Communicating the divine message was most essential characteristic of God’s messenger. We are worried when we are hungry or thirsty or have troubled breathing. He was worried if a day passed during which he could not convey the divine message to someone. He was so concerned about guidance and so pained by unbelief that God advise him to take care of his health.
“O Muhammad (pbuh), it’s maybe that you will kill yourself following after them with grieve that they do not believe in this message.”
God’s messenger invited all Meccans, both publicly and privately. He called some extremely stubborn people among them, Abu Jahil, at least fifty times. He particularly sought his uncle Abu Talib conversion for he had raised him and protected him from the Meccan polytheists. In the 11th year of his prophethood, when Abu Talib was dying, God’s messenger again invited him to belief. However the Meccan chiefs surrounded him to prevent this.
He was so grieved at Abu Talib’s unbelief that He said,
“I will ask forgiveness from God for you as long as I’m not forbidden”.
A verse was revealed sometime later forbidding him to do this. In this verse, God said,
“It’s not fitting for the prophet and those who believe to ask God to forgive polytheists even though they near of kin to them. After it has become clear to them, they are companions of the fire”.
Abu Bakir, the Prophet’s closest companion, knew how much God’s messenger desired his uncle to be believer. He took his aged father who converted on the day of conquest of Mecca to God’s messenger and weep bitterly. When asked why he was sobbing, he explained,
“O God’s messenger, I so wanted my father to be believer. And now he believes. But even more I wanted Abu Talib to believe for you desired it. However God did not grant him belief. This is why I am weeping”.
One of the best examples of the Messenger’s concern for everyone to believe was his invitation to Vahshi who killed his uncle Hamza at Uhud. It was very brutal and Prophet Muhammad, he cried a lot when he saw his uncle and what’s done, all the mutilation done to his body. So he cried a lot. So the person who did, who killed his uncle was Vahshi. But including Vahshi, Prophet Muhammad want everyone to be saved by believing in Islam, accepting him as the Prophet of God.
God’s Messenger sent for him to accept Islam. Vahshi returned the invitation with a letter including the following verse,
“Those who invoke not with God any other deity, nor kill a soul that God has forbidden, accept for just cause, nor commit illegal sexual intercourse, whoever does this shall receive the punishment. Their torment will be doubled on the Day of Judgement and they will abide therein forever in this grace”.
After the verse Vahshi added, you invite me to accept Islam, but I have committed all the sins mentioned therein in this verse. I have lived immerse in unbelief, had illegal sexual intercourse, and in addition killed your uncle who was most beloved by you. Can such a person really be forgiven and become a Muslim?
God’s there upon, God’s messenger sent him a written reply containing the following verse.
“God forgives not that partners should be associated with Him. But he forgives saved that anything else to whom He wills. Whoever associates partners with God has invented a tremendous sin”.
Vahshi returned the letter with the excuse that the forgiveness promised in this verse, dependent on God’s will. Upon this God’s messenger sent him a third letter in which following verse was included.
“Say, O My servants, who have transgressed against their souls, don’t despair the Mercy of God. God forgives all sins. He is the all Forgiving, the Most Compassionate”.
Through this correspondence, God’s Messenger opened Vahshi’s heart to believe and Vahshi could see himself included in the verse mentioned in the last letter. This correspondence enabled Vahshi to repent sincerely and become a companion. Nevertheless, Hamza’s martyrdom had affected God’s Messenger so deeply that He whispered to Vahshi,
“Try not to present yourself to me too often. I might remember Hazma and thus unable to show you the proper affection”.
So here, including Vahshi, how Prophet Muhammad, He’s struggled to save humanity, even a person who killed his uncle in most brutal way. So you can see how Prophet Muhammad dedicated his life to salvation of humanity. Another fine example of God’s messenger’s nobility and altruism, as well as his love for humanity and concern about people’s guidance, is his acceptance of Ikrimah as a companion. Ikrimah was one of the strongest enemies of Islam and the Messenger. And active placement in all plots to defeat him. He fled to Yemen with his wife on the day Mecca was conquered while many of his comarates chose convention to Islam.
His wife Ummu Hakem, convinced him to go to God’s messenger and ask his forgiveness. Despite his previous hostility, Ikrimah was will come by God’s messenger, with the compliment “Welcome o immigrant rider”. After the conquest of Mecca, there was no immigration. We know in Islam, there are three deeds, or actions that remove, that clean person from all kind of sins. One of them is Hicra, immigration. But immigration in specific time of Islam. It was done from Mecca to Madinah after conquest of Mecca. Immigration removed such, it was obligatory upon Muslims. But such obligation is removed. So there was no need to immigrate from Mecca to Madinah.
However the Prophet Muhammad called Ikrimah as immigrant just to warm his heart to Islam. God’s messenger was alluding to Ikrimah’s long journey from Yemen to Madinah. Ikrimah was deeply affected by such nobility and requested him to ask God’s pardon for his sins. When the messenger did so, Ikrimah felt accelerated and promised to spend for the sake of Islam double what he had spent fighting it.
Ikrimah fulfilled his promise at the battle of Yermuk where he was wounded, seeing his wife crying beside him in the tent. He told her,
“Don’t weep, for I won’t die before I witness the victory”.
Sometime later, his uncle Hisham entered and announced Muslims’ victory. Ikrimah asked to be helped to stand up and when they did so, whispered
“O God’s Messenger, have I carried out the promise I gave you?”.
Then he recited,
“make me die as Muslim and join me to the righteous”
and submitted his soul to God.
This alludes that in the last moment of his life, he saw the Prophet Muhammad (pbuh) in his stand. Maybe Prophet Muhammad helped him, in his last breath, to give his life on the way of, in the path of Allah. So, since he’s struggled, he spent his life, at least the last part of his life, in the way of Allah. God’s messenger will come to him, and helped him in the last moment of his life.
