Virtual Khutbahs
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When Allah Forgives You in the Final Hour of Ramadan | Virtual Khutbah
If you can't join the lovers, then join the repenters.
Transcript
This transcript was auto-generated using AI and may contain misspellings. I hope everyone is doing well. Inshallah to Allah, just as we're waiting for everyone to join. Praying that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala have mercy on our brothers and sisters that have perished in the plane crash in Pakistan. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala accept them as shuhada. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala comfort their families and all of those that have passed away in such unfortunate ways in these last few days, in these last few weeks. May Allah Azza wa Jalla have mercy on them all. Looks like we got enough people logged on now. So inshallah to Allah I'll go ahead and I'll start once again. Assalamualaikum warahmatullahi wabarakatuh.
Brothers and sisters, as we come to the end of Ramadan, and I pray that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala first and foremost accepts all of your deeds in Ramadan, before Ramadan, after Ramadan, and forgive all of your sins before Ramadan, during Ramadan, and after Ramadan. And allow us to maintain a thrust towards him of good and to overcome the shackles of ourselves and the shackles of the shayateen that prevent us from fully tasting the
sweetness of closeness to him. As we get to the end of Ramadan, I want to talk specifically about the last hour of Ramadan. And I know that we still, you know, here it's Friday, Eid will likely be Sunday. And so we've still got some time before the last hour. But I do want to help us anticipate inshallah to add as much as possible the last hour and building up to the last hour of Ramadan. The Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam said that actions are judged by the endings, by the khawateen, by the endings of those actions. And Ramadan is no exception to that, that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will look at us, and Allah will judge an action by its ending. And that's why the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam emphasized to us that we should always seek a good ending. Because a person could be as the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam said, doing the actions of the people of paradise until what is between them and paradise is just their arms stretched out. And then they do one of the actions of the people of Jahannam and they end up instead entering into Jahannam. On the other hand, the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam said that a person does the actions of the people of hellfire until they are about to enter into hellfire. There's just, you know, a yard away from them and hellfire. And instead they respond and they do an action of the people of paradise. And so Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allows them to enter into paradise instead. That's the general rule that actions are judged by their endings. But what does this specifically mean for Ramadan? So every night in Ramadan, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has people that he frees from the hellfire as the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam said that in every night, there are itiqa, Allah has people who he frees from hellfire. And the ulema say that this is speaking about Ramadan, that in Ramadan,
Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala frees a group of people every single night, that's one through 20. That is the odd nights, those are the odd nights of the last 10 nights as well as the even nights. And so every night is an opportunity. And the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam taught us to seek Laylatul Qadr until the last night, not the last odd night until the very last night. And so tonight would be the 30th night of Ramadan and many people will neglect it. But tonight is a night that we seek Laylatul Qadr and it still falls within the last 10 nights. So seek it until the very last night. But there's something else and I wanted to draw a parallel between the end of Ramadan and the end of the night, the end of the night, because the most blessed time of the day or night, the most blessed time in a 24 hour period is Waqtul Suhoor, is that last hour before Fajr, that last hour before Fajr. The best of the night is the last third of the night. And the best of the last third of the night is As Suhoor, the time of As Suhoor, the time of Suhoor. And that's why some of the ulama say when Ya'qub alayhi wasalam, when Jacob peace be upon him said to his sons, So fa astakhiru lakum rabbi, that I will seek forgiveness from my Lord for you. They said that the commentator said that he was talking about waiting until the final hour of the night to seek forgiveness for his children for the wrongdoing that they committed against Yusuf alayhi as-salam, against Joseph peace be upon him. And so it's the last hour. And the best hour of the day is the last hour of the day, which is the hour before Maghrib. That is true for the fasting person. That is true for Yawm al-Jum'ah. That is true for the day of Friday. That is true for the day of Arafah, when the people gather. That is the last hour. That's the time of calling upon Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, doing adhkar al-masaa, doing the evening
remembrances as the sun is about to set. What is the analogy of this to Ramadan? I really saw a beautiful quote from Al-Hafidh bin Rajab rahimahullah ta'ala as he was speaking about the last hour of the night. And it got me thinking about this last hour of Ramadan and what the last hour of Ramadan looks like. Al-Hafidh bin Rajab rahimahullah. He said that what happens in the last hour of the night before Fajr is that everyone gathers, that it's a time for istighfar. Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala says, وَبِالْأَسْحَارِ هُمْ يَسْتَغْفِرُونَ That in that time, that's when they seek forgiveness. It's a time in which those who prayed all night or those who prayed a significant portion of the night are ending off the prayer of the night with istighfar, with seeking forgiveness, لِقُصُورِهِمْ because of a feeling of shortcoming, because of feeling like they did not do enough prayer or that there was some lack of quality in their prayer or that even if their prayers were perfect, they would not be able to match the glory of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, who is perfect and whose mercy and whose generosity and whose honor cannot be encompassed by any human act of worship. And so the point is, is that at the last hour of the night, there are those and those who were praying all night that are praying a significant portion of the night that are asking Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness. And this was the case of the Prophet ﷺ, that he would end off the night by seeking forgiveness from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala because he prayed a significant portion of the night to a point that his feet would swell ﷺ and he was asking Allah for forgiveness for the deficiency within the prayer. Similar to, by the way, how when we finish our daily salawat, we say, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah.
You seek forgiveness from Allah after performing the prayer because there were some inevitable shortcomings within that prayer. And so Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah. So he said that in that hour, Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala gathers both those, you have some that will seek forgiveness after praying for a long time, liqusurihim, and he said, and then you will have those who will wake up just at that time, just as the night is about to go. And they'll offer a small amount of remembrance to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala, a short performance of prayer. Maybe they just get up and they pray the witr or maybe they just get up just to make a few statements of remembrance. And they're also saying Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah. And their istighfar, their seeking forgiveness is li dhunubihim, is for their sins. So he says that at that hour, at the end of the night, that blessed time, there is the istighfar of those who prayed liqusurihim and the istighfar of those who prayed, did not pray, li dhunubihim. The istighfar of those who prayed liqusurihim, meaning for their shortcoming, and the istighfar for those who did not pray, li dhunubihim, for their sins. So if you're looking at them, they look indistinguishable because at the end of the day, at that moment, they're in a place of istighfar. And the sentence that he says that I just find so beautiful and profound, he says, so if you can't join the lovers, join the repenters. If you can't join the lovers, join the repenters. What does he mean by that? The muhaddin, those that are in love with their Lord, that have gotten to a point in their spirituality, a point in their spirituality where they feel a connection and they have become regular at standing up for long periods into the night, seeking Allah's forgiveness and seeking His pleasure. And Ibn Rajab Rahim Allah says, if you can't join the muhibbin, then join the mustaghfirin.
If you can't join the lovers, join the repenters. At least make sure that that last portion of the night that you get up and you seek forgiveness from Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for out of a sense of shortcoming, out of a sense of not feeling like you did enough, out of a sense of wanting to do more for the sake of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. This is such a beautiful analogy to the last hour of Ramadan as well. As Ramadan is about to pass from us, there are going to be those that will be able to look back on this Ramadan and say that I really felt closer to Allah this Ramadan than I have in previous years. I pushed myself. I read more Quran than I usually read. I was able to pray more at night than I usually pray. I was able to put something behind me. I was able to make a significant stride in my spirituality or by starting to fulfill one of the obligations of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala in this month or one of the nawaf and one of the blessed voluntary practices. I was able to make a stride in this month. I feel closer. I feel like I must have caught Laylatul Qadr. I felt it on this night and that night. There are those that will look back on this Ramadan very favorably and they will feel like this was a beautiful Ramadan in which they got ahead. And for them, that last hour of Ramadan is an hour of asking Allah for forgiveness for the inevitable shortcomings within those deeds and the inevitable shortcomings that are to be anticipated after Ramadan, the post Ramadan dip. So for them, that's what their istighfar is in that last part of the night. For the others, there are those that are going to feel like I set goals for myself this Ramadan. I didn't meet those goals. I wanted to read this much portion of the Quran. I didn't finish reading that portion of the Quran. There were nights that I set my alarm and I wanted to wake up and pray.
I didn't pray those late nights. I didn't get the khushu, the humility, the awe in my supplication, the way that I wanted to get that awe in my supplication. I don't feel like this was my most productive Ramadan. And my answer to those people is if you can't join the lovers, join the repenters. At that moment in the last hour of Ramadan, when we're asking Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness, all of us, all of us, may Allah make us from the repenters and the lovers. Allahumma ameen. May Allah make us from the mustaghfireen and the muhibbeen. Allahumma ameen. The repenters and the lovers. At that moment, gathering together or rather connecting to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala together, shutting everything off and just saying, Ya Allah, forgive me. Ya Allah, accept this Ramadan. Ya Allah, accept Laylatul Qadr. Ya Allah, accept all of my repentance. Ya Allah, accept my intentions to the best of them, all the good that I intended to do that I wasn't actually able to do. Ya Allah, just as when a person accidentally eats in the day of Ramadan, you give them the full reward of that fast and the food is sadaqah. And just as a person sleeps sometimes at night, though they intended to wake up and pray Qiyamul Layl and you give them that sleep as a charity and you write down the full night of Qiyamul Layl. Ya Allah, as we turn to you in these last moments of Ramadan, Ya Allah, reward us to the best of the intentions that we have for this Ramadan for every minute of it and forgive us for the times that we fell short, either in the performance of good or the performance of bad. Or a moment of heedlessness that could have been used for good. Use this last hour, use these last moments to just say Astaghfirullah, Astaghfirullah,
Astaghfirullah. And this is a challenge that I want to give to everyone that the last hour of Ramadan and I say the last hour, I'm not just talking about the last hour of the night of Ramadan, the last hour between Asr and Maghrib of the last day of Ramadan. Most people would have already shifted to Eid mode. They're already thinking about what they're going to do for Eid. It might be an unusual Eid, but it's still Eid, right? People are trying to adjust to their Eid celebrations. Most people have moved on from Ramadan. The last night is gone. If you can commit yourself to just that last hour that you're going to sit there and you're going to isolate yourself in supplication, in prayer and ask Allah to forgive you, then do so. Make the most of the last night of Ramadan, which is tonight inshaAllah ta'ala and make the most of the last day of Ramadan as well. Ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to count you amongst the repenters and to join you with the lovers. And I'm going to end with one hadith inshaAllah ta'ala, which many of you have had, but just to show you the mercy of Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala to cover our shortcomings when it comes to Ramadan. Many of you have heard the hadith of the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam, where he says that for the fasting person is two joys. The farha, the joy, the time that he breaks his fast. And the joy when he meets his Lord. So for the fasting person is two joys. The joy of breaking the fast and the joy of meeting your Lord with that fast. Sufyan ibn Uyayna rahim Allah ta'ala, he says about this, he says that when the day of judgment
comes and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has taken account of all of the people. So Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has taken account of all of his servants. And the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam said that Allah has said that all of the son, all of the deeds of the sons of Adam, all of the deeds of the son of Adam are for them except for fasting, except for fasting. As-salmu li wa ana ajzi bihi, fasting is for me and I reward accordingly. So Sufyan ibn Uyayna rahim Allah said that when the day of judgment comes and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala has gone through the accountability of the servants and all of those who a person has oppressed, all of those who a person has fallen short with, all of the person's shortcomings in regards to themselves and in regards to others will be taken from them. And Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will do with those good deeds what is necessary. And so you know the hadith of the Prophet salallahu alayhi wasalam where he said, Atadruuna man al-baqir, do you know who the bankrupt person is? And it's the person who had so many sins that they committed towards others that they take their good deeds on the day of judgment. That a person will be in a situation where the only thing that remains for that person is the reward of fasting. The only good deed that remains is the reward of fasting. If the person was sincere in that, that Allah would have compensated all of the oppressed parties or all of those that that person fell short with from his bounty. And Allah would have taken all of the good deeds that that person had due to their shortcomings or whatever it may be. But then Allah will take fasting, the reward of fasting and Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will
increase it until it covers that servant enough to enter them into paradise with sincerity under his mercy. SubhanAllah, the fact that the reward of fasting in its performance is so profound and cannot be quantified and falls out of all of the rules of the quantification, the quantifying of good deeds. The fact that fasting is so significant, by the way, this doesn't mean by all means, this doesn't mean go ahead and oppress because fasting has you covered. Go ahead and mess up with the rest of your deeds because fasting has you covered. This refers to a person who inevitably fell short in different ways, in different wrongdoings. And they were sincere in trying to turn back to Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. And some of the scholars say that this is referring to a person who turned the page with Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala but inevitably could not make up for all of the things that they've done in the past. That fasting is that reward that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala will increase and forgive everything for a person. Ramadan is that reward that will overlook everything in the past. So ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness. And the best deed that you can prepare at the end of Ramadan is the best deed that you can have period, which is Husn adhan in Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala. Abdullah bin Mas'ud radiallahu anhu narrates that that is the best deed that you can have is Husn adhan, to have a good expectation of your Lord. That's why Allah taught us through our Messenger salallahu alayhi wa sallam to say Allahumma innaka afooun, tuhibbu al-afwa fa'afu anni Oh Allah, you are the forgiving one. You love to forgive. So forgive me. And so carry that with you to the last hour of Ramadan insha'Allah ta'ala as you ask Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala for forgiveness. Oh Allah, you love to forgive. Despite my sleeping, despite my sinning, despite my shortcomings, you love to forgive. So forgive me.
And if you can't join lovers, then join the repenters. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala make us from the repenters and from the lovers. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to elevate ourselves and be elevated in his sight. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to carry what we have benefited from in this Ramadan far beyond it. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow the deeds that we started to practice in this Ramadan to be lifelong deeds, transformative deeds. May Allah forgive us for the sins that we had promised to repent from that we still fell into a few times in Ramadan. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala forgive us for the sins that we commit knowingly and unknowingly, the small ones and the large ones. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to power through what is left of this life with only the best of deeds. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow us to stay connected to him after Ramadan, to stay connected to his book after Ramadan, to stay connected to his Prophet salallahu alayhi wa sallam after Ramadan, to stay connected to our adhkar, to our salah, to our remembrances, to our supplications, to our prayers after Ramadan. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala allow our hearts to remain firm. Ya muqallibal quloob thabbit quloobana ala deenik, O turner of hearts, keep our hearts firm on your path. May Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala grant us istiqama, grant us thabat, grant us firmness with our hearts, firmness with our feet, firmness with our tongues upon all of that which is pleasing to him. Allahumma ameen. Jazakum Allah khayran to all of you. And inshaAllah ta'ala I will see you tonight for the last Quran 30 for 30 of Ramadan, as well as the last session of Ibadur Rahman. But inshaAllah ta'ala we have some things in store inshaAllah for Shawwal as well. So we will have programming throughout the month of Shawwal as well inshaAllah ta'ala to keep that connection, though obviously not at this pace which is natural.
But I pray that Allah subhanahu wa ta'ala unite us in his glory and in good. And I appreciate all of you that have been tuning in to all of our programs throughout this month and before it. And I pray that Allah azawajal allow it to be of benefit to you and benefit to us inshaAllah. Jazakum Allah khayran. Wa salamu alaikum wa rahmatullahi wa barakatuhu.
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