in tawbah Because he is a tawwab He guides to tawbah and he accepts tawbah And we ask Allah سبحانه وتعالى to grant us sincere tawbah أقولك أقولي هذا و أستغفر الله لي ولكم فاستغفروه إنه هو الغفور الرحيم الحمد لله وكفاه وصلاة وسلام على رسوله المصطفى وعلى آله وصحبه ومن ولا مبعد If you feel that Allah سبحانه وتعالى has opened up the door of tawbah for you Like right now You feel it inside You know that there is something that you should be doing better Do not turn your back on that door Seek Allah's forgiveness and turn to him in repentance And those are two different things A lot of times we confuse the concept of istighfar seeking forgiveness and tawbah which we often translate as repentance Ibn Qayyim رحمه الله تعالى He gives an example that helps to clarify the difference between istighfar and tawbah And with this example, hopefully it will help clarify the path for us He says رحمه الله that a person, imagine a person who has mounted their riding beast
Think about a car And they are going down a path But that path leads to destruction There's two things that need to happen for that person that's on that path that is leading to destruction The first thing is that they need to get off of that path that leads to destruction The second thing is they need to return to the path that leads to success and salvation So there's two things that need to happen for that person that is leading to destruction Those are two different actions The first is to get away from the path that leads to destruction And the second is to turn to the path of salvation and the path of success Getting off of the wrong path, that's istighfar That's seeking forgiveness Getting away from that Turning to the correct path that leads to success This is tawbah This is turning And so tawbah happens after istighfar Istighfar is only something in the past Seeking forgiveness is for something that happened in the past Tawbah is for the past, for the present, and for the future Because in order for tawbah to be accepted by Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala You have to have remorse That's for something that already happened You have to cease and desist That's right now You can't do the sin and truly be repenting to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala And it's for the future Because true repentance requires that inside of you, you are determined, you have that resolve not to turn back to the sin that you were committing Now that being said
It is important for us to realize that even if you have the resolve not to turn back to that particular sin or to a way of sin or to an ideology that is sinful It doesn't mean that you're always going to be successful Do not let your fear of failure stop you from making tawbah today No more than the fact that you're going to eat later on today is going to stop you from brushing your teeth now No more than the fact that you know you're going to get dirty tomorrow stops you from taking a shower today or changing your clothes Yeah you know you're going to get dirty again We know we're going to sin again Don't let that stop you from making tawbah Don't let that prevent you from turning to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala Wallahi that is a diabolical trap from Shaytan Who wants us to get more distant and further and further away to the point that we are so far we feel like there is no return But know that Allah azawajal is a tawwab He says to the people who say that he, that Isa ibn Maryam is Allah Or that Allah is thalithu thalatha That he is one of three Allah azawajal says to them Afalaa yatubooni ila Allahi wa yastaghfiruna Will they not just turn to Allah and tawbah and seek his forgiveness? If Allah azawajal is saying that to the greatest sin which is ash-shirkubillah Associating partners with him If Allah is calling them very nicely Bil-lutf afalaa yatuboona Will they not just repent? If Allah is calling them to tawbah Then what is it that you have done that Allah azawajal cannot forgive? That a tawwab will not accept your repentance? Is there anything?
No, even the one who killed a hundred people Allah azawajal accepted his repentance Yes, if you do something wrong to somebody Then you need to make amends with them That's part of your tawbah But know that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala Just a little bit of his mercy Just a little bit of his pardoning Is so much greater than all of our sins put together So if you feel right now that Allah azawajal has opened up that door for you Then enter Turn to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala Know inside of yourself that look I'm not going to go back to that way of life I'm not going to do that sin anymore Oh Allah aid me in overcoming this bad habit that I have Because believe me Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala wants that from us He has told us that in the Quran And he is not like his creation subhanahu wa ta'ala He does not get tired of accepting our repentance Brothers and sisters in Islam A practical step forward Take it step by step Start with saying astaghfirullah wa atubu ilayh The Prophet alayhi salatu was salam Would say in a gathering, in one gathering, Rabbighfirli wa tuba alayya innaka anta tawwabur raheem Rabbighfirli wa tuba alayya innaka anta tawwabur raheem Ibn Umar radiyallahu ta'ala anhuma who was a young companion He said I heard the Prophet alayhi salam saying this a hundred times in one gathering Rabbighfirli, oh Allah forgive me wa tuba alayya And accept my repentance Aid me in repenting Turn to me wa tuba alayya innaka anta tawwabur raheem
You are at tawwab and you are al raheem You are the beneficent, the merciful subhanahu wa ta'ala The Prophet alayhi salam would say this a hundred times Start there If the Prophet said it in one gathering, can you not say that a hundred times in a day? Rabbighfirli wa tuba alayya innaka anta tawwabur raheem Start there Just get it on your tongue Allow it to enter into your heart And then examine yourself Examine yourself Look at that one thing that you know is one of those nagging sins that keeps coming back Work on that Have somebody help you if necessary for accountability Start with those things that Allah Azawajal has made an obligation upon you Your five daily prayers Are you building your day around the prayers? Are you not doing your prayers at all? Or are you squeezing your prayers into your day? Because that's the difference There's a difference between building your day around Salat and squeezing Salat into your day So turn to Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala Check your environment and check your friends Because the situations that you put yourself in have a lot They dictate in fact a lot of what you do And who you surround yourself with is going to dictate a lot of what you do And then look at what you consume Again brothers and sisters in Islam This is step by step Start with your tongue Just asking Allah to forgive you and to turn to you Look at that one thing that's been a nagging sin Get rid of it Get it out your life Even if it comes back Get it out your life today Look at the obligations that Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala has put upon us
And your relationship with those obligations Look at your environment and your friends And beware of what you consume And when I say what you consume Yes we're talking about what you eat, what you drink, the substances you put in your body Because that affects your dua And if you're not eating halal You may be putting a barrier between you and your Lord Subhanahu wa ta'ala Between you and your dua But also what you consume By way of knowledge Information Where are you getting your knowledge from? Your information? What else are you watching? The entertainment that you entertain yourself with Look at those things Because they affect your heart And they will affect your tawbah Know that the path to tawbah Know that that is your path to success Allah Azza wa Jal says in the Quran We'll end with this verse Wa tu'bu ila Allahi jami'an ayyuha almu'minoon la'allakum tuflihoon And turn to your Lord All of you, all of you believers Tu'bu ila Allah Turn to Him Repent to Him Reconcile your situation Make your values in harmony with the values of Allah Subhanahu wa ta'ala Tu'bu ila Allahi jami'an ayyuha almu'minoon O believers, for what purpose? La'allakum tuflihoon So that you will be successful Without tawbah we will not be successful You can read every success book that they have out there Every self-help book Seven Habits of Highly Successful People And all of the other success stories that you want to read Without tawbah we will not be successful
Rabbana akfil lana wa liakhwanina lathina sabakuna bil iman wa la taj'al fi qulubina ghillan lilathina aaminu Rabbana innaka ra'oofu al-raheem Allahumma aslih lana dinana lathi huwa ismatu amrina wa aslih lana dunyana lati fiha ma'ashuna wa aslih lana akhiratana lati layha ma'aduna wa ja'al alhayata ziyadata lana fi kulli khair wa almouta raahata lana min kulli shar Rabbana aatina fi al-dunya hasana wa fi al-akhirati hasana waqina a'adhaab an-nar Waqim as-salam
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