The Description of Righteous Deeds.

The Shaykh : As for His saying: , its meaning is that they performed righteous deeds, such as prayer, zakah, fasting, Hajj, dutifulness to parents, maintaining family ties, and so on. They did not limit themselves to what is merely in the heart, but they acted and produced results.
And the righteous deeds are those that encompass two things:
The first is sincerity for Allah, and the second is following the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him). This is because if a deed is not pure for Allah, it is rejected. Allah (Blessed and Exalted is He) said in the Holy Hadith, which the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) narrated from Him: So if you stand to pray for the sake of showing off to people, or give charity for the sake of showing off to people, or seek knowledge for the sake of showing off to people, or maintain family ties for the sake of showing off to people, or do anything else, the deed is rejected, even if it is righteous in its outward appearance.
Likewise, regarding following the Sunnah: if you perform a deed that the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him) did not perform, and you seek to draw near to Allah with it while being sincere to Allah, it will not be accepted from you. This is because the Prophet (peace and blessings be upon him and his family) said: So, the righteous deed is what combines two descriptions: The first?

The questioner : Sincerity.

The Shaykh : Sincerity for Allah, and the second is what?

The questioner : Following.

The Shaykh : Following the Messenger (peace and blessings be upon him and his family).
That is, each one of them would advise the other; if he saw him neglecting an obligation, he would advise him, saying: "My brother, benefit yourself by fulfilling the obligation." If they saw him committing a forbidden act, they would advise him, saying: "My brother, avoid the forbidden." So they did not limit themselves to benefiting themselves, but they benefited themselves and others. They advised one another to uphold the truth; here, "truth" means the Shari'ah, and they would advise one another to adhere to it.