A child is asking why we have to love and respect our Prophet Muhammad (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) the most

We welcome you to our website and ask Allah to cause you and all the children of the Muslims to grow well; may He help your parents to give you a sound Islamic upbringing so that you can carry the banner of faith and be heroes of this religion. 

I ask you: 

If you love to play, but your father tells you not to play at certain times because of your studies, what would you do? If you truly love your father, you will do as he asks, even though you love to play. 

If you are afraid that your father will punish you, and you know that he punishes the one who does not listen to what he says, then you will stop playing and go study. 

If you expect a gift or a reward from your father when you study or do well, then you will stop yourself playing sometimes, and you will put up with the trouble of studying, because of the reward you hope to earn. 

The bounty of Allah is greater than anything that our fathers and mothers and all people can give us. All the good things that we and our parents have come from Allah. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“And whatever of blessings and good things you have, it is from Allah” [Al-Nahl 16:53]

The reward that Allah has prepared for those who obey Him is the greatest of rewards: Paradise. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“Allah has promised those who believe (in the Oneness of Allah — Islamic Monotheism) and do deeds of righteousness, that for them there is forgiveness and a great reward (i.e. Paradise)” [Al-Maa'idah 5:9]

The punishment that He has prepared for those who disobey Him is the worst of punishments. Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“And whosoever disobeys Allah and His Messenger (Muhammad), and transgresses His limits, He will cast him into the Fire, to abide therein; and he shall have a disgraceful torment” [Al-Nisa’ 4:14]

Obeying Allah can only be achieved by obeying His Messenger (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). Allah says (interpretation of the meaning): 

“He who obeys the Messenger (Muhammad), has indeed obeyed Allah, but he who turns away, then we have not sent you (O Muhammad) as a watcher over them” [Al-Nisa’ 4:80]

So you can only enter Paradise by obeying the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him). 

Al-Tirmidhi (2860) narrated that Jaabir (may Allah be pleased with him) said: The Messenger of Allah (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) came out to us one day and said: “In my dream I saw Jibreel by my head and Mikaa’eel at my feet. One of them said to the other: ‘Let us tell him an parable.’ He said: ‘Let your ears hear and let your heart understand. The likeness of you and your ummah is that of a king who took some land and built a house on it, then he placed a table therein and sent a messenger inviting the people to come and eat. Some of them responded to the messenger and others did not. Allah is the king, the land is Islam, the house is Paradise, and you, O Muhammad, are a messenger. Whoever responds to you enters Islam, and whoever enters Islam will enter Paradise, and whoever enters Paradise will eat what is therein.’”  See al-Silsilah al-Saheehah by al-Albani, 3595. 

Now you know why we have to love the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and respect him the most. It is because he is the one who showed us the path to Paradise. We cannot enter Paradise unless we follow him (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) and follow his Sunnah. Paradise is the greatest thing that the Muslim can hope for and strive for. 

Now I shall tell you of the practical way of expressing this love and obedience: 

You must have heard the story of the Hijrah (migration) of the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him), from your father or in the mosque where you pray, or from your teacher at school. I ask you: 

If ‘Ali ibn Abi Taalib (may Allah be pleased with him) did not love the Prophet (peace and blessings of Allah be upon him) the most, and also respect and obey him the most, would he have been able to undertake this dangerous mission? 

Finally, we thank you for this important question and for your keenness to learn. We have answered the question a little differently in question no. [14250]. Please ask your father to explain this answer to you. 

May Allah help us all to reach the highest level of faith, and bring us to Paradise by His mercy.