خطبة الجمعة ٢٦ جمادى الأولى ١٤٤٨هـ من الحرم المكي لفضيلة الشيخ أ.د. ماهر المعيقلي -حفظه الله-.

Summary

The sermon emphasizes the power of sincere intention: it can turn ordinary, permissible activities into worship and bring reward even when a person is unable to perform their usual good deeds. It urges believers to seek reward through patience in hardship and to remember that what is with God is better and more lasting than worldly life.

Main Ideas and Practical Lessons

• Maintain God-consciousness (taqwa). The sermon opens by urging believers to fear God and prepare for the Day of Judgment.

• Make intentions sincere and seek reward from God.

  • The sermon cites the teaching that actions are judged by intentions.
  • A good intention can increase the reward for a single deed, while a corrupt intention can undermine even a great deed.
  • If illness or travel prevents someone from carrying out regular good deeds, they may still receive the reward they earned when well and at home.

• Treat daily life as an opportunity for worship.

  • Worship is not limited to formal acts such as prayer, fasting, pilgrimage, and charity. Permissible work, family responsibilities, and other ordinary activities can also be worship when done sincerely for God.
  • The sermon recounts Mu‘adh ibn Jabal explaining that he intended his sleep to strengthen him for worship, just as he intended his waking hours for worship.

• Give generously and care for others.

  • An account about an Ansari who hosted a hungry visitor illustrates selfless hospitality, even when the host’s own household had little to spare.
  • Charity extends beyond donations: kind words, good companionship, and efforts to benefit one’s family can all be rewarded.
  • Providing for one’s family is an obligation, but it is also counted as charity when done while seeking God’s reward. Even a small act of care for one’s spouse can be rewarded.
  • Lawful intimacy can also be rewarded, because choosing what is permitted instead of what is forbidden is meaningful.

• Do not depend on people’s praise. A person may lose motivation if they do good only for recognition or thanks. The sermon advises renewing one’s intention and seeking reward from God, who does not let good deeds go unrewarded.

• Be patient through trials and hardship.

  • Believers are encouraged to endure loss and distress without despairing of God’s mercy or objecting to His decree.
  • Hardship can bring forgiveness of sins, and patiently enduring the loss of a loved one is associated with the promise of Paradise.
  • The sermon recalls the Qur’anic instruction to respond to calamity by remembering that people belong to God and will return to Him.

• Keep the Hereafter in perspective. Worldly life, however comfortable or long it may seem, is temporary. The reward God has prepared for believers is lasting and greater. The sermon concludes by urging believers to prioritize what is enduring over what is fleeting.

The closing includes blessings upon the Prophet and prayers for Muslims, security and guidance for the country and its leaders, people serving at its borders, and relief and protection for people in Yemen and Palestine.

Speakers and Sources Featured

• Speaker: Sheikh Maher al-Muaiqly, delivering the Friday sermon.
• Religious sources cited: The Qur’an; sayings of the Prophet Muhammad; hadith reported in Sahih al-Bukhari and Sahih Muslim.
• Figures in the cited accounts: Mu‘adh ibn Jabal, Abu Musa al-Ash‘ari, Abu Hurairah, Sa‘d ibn Abi Waqqas, and an unnamed man from the Ansar.