"Throw off your old evil nature which is rotten through and through, full of lust and deception. Instead, there must be a spiritual renewal of your thoughts and attitudes. You must display a new nature because you are a new person, created in God’s likeness — righteous, holy, and true." (Eph 4:22-24, NLT)
When we moved into our house in East Peoria back in 1985 there was an old deck outside the back door. It was really pretty dangerous because the wood was rotten through and through. The deck looked terrible and it was useless. So I tore it all out and started over with new lumber. When I was done, it not only looked like a deck should look, it served the useful purpose for which it was designed and our family enjoyed using it.
That’s a good picture of spiritual renovation. We cooperate with the Holy Spirit’s efforts to strip away the rotten old features that are so out of character with our Maker’s design and install new qualities so we reflect his image and function as intended.