If one has "pride" and "struggle" with sin then they do NOT have "free will". Any sin is death. And they are slaves to that pride. They practice sin as John explains. They are to be prayed for that God will release them from their bondage. Their sinful behavior is understandable. They are in bondage to their sin. The Son must set unbelievers free from that bondage.
Believers, on the other hand, have been set free and no longer practice sin. We have become slaves to righteousness. We have a choice-to do God's will or to do our will. To do God's will is to walk His path. To do our will is sin. And we have no excuse why we do not live a perfect life except to say that we willfully, from time to time, lapse into our sinful and rebellious nature. We pray that God will reveal our sin to us and assist us in overcoming our sinful behavior so that we may walk with Him. But like Jonah, God WILL bring us around so that we will do His good works-to the praise of His name.
Of course, God chastises the sinner.
No, God chastise (disciplines) believers.
I think you just said what I said, except you don’t believe in free will.
People who love God sin. God’s grace helps them to see the errors in their ways, and repent. The person seeks forgiveness, and changes their ways.
Everybody has free will. They are free to choose good or evil, at any moment. Sometimes, we choose wrongly.
Are believers also sinners?