Put Off the Old Self, Put On the New
Christians are to actively discard sinful patterns and adopt Christ-like character.
Paul instructs believers to 'put off your old self' with its corrupt desires and 'put on the new self, created to be like God in true righteousness and holiness.' This clothing metaphor emphasizes deliberate action. Conversion is not passive; we actively remove old habits and practice new ones. Specific behaviors to remove include lying, anger, theft, unwholesome talk, bitterness. Behaviors to adopt include truthfulness, honest work, encouraging speech, kindness, forgiveness. Sanctification requires both mortification (killing sin) and vivification (growing virtue).
You were taught, with regard to your former way of life, to put off your old self...and to put on the new self.
John Owen's works on mortification of sin describe the lifelong battle to put off sin and put on righteousness through the Spirit's power.
Epistle to the Ephesians
Written about in
- What Christianity says about starting again after a fall
Here the tradition appears to contradict itself, and the contradiction is worth stating plainly. Paul names things to actively stop — lying, stealing, bitterness, unwholesome talk — and things to actively start. The metaphor is changing clothes: deliberate, repeated, and yours to do.