Sin has lost its dominion because it’s no longer inside you. You had the nature of sin but Jesus your Savior came into your life and gave you His righteousness and you, the spirit, were raised from the dead to new life. Resurrection life! The same life that raised Jesus from the dead. Sin is on the outside. It’s still available to you if you choose it, but it no longer has dominion. It’s not your nature. For it to have place in your life after you’ve been born again, you have to give it permission—you have to allow it.

Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, that ye should obey it in the lusts thereof. Neither yield ye your members as instruments of unrighteousness unto sin: but yield yourselves unto God, as those that are alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness unto God. For sin shall not have dominion over you: for ye are not under the law, but under grace. What then? shall we sin, because we are not under the law, but under grace? God forbid. Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness? But God be thanked, that ye were the servants of sin, but ye have obeyed from the heart that form of doctrine which was delivered you. Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness. I speak after the manner of men because of the infirmity [weakness] of your flesh: for as ye have yielded your members servants to uncleanness and to iniquity unto iniquity; even so now yield your members servants to righteousness unto holiness (Romans 6:12-19).

Even though we are born again, when we yield ourselves to the devil and follow after sin, we are serving him, not God. Whether a servant of sin unto death or a servant of obedience unto righteousness, we yield ourselves to the one we are serving. We reap the harvest of the one we serve—a harvest of life or of death.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries

Your faith in Jesus gives you power to become a child of

God. When you make Jesus the Lord of your life, your spirit

is born again. You no longer belong to Satan’s kingdom. As

Colossians 1:12-13 says, you are translated into the kingdom

of God’s dear Son. You are now an heir of God and a joint

heir with Jesus Christ! What is His is yours. You have His

righteousness! This is your breastplate. It makes you worthy

in the sight of God.

As long as you see yourself unworthy, you will not experience

answered prayer to any great degree. But an understanding

of righteousness will put you on the road to success.

You have a right to resist Satan and expect him to flee.

Believers all over the world are learning their rights. They

are becoming more and more aware of their position as children

of God and joint heirs with Jesus (Romans 8:17). They

are taking advantage of the breastplate of righteousness!

The next piece of armor is for your feet. They are to be shod

with the preparation of the gospel of peace. Jesus said, “Go ye

into all the world, and preach the gospel to every creature”

(Mark 16:15). The gospel is the good news that we have peace

through Jesus Christ. Isaiah 52:7 says, “How beautiful upon

the mountains are the feet of him that bringeth good tidings,

that publisheth peace….” Sharing the gospel with others is

part of your armor.

The Word says, “Above all, taking the shield of faith.” Your

shield quenches all the fiery darts of the wicked. First John

5:4 says, “…and this is the victory that overcometh the world,

even our faith.” Your faith makes you an overcomer and more

than a conqueror! “The just shall live by faith” (Romans 1:17).

This means your whole life is sustained by your faith in God.

Finally, “Take the helmet of salvation.” A helmet is protection

for the head. Romans 12:2 says, “And be not conformed

to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your

mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable,

and perfect, will of God.” Satan’s battleground is your mind.

By keeping your mind renewed to the Word of God, you will

protect it from Satan’s onslaught of doubt and unbelief. This

is closely related to having your loins girt with the truth.

Freedom is in the truth. Jesus said, “If ye continue in my

word, then are ye my disciples indeed; and ye shall know the

truth, and the truth shall make you free” (John 8:31-32). The

key is continuing. You cannot just try this. You must make a

quality decision to do it. You will then experience the freedom

from Satan that is rightfully yours as a child of God.

Your armor is the same spiritual armor Jesus wore during

His earthly ministry. “And he saw that there was no man,

and wondered that there was no intercessor: therefore his

arm brought salvation unto him; and his righteousness, it

sustained him. For he put on righteousness as a breastplate,

and an helmet of salvation upon his head; and he put on the

garments of vengeance for clothing, and was clad with zeal as

a cloak” (Isaiah 59:16-17). Jesus proved this armor before He

gave it to you. It worked proficiently for Him. Why? Because

He was here for one purpose—to fulfill God’s will in the earth.

Jesus ministered on earth as a prophet under the

Abrahamic covenant. Philippians 2:8 says that Jesus humbled

Himself to come to earth. In the original Greek it literally says

He emptied Himself of His divine privileges. Jesus walked as

a man, filled with the Holy Spirit. He said, “I can of mine own

self do nothing: as I hear, I judge: and my judgment is just;

because I seek not mine own will, but the will of the Father

which hath sent me” ( John 5:30). He wore the armor, as a

man, and then gave it to the Church!

God has set in motion a security system on earth called

“prayer.” It includes the whole armor of God and the weapons of

our warfare. The principles involved are designed to put a padlock

on Satan’s forces and give the Spirit of God an avenue through

which He can carry out God’s will in the lives of His people.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries