As a Christian you are not only free in Jesus but, in solidarity with all other people, you are also in yourself, in the flesh. And to the extent that you are in the flesh and not in the spirit you are “dead in sins” (Colossians 2:13; Ephesians 2:1). You are not just half-dead, or apparently dead. So, in this life, you are engaged in the conflict of the Spirit against the flesh, but also of the flesh against the Spirit, and in the last resort you will not refuse to confess with the apostle Paul “that in me (that is, in my flesh) dwells no good thing” (Romans 7:18). Conflict does not mean peaceful co-existence, let alone some kind of co-operation! There is no co-operation between the two! For how can there be co-operation between total freedom and total bondage? How can the Spirit give assistance to the flesh, or the flesh to the Spirit? So count yourself dead to the flesh but alive to the Spirit (Rom. 6:11)
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