The obligation of believing in destiny, both its good and bad aspects (3)

The obligation of believing in destiny, both its good and bad aspects (3)

In continuation of what I mentioned in the previous lesson...

I say: Destiny is the secret of God in His creation, not disclosed to any near angel or sent prophet.

The divine law is known to everyone who seeks it in the Quran and the Sunnah. Therefore, it is not permissible for the sinner to use fate and destiny as an excuse for his disbelief and disobedience because the sinner engages in disobedience by his own choice without knowing that God has ordained it for him.

No one knows the decree of God except after it has been decreed, as declared in the Quran:

[لقمان: 34] (وَمَا تَدْرِي نَفْسٌ مَاذَا تَكْسِبُ غَدًا)

[No soul knows what it will earn for tomorrow] 31:34

If someone argues with destiny to justify disbelief or sin, it is said to him: You know that God has prohibited disbelief and sins based on what you have learned from the Quran and the Sunnah. However, you do not know that the sin was destined for you before you committed it. So why did you not do good deeds and argue with destiny in that regard?

This indicates that the one arguing with destiny is following his desires.

To the sinner who argues with destiny about his sin, we say:

If someone were to strike you, take your belongings, and leave, would you let him go, saying it was destined for you? Would you accept his excuse if he said, "I struck you and took your belongings by the decree of God"? Or would you get angry, seek revenge, and try to recover your belongings? Undoubtedly, a person would exert effort to seek revenge against the assailant and would not accept his excuse based on destiny.

So how can the sinner argue with destiny for his disobedience to God and not seek a remedy for the disease of his heart?

We say to the sinner who argues with destiny about his disobedience: If you intended to travel to a certain country and there were two routes, and a truthful person informed you that one of them is dangerous and difficult, while the other is safe and easy, you would undoubtedly choose the second route. You would never take the first route and claim that it was destined for you. If you did so, people would consider you insane.

Arguing with destiny to justify disobedience—escaping from responsibility and rejecting the call of the messengers—is the way of the polytheists. Allah, the Exalted, said about them:

[الأنعام: 148] (سَيَقُولُ الَّذِينَ أَشْرَكُوا لَوْ شَاءَ اللَّهُ مَا أَشْرَكْنَا وَلَا آبَاؤُنَا وَلَا حَرَّمْنَا مِنْ شَيْءٍ كَذَلِكَ كَذَّبَ الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِهِمْ حَتَّى ذَاقُوا بَأْسَنَا قُلْ هَلْ عِنْدَكُمْ مِنْ عِلْمٍ فَتُخْرِجُوهُ لَنَا إِنْ تَتَّبِعُونَ إِلَّا الظَّنَّ وَإِنْ أَنْتُمْ إِلَّا تَخْرُصُونَ)

[The polytheists will argue, “Had it been Allah’s Will, neither we nor our forefathers would have associated others with Him ˹in worship˺ or made anything unlawful.” Likewise, those before them rejected the truth until they tasted Our punishment. Ask ˹them, O Prophet˺, “Do you have any knowledge that you can produce for us? Surely you follow nothing but ˹false˺ assumptions and you do nothing but lie.”] 6:148

So Allah informed us that there is no basis for their argument with fate and destiny for their polytheism, and that they have nothing but confusion and conjecture.

The thirtieth lesson concludes with the praise of God.

With this lesson, this series comes to an end, in the hope that we will start another series, Insha Allah, and with God is the success.