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Therefore, the so-called followers of Jesus who refuse to follow the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) are actually denying their belief in Jesus as even in their own gospels there are plenty of signs that another messenger would come, but they do not wish to recognize these signs. Allah has referred to such aspects in the following verses, 1 As for Adam, he was a prophet and not a messenger. Every messenger was a prophet but not vice-versa. For the differences between a prophet (nabi) and messenger (rasool), see the author's "Questions and Answers," Al-Basheer (Vol. 2, No. 1, May-June 1988), pp. 5-7. 2 This is obviously one of the ways by which the Christians strayed. Their raised their Prophet Jesus (peace be upon him) to a divine status while it is clear from their own book that he was simply a human being who prayed and beseeched God on a number of occasions. 3 See al-Furqaan 1, al-lsraa 1 and al-Jinn 1 19. 4 Cf., ibn Uthaimeen, Sharh Usool al-Imaan, pp. 36-38. Hadith #2: The Hadith of Jibreel ;,.., ,.. / ,.. ,, ,., ;;;,., ., J ,,. Ñ Li., .... ॵ, ... ,, J ... Gt Ȕ J. ,,,.. C:S୬ .J.. ,, ,.. Һ 1.:'t'°'t\ J J t."" .. , ... ... .U \ ƕy-J o) É> . oyǾ J YǾ ୭ ୽> i:..r./ / ,,,. / ,.. 0;j:/; j ē\ 0 "Those [Jews and Christians] to whom We gave the Scripture recognize him as they recognize their sons. But, verily, a party of them conceal the truth while they know it" (al-Baqara 146). ,, ;;;,., / .J. ,,,., .... ;;; ,J ,., :Ii ;;iJ * āՏ L: J>J३ 1..>:UI (;•':11 խI Jċծ\ 0yկ հ:UI Ĕĕ\j Ė)\ / / "Those who follow the Messenger, the prophet who can neither read or write, whom they find written in the Torah and the Gospel. . . " (al-Araaf 1 57). Hence, the Prophet (peace be upon him) said, "By the One in whose Hand is the soul of Muhammad, there will be no Jew or Christian of this nation who hears of me1 and then dies without believing in that with which I have been sent except that he will be one of the inhabitants of the Hell-fire." (Recorded by Muslim.) This is one of the aspects that distinguishes Muslims from the earlier peoples. Muslims believe in all of the prophets. However, the others refused somewhether it be the Jews rejecting Jesus (peace be upon him) or the Jews and Christians rejecting the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him}­ although, in reality, they had no grounds whatsoever to refuse the later prophet. Each messenger came with clear signs and evidence. Their rejection by the people could only be based on arrogance, ignorance or hostility to the truth. Second, one must believe in all of the Messengers mentioned by name in the Quran or sunnah. As for those not mentioned, one must believe in them at a general levet2, knowing that Allah has sent many messengers although not all of them are mentioned by name in the Quran or hadith. Allah has stated in the Quran, 1 Meaning everyone from the time of the Prophet (peace be upon him) until the Day of Judgment. They are all the Prophet's Nation because they are all obliged to believe in him and follow him. 2 At the same time, no one can claim that a person, for example, Buddha, was a prophet because there is no evidence from the Quran and sunnah to affirm such a claim. Commentary on the Forty Hadith of al-Nawawi "And indeed We have sent messengers before you. Of them, some We have related to you their story and some We have not related to you their story" ( Ghaafir 78). Third, one must believe in everything that they stated. They communicated their messages from Allah completely and properly. They exerted themselves to propagate Allah's message. They strove for the sake of Allah in the most complete manner. They were most knowledgeable of Allah and the best worshippers and servants of Allah. 1 The messengers "have been protected from attributing to Allah something of their own invention, judging according to their own desires, falling into major sins, and adding to or diminishing from the religion. "2 Fourth, one must submit to, accept and act in accord with the law of the messenger who has been sent for his guidance. Allah says in the Quran, (_.... ., .... .,. .... M1 9ƇH t1 / 6ձղ ճ; մċ5 Ǝ G.Gjt "Lj "We sent no messenger but to be obeyed by Allah's leave" (al-Nisaa 64). With respect to the Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him), Allah says in the verse after the verse quoted above, ,,.. J ,,.. ;;i / ,,. J ,, ;;; • " J / "/ / / -: I / : , 1२ "' / J / / J " J ,, L l "' / / ... 1 /: j .J...>- :ii " ࣈ " 1...4-' .!J ' " . .