The Command to Follow the Sunnah and Its Manners

Say (to them, O Messenger): “If you indeed love Allah, then follow me, so that Allah will love you and forgive you your sins. (Al Imran 3:31)
92. Jabir, may Allah be pleased with him, reported that the Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, said, “The metaphor of me and you is that of a man who lights a fire and the grasshoppers and moths begin to fall into it and he chases them away from it. I pull you by your belts back from Hell while you are doing your best to slip from my hand.” (Sahih Muslim, Fadail, 19).
93. Ibn Abbas, may Allah be pleased with him, said, “The Messenger of Allah, peace and blessings be upon him, stood up among us to admonish us and said, ‘O people! You will be gathered to Allah the Almighty barefoot, naked and uncircumcised. “We will bring the creation back into existence as easily as We originated it in the first instance.” (al-Anbiya 21:104) The first of creatures to be clothed on the Day of Rising will be Ibrahim. Men of my community will come and will be taken to the left. I will say, “O Lord, my Companions!” and it will be said, “You do not know what innovations they introduced after you.” I will say the same as the righteous servant (Isa) said, “I was a witness over them so long as I remained among them; and when You took me back, You were Yourself the Watcher over them. Indeed, You are Witness over everything. If You punish them, they are Your servants; and if You forgive them, You are the All-Glorious with irresistible might, the All-Wise.” (al-Maedah 5:117–118) I will be told, “They never stopped turning back on their heels from the time you left them.” (Sahih al-Bukhari, Anbiya, 8, Riqaq, 45; Sahih Muslim, Jannah, 58).

 

Nawawi, Imam. Riyad As-Salihin; The Gardens of the Righteous: A collection of authentic hadiths. Tughra Books Press, Inc. 2014