Article appeared Friday, August 3rd, 2018 in The News Today, Bangladesh

The Revelation (534) yousuf mahbubul Islam, PhD

Are others irked by the nature of a believer, i.e., are believers generally disliked by the others? If
so, why is it so? Have believers done something wrong? To answer this question, let us work
out the difference between the nature of a believer and the others. To work out the difference,
we would first have to look at the source of a believer’s belief. A believer is a person who is
thoughtful and has worked out the facts and purpose of his/her existence.

So, what kind of thoughts might a believer have? He/she starts to think about his/her existence
and has feelings of gratefulness. A believer therefore questions his/her origin as he/she realizes
that he/she could not have created himself/herself. He/she realizes all good things happening to
him/her cannot be random – some being must be purposely giving blessings. He/she then starts
with questions like, who created me. Another question that can follow on is why has He created
me? Essentially, he/she looks for answers to the most basic questions of his/her existence.

One place to look for answers is the Holy Scriptures. An example of Holy Scriptures is the Al-
Qur’an. The Al-Qur’an, in fact, asks individuals to be thoughtful and look for the signs of the
existence of God and thereby develop faith and trust in Him. For example, let us study the
following Verse, which talks about giving life to areas containing dead, dry earth.
“And among His Signs is this: you observe the earth barren and desolate; but when We
send down rain to it, it is stirred to life and yields increase. Truly He Who gives life to the
(dead) earth can surely give life to (men) who are dead. He is indeed most powerful,
competent over all things.” [41.39]

This is a quote from the Al-Qur’an, Chapter 41, Verse 39. What are the multiple thoughts that
the verse is invoking? First of all, it is asking human beings to be thoughtful and look for His
Signs. It then gives an example of one of His Signs. It is asking us to contemplate in the
following manner: observe and think about the dead dry earth which is barren and desolate, i.e.,
it has no animate life. Observe that when He sends down rain, the earth seemingly comes to life
and produces different kinds of vegetation and fruits which we all eat enjoy and benefit from.
Notice that it is the same earth and same rain; but out of the dead earth comes different types of
crop which we benefit from in different ways. So, why is He asking us to observe this? What
should be our reaction? Verse 172 from Chapter 2 answers this question.
“O you who believe, eat of the good things that We have provided for you and be
grateful to God if it is Him you worship.” [2.172]

So, our job is to observe, enjoy, benefit from blessings given by God and remember to turn to
Him with gratitude. The believer not only thanks God our Creator for the food that he/she
provides, he/she also thanks Him for giving life, the ability to observe, enjoy and benefit from the
life that He has Given – this serves to establish the Truth of the unseen Creator in our hearts.
This, in fact, is the behavior expected from each and every righteous human being that He has
given life to. If we chose not to observe and finally be grateful to the all powerful Being who has
given us life, what will happen? This is where the second part of Verse 41.39 comes in.
“…Truly He Who gives life to the (dead) earth can surely give life to (men) who are
dead. He is indeed most powerful, competent over all things.” [41.39b]

We are being asked to consider how He gives life. If He can so easily give life to dead earth with
a huge variety of vegetation and fruits, can He not give life to us again after our death? If He is
going to raise us again after death why has He arranged a temporary sojourn on planet earth?
The following Verse answers this question.
“In order that God may separate the impure from the pure put the impure one on
another, heap them together and cast them into Hell. They will be the ones to have lost.”
[8.37]

The “pure” are the righteous grateful human beings – those who believe. On the other hand, the
impure are those who deny the right of the Creator to be known and worshipped as the
Originator of the heavens, the earth and blessings of our life. Once a believer has established
the truth in his/her heart, he/she becomes an advocate (an apostle) and shares his/her findings
with others. Such people are often disliked by others and may suffer persecution from them.
Therefore, God asks in the Al-Qur’an,

22.15 “If any think that God will not help him (His Apostle) in this world and the
Hereafter let him stretch out a rope to the ceiling and cut (himself) off: then let
him see whether his plan will remove that which enrages (him)!”
God gives a challenge to those who do not listen to, do not like or persecute believers. In effect,
He is saying, hang yourself and cut yourself off from the blessings given by your Creator – see
for yourself why a believer is doing what he/she is doing. This is God’s Guidance by giving a
challenge. He is assuring that He will definitely support those who believe in Him – this is a
source of reassurance for those who are made to suffer because of their belief.

22.16 “Thus have We sent down Clear Signs; and verily God guides whom He
will!”
If disbelievers are not grateful and do not wish to consider Guidance in the Al-Qur’an, God will
not forcefully guide them. He reminds us that identical guidance was also given in the Holy
Scriptures revealed before the Al-Qur’an.

22.17 “Indeed, those who have believed and those who follow the Jewish
(scriptures) and the Sabians, Christians, Magians and those who believe in other
things/objects, God will judge between them on the Day of Judgment: for Allah is
witness of all things.”
Our job is to humbly observe, question and establish true belief in our hearts. God monitors and
witnesses and records what is in our hearts. On the Day of Judgment He will separate true
believers, regardless of the religion anyone lays claim to or the arguments that are entered into
about Him. His support is for those who have true belief in their hearts.
“These two antagonists dispute with each other about their Lord: but those who deny
(their Lord) for them will be cut out a garment of Fire: over their heads will be poured out
boiling water.” [22.19]

“Allah will admit those who believe and work righteous deeds to Gardens beneath which
rivers flow: they shall be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearls; and their
garments there will be of silk.” [22.23]