Invitation to Ahmadiyyat — Page 210
210 shortcomings. It is not for those who deliberately continue to sin in the hope of attaining intercession. The purpose of intercession was to eradicate sin, not to promote it. He also clarified that even though the Shariah is not the objec - tive in itself, total obedience to God is the objective and, therefore, we must follow His laws and commandments. Finding God is not a finite objective that can be attained, after which one no longer needs to worship. The Holy Prophet s as , to his dying day, was com - manded to pray: َكاَّيِا ُدُبْعَن َو َكاَّيِا ُنْيِعَتْسَن۰۰ؕ ‘Only You do we worship’ and اَنِدْهِا َطاَرِّصلا َمْيِقَتْسُمْلا۰۰ۙ ‘Guide us on the right path’. How can any - one else claim that he does not need to pray anymore? Those who think in this way consider God to be a finite goal, like the bank of a river, and try to hide their impiety under such false beliefs. The Promised Messiah as also pointed out that the laws of the Islamic Shariah are the best means to help man attain perfection. These laws are equally beneficial to people of every age and every civilisation. Spiritual progress is not possible without them. It is misleading to say that the laws of Shariah are no longer applicable or that they can be replaced by other acts and deeds. The Promised Messiah as also clarified the distinction between religious obligations and cultural or national norms and tradi - tions. He said that, aside from the religious obligations, it is not permissible to oblige people to follow the cultural norms and customs followed by the Holy Prophet s as. Even the Companions of the Holy Prophet s as differed about those norms but they never criticised one another for doing so. The Promised Messiah as also repudiated the opinion of some people that since the Holy Prophet s as is only a mortal like us, we are not obliged to obey him. He said that God’s Prophets are