New Nature, Daily Choice
Scripture
So put to death the sinful, earthly things lurking within you. Have nothing to do with sexual immorality, impurity, lust, and evil desires. Don’t be greedy, for a greedy person is an idolater, worshiping the things of this world. Because of these sins, the anger of God is coming. You used to do these things when your life was still part of this world. But now is the time to get rid of anger, rage, malicious behavior, slander, and dirty language. Don’t lie to each other, for you have stripped off your old sinful nature and all its wicked deeds. Put on your new nature, and be renewed as you learn to know your Creator and become like him.
—Colossians 3:5–10 (NLT)
Paul’s words are direct and challenging: if you belong to Christ, you cannot keep living as though you belong to the world. He uses the imagery of changing clothes. We are to “strip off” our old sinful nature and “put on” our new nature. This isn’t a passive suggestion; it’s a daily, active choice.
Paul lists some obvious sins to put to death: sexual immorality, impurity, and lust. But he also includes one that often slips under the radar: greed. He doesn’t call it a weakness, he calls it idolatry.
“An idol is anything more important to you than God, anything that absorbs your heart and imagination more than God, anything you seek to give you what only God can give.”
— Timothy Keller¹
Greed shifts our worship from the Creator to created things, and Paul insists it cannot coexist with a life surrendered to Jesus. But Paul doesn’t stop at external actions. He calls us to get rid of the sins of the heart, anger, rage, slander, and destructive speech. These are more than slip-ups; they are evidence of the “old self” still trying to rule. The answer isn’t to grit our teeth and try harder. It is to put on the new nature and be renewed in the likeness of Christ.
This is sanctification. It isn’t a one-time decision made at salvation, but the daily, lifelong process of the Spirit stripping off the old and clothing you with Christ. Some days that process feels slow, even invisible. But every small choice, resisting the old pattern, reaching for the new one, is the Spirit doing His quiet work in you. So today, before you speak, act, or chase after something, ask yourself which nature you’re reaching for. Let that question become a habit, and watch how it slowly reshapes the way you live.
Reflection
- Which of the “old nature” patterns do you most struggle to put to death in your own life?
- Why do you think greed is often tolerated or celebrated in our culture, and how can you guard your heart against it?
- What practical step can you take today to “put on your new nature” and reflect Christ more clearly?
Prayer
Thank God for your new life in Christ. Ask Him to give you strength to strip off the old ways and courage to walk in the new. Pray for the Spirit’s power to make your daily choices reflect the character of Jesus.
Footnote
¹ Timothy Keller, Counterfeit Gods: The Empty Promises of Money, Sex, and Power, and the Only Hope that Matters (New York: Dutton, 2009), p. xvii.