I’ve always wanted to be an actress.  I don’t want to be in movies or a tv show, but I would like to act in a play.  Putting on a costume and becoming someone else for a while sounds like fun.  Becoming someone else is tempting because I don’t always like who I am.  Even as I write this, I think back over this tough day where I didn’t always respond well to my children.  I honestly don’t like who I was today, an angry and unkind mama.  On days like today, I’d really like to be someone else for a while.

Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; the old has passed away, and see, the new has come!  2 Corinthians 5:17

When we become Christians, we do become someone else.  We are given a new identity.  We become new creatures in Christ.  The old sinful person is gone, and a new righteous person takes her place.  It’s kind of like putting on a costume.  When you wear a costume, people don’t see you.  They see the character that you’re portraying.  When we’re saved, we put on Christ.  When God looks at us, He doesn’t see our sin; He sees Christ.  When you’re in a play, eventually you have to take off the costume and go back to being yourself.  When you receive Christ, however, it’s a permanent transformation.  You never go back to being that sinful person again. 

Unfortunately, even though we become a new creation the minute we’re saved, we spend a lifetime learning how to act like that new creature.  We struggle to give up our old sinful ways.  We don’t always act like we belong to Christ. 

There is good news, though.  We don’t have to do it on our own.  When we’re saved, we don’t only receive Christ—we also receive the Holy Spirit.  Part of the Spirit’s job is to sanctify us, or make us holy (2 Thessalonians 2:13).  Imagine the Holy Spirit as a sculptor, and we are the marble.  The Spirit’s job is to chisel away everything in us that doesn’t look like Christ.  However, we must also do our part.  We are told that we must put off our sin (Ephesians 4:22; Hebrews 12:1).  This requires action on our part.  We must also put on the new self (Ephesians 4:24) and be holy (1 Peter 1:15-16).

Walk by the Spirit and you will certainly not carry out the desire of the flesh. Galatians 5:16

We must walk by the Spirit, or let the Spirit guide us, if we are to become more like Christ.  As we learn to follow the Spirit, we will be less likely to give in to the sinful desires of the flesh.  As we strive to put off the old sinful self and to put on the new holy self, the Spirit will work in our lives to produce Christlike fruit in us—such as love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23).  This is not fruit that we can grow on our own.  As we spend time in God’s Word and in prayer, we’ll become more aware of the conviction and guidance of the Spirit (John 16:8, 13).  The more we allow the Spirit to work in our hearts, the more we’ll notice this fruit flourishing.  If we choose to ignore the Spirit, though, the fruit will wither. 

We all have bad days.  Maybe, like me, you have days when you really don’t like yourself.  When you find yourself wishing you could be someone else, there are a few things to remember.  Remember that, even though you sin sometimes, you are not the same sinful person you were before you were saved.  Remember that God doesn’t see your sin when He looks at you; He sees the righteousness of Christ.  Remember, also, that you must become more like Christ, but you cannot change on your own.  The Spirit will help you if you allow Him.  Allow the Spirit to sculpt you into the person God wants you to be.  It may be a painful process, as He chisels away the parts that don’t belong.  The result will be worth it, though, as He shapes you into the image of Christ.