Page 66 - The Importance of Following the Good Word

with an unblemished heart. Allah gives this good news to the
believers in His book, as follows:
Those who shun the worship of false gods and turn to-
wards Allah will have good news. So give good news to
My servants.
Those who listen well to what is said and follow the
best of it, they are the ones whom Allah has guided,
they are the people of intelligence. (Surat az-Zumar, 17-
18)
In another verse, Allah gives the good news of a glorious
welcome, bestowed upon His servants at the gates of Paradise,
on that day, for those who guarded against evil:
And those who have heeded their Lord will be driven to
Paradise in companies and when they arrive there, find-
ing its gates open, its custodians will say to them, "Peace
be upon you! You have done well so enter it timelessly,
for ever."
They will say, "Praise be to Allah Who has fulfilled His
promise to us and made us the inheritors of this land,
letting us settle in Paradise wherever we want. How ex-
cellent is the wage of those who work!" (Surat az-Zumar,
73-74)
Also in a hadith, we are reminded of the reward of saying
the good word in the words of Allah's Messenger (saas) who
said that one of the deeds which will take one to Paradise is
"never to utter a word except a good one." (Ibn Kathir)
These are the glorious tidings he who follows the good
word can receive in this world: Being a servant with whom
Allah is pleased, who will be welcomed by the gracious words
of angels at the gates of Paradise, and be worthy of residing

64 THE IMPORTANCE OF FOLLOWING THE GOOD WORD