The Teachings of Islam
The Relationship Between Man and God
~ 91 ~
THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN MAN
AND GOD
It is written in the Qur’an: “And when My servants
question you concerning Me, tell them that I am
close at hand. I answer the prayer of the suppliant
when he cries to Me. So let them hear My call and
let them trust in Me, in order they may be led
aright.” (2:186). This shows that the relationship
between man and God is reciprocal: man offers God
what he has, then God bestows His favours in
return. Man offers his Lord a gift of realization,
piety and thankfulness. In return, God provides
him with eternal guidance and prosperity.
Man can deal with any problem in either of two
ways: the pious and morally proper way, or the
way in which such values are abandoned. The
correct answer to the call of God is for one to use
one’s intellect to ascertain the right course of action
and then follow it, difficult as it may seem. One
then automatically avoids the easy, though
misguided, way.
