The Devil or the Flesh?righteousness?
The Bible clearly says that we aren't to yield the
members of our body to unrighteousness (v. 13). We
don't have to serve sin, and sin isn't supposed to have
dominion over us because Jesus set us free from sin's
dominion.
However, you'll have to "reckon" yourself dead to sin
in order to keep your bodily members from serving sin,
because your body will want to keep right on serving sin
if you let it. Your body and its members aren't dead;
that's why you have to "reckon" or count them as dead
to sin.
Close the Door to Satan In Your
Thought Life
In order to "reckon" or "count" your physical
members as dead, you'll have to learn to close the door
to Satan in your thoughts. If you fail in that area, you
will always have problems with the devil because you're
giving him an open door to attack you.
Satan will always try to enter into a person, saved
and unsaved alike, through the person's thoughts, if the
person will yield and listen to him.
Thoughts may come—in fact, you can't always keep
thoughts from coming. But you can keep from
entertaining unwholesome and unedifying thoughts. It's
like the old saying, "You can't keep birds from flying
overhead, but you can keep them from building a nest
in your hair!"
You can't help who comes by and knocks on your
front door, but you have something to say about who
you invite into your home. Thoughts will pop into your
mind, and then the devil will come along and say, "Why,