God's Fresh Paint

Our instinct is to resist sin with our own will power so that we will be worthy to walk in the Spirit. But in this faith, everything is topsy turvy, ziggy swurvy. Here is the problem with our will power: it is corrupt.
When I was a handyman, sometimes a customer would ask me to paint something using and old can that had been lying about for many years. The lid would be encrusted with rust and thick with cracked, dry paint.
When I opened the can, no matter how carefully, some of the rust would drop into the can. I'd try to fish it out with a spoon, but some little bit would sink into the pigment. I stirred the paint and applied it only to see rust streaks on the wall, making the job impossible.
Applying our will power to the spiritual walk ends in futility. Our own strength is filled with bits of hidden iniquity that frustrates our efforts with streaks of bad behavior. We must throw out our old can and work from God's fresh paint. First, by simple faith in His grace we step into His Spirit. Then and there, the lust of the flesh not an issue. Abiding in His presence, our walk is not streaked with our sin.