Messengers have been sent by God
almighty with one message: there is no
god except God, worship Him alone. The
Quran clearly expresses that one
message of God, and explicitly narrates
the history of His messengers, since
Noah, delivering that same one message
to humanity.
One God/One Message/One
Religion
[21:25] We
did not send any messenger
before you except
with the inspiration: "There
is no god except Me; you shall worship
Me alone."
[16:36] We have
sent a messenger to every
community, saying, "You shall
worship GOD, and avoid idolatry."
Subsequently, some were guided by GOD,
while others were committed to straying.
Roam the earth and note the consequences
for the rejectors.
Only One Religion
Monotheists vs Idol Worshipers
[42:13] He
decreed
for you the same religion
decreed for Noah, and what we
inspired to you, and what we decreed
for Abraham, Moses, and Jesus:
"You shall uphold this one
religion, and do not divide it."
The idol worshipers will greatly
resent what you invite them to do.
GOD redeems to Himself whomever He
wills; He guides to Himself only
those who totally submit.
Worshiping God alone simply implies
following His path and His teachings.
His commands have been always put
together by His will in a divine
scripture that is delivered by a prophet
messenger. A messenger who doesn't bring
a scripture is sent to re-deliver the
same one message and confirm the
existing scripture. God explains such a
system in the Quran with no ambiguity:
[21:10]
We have sent down to you
a scripture containing your
message. Do you not
understand?
[3:58]
These are the revelations that we
recite to you, providing a
message full of wisdom.
[3:79] Never
would a human being whom GOD blessed
with the scripture and
prophethood say to the
people, "Idolize me beside GOD."
Instead, (he would say),
"Devote yourselves absolutely to
your Lord alone,"
according to the scripture you preach
and the teachings you learn.
Major Prophecy Fulfilled*
God's Messenger of the Covenant
[3:81] GOD took a
covenant from the prophets,
saying, "I will give you the
scripture and wisdom.
Afterwards, a messenger will
come to confirm all existing
scriptures. You shall
believe in him and support him." He
said, "Do you agree with this, and
pledge to fulfill this covenant?" They
said, "We agree." He said, "You have
thus borne witness, and I bear witness
along with you."
The ONE and ONLY entity that institutes
teachings for us to follow is God, and
the above system is His divine
unchangeable system to deliver and
confirm His message and teachings:
[45:17]
We have given them herein clear
commandments.
Ironically, they did not dispute
this until the knowledge had come to
them. This is due to jealousy on
their part. Surely, your Lord will
judge them on the Day of
Resurrection regarding everything
they have disputed.
[45:18] We
then appointed you to establish the
correct laws; you shall
follow this,
and do not follow the wishes of
those who do not know.
[6:114]
Shall I seek other than GOD as a
source of law, when He has revealed to
you this book fully detailed?*
Those who received the scripture
recognize that it has been revealed from
your Lord, truthfully. You shall not
harbor any doubt.
[18:27] You shall
recite what is revealed to you of your
Lord's scripture. Nothing
shall abrogate His words, and you shall
not find any other source beside it.
[5:50]
Is it the law of the days of
ignorance that they seek to uphold?
Whose law is better than GOD's
for those who have attained
certainty?
What is the meaning of a
messenger in the light of Quran and what
is the duty listed by God for a
messenger?
[5:99]
The sole duty of the messenger is to
deliver the message, and
GOD knows everything you declare and
everything you conceal.
Sole Mission of the Messenger
[42:48] If they
turn away, we did not send you as their
guardian. Your sole mission
is delivering the message.
...
[13:40] Whether
we show you what we promise them, or
terminate your life before that,
your sole mission is to deliver
(the message). It is us who will call
them to account.
[3:20] If they
argue with you, then say, "I
have simply submitted myself to GOD;
I and those who follow me." You
shall proclaim to those who received the
scripture, as well as those who did not,
"Would you submit?" If they
submit, then they have been guided,
but if they turn away, your
sole mission is to deliver this message.
GOD is Seer of all people.
Therefore, a messenger is the mediator
between the sender and the recipient(s). God
indicates in the Quran that the delivery
process is accomplished through reciting
the word of God:
[2:252]
These are GOD's revelations.
We recite them through you,*
truthfully, for you are one of the
messengers.
Messengers From Among You
[7:35] O children
of Adam, when messengers come
to you from among you, and recite My
revelations to you, those
who take heed and lead a righteous life,
will have nothing to fear, nor will they
grieve.
[28:59] For your
Lord never annihilates any community
without sending a messenger in the midst
thereof, to recite our revelations to
them. We never annihilate
any community, unless its people are
wicked.
The Disbelievers
[39:71] Those who
disbelieved will be led to Hell in
throngs. When they get to it, and its
gates are opened, its guards will say, "Did
you not receive messengers from among
you, who recited to you the revelations
of your Lord, and warned you about
meeting this day?" They
will answer, "Yes indeed. But the word
`retribution' was already stamped upon
the disbelievers."
All along, Satan has been claiming that
a messenger's duty is more than just the
delivery. He managed to twist the word
of God beyond the truth. He has
been enticing his constituents that when
it is said that a messenger teaches,
clarifies, or purifies, he'd be actually
doing additional tasks besides the
recitation and the delivery of the word
of God!!!!! This blasphemy is creeping
into the hearts of the majority of
humans simply to let them commit the
unforgivable sin of idol worship!!!!
When the Quran is recited, the teachings
are delivered, taught, clarified, or
explained. Quran, itself, is a book of
teachings from the Supreme Teacher to
purify and progress our souls. When it
is recited, we are simply listening to
nothing but the teachings, the
wisdom, and the explanations of the Most
Gracious, Teacher of the Quran. A
messenger teaches, purifies,
and clarifies things we never knew
through reciting and delivering the word
of God. Only few will take heed!
[27:91]
I am simply commanded to
worship the Lord of this town - He has
made it a safe sanctuary - and He
possesses all things. I am commanded to
be a submitter.
[27:92]
And to recite the Quran.
Whoever is guided is guided for his own
good, and if they go astray, then say,
"I am simply a warner."
[3:101] How can
you disbelieve, when these
revelations of GOD have been recited to
you, and His messenger has come to you?
Whoever holds fast to GOD
will be guided in the right path.
[2:129] "Our
Lord, and raise among them a messenger
to recite to them Your
revelations, teach them the scripture
and wisdom, and purify them.
You are the Almighty, Most Wise."
[3:164] GOD has
blessed the believers by raising in
their midst a messenger from among them,
to recite for them His
revelations, and to purify them, and to
teach them the scripture and wisdom.
Before this, they had gone totally
astray.
Dr. Rashad Khalifa, God's Messenger of
the Covenant, is not any different, and
certainly is not above the divine
systems. He has never claimed himself as
a teacher who explains or brings
new teachings next to the word of God.
Whatever Dr. Khalifa unveiled for us is
backed up and contained in the text of
the Quran. He made an outstanding and
honest effort expressing his duties
through the Quran, and nothing but the
Quran..
God's Messenger of the
Covenant*
[13:30] We have
sent you (O Rashad)* to this community,
just as we did for other communities in
the past. You shall recite to
them what we reveal to you, for they
have disbelieved in the Most Gracious.
Say, "He is my Lord. There is no god
except He. I put my trust in Him alone;
to Him is my ultimate destiny."
Another very important meaning for the
word messenger is message. Those who
know and appreciate the Arabic language
are fully aware that the word message (resalah)
could also be used as a messenger (rasool). The
perfect Arabic of the Quran confirms
this fact. God intertwiningly used each
word to describe the other (using the
word messenger to describe the message
of Quran, or indicating how God's
scriptures perform all the human duties
of the messenger). Please,
carefully, analyze the following verses:
[65:10] GOD
has prepared for them severe
retribution. Therefore, you shall
reverence GOD, O you who possess
intelligence and believed.
GOD has sent down to you a
message -
[65:11]
a messenger*
who recites
to you GOD's revelations, clearly,
to lead
those who believe and work
righteousness out of the darkness
into the light. Anyone who believes
in GOD and leads a righteous life,
He will admit him into gardens with
flowing streams; they abide therein
forever. GOD will generously reward
him.
*65:10-11 The ``Messenger'' here
is clearly the Quran. Verse 10 talks
about ``sending down a message,''
and this points to the Quran as the
messenger in 65:11 (Appendix 20).
[11:1] A.L.R.
This is a scripture
whose verses have been perfected,
then elucidated.* It comes from a
Most Wise, Most Cognizant.
The Quran: Messenger of God
[11:2]
Proclaiming: "You
shall not worship except GOD. I come
to you from Him as a warner, as well
as a bearer of good news.
[11:3] "You
shall seek your Lord's forgiveness,
then repent to Him. He will then
bless you generously for a
predetermined period, and bestow His
grace upon those who deserve it. If
you turn away, then I fear for you
the retribution of an awesome day."
[14:1]
A.L.R.* A scripture
that we revealed to you,
in order to lead the people
out of darkness into the light - in
accordance with the will of their
Lord - to the path of the Almighty,
the Praiseworthy.
[27:1] T. S.*
These (letters) constitute proofs of
the Quran; a profound
scripture.
[27:2]
A beacon, and good news,
for the believers.
The Gospel of Jesus:
Guidance and Light
[5:46]
Subsequent to them, we sent Jesus,
the son of Mary, confirming the
previous scripture, the Torah. We
gave him the Gospel,
containing guidance and
light, and
confirming the previous scriptures,
the Torah, and augmenting
its guidance and light,
and to enlighten the
righteous.
[5:47] The
people of the Gospel shall
rule in accordance with
GOD's revelations
therein. Those who do not rule in
accordance with GOD's revelations
are the wicked.
Quran: The Ultimate
Reference
[5:48] Then
we revealed to you this scripture,
truthfully, confirming
previous scriptures,
and superseding them.
You shall rule among them
in accordance with GOD's revelations,
and do not follow their wishes if
they differ from the truth that came
to you.....
It is clear from the above verses
that God's scriptures/messages
perform and fulfill the same exact
duties of human messengers:
delivering, warning, giving good
news, guiding, leading people out of
darkness, and confirming previous
scriptures. The one vital difference
between a human messenger of God and
the divine scripture as a
messenger would be the physical time
limitation in case of humans
compared to the eternity of God's
message in His scriptures. In other
words, human messengers perform
their delivery task during a very
specific, limited, and predetermined
physical life span, while God's
scripture is His timeless and
eternal messenger that will always
be there for humanity until the end.
What or who do WE follow?
the messenger? the message?
God who never runs out of words, and
whose choice of words is way too
precise, often uses following the
messenger(s) rather than specifying a
name for the messenger to be followed.
The same applies when it comes to
obeying the messenger. The divine
wisdom behind that is to shed the light
on what exactly to be followed or
obeyed. Mohammad, Abraham, Noah, Jesus,
or Rashad are all humans. The one
component that attributes the
title "messenger" to all of them is the
message they are responsible for its
delivery. Therefore, when God says
follow or obey the messenger, He is
outlining for us exactly what we follow
or obey through the emphasis of the word
messenger. He is pointing out the
message rather than the human, dead or
alive.
[7:75] The
arrogant leaders among his people said
to the common people who believed, "How
do you know that Saaleh is sent by his
Lord?" They said, "The
message he brought has made us
believers.
[7:3]
You
(plural tense in
the Arabic text) shall
all follow what is revealed to you from
your Lord; do not follow
any idols besides Him. Rarely do you
take heed.
[47:2] Those who
believe and work righteousness, and
believe in what was sent down
to Muhammad - which is the
truth from their Lord - He
remits their sins, and blesses them with
contentment.
[47:3] This is
because those who disbelieve are
following falsehood, while
those who believe are following the
truth from their Lord. GOD
thus cites for the people their
examples.
Why Messengers?
[20:133] They
said, "If he could only show us a
miracle from his Lord!" Did they not
receive sufficient miracles with the
previous messages?
[20:134] Had we
annihilated them before this, they would
have said, "Our Lord,
had You sent a messenger to us,
we would have followed Your revelations,
and would have avoided this shame and
humiliation."
No Excuse
[28:47] Thus,
they cannot say, when a disaster strikes
them as a consequence of their own
deeds, "Our Lord, had You sent a
messenger to us, we would
have followed Your revelations,
and would have been believers."
[3:53] "Our
Lord, we have believed in what You have
sent down, and we have followed the
messenger; count us among
the witnesses."
[3:95] Say, "GOD
has proclaimed the truth: You
(plural tense in the Arabic text) shall
follow Abraham's religion - monotheism.
He never was an idolater."
[6:155]
This too is a blessed scripture that we
have revealed; you
(plural tense in
the Arabic text) shall
follow it and lead a righteous life,
that you may attain mercy.
What would the human messenger,
himself, follow?
They follow the message ; the path of
God . They follow the scripture they
deliver or confirm. Muhammad was
commanded to follow the perfect religion
of Abraham, and the teachings of the
Quran :
[6:106]
Follow what is revealed to you from
your Lord, there is no god except
He, and disregard the idol worshipers.
[75:18]
Once we recite it, you shall follow
such a Quran.
[12:108]
Say, "This is my path: I invite to
GOD, on the basis of a clear proof,
and so do those who follow me.
GOD be glorified. I am not an idol
worshiper."
[6:153]
This is my path - a straight one. You
shall follow it, and do not follow any
other paths, lest they divert you from
His path. These
are His commandments to you, that you
may be saved.
Muhammad: A Follower of
Abraham*
[16:123] Then we
inspired you (Muhammad) to
follow the
religion of Abraham,*
the monotheist; he
never was an idol worshiper.
In conclusion, God is the only entity
that institutes our teachings in a
divine scripture. Believing in God alone
mandates worshiping Him alone. We
worship God alone by following His path
and His divine commands. We follow the
messenger He sends us, dead or alive, by
following the scripture that
messenger delivered or confirmed. In
Arabic language, the meaning of message
is also a messenger. The message in
God's scriptures is the eternal
messenger of God to be followed and
obeyed. Dead or alive, it is always the
message of the human messenger that
matters, and emphasized by God to be
obeyed and followed.. We are not
following Abraham's rites, Muhammad's
scripture , or Rashad's teachings. We
are following the perfect religion, the
divine rites, and the proven word
instituted by God that He assumed full
authority to preserve through His divine
systems. We are to believe in all the
human messengers, dead and alive,
without making any distinction between
them by following the proven word they
deliver - that word stays alive and
never dies - that word is the actual
messenger we follow and obey.
The Dead Prophets and Saints
[16:20] As for
the idols they set up beside GOD, they
do not create anything; they themselves
were created.
[16:21]
They are dead, not alive, and they have
no idea how or when they will be
resurrected.
The Prophets and the Saints Are
Dead
[25:58]
You shall put your trust in the One who
is Alive - the One who never dies - and
praise Him and glorify Him. He is fully
Cognizant of His creatures' sins.
