Regarding sin, there is root and there is fruit. Lust, rage, pride (and many others) are roots of sin. Murder, adultery, theft (and many others) are the fruits of sin. * Many try and cut off the fruits of their trees. Hiding their sins, or even stopping certain sins (pornography / swearing), and never dealing with the roots. This then creates other fruits! If I take an orange tree and snip off all the oranges, and tell you "this is now an apple tree" but after a few months you see oranges growing back, who's correct? **The observer should rightly say "No! This is an orange tree!" To which you respond by snipping off all the oranges and maybe even taping some apples on. But naturally nature will take its course, these apples, not being sustained by the root will rot and fall off, and the fruit, (being oranges) will grow back even stronger! To cut off the fruit is not to change the fruit. Christ comes into our lives not just to cut off bad fruit (although that is importhe comes into our lives to change our roots.
You are fundamentally different in Christ, your root is in Christ. Without Christ renewing your heart and mind, you will continue to grow bad fruit.
Stop trying to only replace fruits, have Christ change your roots, and the fruits will follow.
Do not however devalue obedience and holiness. Do not continue in your sin hoping you'll just stop. Its both! Cut off your bad fruits, and have Christ replace your roots (he's really enabling you to do both). To only replace your roots and take grace as permission for your withering bad fruits, you are parterning with sin. To only replace your fruits and ignore the real roots, you are completely ignoring what Christ offers us.
If you desire holiness, if you desire righteousness, Christ offers this in completion.
Footnotes, scriptural quotations.
* Matthew 5:21-22, 5:27-30 *
speaks that the standard of sin is NOT just the manifestations such as murder, or adultery, but rather even the intent of you heart in a ingly much smaller action, be it just thought or just looking!
Murder
21 "You have heard that it was said to the people long ago, 'You shall not murder,[a] and anyone who murders will be subject to judgment.' 22 But I tell you that anyone who is angry with a brother or sister[b][c] will be subject to judgment. Again, anyone who says to a brother or sister, 'Raca,'[d] is answerable to the court. And anyone who says, 'You fool!' will be in danger of the fire of hell.
Adultery
27 "You have heard that it was said, 'You shall not commit adultery.'[e] 28 But I tell you that anyone who looks at a woman lustfully has already committed adultery with her in his heart. 29 If your right eye causes you to stumble, gouge it out and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for your whole body to be thrown into hell. 30 And if your right hand causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it away. It is better for you to lose one part of your body than for Matthew 7:16-20 **
16 By their fruit you will recognize them. Do people pick grapes from thornbushes, or figs from thistles? 17 Likewise, every good tree bears good fruit, but a bad tree bears bad fruit. 18 A good tree cannot bear bad fruit, and a bad tree cannot bear good fruit. 19 Every tree that does not bear good fruit is cut down and thrown into the fire. 20 Thus, by their fruit you will recognize them.
*** 2 Corinthians 5:17 ***
"17Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, the new creation has come The old has gone, the new is here!"