today I'm going to share something with you about our beloved messenger sallallah alaihi wasallam and our relationship with him but when I start discussing this with you it will feel like that is not my topic At All by the end I hope to see that it is in fact what I want to share with you for myself personally this is one of the most powerful lessons I ever studied in the Quran and I'm very moved by this lesson I pray that I'm able to communicate some of the Beauty and the power of what I was honored to study and to learn from this Surah this lesson belongs toah y the 36th Surah of the Quran Allah describes in the Surah a unique story of prophets typically you find that Allah sends one to one town but in this case Allah says Allah sent two Messengers to them and the nation rejected both of those Messengers then Allah reinforced Allah says we reinforce them with a third one so now this nation is unique to any other Nation because three Messengers are giving them the message at the same time and then their response to all three of those Messengers is and and by the way before I go on you have to appreciate har M had to challenge one of the greatest villains mentioned in the Quran and he asked for the help of who Haron so that's two of them that's two of them and when you study the Quran you find even when they were two of them mam did all of the talking Haram was silent actually it was all of the job was being done still by was support he was there reinforce my back with him make him a partner in my mission but his his job became more support than anything else in the case of these Messengers all three of them were giving da all of them are delivering the message and all of them are G given the same rejection if we we think all of you are cursed the people said all of you are a curse on our nation and if you don't stop this preaching of yours we are going to Stone you to death or or we'll find some other painful way of torturing you you better stop and so these me three of them were rejected and as that's happening Allah adds a fourth person in the story three wasn't enough now a fourth person but this fourth person is not a messenger there's not a messenger from the other end of the city meaning there in this town in a neighboring City somebody heard a Believer heard that there are three Messengers here delivering a message and nobody's listening to them I should go help them so as a Believer he comes from the other city and he comes and he starts talking to the people what's incredible [Music] the umah who believes in them have their own responsibility The Messengers will do their job the believer will do his job or her job and they cannot replace each other's job they cannot say well the messenger is already there so I don't have to do it no you still have to do it and he speaks and he speaks in the Quran his speech is recorded longer than all of those Messengers now the lesson being taught here now we come to our messenger sallallahu alaihi wasallam the lesson being taught here is that the Believer cannot say well the messenger came he already did what had to be done my responsibility is over you see what does Allah do inah y after that right after the story Allah describes something and this is where I need your attention Allah describes something that seems like it's not related at all he says about the he starts talking about the Sun and the Moon he starts talking about the Sun and the Moon and he says about the moon we make the moon go through different phases we especially pay attention to the phases of the moon in the month of Ramadan so he says the moon goes through phases and he he talks about the Sun and then he adds one statement he [Music] says the sun it's not it's not appropriate for the sun to get ahead of the moon and the night cannot come before the day every one of them has their place they are moving in their own place everything has its own job the story right before was Messengers have their own job and followers have their own job and now Allah says just like that what has their own job the sun has its own job and the moon has its own job so now as we come to Al wasallam why is this so powerful our messenger in Allah was describing him he was talking to him and telling him what role he has to play Allah says about the messenger that he plays multiple roles but at the end of those roles Allah describes our messenger with a unique word he calls him a lamp a lamp that gives light and illuminates other things a lamp that sh shines light on other things and illuminates them now here's the thing about that the word in the Quran is used for the sun it's used for the sun our messenger is being compared to what the sun says the sun has its own job and the moon has its own job now when our messenger is being compared to the Sun what does that mean when the messenger came sallallah alaihi wasallam and you were in his presence there is no possibility that you will not be exposed to light there is no possibility there's no possibility that Darkness will not go away because the sun has arrived but Allah's decree is that the sun will not stay in the sky forever the Sun goes away and when the Sun goes away whose turn is it it's the Moon's turn our messenger sallallahu alaihi wasallam is no longer with us but who's still here we're still here and by the way the sun the sun is in the commanding position and the Moon is a follower now we even know that scientifically the Moon is simply a follower pulled all of all of these planets and their their moons are forced into the gravitational field of the sun and the only reason the moon has any light is because it reflects the light of the Sun so we are living in dark times we are like the Believers who are living in dark times and we are being compared to the moon and the only light we have the only light we have is the light shining on us through the darkness that actually originates from where from the Sun from.am the IM of every believer every believer is actually a reflection of the original teachings of s wasallam like The Sun Shines on the moon and now think about this think about this Allah gave us the sun and the sun does not go through phases the sun is perfect every time but the moon sometimes it's a full moon and sometimes it's a very weak Moon just like the believer we don't stay the same Allah described the heart of our messenger sallallah so we can make your heart firm and permanent meaning the light of IM the light of the faith of Allah in the messenger's heart sallallah alaihi wasallam is permanent it's like the sun constant L burning light when you see the sun it's still there when you don't see it it's still there it's still shining its light on the moon but the moon goes through phases like a Believer goes through phases and sometimes the believer's Iman is so weak you can barely find it in the sky but even when your faith is so so weak no one thing you are still representing the light ofam that is the that is the when you look at the sky the next time time when you look at the sky when you look at the Moon you're actually looking at yourself you're looking at yourself you're reminding yourself that Allah chose this um to be around in the darkest of times so they can reflect the light ofam what what kind of responsibility does that put on you and me you know what that does it helps you understand what said he said famously he said I am the Messenger of the messenger of Allah s and he taught us something about being a member of this umah every one of us every one of us is a representative of our messenger every one of us when we are obeying him and when we are disobeying him when we are acting the way we should and when we're acting not the way we should when we speak ill of others and when we speak kind L of others when we control our eyes and when we don't control our eyes that whether we like it or not we are we are supposed to be reflecting the light of s alai wasam we we we carry that responsibility and sometimes we don't do such a good job it's not like the full moon sometimes it's very weak but you know what just because it's weak never does it mean it disappeared because the way Allah decreed the moon to be when it's at its weakest then it's time for it to what Rise Again rise again our messenger would say about the believer that their IM IM will go it will go up and down time and time you won't feel the same reverence and strength of Faith all the time but your connection to your messenger will strengthen your faith over and over and over again y That's our relationship with our messenger sallallah alaihi wasallam that's what he represents to us you know the last thing I share with you here is what it why did Allah you know this this wisdom what else does it mean for you and me it actually means that Allah chose us chose us to carry on the mission of s alai wasallam and Allah knew that when wasallam is no longer in this world with us the way he was with the sahabah when he's no longer there it's going to be like the sun disappeared and night came like night came and when Night Comes there's hopelessness there's Darkness there's fear there's anxiety there's ignorance what do I mean by ignorance at in the daytime you can find your way in night time you can get easily lost in the daytime the same street is safe at night time the same street is dangerous in the daytime there's life at night time there's death there's Stillness Allah chose this um to be the only source of light in the darkness when everybody else is surrounded by Darkness he chose us to be the moon he chose us to for for people to find light and find some hope and when they see us they see some Glimpse some Glimpse ofam that is what you and I are supposed to be that is what Allah has given us you know inshallah in the next time I speak about wasallam we'll talk about one of the most powerful ayat of the Quran where Allah himself sends Salat upon the messenger and it's actually related to this lesson so we we'll discuss that at another time but for now I want you to reflect and really do think that Allah what whatever signs Allah has given us the Sun the moon the wind the trees every one of those signs behind them is a lesson behind them is a lesson and so we never the believer will never look at the sun the same way again the believer will never look at the Moon the same way again now you don't have to listen to a about the messenger of Allah sallallah alaihi wasallam to be reminded to say sallallah alaihi wasallam you just have to look out and the sun is coming up and you say Sall alai wasallam that next that just the sun is now a reminder of s alaihi wasall that is the beauty of this Quran it never once you once you embody its view you can never Escape reminder you can never Escape reminder and we can never Escape our connection to our beloved s alaihi wasallam may Allah make us all those who carry the light of of our messenger and actually reflect that light outward so others can find their way towards that sun