Belief in God’s Angels

Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) has informed us that these imperceptible spiritual beings, whom people believe to be deities of gods or God’s children, are really His angels. They have no share in God’s divinity; they cannot deviate from His commands even by the slightest fraction of an inch. God employs them to administer His Kingdom, and they carry out His orders exactly and accurately. They have no authority to do anything of their own accord; they cannot present to God any scheme conceived by themselves, they are not even authorised to intercede with God for any man.

We believe in their existence only because God’s true Messenger has informed us of it.

Faith in the Books of God

God had revealed His Books to His Prophets before Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) and these books were sent down in the same way as He sent down the Qur’an to Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him). We have been informed of the names of some of these books: Books of Abraham, the Torah of Moses, Zabur (Psalms) of David and the Injil (Gospel) of Jesus Christ.

Of the Books we have been told, the Books of Abraham are extinct and not traceable in existing world literature. David’s Zabur, the Torah and the Inji’l exist with the Jews and the Christians, but the Qur’an informs us that people have changed and added to these books, and God’s words have been mixed up with texts of their own making.

Faith in the earlier divine Books should be limited to the confirmation that they were all from God, were true and were sent down to fulfil, in their time, the same purpose for which the Qur’an has been sent. On the other hand, belief in the Qur’an should be of the nature that it is purely and absolutely God’s own words, that it is perfectly true, that every, word of it is preserved, that everything mentioned therein is right, that it is the bounden duty of man to carry out in his life each and every command of it and that whatever be against it must be rejected.

Faith in God’s Prophets

It is for this reason that in Islam it is necessary to have implicit faith in all the Prophets of God. One who does not believe in a particular Prophet would be a Kafir, though he may profess faith in all the other Prophets.

All the Prophets of God have been deputed by Him to teach the same straight path of ‘Islam’.

To become a true Muslim (a follower of the Prophet’s way of life) it is necessary to have complete faith in Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) and to affirm that:

(a) He is a true Prophet of God;

(b) His teachings are absolutely perfect, free from any defect or error and

(c) He is the Last Prophet of God. After him no Prophet will appear among any people till the Day of Judgement, nor is any such personage going to appear in whom it would be essential for a Muslim to believe.

For complete Islamiat notes click here.

The advent of a prophet is not an everyday occurrence. Nor is the presence in person of the Prophet essential for every land, people and period. The life and teachings of the Prophet are the beacon to guide a people to the right path, and as long as his teachings and his guidance are alive he is, as it were, himself alive.

The teachings of earlier prophets have been adulterated by their followers, their instructions were distorted and their life-examples were besmirched by attaching fictitious events to them.

Not one of the earlier books – Torah, Zabur (Psalms of David), Injil (Gospel of Jesus), for example – exists today in its original text and even the adherents of these books confess that they do not possess the original books.

The life-histories of the earlier Prophets have been so mixed up with fiction that an accurate and authentic account of their lives has become impossible. Their lives have become tales and legends and no trustworthy record is available anywhere.

Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) teachings stand uncorrupted and are incorruptible.

The Qur’an – the book he gave to mankind – exists in its original text, without a word, syllable or even letter having been changed.

The entire account of his life – his sayings, instructions and actions-is preserved with complete accuracy.

In everything affecting our lives we can seek the guidance of Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) and the example of his life. That is why there is no need of any other Prophet after Muhammad, the last Prophet (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him).

Furthermore, there are four conditions which necessitate the advent of a new Prophet over and above the need to replace a deceased Prophet. These may be summed up as follows:

That the teachings of the earlier Prophets have been distorted or corrupted or they have died and their revival is needed.

That the teachings of the Prophet who has passed away were incomplete and it is necessary to amend them, improve on them or add something to them.

That the earlier Prophet was raised for a particular nation or territory and a Prophet for another nation, people or country is required.

The situation when a Prophet is raised to help and assist another Prophet.

None of these conditions exist today. The teachings of the last Prophet Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) are alive, have been fully preserved and made immortal.

The guidance he has shown onto mankind is complete and flawless, and is enshrined in the Holy Qur’an. All the sources of Islam are fully intact and each and every instruction or action of the Holy Prophet can be ascertained without the least shadow of doubt.

Secondly, God has completed His revealed guidance through the Prophet Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) and Islam is a complete religion for mankind. God has said that, “Today I have perfected your Faith – religion – for you, and have completed My bounty upon you,” and a thorough study of Islam as a complete way of life proves the truth of these Qur’anic words. Islam gives guidance for life in this world and in the hereafter and nothing essential for human guidance has been left out. There is no ground for new prophethood on the plea of imperfection.

Lastly, the Message of Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) was not meant for any particular people, place or period. He was raised as the World Prophet – the messenger of truth for the whole of mankind. The Qur’an has commanded Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) to declare: “O mankind, I am God’s Messenger to all of you.” He has been described as “a blessing for all (the people of) the world” and his approach has been universal and human. That is why after him there remains no need for new prophethood and he has been described by the Qur’an as Khatam-an-Nabiyyin (the last of the chain of the true Prophets).

The only, source, therefore, for the knowledge of God and His Way is Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him). We can know of Islam only through his teachings which are so complete and so comprehensive that they can guide men through all ages to come. The world does not need a new prophet; it needs only such people as have full faith in Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him), to become the standard-bearers of his message, propagate it throughout the world, and endeavour to establish the culture which Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) gave to man. The world needs such men of character as can translate his teachings into practice and establish a society which is governed by Divine Law, whose supremacy Muhammad (blessings of Allah and peace be upon him) came to establish.

For complete Islamiat notes click here.