الحمد لله، الحمد لله الذي فرض الصيامَ في رمضان، وأنزل فيه القرءان، ووعد لمن صامه أيمانا واحتسابا العفو والغفران، نحمده تعالى ونستعينه، ونشكره تعالى ونستغفره ونستغيثه، نعوذ بالله من شرور أنفسنا ومن سيئات أعمالنا، من يهد الله فهو المهتد ومن يضلل فلن تجد له وليا مرشدا، ونشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له، له الملك و له الحمد، يحيي ويميت، بيده الخير، وهو على كل شيء قدير،  ونشهد أن سيدنا و مولانا محمداً عبده ورسوله، وحبيبه وصفيه، بلغ الرسالة وأدّى الأمانة ونصح الأمة، النبي الأمي الذي أرسله الله بالهدى والدين الحق، بشيرا ونذيرا بين يدي الساعة، صلى الله عليه وسلم وعلى آله وأصحابه ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.
أما بعد! فيا عباد الله اتقوا الله حق تقاته ولا تموتن إلا وأنتم مسلمون. يأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله وقولوا قولا سديدا يصلح لكم أعمالكم ويغفر لكم ذنوبكم. ومن يطع الله ورسوله فقد فاز فوزا عظيما. اتقوا الله فيما أمر وانتهوا عما نها عنه وزجر.
قال الله تعالى في كتابه الكريم  “يَا أَيُّهَا الذِينَ آَمَنُوا كتبَ عَليْكُمُ الصِّيَامُ كمَا كُتِبَ عَلَى الَّذِينَ مِنْ قَبْلِكُمْ لَعَلَّكُمْ تَتَّقُونَ أَيَّامًا مَعْدُودَاتٍ.”

    Allah says in His Noble Book, the translation of which is, “O you who believe, fasting is prescribed for you as it was prescribed for those before you - so that perhaps you will gain taqwa - for a specified number of days.” Today is the twentieth of Sha’ban: another year has passed and Ramadan is once again almost upon us, that longed-for guest whose visit we eagerly await, that glorious month which is the focus and fulcrum of our entire year, the veritable prince of months. The Prophet said,
سيد الشهور رمضان، وسيد الأيام يوم الجمعة.

    “The lord of all the months is Ramadan and the lord of all the days is Jumu‘a.” For most of us, Ramadan has become synonymous with fasting, for it is this month that Allah made it obligatory to fast. And they think that is what makes it special. But the opposite is true - it is because of the special and blessed nature of its time that Allah chose to place the obligatory fast within it. So that our own states might be more receptive to taking advantage of its many qualities and wonders. The Prophet alluded to some of these in a famous khutba he delivered in the final days of Sha’ban, saying,

يا أيها الناسُ إنه قد أظلكم شهرٌ عظيمٌ مبارَكٌ، فيه ليلةُ القدر وهي خيرٌ من ألفِ شهرٍ، فرض اللهُ صيامَه وجعل قيامَ ليلِه تطوُّعا. فمن تطوَّع بخصلةٍ من الخيرِ كان كمن أدّى فريضةً فيما سِواه، ومن أدى فريضةً فيه كان كمَن أدى سبعين فريضة فيما سواه،
    “O people! A great and blessed month has come to you - a month in which there is a a night which is better than a thousand months; a month in which Allah has made it obligatory to fast and in which he has made standing in prayer during the night a voluntary action. Anyone who draws near to Allah during it by means of a voluntary good action is like someone who performs one of the obligatory actions outside it and performing an obligatory action during it is equivalent to performing seventy obligatory actions at any other time.”

وهو شهر الصبر، والصبر ثوابُه الجنة، وهو شهر المواساة، وشهرٌ يزاد فيه رزقُ المؤمن،

    “It is the month of sabr and the reward for sabr is the Garden. It is the month of generous giving and the month in which a believer’s provision is increased.”

من فطر فيه صائما كان له عتقُ رقبةٍ ومغفرةٌ لذنوبه وكان له أجرُه من غير أن يَنقُصَ من أجرِه شَيءٌ

    “If someone gives someone fasting something with which to break their fast, it will be as if he has freed a slave and he will be forgiven his wrong actions, and he will have the same reward as the one he feeds without that diminishing his reward in any way.”
    The first thing the Messenger of Allah mentions is the fact that this month contains the laylat al-Qadr. If it were not enough that Allah multiplies the reward for our good actions by at least 70 times throughout the month, on top of that He imbues one of its nights with such light and baraka that it is better than one thousand months. Allah says in surat-al-Qadr,

إِنا أَنزَلنَاهُ فِي ليْلةِ القدْرِ، وَما أَدْرَاكَ ما ليْلةُ القدْرِ، ليْلةُ القدْرِ خيْرٌ منْ أَلْفِ شَهْرٍ.

    the translation of which is, “Truly We sent it down on the Laytal al-Qadr. And what will convey to you what the Laylatal al-Qadr is? The Laylat al-Qadr is better than a thousand months.” And these months are not just any old one thousand months, a period of time that equates to eighty-three years - a full lifetime, but one thousand months of one who believes in and worships Allah - an immeasurable amount of good action all found in one single night of this coming month. How do we gain access to this tremendous treasure? By bringing the night to life, by filling it, or at least a portion of it, with dhikr and prayer. The Prophet said,

من قام ليلةَ القدر إيمانا واحتسابا غُفر له ما تقدم من ذنبِه

    “Whoever stands in prayer on the Laylat al-Qadr, with belief and the anticipation of reward for doing so, will be forgiven all the wrong actions that he has committed up to that point.” This is not a night to be missed, and according to the majority of the mufassirin and men of knowledge, it could fall on any one of the last ten nights of Ramadan, and indeed some say, on any of the nights of Ramadan. So make sure to get your portion of qiyam al-layl by attending the Tarawih. The Tarawih is a unique opportunity to hear the whole Quran recited, an opportunity that the majority of us almost never get outside of Ramadan, so take advantage of it.
    And strive also to recite the whole Quran yourself during the course of the month, for this month and the Quran have a special affinity. You will find more than ample time and you will find your understanding and taste for its meanings to be heightened. For Ramadan is the month of Quran for it was sent down in its entirety during the course of it. Allah says:

شهْرُ رَمَضانَ الذِي أُنزِلَ فيهِ القرْآنُ هُدًى للنَّاسِ وَبيِّنَاتٍ منْ الهُدَى وَالْفُرْقَانِ

    the translation of which is, “The month of Ramadan is the one in which the Qur‘an was sent down as guidance for mankind, with Clear Signs containing guidance and furqan (discrimination).” And during it, the Messenger of Allah would recite it in its entirety to Jibril.
    The second thing the Prophet mentioned in his khutba was the fact that Allah singled out Ramadan for the obligatory fast, thereby honouring the month still further. For fasting is a unique act of worship, singled out by Allah for a special unspecified reward known to none but Him. Allah says in a hadith qudsi,
كل عمل ابن آدم له إلا الصيام فإنه لي وأنا أجزي به

    “Every good action of the son of Adam is for him, except fasting which is for Me, and I will assign him a reward for it.” And for it and those who do it, a special gate to the Garden has been created. The Messenger of Allah said,

إن في الجنةِ بابا يقال له الرّيّانُ يدخل منه الصائمون يومَ القيامةِ لا يدخل منه أحدٌ غيرُهم، ي

    “There is a gate to the Garden called ar-Rayyan through which will only those who fast will be allowed to pass and no one else on the Day of Rising.”
    Then the Prophet mentions that this month increases us in sabr and in generous giving, and indeed in every other good quality of character. And that is due to two things - the tremendous uplifting almost-tangible baraka of the month, and the fact that the forces that command us to evil are considerably weakened. The call of the appetites and nafs are weakened by the physical act of fasting and the shayatin who at all other times flow through us like our own blood and whisper constantly in our ears are chained up. The Prophet said,

إِذَا جَاءَ رَمَضانُ فتِّحَتْ أَبْوَابُ الجَنَّةِ وَغلقتْ أَبْوَابُ النَّارِ وَصُفِّدَت الشَّيَاطِينُ

    “When Ramadan comes, the Gates of the Garden are opened, the Gates of the Fire are closed, and the Shaytans are chained up.” We are no longer battling against a raging current, but rather it is with us and pushing us forward. So this is the time to give generously, this is the time to forgive your brothers with whom you have grievances and re-establish ties, this is the time to fill your homes with guests and share with them your food. As the Prophet said at the end of the khutba we mentioned earlier,

من فطر صائما فله مثلُ أجرِه من غير أن يَنقُصَ من أجرِ الصائمِ شَيءٌ

    “Anyone who provides someone with the means to break his fast, will have a reward the like of the one who is fasting without taking away from that person’s own reward in any way.”

أقول قولي هذا وأستغفر الله لي ولكم ولسائر المسلمين من كل ذنب فاستغفروه إنه هو الغفور الرَّحيم
الحمد لله الحمد لله رب العالمين، وأشهد أن لا إله إلا الله وحده لا شريك له وأشهد أن محمداً عبده ورسوله، صلى الله وسلم وبارك عليه وعلى آله وصحبه، والتابعين وتابعي التابعين ومن تبعهم بإحسان إلى يوم الدين.
أما بعد! فيأيها الذين ءامنوا اتقوا الله ما استطعتم واسمعوا وأطيعوا وأنفقوا خيرا لأنفسكم. يا عباد الله أوصيكم وإياي بتقوى الله وطاعته وأحذركم وإياي عن معصيته ومخالفته. قال الله عز وجل في كتابه العزيز: “وَأما مَن خافَ مَقامَ ربِّه وَنهَا النَّفْسَ عَنِ الْهَوَى فَإِنَّ الجَنَّةَ هِيَ الْمَأْوى” 

    Allah says in His Mighty Book, “But as for him who feared the Station of his Lord and forbade the lower self its appetites, the Garden will be his refuge.”
    True fasting entails more than just abstaining from food, drink and sexual intercourse, for they are but the appetites of two of the seven jawarih - the stomach and private parts,  – it entails also abstaining from the appetites and wrong actions of the remainder – the tongue, eyes, ears, hands and feet. If he does not do this, then a person’s fast may well be legally acceptable but bereft of any benefit or reward. It is to such people that the Prophet was referring when he said,

رُبَّ صائمٍ حظُّه من صيامه الجوعُ والعطُش، ورُبَّ قائمٍ حظه من قيامه التَعب والسَهَر
    “So many who fast get nothing but hunger and thirst from their fasting, and so many who stand the night in prayer get nothing but tiredness and sleeplessness from their standing.” For what would the point in denying yourself what is normally lawful for you while engaging in what is normally unlawful for you? As Imam al-Ghazali said, that would be like building a palace while destroying a city. This is emphasised still further in other hadiths: The Prophet, said,

من لم يدع قول الزور والعمل به فليس لله حاجة في أن يدع طعامه وشرابه
     “If someone does not abandon false testimony or false action, then Allah will have no need of him giving up his food or drink,” meaning that his fasting will be meaningless and will not be accepted. And Jabir ibn Abdallah, said, “When you fast, let your ears, eyes and tongue abstain/fast from lying, from that which is haram and from (looking at) those who are haram for you. Avoid disturbing or harming neighbour and remain serene and at peace. The days upon which you fast should not be the same as the days upon which you do not fast.” In other words, true fasting is controlling your limbs and reactions as well as your bodily appetites. True fasting is abstention from all that Allah has forbidden you.
    We ask Allah to increase us in sabr during the month of Ramadan, increase us in right action and help to avoid us wrong action. We ask Him to accept our fast and give us the himma to take advantage of its nights. We ask Him to make the Quran our constant companion throughout it and open our hearts to the meanings of its Noble Words. We ask Him to give us the strength and capacity to partake in the many lights and delights of Ramadan and make us among those who find the Laylat al-Qadr and benefit from its rewards.

إِنَّ اللهَ وَملَائكتَهُ يُصلُّونَ عَلَى النَّبِيِّ، يا أَيهَا الذِينَ آمنُواْ صلُّواْ عليْهِ وَسَلِّمُواْ تَسْلِيماً. اللَّهُمَّ صَلِّ وَسَلِّمْ وَبَارِكْ عَلَيْهِ وَعَلَى آلِهِ وَصَحْبِهِ  أَجْمَعِينَ.
وَارْضَ اللهُمَّ عنِ الخلفَاءِ الرَّاشدِينَ أَبِي بكرٍ وَعمرَ وَعثْمانَ وَعلِيٍّ، وَعن عائشةَ وسائر أزواج النبي، وعنْ سائرِ الصحابَةِ أَجمعينَ، خصُوصاً اِلأَنصَارَ منْهُمْ وَالمهاجرِينَ، وَعنِ التَّابعينَ وَتابعِي التَّابعينَ وَمَنْ تبعهُمْ بِإِحْسَانٍ إِلى يَوْمِ الدِّينِ.
اللهُمَّ اهدِ وُلَاةَ أُمُورِ المُسلِمينَ لما يُرْضيكَ وَلِاتِّبَاعِ سنَّةِ نبيِّكَ صلَّى اللهُ عَليْهِ وَسَلَّمَ، وَثَبِّتْ أَقْدَامَهُمْ عَلَى الصِّرَاطِ المُسْتَقِيمِ، وَأَصْلِحْهُمْ يَا رَبَّ الْعَالَمِينَ.
اللَّهُمَّ بَارِكْ عَلَى شَيْخِنَا، وَعَلَى أَمِيرِنَا، وَعَلَى جَمِيعِ أُمَرَاءِ وَزُعَمَاءِ المُسْلِمِينَ. 
اللهُمَّ بارِكْ علَى المُسلِمينَ فِي هَذِهِ المدِينَةِ، وَوَفقهُمْ لما تُحبُّهُ وَتَرْضاهُ يَا أَكرَمَ الأَكْرَمِينَ.
اللهُمَّ أَعزَّ الإِسلَامَ وَالمُسلمينَ (3) وَاخذُلِ الكفْرَ وَالكافرِينَ، وَانصرِ المجاهدِينَ فِي سَبِيلِ اللهِ. وَاجْعَلْ كَلِمََتَكَ هِيَ العُلْيَا وَكَلِمَةَ الْكُفْرِ هيَ السُّفْلَى.
رَبَّنَا ءَاتِنَا فِي الدُّنْيَا حَسَنَةً وَفِي الآخِرَةِ حَسَنَةً وَقَِنَا عَذَابَ النَّارِ.
اللهُمَّ لاَ تَدَعْ فِي مقامنَا هَذَا ذَنباً إِلاَّ غفَرْتهُ، وَلاَ عيْباً إِلاَّ ستَرْتهُ، وَلاَ مَرِيضاً إِلاَّ شفَيْتَهُ وَعافيْتَهُ، وَلاَ مسجُوناً إِلاَّ طلقتَ سرَاحَهُ، وَلاَ مُسَافراً فِي بَرِّكَ وَبَحْرِكَ إِلاَّ سَلِِمْتَهُ وَغَنِمْتَهُ.
إِنَّ اللهَ يامُرُ بالعدْلِ وَالإِحسانِ وَإِيتَاءِ ذِي القرْبَى، وَيَنْهَى عنِ الفَحشاءِ وَالمنكرِ وَالبَغْيِ، يَعظُكمْ لعَلكمْ تذَّكرُونَ، وَلذِكرُ اللهِ أَكبَرُ وَاللهُ يَعْلمُ مَا تَصْنَعُونَ. وَقُومُواْ إِلَى صَلاتِكُمْ يَرْحَمُكُمُ اللهُ.