Romans 7:22-23 For I delight in the law of God after the inward man: But I see another law in my members, warring against the law of my mind, and bringing me into captivity to the law of sin which is in my members.
While we are born again, a new creature, we are still flesh. I have the mind of Christ. I have my own flesh, which has not changed. Its nature has not been translated, at least not yet. I have to live with it. If you feel that struggle and cannot understand why God has allowed this to continue, I can offer only one answer.
Jude 25 To the only wise God our Saviour, be glory and majesty, dominion and power, both now and ever. Amen.
The last line of our shortest epistle in the bible contains the answer.
We are achievers. In the beginning God gave us dominion over the whole earth, but not over our own selves.
Nehemiah 9:5 Then the Levites, Jeshua, and Kadmiel, Bani, Hashabniah, Sherebiah, Hodijah, Shebaniah, and Pethahiah, said, Stand up and bless the Lord your God for ever and ever: and blessed be thy glorious name, which is exalted above all blessing and praise.
Would we exalt Him if we could do it ourselves? Would we give him honor and glory for anything that we might do if we did not recognize the futility of this duality we live with every day? Would we need a savior if we could do it ourselves?
The fact that He saved us does not mean we no longer need Him. We need Him now more than ever because we are now painfully aware of just how inadequate we are in this life.
2 Corinthians 3:5 Not that we are sufficient of ourselves to think any thing as of ourselves; but our sufficiency is of God;
“Would we need a Savior if we could do it ourselves?”
Yet, so many keep trying and failing. It’s not gritty determination but surrender, as you said.
Another good’n, dear brother.