The Test  

Life is about passing a test. Man is a political creature, in his lifetime he has to
prove his worth in almost everything he does in life. Human beings have established the test as a system, a way to distinguish who is to do what amongst them. Throughout his life a man goes through various tests starting from his primary education 'till his tertiary education, which is followed by numerous social testing like obtaining his driver's license, career promotions, and even testing the new car he intends to buy.

However, this is not man's original idea, in fact he borrowed it from God, it is God's system. The test is the way God distinguishes the believers from the disbelievers. "Do the people think that they will be left to say, "we believe'; without being put to the test? "We have tested the generations before them, for God must distinguish those who are truthful from those who are liars". Al-Ankabut 29:2-3.

"We will certainly put you to the test until we distinguish the strivers among you who remain steadfast, and to test your behaviour". Muhammad 47:31.

Looking back at the time of creation in the Quran, Adam and his wife were tested by God, and they failed, which eventually led to their eviction from paradise to a place called Earth. Adam had to face the lurking temptations of the devil who succeeded in duping him and his wife.

"But the devil duped them out of it causing their eviction therefrom. We said, "Go down as enemies to each other, and on earth will be your habitation and sustenance for a while". Al-Baqarah 2:36.

When Adam landed on earth, he was lost and he did not know exactly how he was supposed to lead his life after the mistake in paradise, until the message from God came: "Then Adam received from his Lord words, whereby He redeemed him. He is the Redeemer, the Merciful". Al-Baqarah 2:37.

And, here on earth, people are experiencing the same hopelessness as Adam felt. Recall a time... you tuned on the TV and saw a movie which was already halfway, and as it seemed quite interesting, you followed the program till the end, but were not quite sure of the whole story and why the movie ended the way it did. Not knowing the beginning will not give one a complete picture of any story, and will spark a series of guesses which will not get to the truth until one sees the movie again, from the start. This is the way most people experience life. We pick up our stories only from the day we were born, and that, to all of us, is our own beginning. Most do not even know their grandparents; it seems unimportant or irrelevant to their purpose here on earth, as the important thing is their future and the immediate worldly matters to tend to.

There are but a few who wonder who they really are, what and why they are here, and where do they goes from here. As very few ever bother to find out and seek the truth, most just look around and simply follow what they see others do, while some do as they are told. The easiest and safest route is to follow the majority, which, in the common opinion, is the right way. In contrary, the Quran says:

"If you obey the majority of people on earth, they will divert you from the path of God. They only follow conjecture, and they only guess". Al-An'aam 6:116.
 
 

God Alone

Little do people realise that, the same test that Adam went through is being set here for them. The test is to distinguish who obeys God alone, worship Him alone, and do not associate Him with anything or anyone. However, the test is more difficult now than it was for Adam, as he and his wife had only Satan to contend with, whereas there are billions of people now on earth, and we are faced with two kinds of devils - the human kind and the jinn kind.

"Additionally, We have appointed for every prophet enemies from among the human devils, and jinn devils, who invent and narrate to each other fancy words in order to deceive...". Al-An'aam 6:112.

But the human beings must not despair as God has kept His promise and not let the people blunder without showing His guidance. "We said, "Go down therefrom, al1 of you; and when guidance comes to you from Me, those who follow My guidance have nothing to fear, nor will they grieve". Al-Baqarah 2:38.

God's guidance came in sequence in the forms of the Torah, Psalms, Gospel, and the final scripture the Quran. The problem is that the people did not, and still do not take any heed of God's messages, and that is the core of the problem, and the biggest reason why the majority of people on earth are blundering, and do not have any inkling of their real purpose of life.
 
 

The Conspiracy

In all the existing religions of the world, the Temples, the Churches, and the latest, the Mosques; have established the institutions of the Priests, Churchmen and Ulemas. They have taken on themselves as the authority in their respective religious, and most important of all to interpret their scriptures, and to tell the followers every step of the way, whether they are in accordance with God or whether they are being duped by the devils. If the followers follow their instructions, they are assured of a rewarding afterlife. But if they fail to heed the course prescribed by their religious leaders, then, there is excommunication, damnations and even the death penalty by the throwing of stones. These religious leaders hold themselves to be the only connection between the human and God, the sole arbitrators of the followers' salvation.

These self-appointed deputy-gods (some believe they are gods) rule over their followers, and in some places rank higher than the kings and presidents and prime ministers. Their offices are situated in kings' palaces, or in the same buildings of presidents and prime ministers. In official state functions they sit at VIP tables, and they travel in state-owned limousines. All these at the expense of the taxpayers. In recent times they have even embarked into show business. They have become TV personalities with their own talk shows, and they appear in international magazines and national tabloids. These are the imposters who schemed in God's name to become rich and famous. They have fooled the masses with their holy looks and saintly appearance

"And we have appointed in every community prominent criminals who plot and scheme therein. However, they plot and scheme against their own souls, without perceiving". Al-An'aam 6:123.

"Follow those who do not ask you for any wage; they are guided". Ya-seen 36:21.

"Say, "I do not ask you for a wage; I am not an imposter". "This is a message to all the people". Saad 38:86-87.

For a Muslim, he is in the same predicament because as a mere individual he is not qualified to determine his status in this regard. This is the paradigm he was tuned into, and unconsciously (or consciously) he surrenders his powers, rights and freedom of thoughts to the Ulemas. The irony is that, in his personal life he would not even allow his own mother to buy and select his pair of shoes, but on matter pertaining to his important final destiny - heaven or hell, he confidently allowed `others' to determine it for him. Ignorantly, he may think he has no choice, because of the various invented regulations governing the study, reading and touching of the Quran, which make it quite impossible for one to come near the Quran, let alone to read it. So the next best thing to do is to rely on the holy Ulemas for all his religious needs.

As a mere individual, a Muslim has no access to the Quran for knowledge, what's more, language has been set as the biggest barrier; for the Quran is Arabic. Poor soul! A non-Arabic speaking Muslim is already destined for hell! His only route to find out what God says is to seek some holy `guru' to interpret to him. And the biggest mistake is he even thinks and believes that if he faltered and erred in godly matters, he could escape hell by putting the blame on others - parents and the people who led them astray.
 
 

Rejection

"What they said was, "We found our parents doing this, and we simply followed their footsteps". "Thus, whenever we sent a warner to any community, the leaders said, "We found our parents following a religion and we are following their footsteps". "The messenger would say, "What if I showed you better guidance than that of your parents?". They said, "We reject whatever you bring". A1-Zukhruf 43:22-24.

Many believe that they may be excused for their ignorance as they know God is Forgiving and Merciful "On that day, no excuse will be accepted from the wrong doers, nor will they he asked to apologise". Al-Ruum 30:57.

If that does not work, well, as a confessing Muslim, he already knows for sure that hell is only temporary, and that it will be heaven eventually!

"They said, "We will not suffer in bell, except for a few days. "Say, "Did you take such a promise from God, and God never breaks His promise; or do you say about God what you do not know?". Al-Baqarah 2:80.

"Indeed, anyone who works evil, and becomes surrounded by his sins, these have deserved hell; they abide therein FOREVER ". Al-Baqarah 2:81.

"Have you noted those who know only part of the scripture, and when invited to adopt God's scripture as their law, they turn away in aversion ". "That is because they have said, "Hel1 is not eternal," and thus they are deceived in their religion by their own inventions". Ali-Imran 3:23-24.

Where did they get these ideas from? A good guess would be, who else, but Satan. As people get busy and preoccupied in this life, they have forgotten about the test, about what had happened to their forefathers, and about the ardent enemy of man who is causing all the problems on earth.

But God, the Compassionate reminds in the Quran: "O children of Adam, let not the devil -mislead, as he evicted your parents from Paradise, and removed their garments in order to show them their bodies. He and his tribe can see you, while you cannot see them. We have assigned the devils as companions to those who do not believe". Al-A'raaf 7:27.
 
 

The Preoccupation

The devil aside, man himself is very capable of destroying himself and everything around him, and he needs no assistance in this respect. Man is clever, (he thinks) and takes no heed of God's message.

Since he conveniently forgot about his Creator, that he himself was created, and about his beginnings; he only sees this life, and in fact prefers only this life. He has made himself very comfortable in this world; he has found beautiful companions, built himself multi-storey buildings, built super multi-lane highways by knocking down big mountains and large trees that obstructed his plans, produced super sport cars and supersonic aeroplanes to pollute the environment, and built multi-billion dollar factories to manufacture and produce everything that he requires for a luxurious life-style. He does not need anyone, much less God; he is already successful on earth.

"They recognize only the visible part of this world, while disregarding the hereafter". Al-Ruum 30:7.

"This life is adorned in the eyes of the disbelievers, and thus, they ridicule those who believe. However, the righteous will rank high above them on the day of resurrection. God blesses whomever He will without limits". A1-Baqarah 2:212.

"Adorned in the eyes of the people is the love of lusts, such as women, children, the piles upon piles of gold and silver, trained horses, livestock and crops. These are the materials of the world, but the best abode is with God". Ali-Imran 3:14.

"This first life is no more than illusions and vanity, while the abode of the hereafter is far better for the righteous, Would you not Understand?".
Al-An'aam 6:32.

"Know that this life is temporary play, waste, vanity, boasting among yourselves, and hoarding of monies and children. It is like rain that produces plants that please the disbelievers, then grow, and turn yellow, then blown away as hay. In the hereafter, there will be either terrible retribution, or forgiveness from God and pleasure. This life is no more than a temporary illusion". Al-Hadeed 57:20.

Man has become preoccupied with a new, secular purpose, one of settling into this world, of amassing wealth, of making himself comfortable, and thus, gets out of focus from the truth. Working to establish a more comfortable and luxurious lifestyle has grown to feel complete in and of itself as a reason to live. Gradually, methodically, he forgets his real purpose of being on this earth. He uses this routine to distract himself, to reduce life to only its practical considerations, to avoid recalling how uncertain he is about why he lives. Propelling it all is the call to progress, thc desire to provide his own security, his own purpose, while he waits and expects the truth to come to him, in due time, by his expectations from God himself. How arrogant! "Are they waiting until God Himself comes to them in dense clouds, together with the angels? If this happens, the whole matter will be terminated, and all things will be referred to God". A1-Baqarah 2:210.

"Are they waiting until the angels or your Lord, or some profound signs come to them? The day some profound signs come from your Lord, it will be too late for anyone to believe who has not already believed and gained righteousness. Say, "Keep waiting, and we too will wait". Al-An'aam 6:158.
   

Disbelief In The Hereafter

What spurred man to his preoccupations is the disbelief in the hereafter. Many feel very casual about it and perceive it as either, it is still a long distance from their lives, or it is simply a myth, or that they have the time to make up and reconcile with God, if it is true, at some time or another before they die -as if they know very well when death will come to them.

"He is the one who created you from clay, then appointed the life spans, and a predetermined end that is known only to Him. Yet, you still harbour doubts". Al-An'aam 6:2.

"And God is the one who created you, them puts you to death. Some of you are allowed to live to the oldest age, in order to find out that there is a limit to their knowledge. God is Omniscient, Omnipotent". Al-Nahl 16:70.

Some people put the thoughts of the hereafter aside, as it can be worrisome, realising their own faults and misdeeds. But instead of repenting and preparing themselves for it, they focus their attention to this life, as a distraction, and hoping that hell will not be that bad.

They feel indifferent about their beginnings, the devil, and the agreement they have made with God. Despite the warnings and reminders that God has sent to them in the Quran and in all the previous scriptures.

"Recall that your Lord gathered all the descendants of Adam, and had them bear witness on themselves, saying, "Am I not your Lord?" They said, "Yes indeed, we bear witness". Therefore, you cannot say on the day of resurrection, "We never knew, about this!". Nor Can you say, "It was our parents who set up idols, and we followed in their footsteps. Would you punish us for what the falsehood inventors have done?" We thus explain the revelations; perhaps they come hack". Al-A'raaf 7:172-174.
   

Signs

When one observes man's behaviour one begins to wonder what actually is it that he refuses to believe. Is it disbelief in God? the creation? The hereafter? All it takes is for one to look around him. Look at the skies, the earth, everything that is on it, and at himself. Did all these happen by itself? These are all signs of God Almighty.

"Throughout the heavens and the earth, there are signs for the believers. And in the creation, and the creatures He produces, there are signs for those who are certain. Also, the alteration of night and day, the provisions that God sends down from the sky to revive dead land and the manipulation of the winds: all these are signs for people who understand". Al-Jaathlyah 45:3-5.

"In the earth there are signs for those who are certain. Even within yourselves; do you not see?". A1-Dhaariyaat 51:20-21.

Perhaps, even God wondered about the human's behaviour, when He asked: "What is it that the human being wants?" A1-Najam 53:24

Disbelief In The Scripture

As man is intellectual, he makes use of his thoughts to progress, attain material wealth, achieve success in his business and career, and establish institutions of higher learning. He is able to do all these because he knows how to read and write, and uses his brain to think, and chose to do or not to do whatever he wishes.

When God revealed the Quran through the Archangel Gabriel to man (Muhammad). He also sees to it that His revelations are being written and recorded by man on paper and compiled as a book form. He has taught man to read and write, and that is the method and system He has set for man to progress on earth.

This is undoubtedly the best and most effective system, God is Omniscient, the Wise. When He bestowed such blessings on man, one must realise that is also the means He puts man to the test. There will be no test if He created man physically blind, deaf, mute, thoughtless and senseless. It would be impossible to test such a creation, as there would be no basis.

"We created everything on earth, as adornment, in order to test them therewith and distinguish the good doers". Al-Kafh 18:7.

"Do the people think that they will be left to say, "We believe", without being put to the test? "We have tested the generations before them, for God must distinguish those who are truthful from those who are liars". Al-Ankubut 29:2-3.

"We have created the human from a drop, in stages, in order to put him to the test. We made him hearer and seer". Al-Insaan 76:2.
 

The Quran is meant to guide man on his journey to the hereafter while he is here on earth. It is a mighty book and a blessing to man, without which there is no way for the present and future
generations to reach God and achieve the sought after success in the hereafter. But as much as it is a blessing to man, it is also the greatest test for the present and future man.

This book of God has been disputed by many from the day it was revealed until now, and the Quran foresees this continuance in the future until the end of time.

Why the disputes and the disbelief? This is the intellectual test for man. To test if he uses his common sense. In this age of Information Technology (IT) and high achievements, the Quran poses the greatest challenge to all man on earth, regardless of the colour of his skin, race, language, or creed. It has withstood the efforts of many to disprove it as the book of God, and has remained intact in its original form to this very day.

It is a clear proof that man cannot challenge and win against his Creator and His book. Only common sense is needed to believe in God, His creations and His book.

While man thinks he is clever enough to achieve everything he desires, it is not so!

Not so according to the Quran, for he has not achieved anything and has failed just as Adam failed because he defied his own common sense. "No soul can believe except with God's leave, for He deliberately blocks out those who defy COMMON SENSE ". Yunus 10:100.

"Indeed, the worst creatures in the sight of God are the deaf and dumb, who have no common sense". AI-Anfaal 8:22.

The above verses are challenging man who thinks he is intelligent, and if you look around you, and all over the world, very few, but very few, have lived up to God's way, the right way, except those who have read, believed and submitted to the Lord of the Universe.

"Praise be to God, Lord of the Universe". Al-Fatihah 1:2.

"When his Lord said to him, "Submit", he said, "I submit to the Lord of the Universe". Al-Baqarah 2:131.

Politicians

The proof that man is not following God's way is glaringly clear when one reads the Quran. Look at the current world situation, the destruction that are going on in the name of progress: the committing of heinous crimes: the atrocities committed in wars: corruption's at all levels of society: unscrupulous politicians, businessmen and professionals: social ills and diseases, and the list goes on.

The worst in the long lists of human decadence is the committing of blasphemy and profanity by human devils disguised in holy costumes: with their twisted tongues they blatantly lie about God, leading throngs of people astray and into the hell fire.

The majorities are unaware, as the majority never read the Quran. The majorities are engaged in preoccupations.

"Who is more wicked than those who invent lies, then attribute them to God, or reject His revelations? Indeed, the wicked never succeed". Al-An'aam 6:21.

"And they divert others from the Quran, as they themselves stay away from it. Thus, they only destroy themselves, without perceiving". AI-An'aam 6:26.

"Regrettably, the hearts of the people are too busy to study this (Quran), and they remain preoccupied with lesser works". Al-Mu'minun 23:63.

Judge

Whoever disbelieves in the Quran, and disputes the message of God, has truly defied common sense; one who does not understand concept. How could anyone believe that God, who created the heavens and the earth, and everything in between, including man himself, is not capable of producing a book, which is detailed, precise and complete? The disbelievers are incorrigible, and there is nothing you can do to make them believe, well I for one would just let them be and leave them in their blunder.

"Here you are loving them, while they do not love you, and you believe in all the scripture. Whey they meet you, they say. "We believe", but when alone, they bite their fingers, due to rage towards you. Say, "Die in your rage!" God is full aware of the innermost thoughts". Ali-Imran 3:119.

"What is wrong, with you? How do you judge?" "Do you have another book that you apply? "One that gives you anything you want?" Al-Qalam 68:36-38.

"Thus, even if We send the angels down to them, even If the dead spoke to them; even if we gather before their eyes all kinds of miracles, they can never believe except in accordance with God's will. Indeed the majority of people are unaware". Al-An'aam 6:111.

Idol Worship

Beware of the devil in disguise! Do not let their holy looks and antics fool you. If anyone feels he is experiencing life like the watching of a movie midway, he must make an effort to see the whole picture to know the truth, and the Quran gives you just that, the whole truth! Nothing but the truth. If in God you believe, then it would be God's book that you read and not any other, lest you are led astray and fall into idol worship. God has not authorised any man, not even His chosen messengers, the copyrights to pen anything about Him, His creations or His laws, other than what He has revealed. Nor did He appoint any agencies to interpret and expound His revelations, as He has explained everything. Any writings by man that claim to be the quotes of His messengers other than what has been revealed in the Quran is false; it is
contemptuous and blasphemous. His book is complete and He has said everything He wanted man to know. If man has any silly questions (the Quran does not contain silly answers); he has to wait for the answer when he meets God. But he might not like the answer then, or the consequences for being silly. Do not be fooled like Adam, stay focused, alert and in the know, as clear as crystal that God is God. There is no deputy-god either. God needs no deputy, otherwise He would not be God.

"Allah! the one God. There is no god except He; the Living; the Eternal. Not a moment of unawareness or slumber ever overtakes Him. To Him belongs everything in the heavens and everything on earth. Who can intercede with Him, except in accordance with His will? To Him belong the past and the future, and no one attains any of His knowledge except with His will. His dominion encompasses the heavens and the earth, and ruling them never burdens Him. He is High, the Great". AI-Baqarah 2: 255

Everyone has to take stock of his own life, and be responsible for all his experiences including the ones he does not like. Being irresponsible will only be to the detriment of oneself. However, when you get down to experience responsibility, you will soon see that all you can do is keep your agreement, effortlessly. It is that simple, and if you do not know how, read the guidebook (Quran) and He will show you the way. After all each one of us entered into agreement with God on our own free will. God did not force it on us. He offered and we accepted, foolish though we may have been. The fact is, we agreed, and the question now is "Do we want to acknowledge it?" "We had offered the responsibility to the heavens and the earth and the mountains, but they refused to accept it and were afraid thereof. But the human being accepted it; surely, he was wrong, ignorant!". Al-Ahzaab 33:72.