Sharia – Pathway to Peace
السلام عليكم
As-salāmu ʿalaykum
FINDING THE TRUE SHARIA
Sharia…
The Pathway to Peace!
May the peace and blessings of Allah rest upon you now, and always!
Have you ever noticed how amazing our universe is? All the planets and stars move with mathematical precision, spinning and rotating, moving without any chaos or confusion – everything is perfectly ordered and predictable. And for this reason, even the timing of our sunsets and sunrises can be calculated months in advance to the exact minute. Such is the magnificence of Allah’s power, wisdom and creative knowledge. With humble hearts we cry out “Alhamdulillah!” The Master of the Universe clearly has ordained laws that bring order and perfect balance to the created galaxies – and our earth too. For that, we must have a heart of gratitude. How true the Honoured Qur’an is when it says: “He created the sun, the moon, and the stars all governed by laws under His command.” Surah 7:54 Al-A’raf
ALLAH THE LAW GIVER
The precision of Allah’s ways are referred to in many times in the Holy Books. In Surah 4: 163 we are told “and to David (Dawood) we gave the Psalms.” The Psalms contain beautiful praises to Allah. Beautiful words we need to reflect on. The Psalms are contained in the ancient Hebrew Scriptures, words that magnify our beautiful Creator Allah. Thinking of the powerful laws that govern the movements of the stars in the night sky, the Prophet David (Dawood) praises Allah saying: “The heavens declare the glory of God, and the skies tell forth of his handiwork.”- Psalm 19:1 (Zaboor). Although there is no mention in the sacred ninety-nine names that Allah is specifically called ‘the Law-Giver’, the Honoured Qur’an does indeed reveal that He Himself is the true ‘musharri’ (law-giver) in many texts throughout its pages.
He alone is able to command His creation, including you and me, and to govern it by His righteous statutes and commandments. His sharia law is to be followed and obeyed. Do we not read: “Is it not [Allah’s right] to create and to govern?”- Surah 7:54 Al-A’raf. Just as Allah has laws to govern the galaxies and the earth – He also has laws to govern our lives.
THE WAY TO A WATERING PLACE
Allah’s laws for us are called His ‘sharia’. The Arabic word ‘sharia’ literally means ‘the way to a watering place.’ What a beautiful thought! Allah’s laws are a blessing, not a burden! They lead to ‘a watering place’, a place of refreshing and cleansing – and a place of peace and tranquility. Indeed, in referring to a people who had strayed from Allah’s ways, our beautiful Creator declared: “I am the LORD your God who teaches you to benefit yourselves, leading you in the way you should go. If only you had listened to my [sharia], then your peace would have been like a river, and your righteousness as the waves of the sea.”
– Nabi Isaiah 48:17-18
Do you long for peace and righteousness? Seek after Allah’s true Sharia!
JOY IN THE JOURNEY
Allah doesn’t want His laws and commandments to be a burden. Picture yourself about to climb up a desert mountain. You have a bag on your back with a big bottle of water, many fruits, and some bread and some sweet things to eat – essential food items needed if you become hungry or thirsty. But as you begin your mountain climb, this extra weight on your back drags you down, and it feels more like a burden, and not a blessing. However, if you stop during your journey to eat and drink, what seemed at first to be a burden – now becomes a blessing! No longer are you carrying extra weight on your back, but rather the food and drink is now inside you, creating strength and energy for your climb – fueling you for your
Do you long for peace and righteousness? Seek after Allah’s true Sharia!
JOY IN THE JOURNEY
Allah doesn’t want His laws and commandments to be a burden. Picture yourself about to climb up a desert mountain. You have a bag on your back with a big bottle of water, many fruits, and some bread and some sweet things to eat – essential food items needed if you become hungry or thirsty. But as you begin your mountain climb, this extra weight on your back drags you down, and it feels more like a burden, and not a blessing. However, if you stop during your journey to eat and drink, what seemed at first to be a burden – now becomes a blessing! No longer are you carrying extra weight on your back, but rather the food and drink is now inside you, creating strength and energy for your climb – fueling you for your
journey! All praise to Allah! Islamic scholars teach us that the first thing Allah created in the heavens was a ‘pen.’ A pen is used to write and inscribe. He can write our destinies, and He can also write a record of our good deeds – and also a record of our unrighteous thoughts and actions. What is Allah writing about your life? The good news is that whatever mistakes you have made, you can have a new start. Allah can write His laws, His sharia, in our hearts, so that we can love and cherish them, and He will give us the power and strength to keep them. Do you desire this? Allah says: “I will put my law [sharia] in their inward parts, and write it in their hearts, and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.”- Nabi Jeremiah 31:33. The pen of Allah can do amazing things. Just as food and drink inside helps give us strength for a mountain climb, so Allah’s sharia gives us strength to live righteous lives in this ungodly world – the pen of Allah writes His laws in our hearts. His command becomes our enabling.
LEARNING FROM ISA (HIS PEACE BE UPON US)
Allah wants to help His servants keep His commandments (sharia). We see this in the life of Isa (Jesus). The Honoured Qur’an reminds us: “and we strengthened [Jesus] with the Holy Spirit.”- Surah 2:253 Al-Baqarah. And again we are told “We gave Jesus the Son of Mary clear signs and strengthened him with the Holy Spirit.”- Surah 2:87 Al-Baqarah. This was to fulfil a prophecy spoken many years before Prophet Jesus (his peace be upon us) walked this earth. This is a prophecy and promise for you and me too. We are told: “And I will put my spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statues, and you will keep my judgments, and do them.”- Nabi Ezekiel 36:27. As Jesus walked in joyful obedience to Allah’s commandments, so we too are to follow in His holy footsteps. It is said prophetically of Jesus “I have come to do your will. Yes, your law is within my heart.”- Zaboor Psalms 40:8. And Allah promises His Holy Spirit to us too, to help us live this life of righteousness.
FINDING THE TRUE SHARIA
So where can we find the sharia? Allah’s laws are eternal and unchanging. All the prophets of Allah brought the same message. The Qur’an says clearly: “We make no distinction between any of his messengers.”- Surah 2:285 Al-Baqarah. And again, referring to the prophets Allah declares: “We make no distinction among them all.”- Surah 2:136 Al-Baqarah. Exactly what did the prophets teach? Allah’s Prophet, Isa-al-Masih (Jesus the Messiah) taught us: “If you are to enter into eternal life, keep the commandments [sharia].”- Injeel Matthew 19:17. He was referring to Allah’s eternal sharia, the Ten Commandments recorded for us in Taurat Exodus 20:1-17. So too, we learn here that Moses was to proclaim the eternal sharia of these Ten Commandments to the ummah of Allah’s people. The Honoured Qur’an reminds us: “And we ordained laws for [Moses] in the tablets in all matters, both commanding and explaining all things (and said): “take and hold these with firmness, and enjoin thy people to hold fast by the best in these precepts.”-Surah 7:145 Al-Araf. The Qur’an repeatedly points us back to the Taurat to learn about Allah’s sharia binding on each one of us. We are told: “It is [Allah] who has sent down to you step by step in truth the book, confirming what went before it. And he sent down the Law (Taurat) of Moses and the gospel (Injeel) of Jesus before this as a guide to mankind.”- Surah 3:3-4 Al-Imran.
Friends, do you desire to follow the prophets that came before, and follow Allah’s eternal sharia – the Ten Commandments? Allah’s laws are the path to a watering place – a place of refreshment and righteousness. Do you desire to be cleansed and purified? Do you desire peace?
“How can a man purify his way? By taking heed to thy [sharia].”- Psalm 119:9 Zaboor
“This is the love of God, that we keep his commandments. [sharia]” Injeel 1 John 5:3
“Great peace have those who love your law [sharia]…” – Psalm 119:165 Zaboor
“Blessed are they that do His [sharia], that they may have right to the tree of life, and may enter [into jannah].”- Revelation 22:14
Truly Allah’s Ten Commandments are the pathway to peace! Alhamdulillah!
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