How to respond to those who say, "We do not call upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), but we seek nearness to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) through him" (Clarification of the categories of permissible and prohibited seeking nearness)

The questioner : The second question says: O esteemed Shaykh, what is your response to those who say, "We do not call upon the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), but we seek nearness to Allah through him"?

The Shaykh : We say to them: If you are seeking nearness to Allah through the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), then you have admitted that the goal is Allah, and the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) is the means. The Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) has explained to us the means to Allah: the means to Allah is to worship Allah alone, as Allah the Exalted said: And there is no means to Allah (Mighty and Majestic) except by following His Shari'ah, as Allah the Exalted said: So if you say that we seek nearness to the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), that we seek nearness to Allah through the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him), we say: Please, seeking nearness to Allah is by following the Shari'ah of Allah So what is the answer? Then where is this means that you claim from the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him)? Were the Companions of the Messenger ignorant of it, or were they knowledgeable but heedless of it, or were they knowledgeable and arrogant about it? No, no, the Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) are more knowledgeable than you about the means that lead to Allah (Mighty and Majestic). The Companions of the Messenger are more alive in heart than you and more alert to what benefits them. The Companions of the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) are more submissive to Allah and His Messenger than you, and more devoted to following the Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings be upon him). So how did they overlook this means? Therefore, we say: If you are sincere and want the means to Allah (Mighty and Majestic), then follow these people. Allah the Exalted says: Those who do not follow them do not enter into His pleasure, and those who follow them without excellence do not enter into His pleasure. Who enters into His pleasure? Those who follow them with excellence. And whoever worships Allah with what is not part of their worship has not followed them with excellence, so he does not enter into the pleasure of Allah (Mighty and Majestic). And we say: O my brother, if you are sincere, what is the difference between saying, "O Lord, O Possessor of Majesty and Honor, O Ever-Living, O Sustainer," and seeking nearness to Allah the Exalted by His names and attributes, and saying, "I ask You by the essence of the Messenger" or saying, "I ask You by Your Messenger"? Is there a difference in terms of wording? Absolutely not. In fact, the first wording, "O Ever-Living, O Sustainer," is more beneficial for the heart, more humbling, and closer to being accepted than seeking nearness through the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). So instead of saying, "I ask You by Your Messenger and Your Beloved," and the like, say, "I ask You by Your best names, I ask You by my testimony that You are Allah, there is no god but You," and so on. From this, we say that seeking nearness is of two types: permissible and recommended, and prohibited and forbidden. Let us enumerate them: Seeking nearness to Allah by His names, general or specific, is prescribed. So in the famous hadith of Ibn Mas'ud: