Abu ‘Abd al-Rahman al-Sulami narrated from ‘Uthman ibn ‘Affan that the Prophet (ﷺ) said:
خَيْرُكُمْ مَنْ تَعَلَّمَ الْقُرْآنَ وَعَلَّمَهُ
The best of you are those who learn the Qur’an and teach it. [al-Bukhari and elsewhere.]
In his collection of authentic ahaadeeth, sheikh Muhammad Naasir al-Deen al-Albani made the following brief comments on this hadeeth:
This hadeeth contains direction to learn the Qur’an, and that the best of teachers is the teacher of the Qur’an, and also that the best thing a person can learn is learning the Qur’an. How I wish that the students of knowledge would know this, for this is a tremendous benefit. For there is a terrible condition that has become widespread in this age of ours that you find many of the du’aat and beginning students of knowledge who put themselves forward for da’wah, giving fataawaa and responding to people’s questions when they have not yet become proficient in reciting surah al-Fatihah with the correct pronunciation and articulation of each letter. So sometimes he might pronounce the letter seen as ṣaad, or ṭa as ta, or dhal as zay, or thaa as seen, and they commit gross errors in pronunciation, not to mention less obvious ones. But what is obligatory – obviously – is to become proficient in reciting the Qur’an from memory, such that one is proficient in articulating the ayaat and utilizing them in one’s admonitions, lessons, and da’wah.
So sometimes you see these types becoming preoccupied with what is saheeh versus what is dha’eef, refutations of the scholars, and weighing the various different statements of the scholars. And you always hear such a person saying things which are above his level, for instance you see him say, “I think this” and “I say this”, “My position on this matter is such-and-such”, “In my view, the correct opinion is such-and-such”.
One of the amazing things is that you find these types of people never speak about any issue which is not disputed. Instead, these people – except for those whom Allah protects – are always talking about the matters of differing so that he can insert himself into the discourse, or if he can’t do that, then to select whichever one of the positions he prefers. I seek refuge with Allah from insincerity and seeking fame, and I advise myself first and these people secondly that the best thing for the student of knowledge to begin with is the memorization of the Qur’an, just as Allah said:
But remind those who fear My threat with the Qur’an [50:45]
May Allah bestow His peace and blessings upon our prophet, Muhammad, and upon his family and his companions.
[al-Silsilah al-Saheehah, hadeeth no.1173]
Research Center For Hadith 