Page 118 - The Vision of Islam

Calling People to Tread the Path of God

and similar provisions, were, in a sense, economic and political
concessions designed to pave the way for his Dawah work.
If we fail to warn those around us of the Imminent Day, we
must live in fear of being held responsible. This applied even to
a prophet if he failed to carry the message to the people to whom
he was sent. God did not accept even the ‘fast and worship’ from a
prophet who left his people in the grip of polytheism or in a state
of unbelief and did not convey the divine message to them. Then
how can our individual observance of Islam be acceptable when we
have around us millions of people who have never been told the
truth of life, or the ways they must adopt in order to achieve real
success in the life to come.
A prophet who failed to fulfil his responsibilities in the world
was doubly at risk of divine retribution (17:75). This was because
a prophet had two distinct duties: one, to become a believer
himself and, two, to proclaim God’s message to people throughout
the world (5:67). With the end of the prophethood, the people
of Muhammad must now act in his stead, having been selected
by God (22:77) to carry His message to mankind. Thus, Muslims
have two duties: one, to live to the full a life of belief and, two, to
testify to God’s truth among mankind. According to the Quran,
the followers of the Prophet are duty-bound to call people to the
path of God, just as the Prophet was so bound. (10:108). The hadith
says: “You are God’s witness on earth.” (Bukhari)
As we all know, when a man dies, he does not cease to exist,
but is transported to another life where there is eternal heaven or
eternal hell. This is a very serious state of affairs: for, if one remains
unaware of God’s creation plan in this present life, and dies in
ignorance, without having followed God’s will, one will suddenly,
after death, find oneself doomed to everlasting torture, with no
possibility of escape. Worldly people may find other things more
important, but truly, the most important thing in God’s eyes is for
man to learn this truth.
To save man from this horrifying danger, God began the chain of
prophets since the time man was created. Every human settlement
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