We all have sinned and fall short of the glory of god. Sin has couched at my door. How do I master it. Gen 4:7.
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I think the best way to master sin is before it’s crouching at our door. Once you’ve let it land on your doorstep, resisting it will be hard. It can be done, and people have done it, but it won’t be easy.
You have to get your mind in the right place. Forget what the World tells you is right and wrong, grey, or acceptable. Start learning, or relearning, what God says. The World is a world of flesh, and the things therein are for the flesh. It is opposed to God or anything Spiritual. As Paul wrote to the Churches in Rome in Romans 12:2
“And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.”
You must learn how to “walk by faith, not by sight.” 2 Corinthians 5:7. To listen to God, to trust in God. To understand His Word. If you claim that you are a follower of Jesus, then should you not be following Jesus?
This is why it is so very important that you take the time to lay the Foundation. Now you have a source to go to. Pretty hard to think, “What would Jesus do?” if you have no idea who Jesus is. Right? Or, what does God think about this or that, if you have no idea who God is? God is not a total mystery. He tells us what He thinks. He tells us what He is opposed to and what He loves. Think Exodus 20. Think John 3:16. So on and so forth.
The flesh is always subject to the things of the flesh. The flesh is always subject to the physical world. We are still in the World. However, now as a Child of God, we are no longer OF the World. This can be a hard concept for some to understand.
Always remember that thoughts lead to actions. When you start to think about something, play it over and over again in that movie theater of the mind, you allow the Good, or the temptation, to take hold. Let’s say you were an alcoholic. Or a smoker. Or someone who used to look at porn. You give it up. You really want to remain free of this bondage in your life. God sets you free from it. Yet, when you see a commercial, a movie, or an advertisement in a magazine, it puts an image in your head. Does that make you revert to it? No. How you choose to deal with it is what matters.
You could immediately reject that thought, cast it out of your head. Or, you can dwell on it. Remember how much fun you think you had when you were doing these things. You remember the taste, the feelings, the “good times” with friends or whatever, that you can associate with them.
Then your mind will start telling you how good you have been, and that there is nothing wrong with one cigarette. There is nothing wrong with one beer. People smoke and drink every day. There is nothing wrong with checking out just one picture. No one will know. Then you do it. One leads to two, leads to you being right back where you started.
“Let no man say when he is tempted, I am tempted of God: for God cannot be tempted with evil, neither tempteth he any man: But every man is tempted, when he is drawn away of his own lust, and enticed. Then when lust hath conceived, it bringeth forth sin: and sin, when it is finished, bringeth forth death.” James 1:13-15
Again, you have a choice as a child of God. A choice that the world does not have. For the world is against God. They are not of God. Therefore, they obey the things of the flesh and make manifest the works of the flesh, for they know no better.
“All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness,” 2 Timothy 3:16
This Bible, which I am holding up, is the infallible, incorruptible, absolute, and complete Word of God. It is not merely a history book, nor just a religious text. It is not simply a guide of dos and don’ts. Rather, it is the only way to attain the right mindset. It helps you focus less on worldly matters and more on spiritual concerns.
“Set your minds on things that are above, not on things that are on earth.” Colossians 3:2
Peter
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That was good Peter. Good thinking. Your welcome to talk to me anytime.
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Good topic @Hungry
Short answer that Paul would absolutely refuse to let you get away with: you do not master sin by willpower, intellect, or verse-hoarding; you master sin by living out what is already true of you in Christ. Paul’s imperatives always rest on indicatives. He commands because something is already the case, grounded in the cross and resurrection.
First, Paul’s fundamental claim: sin is no longer your master, so his commands are not motivational speeches but summonses to live consistently with reality.
The key verb is καταργηθῇ (katargēthē), “rendered powerless,” not annihilated. Sin still exists, but its ruling authority has been broken by union with Christ’s death and resurrection. That is the non-negotiable foundation.
Now the first Pauline imperative for mastering sin is λογίζεσθε (logizesthe), “reckon, count, consider as true.”
This is not pretending. It is aligning your thinking with God’s verdict. You cannot fight sin correctly if you still think of yourself as its subject rather than someone transferred out of its jurisdiction.
Next comes μὴ βασιλευέτω (mē basileuetō), “let not sin reign.”
Notice Paul does not say “destroy sin” or “eradicate temptation.” He says do not let it reign. Sin wants governance, not occasional expression. Mastery here is refusal of kingship, not denial of existence.
Then Paul moves to embodied obedience with μὴ παριστάνετε / παραστήσατε (mē paristanete / parastēsate), “do not present… but present.”
Sin is mastered not in abstraction but in what you offer your body, mind, time, and habits to. Neutrality is not an option. Something always gets your members.
Paul then issues a different class of imperatives in Colossians, grounded explicitly in resurrection identity.
“Mortify” translates νεκρώσατε (nekrōsate), aorist imperative. Kill decisively. Not manage, not negotiate, not spiritually therapize. This is ruthless because resurrection life is real.
But Paul does not stop at killing. He follows with ἐνδύσασθε (endysasthe), “put on.”
Sin is not mastered by subtraction alone. You replace old patterns with new virtues rooted in identity. Empty space invites relapse.
Romans 12 adds the cognitive dimension with μεταμορφοῦσθε (metamorphousthe), “be transformed.”
Transformation is passive in form but active in participation. God transforms; you submit to renewal. Sin thrives in unexamined patterns of thought.
Finally, Paul is brutally honest about power sources.
“Walk” (περιπατεῖτε) is present imperative. Continuous dependence. The promise is not “you will never feel desire,” but “you will not carry it to completion.” That is real mastery.
So Paul’s answer to mastering sin is not heroic discipline or theological swagger. It is:
reckon what is true
refuse sin’s reign
present yourself to God
kill what belongs to the old order
put on what fits the new one
renew your mind
walk by the Spirit
All of it flows from union with Christ crucified and risen. Miss that, and imperatives become moralism.
Get that, and obedience becomes alignment, not desperation.
Paul does not teach sinless perfection. He teaches liberated obedience.
And those are very different worlds.
Your brother.
J.
Knowing this, that our old man is crucified with him, that the body of sin might be destroyed, that henceforth we should not serve sin. Romans 6:6 KJV ↩︎
Likewise reckon ye also yourselves to be dead indeed unto sin, but alive unto God through Jesus Christ our Lord. Romans 6:11 KJV ↩︎
Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Romans 6:12 KJV ↩︎
Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God. Romans 6:13 KJV ↩︎
Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth. Colossians 3:5 KJV ↩︎
Put on therefore, as the elect of God, holy and beloved, bowels of mercies, kindness, humbleness of mind. Colossians 3:12 KJV ↩︎
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind. Romans 12:2 KJV ↩︎
Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. Galatians 5:16 KJV ↩︎
Im sorry the question was, who is the enemy. but the one god commanded to master sin. Sin is the enemy. And if we can figure out who the enemy Is, god cammands blessings are comming. who must have mastered sin. My conclusion was Cain. It’s Cain and his house who run sin. And are the present rulers of this world. I call them principalities. In heavenly places. I could be wrong though.
Ever read this @Hungry ?
The Whole Armor of God
Eph 6:10 Finally, be strong in the Lord and in the strength of his might.
Eph 6:11 Put on the full armor of God, so that you will be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.
Eph 6:12 For our wrestlingN4 is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world-rulers of this darkness, against the wicked spirit forces in the heavenly places.
Eph 6:13 Therefore, take up the whole armorN5 of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.
Eph 6:14 Stand firm, therefore, with your loins girdedN6 about with truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,
Eph 6:15 and with your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace;
Eph 6:16 in all things, taking up the shield of faith with which you will be able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of the wicked one.
Eph 6:17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Eph 6:18 Through all prayer and petition praying at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, keep awake with all perseverance and making supplication for all the holy ones.
Eph 6:19 Pray also for me, that the words may be given to me when I open my mouth, so that I may be able to speak boldly in making known the mysteryN7 of the gospel,
Eph 6:20 for which I am an ambassador in chains;N8 that in it I may speak boldly, as I ought to speak.
Who is our enemy?
J.
I love Paul man.it was his writings, that got me reading the bible. And when that devil started shooting arows at me concerning Paul. I had to fight for that boy. The enemy tried to strike Paul’s testimony from my mind. And all glory to god! The schemes of the devil failed. Due to love. That was established. Between me and paul.
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And I dont know what bearing this would be on you, but my name is john. My brothers name is Paul. my mom’s name was Deborah. All of our names we got from the holy bible. In honor of God’s people.
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Your Hebrew name is Yochanan, same as mine, which means “YHWH is gracious”
Shalom Achi/brother for this gracious dialogue.
J.
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I was listening to Saint Paul the other day how that once saved, we have no sin. That is to say, we are still sinners and we still can commit acts; but the sin to which saint Paul was refering to was the sin of unbelieving in God.
All things are Lawful, but not all things are expedient/convenient. If we seek His Righteousness, then are our energis redirected in the correct direction and (upon confession and repentance), we can do no more.
Jesus said this.
“Therefore, I tell you, every sin and blasphemy will be forgiven people, but the blasphemy against the Spirit will not be forgiven. And whoever speaks a word against the Son of Man will be forgiven, but whoever speaks against the Holy Spirit will not be forgiven, either in this age or in the age to come.” Matthew 12:31-32
As children of God, of course, we will still sin. Lust, lie, steal, whatever it may be. But the one sin we can never do is this one. Blasphemy against the Holy Spirit is not just a one-time insult to God, but a willful, ongoing refusal to accept the truth revealed by the Spirit. It means:
Attributing God’s work to evil when clear evidence shows it is from God.
Rejecting the Spirit’s testimony about Jesus, even when confronted with undeniable proof.
Persistently refusing repentance and the offer of salvation.
It is not about cursing God’s name or momentary doubt. It is about persistent, hardened unbelief in the face of clear evidence. It is unforgivable because it closes the door to repentance and salvation.
The phrase appears in Matthew 12:31–32, Mark 3:28–29, and Luke 12:8–10. In these passages, Jesus had just performed miracles, such as healing a blind and mute man, by the power of the Holy Spirit. The Pharisees, however, accused Him of casting out demons by the power of Satan rather than the Spirit of God. Jesus condemned their deliberate attribution of God’s work to evil, saying that while all other sins and even slander can be forgiven, blasphemy against the Spirit cannot.
Peter
Justified by faith means to me free from sin. So when your spirit starts hearing the word wich is love,all sin was justified. Because in the begining i was but a inocent child. Wanting to be tought right. I knew sin not. And will be obedient. Tell me not to eat from a tree. Im on the run. I wont even look at that tree. And im sure adam and eve will be right there with me. He speaks we listen. He comands we obey. Lesson learned, means we are free.
As you have stated, we ALL have sinned. I remember a pastor many years that put it this way: When Jesus died on the cross, which of your sins were in the future? EVERY SINGLE ONE OF THEM. Jesus died for our sins yesterday, today, tomorrow, and forever. That is the role of the mediator. “For there is one God, and there is one mediator between God and men, the man Christ Jesus.” – 1 Timothy 2:5
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