Salam can some explain the ayah surah 33 ayah 36. The ayah makes it seem as if prophet muhammed takes part in Allah's decisions. This has been bothering me for a while and I hope somebody can help me out.
Sahih International
"It is not for a believing man or a believing woman, when Allah and His Messenger have decided a matter, that they should [thereafter] have any choice about their affair. And whoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger has certainly strayed into clear error."
As'salamu Alaikum dear brother Abdullah,
Allah Almighty in the Holy Quran addressed Prophet Muhammad in three ways:
1- The Prophet.
2- The Messenger.
3- Muhammad.
(1)- The Prophet is the one who both made Prophecies and also is the one that is also a Messenger from Allah Almighty. A Prophet is greater in status than a Messenger. For example, Jesus is a Prophet, Muhammad is a Prophet, Noah is a Prophet because they made Prophecies, and were also Messengers of Allah Almighty who received Divine Revelations.
(2)- The Messenger is one who receives Divine Revelations from Allah Almighty, and is the one who:
1- Details them.
2- Exegetes them.
3- Explains them.[053:003] Nor does he speak out of his own desire.
[053:004] It is nothing but pure revelation revealed by God.
[053:005] The Lord of the Mighty Powers has taught him,[016:102] Say, the Holy Spirit has brought the revelation from thy Lord in Truth, in order to strengthen those who believe, and as a Guide and Glad Tidings to Muslims.Please visit:
www.answering-christianity.com/holy_spirit.htmHowever, according to both the Holy Quran and the Hadiths, not every "hadith" or word that Muhammad the person spoke is a
legitimate Hadith. Plesae visit the following link for the proofs:
www.answering-christianity.com/warning.htm (3)- Muhammad is just the personhood of the Prophet, peace be upon him.
So having said all of that, the Messenger Muhammad, peace be upon him, detailed and explained and exegeted the Holy Quran based on Allah Almighty's Divine Inspirations through:
1- The Holy Spirit.
2- Through direct contact through Angel Gabriel.Again, see the Noble Verses and links above. Therefore, Prophet Muhammad (peace be upon him) the person never invented anything on his own when it came to the Laws of of the Holy Quran. He detailed how to Pray, how to Fast, and how to perform all of the Islamic Duties, Rules and Rituals through the Divine Inspiration. So rejecting the Messenger Muhammad's Commands and Explanations of the Holy Quran was rejecting the Message of Islam:
[004:014] Those who disobey Allah and His messenger, and stray beyond His limits, are the ones whom He will hurl into the hellfire. They will stay there forever. There is a humiliating punishment for them.
[004:059] Oh you who believe! Obey Allah, obey the messenger, and (obey) those who occupy a position of authority among you. Then, should there arise a dispute among you concerning anything, refer it to Allah and the messenger _ if you (really) believe in Allah and the Last Day. That is much better and will (prove to) be the best outcome. This is similar to Prophet Moses, peace be upon him, when he gave the Jews the Divine Law of GOD Almighty. Among the Divine Laws that Moses the Messenger gave the Jews was to prohibition to work on the Holy Sabbath. Some of them rejected the Command and were in turn transformed into pigs and monkies:
[002:065] And well ye knew those amongst you who transgressed in the matter of the Sabbath: We said to them: "Be ye apes, despised and rejected."
[005:060] (Say), “Shall I tell you about the recompense from Allah which is certainly far worse? (Deserving a worse fate are): those whom Allah has cursed, those upon whom fell the wrath of Allah, those whom Allah turned into monkeys and pigs, and the devotees of the arrogant and the evil. Their plight is the worst; they are the farthest away from the straight path.” I hope this helps, insha'Allah. Again, please visit:
www.answering-christianity.com/warning.htm www.answering-christianity.com/holy_spirit.htmAnd last and not least, please visit the following link to see the
Overwhelming Scientific Miracles in the Glorious Quran:
www.answering-christianity.com/ac20.htm#linksTake care,
Osama Abdallah