The Difference Between Knowledge and Belief in Faith
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Question:
That Allah guides him. You mentioned, O Shaykh, the difference between the caller’s statement that faith is submission, and the Shaykh’s statement that it is worship. Is there a contradiction or otherwise?
Answer:
There is a difference between knowledge and belief. Belief is better than knowledge. Knowledge, even if one knows his Lord, is considered by the ignorant to be sufficient for being a Muslim, but it does not control one’s self. As for belief, it is a higher rank than mere knowledge. However, it is a false doctrine and is not sufficient, because belief alone is not enough. The disbelievers believe in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as Allah the Exalted said: Say,[Al-An'am 6:33]. What does “they do not deny you” mean?
It means that they believe in you in their hearts,[Al-An'am 6:33] but they displayed denial and rejection outwardly out of stubbornness and arrogance. As Allah the Exalted said in another verse: [An-Naml 27:14] So mere belief is not valid.
That Allah guides him. You mentioned, O Shaykh, the difference between the caller’s statement that faith is submission, and the Shaykh’s statement that it is worship. Is there a contradiction or otherwise?
Answer:
There is a difference between knowledge and belief. Belief is better than knowledge. Knowledge, even if one knows his Lord, is considered by the ignorant to be sufficient for being a Muslim, but it does not control one’s self. As for belief, it is a higher rank than mere knowledge. However, it is a false doctrine and is not sufficient, because belief alone is not enough. The disbelievers believe in the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), as Allah the Exalted said: Say,
We know that you, [O Muhammad], are saddened by what they say. And indeed, they do not call you untruthful
نَعْلَمُ إِنَّهُ لَيَحْزُنُكَ الَّذِي يَقُولُونَ فَإِنَّهُمْ لَا يُكَذِّبُونَكَIt means that they believe in you in their hearts,
And indeed, they do not call you untruthful, but it is the verses of Allah that the wrongdoers reject.
فَإِنَّهُمْ لَا يُكَذِّبُونَكَ وَلَٰكِنَّ الظَّالِمِينَ بِآيَاتِ اللَّهِ يَجْحَدُونَAnd they rejected them, while their [inner] selves were
وَجَحَدُوا بِهَا وَاسْتَيْقَنَتْهَا
Source
قول الأشاعرة والجهمية في الإيمان — alfawzan.live
The Arabic text is a machine transcription of the audio recording.