Aḥādīth
Abu Hurairah (رضي الله عنه) reported the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) as saying:
وَاللَّهِ إِنِّي لَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ، وَأَتُوبُ إِلَيْهِ، فِي الْيَوْمِ، أَكْثَرَ مِنْ سَبْعِينَ مَرَّةً
“By Allah, I seek forgiveness and repent to Him more than seventy times a day.”
— [Al-Bukhari]
Al-Agharr ibn Yaasir Al-Muzani (رضي الله عنه) narrated that the Messenger of Allah (ﷺ) said:
يَا أَيُّهَا النَّاسُ تُوبُوا إِلَى اللَّهِ وَاسْتَغْفِرُوهُ، فَإِنِّي أَتُوبُ فِي الْيَوْمِ مِائَةَ مَرَّةٍ
“O people! Turn in repentance to Allah and beg pardon of Him. I turn to Him in repentance a hundred times a day.”
— [Muslim]
Explanation
As is known, the more evidence a thing has, then that surely strengthens and emphasizes the thing being mentioned. So the first of these two supporting narrations is that of Abu Hurairah, and regarding it we say: it explains how the Prophet (ﷺ) acted (seeking Allah’s forgiveness) even though Allah, the Exalted had forgiven all his past and future sins.
In these two narrations is a proof for the following:
A clear indication of the obligation of repentance, and that is found in the Prophet’s (ﷺ) saying:
“O People! Turn in repentance to Allah!”
One acquires the two following benefits when he repents to Allah:
The First Benefit:
Complying with and obeying the commandments of Allah, the Exalted, and His Prophet (Muhammad) (ﷺ) undoubtedly leads to much good — good that is found both in this life and in the Hereafter.
The Second Benefit:
Imitating and following the noble and exemplary character of the Prophet (ﷺ) — who used to repent to Allah a hundred times a day — is achieved by saying:
أَتُوبُ إِلَى اللَّهِ وَأَسْتَغْفِرُ اللَّهَ
“I turn to You (O Allah) in repentance; I turn to You in repentance.”
Repentance must be done with sincerity, and the repentant person is required to give up the wrongdoing he is committing. If repentance is merely uttered while the heart still yearns to commit that sin, then it is nothing but mockery of Allah, the Exalted, and such repentance is outright rejected.
And in these two narrations is proof indicating that the Prophet (Muhammad) (ﷺ) was the most devout of all people in his worship of Allah ﷻ, as well as the most God-fearing, the most pious, and the most knowledgeable of people regarding Him.
And also, from these narrations is proof that the Prophet (ﷺ) did not teach merely through clarification; rather, he taught through his actions as well. He (ﷺ) used to seek Allah’s forgiveness in order to be a role model for the people to follow, and he would command them to do the same. From this, we see how he advised his Ummah. Knowing this, it becomes incumbent upon us to follow in his (ﷺ) footsteps and to be the first to actualize whatever he commanded. Likewise, whenever the Prophet (ﷺ) forbade something, we should be among the first to refrain from it, for this is among the best ways of calling people back to Allah — that we ourselves are the first to fulfill His commandments. This was the way of the Prophet (ﷺ): he would command the people to repent, and at the same time, he himself would repent to Allah.
End quote — Shaykh Muḥammad ibn Ṣāliḥ al-‘Uthaymīn (رحمه الله), Riyāḍ as-Ṣāliḥīn.
May Allah ﷻ aid us.
Aameen!
The Enduring Good Deeds 
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