Allah the Almighty says:
{We have truly sent you as a witness, as a bearer of glad tidings, and as a warner in order that you (O people) may believe in Allah and His Messenger, that you may assist him and honour him…} (al-Fath 48: 8-9)
Our relationship with the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is part of our Iman. By reciting the Shahadah (Testimony of Faith) we acknowledge the Prophet Muhammad as Allah’s Messenger. As a Messenger, he brought and delivered Allah’s message to mankind.
There are two aspects of his Risalah(Prophethood):
First, he delivered the message to his contemporaries living in Arabia.
Second, his message was for the whole of mankind till the end of time as he was the last of the glorious chain of Prophets. After his death this responsibility of conveying the message was assigned to this Ummah.
He was sent as a witness unto mankind and this is exactly the task given to the Muslim Ummah. The Qur’an explicitly mentions this in Surat al-Hajj:
{It is He Who named you Muslims, both before and in this (Revelation); that the Messenger may be a witness for you and you be witnesses for mankind} (al-Hajj 22: 78)
As a witness unto mankind, he brought the glad tidings to those who accepted him as Allah’s Messenger and believed in him. They attained success in this life and falah (salvation) in the Hereafter.
For those who rejected his message and followed the path of disobedience there was a dire warning: they could enjoy and indulge in lustful pursuits in this world but in the end they would be the losers and earn eternal damnation.
Believing that the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is Allah’s Messenger requires that we should obey him. Obedience to him is on a par with obedience to Allah as the Qur’an commands:
{O you who believe! Obey Allah, and obey the Messenger} (an-Nisa’ 4: 59).
Obeying the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) is in fact obedience of Allah. He is the one who delivers Allah’s Message and we have no other means of knowing Allah’s commands. Thus, verse 80 of Surat an-Nisa’ explicitly lays down, {He who obeys the Messenger, obeys Allah.}
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