Whenever God showers a people or a community with His favour and His grace, he invariably requires some sacrifice from them. In other words, sacrifice is essential if one wants to gain the nearness of Allah and His pleasure. What is this sacrifice? It varies depending on the circumstances of every age. At the time of the Holy Prophet^(sa), for instance, financial sacrifice did exist, but sacrificing one’s life was more important because Muslims were undergoing continuous atrocities at the hands of the disbelievers, and were forced into the battlefield. But in his tiding of یَضَعُ الْحَرْب (He will do away with war), the Holy Prophet^(sa) foretold that it would not be necessary to sacrifice one’s life at the time of the Promised Messiah^(as). The Promised Messiah’s^(as) duty would be to start a Jihad with the pen, for which financial sacrifice would be necessary.

The Promised Messiah^(as) said:

“What a blessed time this is! No one is asked to lay down his life. This is not the time for offering the ultimate sacrifice; rather it is the time to spend out of one’s possessions, according to one’s means.” Al-Hakm Qadian, July 10, 1903.