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Peace be upon you and God’s mercy. How are you, our youth? We ask you to ensure the quality of the sound and image. Today, we will begin our discussion on "Divine Stations of Honor for the Human Race." Let us together examine how God the Exalted has granted importance and value to this human race. I have gathered for you approximately 30 stations. We will soar through them in a vertical journey, reaching the summit, where each station will make us feel the increasing significance of our own selves.
The importance began even before the creation of Adam, peace be upon him. God the Exalted informed the angels about an imminent great event:
"And [mention, O Muhammad], when your Lord said to the angels, 'Indeed, I will make upon the earth a successive authority.'" (Al-Baqarah 2:30)
The creation of humanity was not merely a passing cosmic event but one that was announced in the High Assembly before the noble and honored angels.
God created Adam, peace be upon him, with His own hands—a profound honor for the father of mankind and an indication of the immense importance of the human race. God could have created all beings with the command "Be," yet He chose to create Adam with His own hands as a special honor. Abdullah ibn Umar, may God be pleased with him, reported: "God created four things with His own hands: the Throne, the Pen, Adam, and the Garden of Eden. Then He said to the rest of creation, 'Be,' and it was."
God breathed into Adam from His spirit:
"So when I have proportioned him and breathed into him of My [created] soul, then fall down to him in prostration." (Al-Hijr 15:29)
This "spirit" is a token of honor and a special attribution to God the Exalted, not a part of His essence. It is the spirit that God created and added to Himself as an honor.
When life entered Adam, God commanded the angels to prostrate to him in a gesture of reverence:
"And [mention] when We said to the angels, 'Prostrate before Adam,' and they prostrated, except for Iblees (Satan); he refused and was arrogant and became of the disbelievers." (Al-Baqarah 2:34)
All the angels prostrated, including Gabriel, peace be upon him, "the noble messenger with power, near the Owner of the Throne." This was an honor for Adam and his descendants.
God the Exalted taught Adam all the names Himself, granting him cognitive and intellectual abilities that no other creation possessed:
"And He taught Adam the names—all of them. Then He showed them to the angels and said, 'Inform Me of the names of these, if you are truthful.'" (Al-Baqarah 2:31)
Even when Adam and Eve erred, God did not terminate their lives. Instead, He taught them how to repent, and He accepted their repentance because they were important and had a great mission ahead:
"Then Adam received from his Lord [some] words, and He accepted his repentance. Indeed, it is He who is the Accepting of repentance, the Merciful." (Al-Baqarah 2:37)
When God sent Adam and Eve to the earth, He subjugated the entire universe for them and for the human race:
"It is He who created for you all of what is on the earth." (Al-Baqarah 2:29)
And not only the earth but the heavens as well:
"And He has subjected to you whatever is in the heavens and whatever is on the earth—all from Him. Indeed in that are signs for a people who give thought." (Al-Jathiyah 45:13)
Everything you see around you is subjugated for you to fulfill the great mission of worshiping God. This greatness contrasts with the disappointment of atheists who claim we are merely "chemical waste."
God the Exalted addressed us because we are important. Consider what it means for the Lord of the Worlds—the One with the Most Beautiful Names, Glory, and Perfection—to address you directly:
"O children of Adam, We have bestowed upon you clothing to conceal your private parts and as adornment. But the clothing of righteousness—that is best. That is from the signs of God that perhaps they will remember." (Al-A'raf 7:26)
The more you exalt God, the more you will feel your own importance when He addresses and honors you.
Because you are important, God the Exalted loves to hear you call upon Him and supplicate to Him, even though He is free from any need. In the Hadith Qudsi narrated by Muslim:
"O My servants, all of you are astray except those whom I have guided, so seek guidance from Me and I will guide you. O My servants, all of you are hungry except those whom I have fed, so ask Me for food and I will feed you..."
God observes your actions, your stillness, and the movements of your heart, and He celebrates them. In another Hadith Qudsi:
"I am as My servant thinks I am. I am with him when he remembers Me. If he remembers Me within himself, I remember him within Myself. If he remembers Me in a gathering, I remember him in a gathering better than his..."
A tear shed out of fear of God—something that may not weigh anything materially—is heavier with God than the earth and all that is in it. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: "Two eyes will not be touched by the Fire: an eye that wept out of fear of God, and an eye that stayed awake guarding in the path of God."
Because you are important, God the Exalted watches over you and holds you accountable for every word you utter. Some may resent this oversight, seeing it as a restriction, but it is in fact evidence that you are "cared for" and not neglected. A single good word may elevate you to the highest ranks. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
"Indeed, a servant may speak a word that is pleasing to God, without giving it much thought, and by it God elevates him many degrees." In another narration: "God records His pleasure for him until the day he meets Him."
Because you are important, God has tasked you with worship—prayer, fasting, charity—and prohibited you from filth. A father who leaves his child without guidance is an unconcerned father, whereas one who commands, forbids, and protects his child from harm is a true loving father. And God’s example is the highest. His legislation is a safeguard for your senses and heart from contamination:
"Did you think that We created you in vain and that you would not be returned to Us?" (Al-Mu’minun 23:115)
Because you are important, God has assigned angels to protect you and record your deeds. Important figures in this world are surrounded by bodyguards, and you are guarded by angels by God’s command:
"For him are successive [angels] before and behind him who protect him by the command of God." (Ar-Ra’d 13:11)
Because you are important, God has sanctified everything related to you. In the Farewell Sermon, the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said:
"Indeed, your lives, your wealth, and your honor are sacred to you as the sanctity of this day, in this land, in this month."
The Shariah came to preserve the five essentials: religion, life, intellect, lineage (honor), and wealth.
God has prohibited backbiting to preserve your dignity. In an incident involving Abu Bakr and Umar, may God be pleased with them, when they said about a man who served them during a journey, "This one sleeps as much as his house requires" (meaning he sleeps a lot), the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said to them: "You have eaten the flesh of your brother," referring to the verse:
"And do not backbite one another. Would one of you like to eat the flesh of his brother when dead? You would detest it." (Al-Hujurat 49:12)
Islam even prohibits harming your simple feelings. The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, forbade frightening a Muslim, even in jest, and forbade "taking counsel" (when two people whisper in the presence of a third) because it "hurts him." He also said: "It is enough evil for a man to belittle his Muslim brother." Even ill thoughts (which are a matter of the heart) are prohibited to preserve your dignity.
Because you are important, your Prophet peace be upon him prohibited you from resembling animals in your postures, such as prostrating with arms spread like a lion or "pecking like a crow" in prayer. This preserves your appearance and dignity as a honored human being.
You are not permitted to curse or belittle yourself, for God has given you a noble soul. The Prophet peace be upon him said: "None of you should say, 'My soul is evil,' but rather say, 'My soul has wronged itself.'" A Muslim is too dignified to be described with wickedness, even in moments of distress.
Because your soul belongs to God and is of great value, He has made suicide one of the greatest sins. In the Hadith: "My servant hastened to take his own life, so I have forbidden Paradise for him." Even smoking falls under the category of harming this precious soul that God has honored.
In material systems, unproductive individuals (the elderly or sick) are seen as burdens, and ideas like "mercy killing" (euthanasia) may arise. In Islam, this is a time when human importance increases, becoming a means for children to earn Paradise:
If one of them or both reach old age with you, do not say to them "Uff" nor repulse them, but speak to them a noble word.
Even after your death, your body holds sanctity and importance. The Prophet peace be upon him said: "Breaking a bone of the deceased is like breaking it while alive."
God has made kindness to a believer (visiting the sick, feeding the hungry) as if it were kindness to God Almighty. In the Hadith Qudsi: "O son of Adam, I was sick but you did not visit Me... Did you not know that if you had visited Me, you would have found Me with you?"
Because you are important, God has made Paradise have different levels, teaching you that your time and deeds hold immense value. The Prophet peace be upon him said:
"Indeed, there are a hundred levels in Paradise prepared by God for those who strive in His cause. The distance between two levels is like that between the heavens and the earth."
This variation motivates you not to waste an hour without obedience, to compete and ascend to these high levels.
Even if you stray from God after all this honor, He does not turn you away but rejoices in your return. In the Hadith about the man who lost his camel in a desolate land and then found it:
"God rejoices more in the repentance of His servant when he repents to Him than any of you who finds his camel in a desolate land..."
Imagine how important you are to God that He rejoices in your repentance, though He is free from any need for you.
God has forbidden your humiliation even if you commit a sin deserving of punishment. He prohibited striking the face and cursing the sinner, as in the Hadith about the wine drinker: "Do not curse him, for by God, I know only that he loves God and His Messenger."
Because you are important, God has entrusted you with the greatest mission: guiding others to Him. As a Muslim, you possess the preserved revelation, and you are the last refuge for this confused humanity:
You are the best nation brought forth for mankind: you enjoin what is right, forbid what is wrong, and believe in God.
If we abandon this mission, we contribute to the ruin of people’s souls, multiplying our responsibility and importance.
A believer may reach a level of importance where their death becomes a cosmic event that shakes the greatest of creation. The Prophet peace be upon him said:
"The Throne of the Most Merciful trembled at the death of Sa’d ibn Mu’adh."
Sa’d ibn Mu’adh died young, yet his noble stances made his death an event of great magnitude.
In Paradise, God honors you with types of honor befitting only the most important:
A reward for what they used to do.
The most beautiful aspect of this bliss is the Prophet’s peace be upon him words in the Hadith Qudsi: "I have prepared for My righteous servants..." The word "I have prepared" indicates that God Himself, by His own care, has prepared this bliss for you, just as He planted the Garden of Eden with His own hands.
Because you are important, God grants you the greatest pleasure of all: seeing Him:
On that Day, faces will be radiant, looking toward their Lord.
This immense honor is granted only to those deemed important by God who excelled in their deeds in this world.
If you wish to know your standing with God, observe what occupies your time. As Ibn al-Qayyim may God have mercy on him said: "If a worker wants to know his worth to the ruler, let him see what tasks are assigned to him and what occupies his time."
There is a profound abyss into which a person may fall, losing all this honor:
O youth, your importance is tied to your piety and deeds: Indeed, the most honorable of you in the sight of God is the most righteous. Do not be among those whom God does not care for at all. Always remember:
And be not like those who forgot God, so He made them forget themselves. Those are the defiantly disobedient.
We ask God to make us among those who recognize the value of their souls through obedience to Him. We will meet again tomorrow, God willing, to continue the consequences of this sense of importance.
Peace be upon you, and God’s mercy and blessings.