Re: Can a just God be mercyfull at no cost?
I see your point but if its negative and positive them imagine there is a scale and on one side we put our bad things and on the other our good things so since and if they balance out or come down on the good side there is nothing for God to forgive? Let us suppose the scales don't balance and they come down on the bad side then we need God's mercy so what does he put on the scale to make it balance again?
Correct me if I am wrong, but I don't see any way in which you can know that the scale is balanced so it appears to me you will have to wait until the day of resurrection to know your fate - is that right?
yes indeed... no one is guaranteed heaven or hell, no matter how the Christians hammer in that Jesus ate their sins in advance, none of them have in fact come back from the dead to prove it so..
so it is a matter of what makes sense to the mind, heart and soul...
you don't pass the exam because your good pal took the test for you, you pass because you put in good effort...and there is no difference in the here after, even heaven there are gradation based on what you have earned..
being a Muslim is the most humble of ranks, there is Islam, Iman, ikhlas, ihsan... and so mentioned in the Quran, many people are merely Muslim...
you may be interested to read the following:
Name of Questioner
Abdol - Iran
Title
Disbeliever's Good Deeds: Can They Take Him to Paradise?
Question
As-Salamu` alykum. I heard some Muslims saying that only good Muslims go to Heaven. But what about the other good people who are kind, generous, support the poor but are the Christians or Jews. Do they go to Heaven or not ?
Date
18/Jun/2002
Name of Counsellor
Topic
Muslim Belief
Answer
Wa`alykum As-Salaamu wa Rahmatullahi wa Barakaatuh.
In the Name of Allah, Most Gracious, Most Merciful.
All praise and thanks are due to Allah, and peace and blessings be upon His Messenger.
Dear brother in Islam, we would like to thank you for showing keenness on knowing the teachings of Islam, and we appreciate the great confidence you have in us. We hope our efforts meet your expectations, yet we apologize for the late reply.
As regards your question, we’d like to make it clear that Allah Almighty never disregards any good deed, be it from a believer or a disbeliever; He gives good reward for it. But the point here is, as a believer does good deeds, he does so with certain belief that he will be rewarded in the Hereafter; i.e. whatever he does, it’s for the sake of Allah, and he will get its reward in the Hereafter. However, there are people who are good and benevolent by nature, and many of them love their brothers and sisters in humanity, despite that they are not believers.
Explaining the type of reward granted to such people, the Kuwaiti Encyclopedia of Islamic Jurisprudence makes it clear that there is surely a reward in this world for people who, despite lacking iman (belief), contribute to the progress of mankind, are good by nature, giving charity…etc. But the criterion for getting reward in the Hereafter is belief. This is based on the Hadith, in which the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, states: “Allah never disregards a good deed of a believer; he reward him for it in this world and in the Hereafter. As for a disbeliever, he is rewarded for the good deeds in this world so that when he is in the Afterlife, no more reward will be there for him.”.
In making this point more clearer, clarifying that Jannah (Paradise) is for believers, Sheikh Hamed Al-`Ali, instructor of Islamic Heritage at the Faculty of Education, Kuwait and Imam of Dahiat As-Sabahiyya Mosque, states:
“No one will enter Jannah (Paradise) except a believer. Almighty Allah says in the Qur’an “And the dwellers of the Fire cry out unto the dwellers of the Garden: Pour on us some water or some wherewith Allah hath provided you. They say: Lo! Allah hath forbidden both to disbelievers (in His guidance).” (Al-‘Araaf: 50)
Also the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, is reported to have said: “You will not enter Paradise until you believe.” (Agreed upon hadith)
This is one of signs of Allah’s absolute justice, because when a disbeliever does something good in this world, he or she does it for the sake of a worldly gain, and it is granted to him/her. On the contrary, a believer does his or her action for the sake of seeking reward in the Hereafter, and it is on this basis he or she is granted reward according to his or her intention.
Thus, Allah gives everyone what he or she has striven for. The believer has striven and worked for the success in the Hereafter, and as such he or she is given the same recompense for his work. But as for the disbeliever, as long as his deeds do not spring from belief (part of which is believing in the Hereafter), then he or she is not admitted to Paradise. The Kafir, or disbeliever, does not seek or strive for what is in the Hereafter, rather he or she wants to attain the pleasures in this life such as seeking people’s admiration, peace of mind, etc. If the Kafir wishes and really seeks the reward in the Hereafter, he or she would right away believe in Allah, the Hereafter, and follow the messengers of Allah and never disbelieve in any of them, because disbelieving in anyone of them would be counted as disbelieving in all messengers since the message they all brought is the same and each Prophet believed in whoever came before him and gave glad tidings to the Prophet who would come after him.
In brief, Jannah is only granted for those who strive for it and there are some conditions to be met for a person to be admitted to Jannah. Whoever works in this life for the sake of the Hereafter and fulfills the conditions of Jannah, he or she will be admitted to it. Conversely, those who fail to work for Jannah or work for it but do not fulfill its conditions will never enter it. This is the absolute justice of Allah, and Allah does not do injustice to any body.”
Shedding more light on this issue, Sheikh `Attiyah Saqr, former Head of Al-Azhar Fatwa Committee, states the following:
“ In terms of the reward of the Hereafter, it is totally agreed upon that a disbeliever receives no reward in the Hereafter nor does a believer who offers good deeds out of showing off. However, when talking about the reward of this world, the case is different in the sense that every one is paid for his deeds whether bad or good. Thus, a disbeliever receives reward for the good deeds he offers in this world. Almighty Allah says: “ And when Abraham prayed: My Lord! Make this a region of security and bestow upon its people fruits, such of them as believe in Allah and the Last Day, He answered: As for him who disbelieveth, I shall leave him in contentment for a while, then I shall compel him to the doom of fire a hapless journey's end!” (Al-Baqarah: 126) Almighty Allah also says: “ Whoso desireth the life of the world and its pomp, We shall repay them their deeds herein, and therein they will not be wronged. Those are they for whom is naught in the Hereafter save the Fire. (All) that they contrive here is vain and (all) that they are wont to do is fruitless.” (Hud: 15-16)
All these Qur’anic verses make it clear that both a believer and a disbeliever get reward in this life for their good deeds. However, there is another reward for a believer in the Hereafter while a disbeliever is denied such a reward, due to his disbelief. Muslim reported that `Aisha, may Allah be pleased, asked the Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him: “O Messenger of Allah! It was the trait of Ibn Jud`aan in pre-Islamic period to feed the needy and keep ties of kinship, will he benefit from these good deeds?(in the Hereafter)” The Prophet, peace and blessings be upon him, said: “No, for he never said: ‘My Lord! Forgive my sin on the Day of Judgment’” i.e. he was doing all that while insisting on disbelief.”
http://www.islamonline.net/servlet/...h-Ask_Scholar/FatwaE/FatwaE&cid=1119503545308
On God's grace and mercy
Say: To whom belongs what is in the heavens and the earth? Say: To Allah;
He has ordained mercy on Himself; most certainly He will gather you on the resurrection day -- there is no doubt about it. (As for) those who have lost their souls, they will not believe. S. 6:12 Shakir
And when those who believe in Our communications come to you, say: Peace be on you,
your Lord has ordained mercy on Himself, (so) that if any one of you does evil in ignorance, then turns after that and acts aright, then He is Forgiving, Merciful. S. 6:54 Shakir
Allah inscribing or ordaining mercy on or for himself implies that this is what he chose to become, and wasn't something he already was or always has been. This is precisely how the narrations attributed to Muhammad explain it:
Narrated Abu Huraira:
I heard Allah's Apostle saying,
Verily Allah CREATED Mercy. The day He created it, He made it into one hundred parts. He withheld with Him ninety-nine parts, and sent its one part to all His creatures. Had the non-believer known of all the Mercy which is in the Hands of Allah, he would not lose hope of entering Paradise, and had the believer known of all the punishment which is present with Allah, he would not consider himself safe from the Hell-Fire." (
Sahih al-Bukhari, Volume 8, Book 76,
Number 476)
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying: When Allah created the creation,
He ordained for Himself and this document is with Him:
Verily, My mercy predominates My wrath. (
Sahih Muslim, Book 037,
Number 6628)
Abu Huraira reported: I heard Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying:
Allah CREATED mercy in one hundred parts and He retained with Him ninety-nine parts, and He has sent down upon the earth one part, and it is because of this one part that there is mutual love among the creation so much so that the animal lifts up its hoof from its younc, one, fearing that it might harm it. (
Sahih Muslim, Book 037,
Number 6629)
Abu Huraira reported Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) as saying:
Allah CREATED one hundred (parts of mercy) and He distributed one amongst His creation and kept this one hundred excepting one with Himself (for the Day of Resurrection). (
Sahih Muslim, Book 037,
Number 6630)
Salman reported that Allah's Messenger (may peace be upon him) said: Verily,
Allah CREATED, on the same very day when He created the heavens and the earth, one hundred parts of mercy. Every part of mercy is coextensive with the space between the heavens. and the earth and He out of this mercy endowed one part to the earth and it is because of this that the mother shows affection to her child and even the beasts and birds show kindness to one another and when there would be the Day of Resurrection, Allah would make full (use of Mercy). (
Sahih Muslim, Book 037,
Number 6634)
