Suffocate the sinful deeds of the body cut off the life-line.

Suffocate the sinful deeds of the body cut off the life-line, the blood flow. Deeds of the body come from somewhere. Jesus said, "The things that proceed out of the mouth come from the heart, and those defile you. For out of the heart comes evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, and slander. These are the things which defile you; (Matthew 15:18-20). Sinful deeds have a life line that must be cut. There is a condition of the heart that gives rise to the "deeds of the body." It's a heart issue.

What's the bad root of "the deeds of the body"? You can see it in Romans 8:7. "The mindset of the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so." The root of "the deeds of the body" that have to be killed is the flesh that is hostile to God and unwilling and unable to submit to him. "If you live according to the flesh you will die." Flesh is the great enemy. And it's an enemy because it is insubordinate and hostile to God. It doesn't like God and does not want to be told by him what to do.

So to kill "the deeds of the body", you have to cut the life-line. Pinch the air pipe. Stop the blood flow. Deeds must be killed before they happen by severing the root of hostility and insubordination that rejects God.

Romans 8:5-6 "For those who are according to the flesh set their minds on the things of the flesh, but those who are according to the Spirit, [set their minds on] the things of the Spirit. so the first step is: putting to death the deeds of the body by the Spirit involves "setting your mind on the things of the Spirit." You don't just look at the temptation and say NO. To put it to death by the Spirit, you have to do more: you direct your mind, your heart, you focus another way, namely to the "things of the Spirit."

What are "the things of the Spirit"? 1 Corinthians 2:13-14 God-inspired words. "Things of the Spirit". Scripture from the Bible: ". . .Not things you speak, not in words taught by human wisdom, but in those taught by the Spirit. . . . (14) For the natural person does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to them; and they cannot understand them, because they are spiritually blinded."

Romans 8:6 says that "those who are according to the Spirit set their minds on the things of the Spirit" so set your mind on the words of God and the realities they stand for. These are the "things of the Spirit" that the natural person rejects and the spiritual person embraces. So to put to death the deeds of the body "by the Spirit" is to "set your mind on the things of the Spirit.

When temptation comes, even when you say NO!, you need to look to a word from God, especially a word that promises He will be more for you and do more for you than what this temptation of sin promises. And if you believe Him –you will defeat the root of sin.

So immerse your mind and heart in the fountain of truth– the promises of God, and when temptation comes, take Gods word, the sword of the Spirit, and believe it, and by it sever the root of sin. Kill it.