The Quran about faith 8
In the name of God, the Gracious, the Merciful
The main meaning of people’s faith, trust and loyalty towards God is in the complete, without doubt, perception of the information received from Him. It is this line separates the behaviour of people. In general, people understand that there is an eternity. The difference is only in the designation and qualitative component of the idea of infinity. Therefore, in a dispute with the messenger, the opponents, not trusting the information of the Prescription, demanded other manifestations of the rightness of the messengers:
Do you wait for anything except that the maintainers should come to you or your Lord should come or that there come some of the signs of your Lord? The day that some of the signs of your Lord will come no personality will benefit from its faith as long as it had not believed before or had earned through its faith some good.
Say, “Wait and we will wait.” (6:158)
History indicates a small number of people who trusted the message brought at the initial stage of messenger’s exhorting. This fact did not bother true believers, because they were promised the help of God:
Indeed, We will support Our messengers and those who believe during the life of this world and on the day when the witnesses will stand. The day their excuse will not benefit the obscurantists! They will have the curse, and they will have the worst home. (40:51-52)
Knowledge of the forthcoming Day of Judgment gave an additional impetus to patience for all the trials of life:
Beautified for those who closed themselves is the life of this world, and they ridicule those who believe.
But circumspect ones will be above them on the day of standing before God. God gives provision to whom He wills without account. (2:212)
But those who had been given knowledge said, “Woe to you! The reward of God is better for he who believed and corrected himself. And none are granted it except the patient.” (28:80)
You will see the obscurantists fearful of what they have earned, and it will befall them. And those who have believed and corrected themselves will be in lush regions of the gardens having whatever they will in the presence of their Lord. That is the great preference. (42:22)
So whatever thing you have been given – it is but for the enjoyment of the worldly life.
But what is with God is better and more lasting for those who have believed and upon their Lord rely. And those who avoid the major sins and excessiveness, and when they are angry, they forgive! And those who have responded to their Lord and established prayer. They consult among themselves in affairs, and from what We have provided them, they spend. (42:36-38)
Indeed, those who committed crimes used to laugh at those who believed.
And when they passed by them, they would exchange derisive glances. And when they returned to their family, they would return jesting.
And when they saw them, they would say, “Indeed, those are truly lost.”
But they had not been sent as guardians over them.
So that day those who believed will laugh at the closed ones, on adorned couches, observing… (83:29-36)
The trust to divine information gives great advantages on the day of summing up, because the Creator’s attitude will be corresponding:
Exception is only those who repented, believed and corrected themselves. For them God will replace their evil deeds with good. And ever is God Forgiving and Merciful. (25:70)
Doubt in the next stage of life does not give the opportunity to go into it. Doubt in the future puts a person in an unenviable position:
But those who closed themselves say, “The hour will not come to us.”
Say, “Yes, by my Lord, it will surely come to you, the Knower of the unseen.” Not absent from Him is an atom’s weight within the heavens or within the earth or smaller than that or greater! Exceptionally in the Clear Prescription – that He may reward those who believed and corrected themselves. Those will have forgiveness and noble provision. (34:3-4)
Belief in the message from the Lord allows you to be circumspect, gives insurance against wrong decisions, which can be reflected in the future:
And We saved those who believed and was aware.
And the day when the enemies of God will be gathered to the fire while they will be sorted (41:18-19)
Confidence must be supported by actions, because the outcome will largely depend on them:
Your wealth or your children do not bring nearer to Us, except for those who has believed and corrected themselves. For them there will be the double reward for what they did! And they will be in the secure chambers. (34:37)
Those who closed themselves will have a severe punishment!
Those who believed and corrected themselves will have forgiveness and great reward. (35:7)
Race toward forgiveness from your Lord and a garden whose width is like the width of the heavens and earth, prepared for those who believed God and His messengers! That is the bounty of God! Which He gives to whom He wills! God is the possessor of great bounty! (57:21)
It would be naive to believe that life can be sinless and unmistakable. This should not depress anyone, because faithfulness to God gives an advantage:
And those who believed and corrected themselves – We will surely remove from them their misdeeds and will surely reward them according to the best of what they used to do. (29:7)
And those who believed and corrected themselves and believe in what has been sent down upon Muhammad – and it is the truth from their Lord – He will remove from them their misdeeds and amend their mind!
That is because those who closed themselves follow vainness, and those who believe follow the truth from their Lord. Thus does God present to the people their comparisons. (47:2-3)
I would like to note that we are not talking about the continuation of the commission of atrocities. The sequence is the reverse: the one who does wrong can hope for forgiveness by gaining confidence in the Prescription and correction, without returning to the past actions. If a person remains closed with respect to divine information, his fate will be unenviable:
God is the patron of those who believe. He brings them out from darknesses into the light. And those who closed themselves – they are adherents of transgression. They take them out of the light into darknesses. Those will join the fire; they will abide therein. (2:257)
And some among them believed Him and some among them turned away from Him. And sufficient is Hell as a blaze. (4:55)
And you will see how they will be led there humbled from humiliation, looking from a covert glance.
And those who had believed will say, “Indeed, the losers are the ones who lost themselves and their families on the day of standing before God.
Unquestionably, the obscurantists are in an enduring punishment.” (42:45)
An important point is the fact that when the Day of Debt comes, all those who have been closed before will be convinced of the authenticity and at last will be believed, but it will be too late:
Then is it that when it has occurred you will believe Him?
Now? And you were for it impatient earlier (10:51)
And they will say, “We believed!” But how for them will be the taking from a place far away? And they were closed earlier and would assault from a secret place far away. And prevention will be placed between them and what they desire, as was done with their kind before! Indeed, they were in disquieting denial! (34:52-54)
And when they saw Our power, they said,” We believed God alone and closed themselves from which we used to associate with Him.” But never did their faith benefit them once they saw Our power by the established law of God, which was rejected by His servants! And the closed ones thereupon lost! (40:84-85)
The fate of the hypocrites is the most unenviable. Those who tried to “sit on two chairs” will be disappointed:
On the day the venal men and venal women will say to those who believed, “Wait for us that we may acquire some of your light.” It will be said, “Go back behind you and seek light.” And a wall will be placed between them with a door, its interior containing mercy, but on the outside of it is torment.
They will call to the believers, “Were we not with you?”
They will respond, “Yes, but you tempted yourselves and awaited and doubted, and wishful thinking deluded you until there came the command of God. And the tempter tempted you concerning God . So today no ransom will be taken from you or from those who closed themselves! Your refuge is the fire! It is your patron! And wretched is the exodus! (57:13-15)
And the arrangement in the “hierarchy of fire” is completely unenviable.
Indeed, the venal will be in the lowest depths of the fire – and never will you find for them a helper – except for those who repented, corrected themselves, held fast to God, and were sincere in their duty before God! Those will be with the believers, and God is going to give the believers a great reward. What would God do with your punishment if you are grateful and believe? And ever is God Appreciative and Knowing. (4:145-147)
Apparently, even hypocrites have a chance to escape punishment if they repent during life and correct their actions. This formula is valid for all:
So give them tidings of a painful punishment, except for those who believed and corrected themselves. For them is a reward uninterrupted. (84:24-25)
What is necessary to achieve the Lord’s reward? The first step is trust in the Creator and his messengers:
But they who believed God and His messengers and do not discriminate between any of them – to those He is going to give their rewards. And ever is God Forgiving and Merciful. (4:152)
I would like to draw attention to the fact that the trust must be to God himself and specifically to his messengers, but not to the people who broadcast about them. Here the quality of discretion is manifested, which can prevent from making erroneous decisions:
Those who believe and are circumspect, under God’s patronage, there is no fear for them and they will not grieve. For them are good tidings in the worldly life and in the hereafter. No change is there in the words of God. That is the great attainment. (10:63-64)
Fidelity to the Word of the Most High transforms a person from a disobedient pride into a submissive sage:
Those who believed in Our signs and were humble, enter the garden, you and your spouses, delighted.” (43:69-70)
Obedience to God is expressed in the fulfilment of His precepts. After all, it is faith together with actions that makes it possible to earn an incalculable reward:
But those who believed and corrected themselves- We will admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will stay. For them therein are purified spouses, and We will admit them to deepening shade. (4:57)
But the ones who believed and corrected themselves- We will admit them to gardens beneath which rivers flow, wherein they will abide forever. The promise of God is truth, and who is more truthful than God in statement? (4:122)
But those who believed and corrected themselves – We charge no personality except its capacity. Those are the companions of the garden; they will abide therein. (7:42)
Indeed, those who have believed and corrected themselves- their Lord will guide them because of their faith. Beneath them rivers will flow in the gardens of favours. (10:9)
Indeed, they who have believed and corrected themselves and humbled themselves before their Lord – those are the companions of the garden; they will abide therein. (11:23)
And those who believed and corrected themselves will be admitted to gardens beneath which rivers flow, abiding therein by permission of their Lord; and their greeting therein will be, “Peace!” (14:23)
Indeed, those who have believed and corrected themselves – indeed, We will not allow to be lost the reward of any who did well in deeds. (18:30)
Indeed, those who have believed and corrected themselves – they will have the gardens as a lodging, (18:107)
Indeed, God will admit those who believed and corrected themselves to gardens beneath which rivers flow! Indeed, God does what He intends! (22:14)
Indeed, God will admit those who believed and corrected themselves to gardens beneath which rivers flow. They will be adorned therein with bracelets of gold and pearl, and their garments therein will be silk. (22:23)
And those who have believed and corrected themselves- for them are forgiveness and noble provision! (22:50)
Sovereignty of that day is for God; He will judge between them. So they who believed and corrected themselves will be in the gardens of prosperity! (22:56)
And those who believed and corrected themselves – We will surely admit them among the corrected! (29:9)
And as for those who had believed and corrected themselves, they will be in a garden delighted! (30:15)
Indeed, those who believe and corrected themselves – for them are the gardens of grace. Wherein they will abide by the true promise of God! He is the Exalted in Might, the Wise! (31:8-9)
As for those who believed and corrected themselves, for them will be the gardens of refuge as accommodation for what they used to do! (32:19)
So as for those who believed and corrected themselves, their Lord will admit them into His mercy! That is the clear attainment! (45:30)
And those who believed and whose descendants followed them in faith – We will join with them their descendants, and We will not deprive them of anything of their deeds. Every person, for what he earned, is retained! (52:21)
Indeed, those who have believed and corrected themselves will have gardens beneath which rivers flow! That is the great attainment! (85:11)
Except for those who believed and corrected themselves!
For they will have a reward uninterrupted! (95:6)
The key to success is FAITH TO GOD AND CORRECTION.