A Benefit on Explaining the Importance of Sincerity in Righteous Deeds.

The Shaykh : So, this love for meeting Allah, which necessitates a love for death in that moment, is not a general love, meaning that the Muslim loves death always and forever. This is as Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) hinted, that by nature, a person hates death. Then, the Muslim hates death not because he is being torn away and separated from this worldly life and its enjoyment of its pleasures and amusement with its diversions, but rather because he fears that meeting in the Hereafter, lest he be shortcoming with his Lord, Blessed and Exalted is He.
Therefore, it was also among the characteristics of the believers that they are fearful of meeting their Lord; they fear meeting Allah, Mighty and Majestic. Why? Because they do not live in this worldly life in arrogance, pleased with what they may have done for themselves of righteous deeds. That is because the Muslim who is fearful for his eternal future does not look at his work with a look of satisfaction and acceptance, because he conditions that the work acceptable to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, must be pure and sincere for the Face of Allah, Blessed and Exalted is He. And this is the greatest jihad in reality.
The greatest jihad is not that the Muslim performs a righteous deed. Here we are praying, here we are fasting, and we may perform Hajj repeatedly and again. But the greatest jihad is first that our righteous deeds be in accordance with the Sunnah, and that there be nothing in them of religious innovation that corrupts the righteous deed. So whoever hopes to meet his Lord .
So, jihad is not by merely performing the deed that is worship and obedience to Allah, Mighty and Majestic, like the examples we mentioned of prayer, Hajj, zakah, and the like. Rather, it is that the two fundamental conditions are present in that deed for it to be accepted by Allah, Mighty and Majestic.
The first condition is that it be in accordance with the Sunnah, as we mentioned. Otherwise, every deed, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said, And so, how many a prayer is not a prayer, how many a pilgrim is not a pilgrim, as was said previously: "And I did not perform Hajj, but the camels performed Hajj". Many people today, when we meet them there in Hajj, they collapse after the time has passed, and after, as it is also said, the ruin of Basra. They ask, "My master, I did such and such." What does that mean? It means he did not stand at 'Arafah; he stood short of it. Yes, and the Messenger said, So what did this person gain? He prepared, perhaps he was poor in terms of livelihood, or better than that, of moderate status. He was stingy with himself until he gathered the funds for Hajj, and then his funds went to waste, scattered in the wind.
And so, how many a prayer, as he (peace and blessings be upon him) said, Therefore, the Muslim remains fearful and apprehensive for his deed, lest at least one of the conditions not be present in it. If he is careful, like us, for example, who belong to the Sunnah and strive to have all our deeds and worship in accordance with the Sunnah, sincerity may be missed. Sincerity may be missed. Therefore, one does not combine leaning on and being proud of a person's righteous deed if he is apprehensive, like those believers whom the Lord of the Worlds guided, as you heard in the previous verse: Therefore, a person should not be arrogant and say, "By Allah, I am a Muslim, and I do good, and I love meeting Allah." This love is a lie, claimed by its claimant. And the true love that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) intended is when he truly receives the fruit of his righteous deed, when death approaches him, as will come in a second hadith after this.
So, Aisha (may Allah be pleased with her) said, and the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said, Narrated by al-Bukhari, as a suspended narration, as we said, and by Muslim, al-Tirmidhi, and al-Nasa'i.