“…Or do they have associate-gods who have laid down for them a way of life to which Allah has given no permission?” (Q. 42:21)

Accordingly, no one truly believes in Him unless he worships Him by obeying His messengers; and no one can be counted a believer in Him, nor a worshipper of Him, unless he believes in all of His messengers and obeys the one who has been sent to him. Each messenger must be obeyed until the coming of the next, at which point obedience is owed to the latter.

The Exalted said: “We sent no messenger except that he should be obeyed by Allah’s leave” (Q. 4:64).

The ruling on one who makes distinctions among the messengers:

Whoever differentiates between His messengers—believing in some while rejecting others—is a disbeliever, as the Exalted said:

“Indeed, those who disbelieve in Allah and His messengers and seek to make a distinction between Allah and His messengers, saying, ‘We believe in some and reject others,’ and wish to take a middle course—those are the ones who are truly disbelievers, and We have prepared for the disbelievers a humiliating punishment. But those who believe in Allah and His messengers and make no distinction between any of them, He will soon grant them their rewards; and Allah is ever Forgiving, Merciful.” (Q. 4:150–152)

Now that Muhammad—peace and blessings be upon him—is the Seal of the Prophets, and since there will be no messenger after him, no one charged with renewing the religion, Allah, glorified and exalted be He, has continually