You’ve gotten rid of the person you used to be and the life you used to live, and you’ve become a new person.
Colossians 3:9–10
When someone points out one of your weaknesses or bad character traits, have you ever said, “Well, that’s just the way I am. I can’t change it”? If something seems just too hard or even impossible to change, do you just accept it, live with it, and claim it as an inborn tendency? For example, you might say, “I worry, I’m a type A personality, so sue me,” or “I’m prone to anger because it runs in my family.”
The truth is that sin (or your weaknesses) will always be there nagging at you, pulling at your sleeve, begging for you to listen, but that doesn’t mean you have to accept this sinful nature as a part of your very soul. Do you really want to choose the call of sin’s voice over God’s? Well, that’s what you do whenever you say, “That’s just the way I am.” That kind of giving in to your weaknesses is not only rebellion against God but also setting yourself up for failure. Do you want to be a victim of your weaknesses or a victor over them?
Don’t let your sinful nature be an excuse for sin. We all have a sinful nature; that’s why we need Jesus. You are not a particularly hard case, but you will have to choose what you’re gonna follow: the voice of God or of your sinful nature. And you’ll have to choose not just once but daily, even hourly.
Never be comfortable with the part of your nature that causes you to sin. And remember, it’s not the boss of you anymore. Maybe it used to be, but Jesus came to set you free from all that, so take him up on his generous gift and say no to your old self.