Being Afraid That your Repentance Will Not Be Accepted

[madeenahsh]

Fatawa Islamiyyah
Section: Repentance and Rulings Regarding It
pgs.243-245


QUESTION:
A person commited some act of disobedience and afterwards repented to Allah; however, he feels deep iniside himself that Allah will not forgive him. So what is your advice for him?

ANSWER: This is among the proofs of the severity of your fear of Allah Almighty and your reverence for His prohibitions, if Allah wills, you are doing what is right. Nevertheless, you should try to allay this fear, a fear that has no basis for it because it is from the Shaytan. He wants you to feel constricted and he wants you to be miserable. Know him by what he is-an unmitigated enemy. He hates to see you loving and doing what is good, so disobey him and abstain from what he orders you to do.


Seek peace in you Lord and know that repentance is sufficient. Even if a sin is greater than all other sins, repentance to Allah Almighty is above it. There is no greater sin than Shirk, but even if a man who associates partners w/Allah repents and turns back to Allah, He will forgive him. So it is required of you to repent from what you have done and after repentance to cease these other matters. It is not required of you to listen to the whispering or to follow the enemy of Allah by this fear which has harmed you. But know that-thanks to Allah Almighty-you have succeeded a great success by repenting sincerely, as Allah Almighty says:"And verily I am indeed forgiving to him who repents, believes and does righteous deeds, then follow the right way." (Surah Ta Ha (20:82)) There is another verse of even greater puport, for it states that a person who, after sinning, repents, has faith, and does good deed, Allah Almighty will transform his sins into good deeds, which means that He will put a good deed in the place of every bad o*ne:"And those who invoke not an other ilah (god) along w/Allah, nor kill such life as Allah has forbidden, except for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual intercourse-and whoever does this shall receive the punishment. The torment will be doubled to him o*n the day Resurrection, and he will abide therein in disgrace; except those who repent and believe, and do righteous deeds, for those, Allah will change their sins into good deeds, and Allah is Oft-Forgiving, Most Merciful. (Surah Al-Furqan (25:68-70)).


Allah Almighty informed us here that he transforms their bad into good o*nes because of their sincere repentance, their faith, and their good deeds. So you, by pondering over you sins which are an offence to Him, and by your repentance from that and your following that with what you do of righteous deeds and faith and conviction, hoping in the rewards w/Allah Almighty, then you are exchanging your evil deeds for good. This is the same w/all of the evil which the servant repents from and follows up w/ faith and righteous deeds, Allah exchanges them for good, out of His grace and beneficence, glorious is He the Almighty.

Shaykh Abdul Aziz Ibn Baz {Rahimallah)

[M H Kahn]

A person commited some act of disobedience and afterwards repented to Allah; however, he feels deep iniside himself that Allah will not forgive him.

This despair is like disbelieving Allah's declaration:"And verily I am indeed forgiving to him who repents, believes and does righteous deeds, then follow the right way." (20:82).

[Curaezipirid]

I agree with all that is stated here. That a person has repented can not be underestimated, but it is that there are very many persons in modern society (especially English speaking) whom want that a person's repentance is to their own self rather than to Allah. So then when they observe that a person is in repentance, they try to make that person fear not being forgiven to cause them to further repent. It is that such persons are trying to place them selves in between us as repenting individuals and Allah. Their own wrong is such, and that is only their own need to repent. Yet also it is correct to fear each our own consequence in repentance. Correct Muslim practise can hold steading that fear that it will not increase to overburden us.

This knowledge falls into the category of it being right to fear your own misdeeds while in prayer to Allah, but that it is not necessary nor good to fear the fact of that fear. When the fear is of other fears, then it belongs to Shaytans.

[M H Kahn]

Repentance should be from fear of Allah for sins and seeking His forgiveness. If someone commits a sinful act, say an adultery, and then repents for destroying her chastity merely from moral point of view, but not from fear of Allh, this will not be a repentance in Islam.

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[SirZubair]

:sl:

Never underestimate the power of repentance.

:w: