In the myth of Hercules and the twelve labors, Hercules was tasked with slaying the hydra, a colossal serpent with multiple heads. Hercules triumphed over the hydra after much struggle, but it was Iolaus’ crucial assistance that sealed the victory by cauterizing its wounds, preventing the monster from regenerating.    I’ve often heard people say, “You’ll always struggle with sin” or “You’ll never be free from temptation.” However, I don’t agree with that philosophy. It can feel like sin is a hydra, and we’re stuck playing whack-a-mole every time it surfaces in our lives. In fact, we might even quote Paul from Romans 7: “What I want to do, I don’t do, and the very thing I don’t want to do, I find myself doing!” It can be confusing and frustrating at times, but let’s take a step back and break things down.    First, there’s a difference between sin itself and “the flesh” or our “old self.” Sin is the legal transgression against God and His law. On the other hand, the struggle with the flesh involves our tendency to fall back into old patterns and desires that lead us to sin. This distinction is crucial if we want to live in the true freedom of Christ and His law of liberty.    As Paul says in Romans 6:8-14, “If we have died with Christ, we believe that we will also live with him. We know that Christ, being raised from the dead, will never die again; death no longer has dominion over him. For the death He died, He died to sin, once for all, but the life He lives, He lives to God. So you also must consider yourselves dead to sin and alive to God in Christ Jesus. Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”    As Paul emphasizes in this passage, we must consider ourselves dead to sin and the law and alive in Christ and in grace. This means that we are no longer under the condemnation and obligation of sin but rather living under the love and grace of Jesus.     “The Father doesn’t judge anyone; instead, He has entrusted all judgment to the Son so that everyone may honor the Son as they honor the Father. Anyone who doesn’t honor the Son doesn’t honor the Father who sent Him.” (John 5:22-23)    Good news! The very person who judges your transgressions is the same person who died to forgive them. Through repentance and grace, sin loses its power in our lives, except for the authority we grant it. That’s why Paul emphasizes that we shouldn’t let sin control us again.    “If we confess our sins, He is faithful and just to forgive us our sins and to cleanse us from all unrighteousness.” (1 John 1:9)    Now that we’ve dealt with the serpent’s venom, let’s focus on how to defeat the hydra. To put something to death means to end its vital function. The scriptures teach us to eliminate the works of the flesh. This doesn’t mean simply avoiding wrong actions or thoughts. It means that when a desire arises, we delve deep to find its root cause and eliminate it. Here are the roots to look for:     For desires related to the body, the root issue stems from discipline and self-control.   For issues affecting the soul, such as thoughts or actions, examine your heart and judge those things according to the standard of love found in 1 Corinthians 13.     If you will deal with the issues with the help of the Holy Spirit and learn to desire the things that He gives you, you will find that your mind is being renewed and transformed to be more and more like Christ.    “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not satisfy the desires of the flesh. Now the works of the flesh are evident, but the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control. Against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” (Galatians 5:16-24)    It may take time and effort to eliminate all the heads and prevent them from regrowing, but eventually, you’ll find that you no longer desire those things. The desire to sin and the whispers in your ears will gradually diminish until they cease altogether. It is possible to live a life free from sin in this lifetime and in this world. However, remember that nature detests a vacuum. You must replace the old self with the new self so that what is corruptible will be overcome by incorruptibility.