This, then, is what it means to take them as lords in place of Allah: when they declare lawful what Allah has forbidden and forbid what He has permitted, and people comply with them in that, those people have indeed made them lords. For the One who lays down legislation for humanity—declaring things lawful and unlawful—is Allah alone.

“If they turn away”—that is, if they reject the call to pure monotheism—“then say, ‘Bear witness that we are Muslims.’” Have them testify that you uphold the oneness of Allah and that they are disbelievers, and make plain to them the falsehood of what they follow. In this verse lies a clear disavowal of the religion of the polytheists and an open proclamation of that disavowal. “Bear witness that we are Muslims” therefore entails the duty to announce publicly the invalidity of polytheism, to refrain from remaining silent about it, and to expose its error and refute its followers.

In summary: the declaration la ilaha illa Allah (“there is no deity worthy of worship but Allah”) rests on two pillars—negation and affirmation. So if you are asked, “What are the pillars of la ilaha illa Allah?” answer: negation and affirmation.