God has given you the power to say “No”

You may remember the potato chip commercials with the famous tagline “Betcha can’t eat just one.” It’s true, isn’t it? One chip leads to another—and before you know it, you’ve wolfed down the entire bag.

That’s the way sin works in our lives. One small act of disobedience leads to another—and before long, we’re held captive by our own compromises. James 4:7 reminds us, “Resist the devil, and he will flee from you.” The corollary of that is also true: Submit to the devil, and he will make himself at home in your life.

What should we do when the devil comes knocking? We must learn to put out the Not Welcome mat at the entrances of our hearts to resist Satan’s advances. The apostle Paul called this putting on “the breastplate of righteousness” (Ephesians 6:14). 

We can stop Satan at the door and cause him to flee by living righteously. 

We put on the breastplate of righteousness by consistently saying no to Satan and yes to God. Easier said than done, right? But the Bible says we have everything we need to live righteously. Let me share three biblical principles for developing obedience in your life:

1. Appreciate the power of habits. Many Christians wait until they’re in the middle of temptation to say, “What would Jesus do?” But expecting obedience to come easy when under attack is like expecting to win an athletic contest without training. Imagine I walked onto the field during a Dallas Cowboys game, picked up the football, and said, “What would Roger Staubach do?” How well do you think I’d perform in that game?

Athletes are successful during a game because of the hours they spend training before the game. In the same way, the only way you’re going to be successful in resisting temptation is by training yourself spiritually before temptation comes. 

In 1 Timothy 4:7, Paul said, “Discipline yourself for the purpose of godliness.” Developing habits such as reading God’s Word, spending time in prayer, going to church, giving to God’s work, and sharing your faith will give you the training you need to resist when Satan comes knocking.

2. Perform an obedience inventory. Praying “Lord, forgive me of all my sins and help me to do better” is not going to make you more obedient to God. You need to identify exactly where you’re coming up short in your life.

In Nehemiah 9–10, the Israelites identified three specific commands they had violated. They confessed their sins, and then they signed a contract spelling out exactly what they were going to do to be more obedient. That’s a great model for us!

Consider the major areas of your life: family, finances, work, health, friendships, and relationship with God. For each area, ask yourself, What is one thing I could start doing and one thing I could stop doing to be more obedient to God?

You may say, “Pastor, I have so many things I need to work on. It’s overwhelming!” Start with one thing you can do this week to say yes to God.

3. Decide that obedience is possible and profitable. Many Christians think sinning is as certain as the law of gravity. But Romans 8:2 says, “The power of the life-giving Spirit—and this power is mine through Christ Jesus—has freed me from the vicious circle of sin and death” (TLB).

God has given us the power to say no to sin. We must provide the willingness to obey.

If you want to protect your mind and heart from Satan’s advances, I encourage you to take these three important steps! Put on the breastplate of righteousness by doing at least one thing you know would please God—and start reaping the rewards of obedience today.

Sharing the Truth of God’s Word,

Dr. Robert Jeffress