The reality of our state of affairs as believers poses a difficult yet valid question: “If I have truly died to sin, why do I still feel so alive to it?” This really is mysterious. But don’t think you’re the only one who feels this way; it’s not an uncommon problem by any stretch of the imagination.

Ask yourself a different question: “just what did happen to me when I became that new creature in Christ? What’s this life all about?” The answer to this question lies in the fact that it’s not about what we do or don’t do. Rather, it’s about who Jesus Christ is and what He has done.

No, this doesn’t relieve us of all personal responsibility. Of course not: “How shall we who died to sin still live in it?” (Romans 6:1-2) But it does mean that the foundation for our relationship with God has been laid by Him alone, not by anything we can do in and of ourselves. “Oh, I believe that,” you might say—but do you really? Do you really believe that your union with God isn’t actually somehow rooted in trying to be good?