The Meaning of the Saying of the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him): "A Just Imam"

The Shaykh : A just imam. The just imam, my brothers, who does he fear? What? He fears Allah, because he is an imam whose authority is in his hand; Allah the Exalted has placed it in his hand. So if he is just with the creation, he will not favor any created being, but rather he will only regard whom? Allah. And who is the just imam? The just imam is the one who implements the Shari'ah of Allah among the servants of Allah. This is the criterion: the just imam is the one who implements the Shari'ah of Allah among the servants of Allah. If he judges, he judges by the Shari'ah, and if he punishes, he punishes according to the requirements of the Shari'ah. If his son stole, he would cut off his hand. If his father stole, he would cut off his father's hand. Would Allah have him cut off his father's hand? Would he cut off his father's hand? A just imam: his father stole, would he cut off his father's hand? By Allah, it may seem severe, yes, he would cut off his father's hand if he stole. Is this undutifulness? Yes, it is undutifulness. Yes, he would cut off his father's hand, but in obedience to whom? To Allah. Did not Ibrahim (peace be upon him) intend to sacrifice his son? And which is more severe, cutting off a hand or killing? Sacrificing? Yes, without doubt, Ibrahim (peace be upon him) was commanded by Allah to sacrifice his son, so he obeyed and said to him, "O my son, I see in a dream that I am sacrificing you, so see what you think." He only said to him "see what you think" to test him, not to consult him, because Ibrahim the Intimate Friend of Allah (peace be upon him) could not possibly consult his son in carrying out the command of Allah, but rather to test the boy. And who was this boy? Yes, a gentle boy. Pay attention, my brother, a gentle boy. And in the Qur'an there are two places: But a knowledgeable boy is not the same as a gentle boy. The knowledgeable boy is Ishaq, and the gentle boy is Isma'il. Isma'il. That is why you find in Surat al-Saffat What? In other places, with a knowledgeable boy, because the two men are different. Now, I say, may Allah reward you, the just imam is the one who implements the Shari'ah of Allah among whom? Among the servants of Allah.