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[5:35] O you who believe, you shall reverence God and seek the ways and means to Him, and strive in His cause, that you may succeed.
[103:1-3] By the afternoon. The human being is utterly lost. Except those who believe and lead a righteous life, and exhort one another to uphold the truth, and exhort one another to be steadfast.
Striving to be sincere to practice a high quality worship of God alone and advocate the Truth at all times and by all available means, without fear, hesitance or compromise is striving with our lives in His cause. The effort is recorded and appreciated by God:
[19:65] The Lord of the heavens and the earth, and everything between them; you shall worship Him and steadfastly persevere in worshiping Him. Do you know of anyone who equals Him?
[29:45] You shall recite what is revealed to you of the scripture, and observe the Contact Prayers (Salat), for the Contact Prayers prohibit evil and vice. But the remembrance of God (through Salat) is the most important objective. God knows everything you do.
[74:7] Steadfastly commemorate your Lord.
[31:17] "O my son, you shall observe the Contact Prayers (Salat). You shall advocate righteousness and forbid evil, and remain steadfast in the face of adversity. These are the most honorable traits.”
[47:35] Therefore, you shall not waver and surrender in pursuit of peace, for you are guaranteed victory, and God is with you. He will never waste your efforts.
[21:94] As for those who work righteousness, while believing, their work will not go to waste; we are recording it.
[2:158] .... If one volunteers more righteous works, then God is Appreciative, Omniscient.
All of the above represents our holy war against our human weakness to merely purify and liberate our souls. This defines striving in the cause of God. Those who steadfastly persevere and sincerely
fight their best to win this battle are the ones who earn the ideal package with the best deal.
The Real Wealth
[28:80] As for those who were blessed with knowledge, they said, "Woe to you, God's recompense is far better for those who believe and lead a righteous life." None attains this except the steadfast.
[16:96] What you possess runs out, but what God possesses lasts forever. We will surely reward those who steadfastly persevere; we will recompense them for their righteous works.
[23:111] "I have rewarded them today, in return for their steadfastness, by making them the winners."
[61:11] Believe in God and His messenger and strive in the cause of God with your money and your lives. This is the best deal for you, if you only knew.
[7:126] ... "Our Lord, grant us steadfastness, and let us die as submitters."
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One of the prevalent myths in the western world is that Muhammad was the founder of Submission (Islam). Even the majority of people who call themselves Muslims think that, “prophet Muhammad instituted the practices of Islam”. They are ignorant of the Quran. It is a fact that Islam is called the “religion of Abraham” (Millat Ibrahim) throughout the Quran (2:130, 135; 3:95; 4:125 etc.) Furthermore, God informs us in the Quran that all religious practices of Submission were established with Abraham, long before the Quran’s revelation (2:128, 21:73, 22:78). These practices included the Contact prayers (Salat), the obligatory charity (Zakat), the fasting of Ramadan, and the Hajj pilgrimage.
For example, God made a covenant with the Children of Israel that He would be with them so long as they observe the Contact prayers and the obligatory charity (5:12). Luqman advised his son to observe the Contact prayers (31:17). Moses and Aaron (and the Children of Israel) were asked to turn
their homes in Egypt into synagogues, and to maintain the Contact prayers until God delivered them from the tyranny of Pharaoh (10:87). Thus all the messengers who came after Abraham observed the practices given to him by God. This included the prophet Muhammad who was also enjoined to follow Abraham (16:123).
Another proof of divine preservation of the practices of Submission given to Abraham is the universal acceptance of such practices. There is no dispute concerning the number of units (Rak`ahs) in all five daily Contact prayers assigned by God. The Quran’s mathematical code confirms the number of units in the five prayers 2, 4, 4, 3 and 4, respectively. The number 24434 is a multiple of 19.
The Quran deals only with practices that were distorted. For example, the ablution must be in four steps (5:6). The tone of voice during contact prayers should be a moderate tone (17:110).
We learn from the Quran that Submission (Islam) is not simply the name of a religion. It is a description. It is the total submission and devotion to God alone (16:52). It is the only religion approved by God (3:19). One does not become a Submitter automatically if his or her birth certificate says “Muslim”. A person’s name, his parents’ religious background, his race or language is no guarantee for him to be a submitter acceptable to God either. Being a submitter is a matter between the person and God the Almighty who knows our innermost thoughts and intentions. It is a matter of how a person accepts God as the only deity, submits to His will, and lives a righteous life.
Unfortunately, the majority of Muslims today have distorted the teachings of Muhammad, just like the Jews and Christians distorted the teachings of Moses and Jesus, respectively. Instead of following the guidance of the Quran, they insist on following the innovations and corrupted practices attributed to Muhammad. On the day of Judgment the messenger will say that his people have deserted the Quran (25:30). Jesus will disown his wrongful followers who idolized him. (New Testament: Matthew 7:21) Our aim should be to purge these innovations by upholding the Quran alone, and not falling into idolizing anybody or anything beside God. This is the only way to present the true religion of Submission to the world.
(From: Submitters Perspective, Jan 1997)