All praise is due to Allah. He ordered us to do good deeds and promised good doers with the best of degrees. We praise Him as He should be praised. We bear witness that there is no deity save Allah, having no associates. He is the All-Knowing of all the hidden secrets and the unknown. We also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is the servant of Allah and His Messenger. He was the best guide to the path of Paradise. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon our noble Prophet, his pure, virtuous family and companions, and all those who follow them as long as the heavens and the earth endure.

As to what follows,

O servants of Allah, I urge you and myself to be aware that you are asked to obey Him, the Most High, in line with His orders: "O you who have believed, fear Allah as He should be feared and do not die except as Muslims [in submission to Him]." (Al Imran: 102).

O Servants of Allah,

Please know that this life is a race field leading to the next life. Those who hasten to good deeds will, by Allah's favour, earn His sublime pleasure and be in His side in the finest of dwellings. Indeed, to be a virtuous believer in this life, one needs to be faithful and fulfil as many good deeds as possible. This is because in the next life, every person will be rewarded or punished according to their attitude and efforts during their stay on earth. Allah, the Almighty says, "and among them is he who wrongs himself, and among them is he who is moderate, and among them is he who is foremost in good deeds by permission of Allah. That [inheritance] is what the great bounty is." (Fatir: 32).

Being foremost in good deeds is devoting one's life to carrying out acts of righteousness. This requires being committed to acts of goodness towards one's relatives, homeland and others. Verily, our worldly life resembles a race course where people compete to work and build. Yet, only those who are determined enough to race for good work shall win. Reward and punishment will, therefore, be in proportion to each person's contribution. So whatever one does will be recorded for them, be it good or bad. Allah, the Almighty, says, "O mankind, indeed you are labouring toward your Lord with [great] exertion and will meet it." (Al Inshiqaq: 6).

Labour in this Aya means working and earning a living. Allah, the Exalted is He, has enjoined mankind to devote their efforts in kindness and piety and to abandon all that which is forbidden and harmful. The Almighty says, "so race to [all that is] good. To Allah is your return all together, and He will [then] inform you concerning that over which you used to differ." (Al Maeda: 48).

The prophets, peace upon them, responded to Allah's call and followed such a noble path. This is reflected in this Aya: "they used to hasten to good deeds and supplicate Us in hope and fear, and they were to Us humbly submissive." (Al Anbyaa: 90). The Prophets' path was then followed by the righteous people throughout the ages as described here: "and hasten to good deeds. And those are among the righteous." (Al Imran: 114). About them, Allah also says, "and they who give what they give while their hearts are fearful because they will be returning to their Lord. It is those who hasten to good deeds, and they outstrip [others] therein." (Al Muminoon: 60-61).

Dear Muslims,

A person whose good deeds are reflected in the way he thinks, the words he says and the actions he takes is, indeed, the true believer who fulfil efficiently his duties towards Allah, the Almighty. This can be seen in his efforts to develop this world and promote stability and prosperity. From this perspective, the Prophet pbuh called on every able Muslim to perform charity. And although means and types of goodness are many and tend to change over the time, yet they are all have one purpose: Serving the well-being of mankind. This way, all sorts of good work complement each other, hence leading to the prosperity of the entire community and nation.

Our Master Muhammad pbuh, gave many examples of good deeds suitable for all times and places. For instance, he said, "every act of goodness is a charity." He also said, "every Muslim has to give in charity." The people asked, "if someone has nothing to give, what will he do?" He said, "he should work with his hands and benefit himself and also give in charity (from what he earns)." The people further asked, "if he cannot find even that?" He replied, "he should help the needy who appeal for help." Then the people asked, "if he cannot do that?" He replied, "then he should perform good deeds and keep away from evil deeds and this will be regarded as charitable deeds."

In another Hadith, the Prophet pbuh said, "every good word is a charity. A man's helping his brother is a charity. A drink of water which he gives is a charity. Removing something harmful from the road is a charity." These are a few examples but they also serve as guidelines for people to hold on to.

O Servants of Allah,

True believers are those who firmly decide to be positive and beneficial in all their actions, cultivating the seeds of goodness wherever they go or settle. To this effect, they treat their family in kindness, causing them no harm. They are also lenient with their neighbours and colleagues and bring to people all that is virtuous. By so doing, one will rise to the status earned by the righteous ancestors who were the people of excellence in this life and in the next. The Exalted is He says, "and whatever good they do - never will it be removed from them." (Al Imran: 115). That is: their good deeds will not be lost, but rather kept in their records and they shall be rewarded for them.

It is likewise good to know that amongst the virtues of the acts of goodness is that it makes their doers a source of generosity. They will, by Allah's grace, be dearest to him thanks to their manners and deeds. The Messenger of Allah pbuh said in this regard, "the most beloved deed to Allah is the most regular and constant even if it were little." This means the acts that are being performed continuously so long as one may live would be most liked by Allah. This is also reflected in another Hadith in which he pbuh said, "goodness is a (natural) habit while evil is stubbornness (constant prodding from Satan)." That is the believers should do so much acts of goodness so it becomes a habit and, yet, avoid evil deeds for they bring restlessness and sorrow.

Let us, then, be determined and look into our deeds so as to do only those which are beneficial and win the race towards Heaven. Indeed, those who are persistent on kindness and righteousness are the ones who will live happily and bring happiness to their society. Their actions shall, thus, be appreciated in this life and in the next. Salman, may Allah be pleased with him, said, "he who seeks happiness should perform the acts of goodness and join the gatherings that are held for a noble cause. And he who is persistent on doing good deeds and makes it a way of life, Allah shall help him and grant him His Protection."

Dear Muslims,

Rest assured that the acts of goodness are kept with Allah and cannot be wasted. Allah does not allow the reward of believers to be diminished; it comes sooner or later. As such, whoever performs good deeds, the Almighty will remove their troubles and distress. This way they will be credited with contribution to the happy society that our wise leadership strives to maintain for us. This can be achieved only by doing good work and racing to do charitable acts. Let us, therefore, increase our pace towards the acts of generosity in order to achieve happiness and success in this world and in the Hereafter. Let us also do that without any delay for reluctance limits positive action. The people of wisdom said, "beware of postponing the act of goodness that you intend to do and do it before it was too late." Allah, the Almighty, also says, "O you who have believed, bow and prostrate and worship your Lord and do good - that you may succeed." (Al Hajj: 77).

With this in mind, we implore to Allah to grant us success in doing that which is good, avoiding that which is evil and being kind to the needy.

O Allah, may You guide us all to obey You and obey Your truthful and honest Messenger Muhammad pbuh and obey those You have commanded us to obey in line with Your orders: "O you who have believed, obey Allah and obey the Messenger and those in authority among you" (An-Nisaa: 59).

May Allah direct us all to the blessings of the Glorious Quran and the Sunna of His Messenger pbuh.

I say this and ask Allah for forgiveness for me and you, so invoke Him for forgiveness, for He is the Most Forgiving, the Most Merciful.

Second Sermon

All praise is due to Allah, the Lords of the Worlds. I bear witness that there is no deity save Allah, having no associates. I also bear witness that our Master Muhammad is the servant of Allah and His Messenger. May the peace and blessings of Allah be upon ou­­r Master Muhammad, his pure family, companions, and all those who follow them in righteousness till the Day of Judgment.

As to what follows,

O worshipers,

Please be aware that the first thing we should advise each other about is obeying Allah, the Most Gracious, and understand that the doorways to goodness are open and the path to it is paved. Glad tidings, therefore, for those who Allah made it easy for them to be generous, touch the heart of the poor with happiness, draw a smile on their face and help the less fortunate. Undoubtedly, those will find their good deeds with Allah as evidenced in this Aya, "and whatever good you put forward for yourselves, you will find it with Allah. It is better and greater in reward." (Al Muzzammil: 20). This means: whatever you do in this world for charity or in the way of goodness for the sake of Allah's pleasure, you will find it in the Hereafter as multiples in reward.

That is said, please bear in mind that you are instructed to invoke peace and blessings on the Prophet pbuh. The Messenger of Allah pbuh said, "for everyone who invokes a blessing on me will receive ten blessings from Allah."

O Allah, please confer Your blessings and grant peace upon our Prophet Muhammad pbuh.

O Lord, we pray to You to grant us success in hastening to the acts of goodness and taking provisions from the righteous deeds. O Allah, please make us amongst the people of Paradise, O Lord of the World.

May Allah have mercy on the honourable martyrs of our country and those of the coalition and gather them with the righteous. May Allah make their dwelling with the ones upon whom Allah has bestowed favour of the prophets and the steadfast affirmers of truth, O the Most Gracious the Most Forgiving.

O Allah, please grant the best reward for the families of the martyrs and offer them patience and solace. May Allah grant victory to the soldiers of the Arab Coalition who gathered to restore the rights to their owners. O Lord, please be by their side and guide the Yemeni people to everything that is good. O Allah, make them rally for the word of truth and legitimacy, and bless them with welfare and stability, O the Most Generous.

May Allah be pleased with the Rightly Guided Caliphs: Abu Bakr, Umar, Uthman and Ali, and all of the Companions.

O Allah, may we ask You for all that is good, in this world and in the Hereafter. O Allah, we seek Your grace to admit us, our parents, whoever has done a favour to us and all Muslims to Your Paradise.

May Allah grant success and continued health and care to the UAE President HH Sheikh Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan. May Allah also ensure success to his Vice-President, trustworthy Crown Prince and his brothers, Their Highnesses the Rulers of the Emirates.

O Allah, please forgive all of the Muslims, men and women, living and dead. May Allah have mercy on Sheikh Zayed, Sheikh Maktoum and the Late UAE Sheikhs. O Lord, forgive and show mercy on our parents, relatives and whoever has done a favour to us.

O Allah, we pray to You to grant Your forgiveness and reward to who built this mosque and to his or her parents as well as to anyone who gave to this mosque. O Allah, we also supplicate to You to forgive whoever built a mosque where Your name is remembered.

O Allah, make this gathering one of compassion, and our dispersion after it one that is infallible. O Allah, do not let anyone amongst us be deprived or desperate.

We pray to Allah, the Lord of the Worlds, to protect the UAE against any of temptations, both apparent and hidden, and continue blessing the UAE with safety and security.

O Allah, we implore you to send upon us wealthy rain and make us not amongst those who are desperate. O Allah, relieve us! O Allah, relieve us! O Allah, relieve us! O Lord, provide us from the blessings of the sky a beneficial rain and make our crops grow.

Our Lord, give us in this world that which is good and in the Hereafter that which is good, and save us from the torment of the Fire.

O Servants of Allah "indeed, Allah orders justice and good conduct and giving to relatives and forbids immorality and bad conduct and oppression. He admonishes you that perhaps you will be reminded." (An-Nahl: 90).

Remember Allah and He will remember you. Be grateful of His benevolence and He will increase His blessings to you. Allah says, "and establish prayer. Indeed, prayer prohibits immorality and wrongdoing, and the remembrance of Allah is greater. And Allah knows that which you do." (Al Ankaboot: 45).