Section 13
forget systems and methods and instead turn to the living Person within us and set our mind on Him. He is waiting for us to do this. This is the way to abide in Him.
OUR FLESH
In order to be deeply impressed with the need to abide in Christ by minding the spirit, we need to see even more clearly just what dwells in our flesh and what dwells in our spirit. The word "dwells" is used in Romans 7:17, 18, and 20. In verses 17 and 20 Paul says that sin dwells in him, and in verse 18 he says that in him, that is, in his flesh, nothing good dwells. In Romans 5 through 8 sin is revealed as being the personifi cation of Satan. In a sense, the sin that dwells in our flesh, the fallen body poisoned by the nature of the evil one, is Satan incarnated. Satan as sin is in our flesh. In 7:21 Paul says, "I find then the law that, at my willing to do the good, the evil is present with me." The word "evil" in this verse denotes the evil nature of Satan. Therefore, Romans 7 reveals that Satan as sin dwells in our flesh.
The Greek word rendered "dwells" in these verses is not the word elsewhere rendered "abide." Rather, it is a word whose root meaning is "house."