Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New | Colossians 3:9-10

Putting Off the Old Self and Putting On the New | Colossians 3:9-10

By Pastor Autry Watkins IV | Transformation Church | February 24, 2026

We live in an age obsessed with self-improvement. Every social media feed promises a better version of yourself—a new morning routine, a productivity hack, a mindset shift that will finally make you the person you've always wanted to be. But what if the Christian life isn't about becoming a better version of your old self? What if it's about something far more radical—dying to that old self entirely and being remade into something altogether new? When Paul writes to the Colossians, "Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator" (Colossians 3:9-10), he's not giving us another self-help technique. He's calling us to recognize a reality that has already taken place in Christ and to live accordingly. This isn't self-improvement. This is resurrection life.

The Death of the Old Self: What Christ Has Already Accomplished

Notice Paul's careful grammar here: "you have put off the old self." This is past tense. This is already done. For those who are in Christ, the old self—that identity bound to Adam, enslaved to sin, dead in trespasses—has already been crucified with Christ. This isn't aspirational language; it's declarative truth. Paul writes in Romans 6:6, "We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin." When Christ died, everyone who would be united to him by faith died with him. The tyranny of the old nature, that gravitational pull toward sin that defined our existence before conversion, has been decisively broken. But here's where we must guard against a dangerous misunderstanding. Paul isn't saying that Christians no longer struggle with sin or that remaining corruption has been eradicated in this life. Rather, he's saying that sin's dominion—its ruling authority over us—has been shattered. We are no longer slaves who must obey sin's dictates. The power structure has fundamentally changed. This is why Christian obedience is never merely moral effort divorced from gospel reality. When Paul commands us not to lie to one another, he grounds that command in what has already happened: "seeing that you have put off the old self." The imperative flows from the indicative. The command rests on the accomplished work of Christ. We don't obey in order to put off the old self; we obey because we have already put it off in our union with Christ. The resurrection power that raised Jesus from the dead is the same power now at work in us, making obedience possible where it was once impossible.

Do not lie to one another, seeing that you have put off the old self with its practices and have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. — Colossians 3:9-10

We know that our old self was crucified with him in order that the body of sin might be brought to nothing, so that we would no longer be enslaved to sin. — Romans 6:6

The New Self: Being Renewed in Knowledge After God's Image

What does it mean to put on the new self? Paul tells us it's "being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator." This single phrase is theologically explosive, pointing us back to the very beginning of the biblical story and forward to its ultimate consummation. In Genesis 1:27, we read, "So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them." The image of God—that original design for human flourishing—was marred and distorted by the fall. Sin didn't merely make us bad people who need improvement; it fundamentally corrupted our nature, twisting our desires, darkening our minds, and enslaving our wills. But here's the glory of the gospel: in Christ, that image is being restored. The new self is nothing less than humanity remade according to God's original design—and more. Paul says this renewal happens "in knowledge," which in biblical categories means far more than mere information. It's the experiential, relational knowledge of God himself. To be renewed in knowledge is to have your mind transformed by the truth of who God is and who you are in relation to him. And who is the perfect image of God? Colossians 1:15 tells us: Christ himself is "the image of the invisible God." The new self, then, is conformity to Christ. God's purpose in salvation isn't to make you a slightly improved version of yourself. It's to remake you into the likeness of his Son. As Paul writes in 2 Corinthians 3:18, "And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another." This is progressive sanctification—the Spirit's ongoing work of making us more and more like Jesus until that day when we see him face to face and are fully conformed to his image.

Have put on the new self, which is being renewed in knowledge after the image of its creator. — Colossians 3:9-10

So God created man in his own image, in the image of God he created him; male and female he created them. — Genesis 1:27

He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn of all creation. — Colossians 1:15

And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. — 2 Corinthians 3:18

Living Out Who We Already Are: The Daily Warfare of Faith

So how do we reconcile the already-accomplished reality of having put off the old self with Paul's other commands in this same passage to "put to death" earthly things (Colossians 3:5)? How do we hold together what is finished with what is ongoing? The answer lies in understanding the nature of our union with Christ and the Spirit's sanctifying work. Positionally, definitively, we have died with Christ and been raised with him. Our status before God has been completely transformed. We are new creatures; the old has passed away. But experientially, we're still living in these mortal bodies, in this fallen world, with remaining corruption that wars against our new nature. John Owen, that great Puritan theologian, understood this warfare well. He wrote about the daily necessity of mortifying sin by the power of the Spirit—not to earn our standing before God, but to live out the reality of who we are in Christ. This is why Paul can say we "have put off" the old self (past tense) and also command us to "put to death" sinful practices (present imperative). Think of it this way: a defeated army may still have pockets of resistance even after the decisive battle has been won. The war's outcome is settled, but skirmishes continue. Sin's reign has been broken, but its presence remains until glorification. Our calling is to fight from victory, not for victory. We resist sin not as slaves hoping to earn freedom, but as free people defending the freedom Christ has already won. This is where lying—Paul's specific example—becomes so instructive. Lying is a practice of the old self because it's fundamentally incompatible with the character of God, who is truth itself. When we lie, we're acting out of sync with our new identity. We're living as though the old reign still had authority. But it doesn't. And the Spirit within us wars against such inconsistency, convicting us and empowering us to speak truth instead.

Put to death therefore what is earthly in you: sexual immorality, impurity, passion, evil desire, and covetousness, which is idolatry. — Colossians 3:5

For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live. — Romans 8:13

"The Christian life isn't about becoming a better version of your old self—it's about dying to that old self entirely and being remade into something altogether new." — Pastor Pastor Autry Watkins IV

"We don't obey in order to put off the old self; we obey because we have already put it off in our union with Christ." — Pastor Pastor Autry Watkins IV

Application

How then shall we live in light of this glorious reality? First, preach the gospel to yourself daily. Remind yourself that your old self has been crucified with Christ. You are not defined by your worst moments, your persistent struggles, or your remaining sin. You are defined by Christ and your union with him. Second, when you face temptation—whether to lie, to indulge lustful thoughts, to nurse bitterness, or to pursue any practice of the old self—remember who you are. You are not a slave who must obey sin's commands. You are a new creation with the Spirit's power dwelling within you. Third, pursue the knowledge of God. The new self is renewed in knowledge. Feast on Scripture. Sit under faithful preaching. Cultivate habits that deepen your experiential knowledge of God's character. Ask yourself: In what areas am I living as though the old self still reigns? What specific sins am I tolerating that are incompatible with my new identity in Christ? Am I fighting sin in my own strength, or am I depending on the Spirit's power? Do I truly believe that I have been made new, or am I still trying to improve the old self? Where do I need to hear again that my identity is not in my performance but in Christ's finished work?

Dear Christian, you are not who you used to be. The old has gone; the new has come. Not because of your efforts, your discipline, or your moral improvement, but because of Christ's death and resurrection and your union with him by faith. The same power that raised Jesus from the dead is at work in you, conforming you day by day to the image of God's Son. Fight sin. Pursue holiness. Put off every practice of the old self. But do it from the settled confidence that the decisive battle has already been won. You are being renewed. And one day, that renewal will be complete.

For Further Reflection

How does understanding that the 'old self has already been put off' change the way you fight temptation and pursue holiness?

In what specific areas of your life are you still living as though sin has dominion over you, rather than living in the freedom Christ has secured?

What does it mean practically for you to be 'renewed in knowledge' of God? What habits or disciplines cultivate this kind of transforming knowledge?

How does the truth that you're being conformed to the image of Christ (not just becoming a better version of yourself) reshape your expectations and goals for spiritual growth?

Paul uses lying as his specific example of an old self practice. What other practices in your life are fundamentally incompatible with your new identity in Christ?