Why is Muhammad a role model for Muslim life?

Muhammad's actions and recorded sayings are considered by Muslims to be guidelines for proper behavior. The Qu'ran, which was dictated to Muhammad by the angel Gabriel, is, of course, the most important of all religious texts in Islam. But the hadith, a collection of Muhammad's sayings and actions, is also very important to many Muslims, though some reject it as not completely authentic. From these texts, Muslims derive a sense of what Muhammad the man was like and how his actions can be used as an example to them.
Though he was human, Muslims believe that Muhammad was divinely chosen to be God's Prophet to man. The Qu'ran says in various places that Muhammad, as the Prophet, is to serve as an example for right thought and action. Therefore, his actions—broadly, submitting to God and spreading the faith—and his sayings represent the divine will for man. So when Muhammad says in the hadith that believers should not "turn away a poor man," or that they should "show courtesy and be cordial" to each other, many of the faithful consider these things to be rules to live by.
http://www.religioustolerance.org/isl_hadiq.htm

https://rlp.hds.harvard.edu/religions/islam/muhammad-messenger-god

https://www.pbs.org/empires/islam/profilesmuhammed.html


If you look at the Five Pillars of Islam, you will note the first is the following:

There is no god but God and Muhammad is the messenger of God.

While Muhammad is human, not God, he is God's messenger. There is no higher or more revered place a human can hold in Islam.
Muslims look up to Muhammad as a role model because he lives the way God wants all human beings to live. Muslims, as do all religious people, want to be right with God, and Muhammad shows them how to do this through his virtuous life. Like Jesus for Christians, Muhammad is considered to have lived (as closely as possible) a perfect life: one all Muslims want to live and which Muhammad said was possible to achieve by following his path.
Muslims honor other prophets common to Judaism and Christianity, such as Moses and Jesus (who they believe was a prophet rather than the son of God). But Muhammad has a special place of honor because he is considered the final prophet sent by God. His word is definitive, correcting any mistakes former prophets might have made.


The Prophet Muhammad serves as a role model for Muslims in many ways. Devout Muslims today look at the life that Muhammad led as an example to follow. They see his life as laid out in their religious texts as an example of virtue and morality and as a roadmap for avoiding sin in one's own life.
The Qu'ran says specifically to look at Muhammad as a role model.

Verily in the messenger of Allah you have a good example for him who looks unto Allah and the Last Day, and remembers Allah much.

According to Islamic belief, Muhammad was chosen by Allah to be the prophet because of his impeccable virtue. To follow in the Prophet's footsteps is to lead a life according to Allah's wishes.
The Sunnah exists as a recording of the habits and practices of Muhammad. Muslims may follow examples in the Sunnah if they strive to live as closely to the edicts of Allah as possible. Following the Sunnah is optional in Muslim practice, but highly encouraged by the devout.
The Qu'ran explicitly states that Muhammad is a human and has no supernatural or divine nature. As such, other Muslims can try to relate to him and see him as an example that any disciplined person can follow and emulate. Muhammad's virtuous actions were not done for any other reason than that they were part of his routine practices and habits. The Islamic texts describe his day to day actions as a guide to be followed. One does not need to be put in extraordinary circumstances to need to emulate Muhammad but rather they can do it during the course of his or her regular daily practices.
In Muslim tradition, Muhammad is nearly faultless. He never commits a sin. The mistakes that he does make, while minor and inconsequential, show his followers that everyone errs, but that mistakes must be quickly and morally corrected.
http://www.quranicstudies.com/prophet-muhammad/the-meaning-of-sunna-in-the-quran/

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