…to put off your old self, which belongs to your former manner of life and is corrupt through deceitful desires, and to be renewed in the spirit of your minds, and to put on the new self, created after the likeness of God in true righteousness and holiness.
Ephesians 4:22-24

Throughout the New Testament, Paul warns believers against sin and the snares of the Enemy. He specifically instructs to “Give no place to the devil,” (Ephesians 4:27). He also instructed believers to take off the “Old Man,” and put on the “New.” These two are not meant to be a single action, but instead a continual daily reminder to all believers.

You see, when Paul is telling us to ‘give no place to the devil,’ he wasn’t telling us to completely shut the enemy out and ignore that he exists. Instead, it is better to identify and acknowledge his existence and to take dominion over our fleshly desires. Imagine it this way: if a hungry lion was circling around you, and crouching around every corner that you take, would you keep walking and ignore that it is about to jump out at you, or would you command it with your loudest and toughest voice possible to leave in the name of Jesus Christ?

The Enemy is still fighting every day to take our attention off of God. He continually tries to trip us up and tempt us with the things that our flesh desires. Sometimes these temptations are subtle, sometimes they are even logical, but in the end they lead to nothing but pain, fear, and death.

This week, let’s not ignore that the Enemy is actively trying to steal, kill, and destroy everything that God is doing in our lives and this world. Instead, let’s identify him and begin to take dominion back for God’s Kingdom!