Neither give place to the devil.
Ephesians 4:27
Why do believers struggle at times to achieve certain goals? The enemy may have access to hinder your endeavors through carnal means. Why? There may be something carnally you value so much that the devil uses as a gateway to hinder your achievements.
The devil seeks to oppose believers that desire to serve God. However, the enemy knows the level of maturity for some who are deep in God. Therefore he dares not to bother them. On the other hand, for some believers that are still developing, the devil cunningly frustrates them. Why? These believers have not come to that knowledge of understanding.
The bible verse clearly states to give no place to the devil. What does this mean? Even though believers serve God, the enemy knows our likes and dislikes. He also understands what we are passionate about and a good idea of our carnal desires. The enemy confronts God at times about us similar to how he did with Job in the Bible.
For example, if we use to love watching horror movies on television and we seldom watch them anymore, but we have a collection of them in a cabinet at home somewhere and eventually might sell them, the enemy could challenge God about that. However, if a believer is learning and growing in God and not reach the full knowledge of understanding in that area, God might not hold it against that believer because they did not know. Therefore, the enemy might not be able to hinder you. On the other hand, if a believer has reached the maturity of understanding, and the collection of horror movies is still in their cabinet and struggling to get rid of them because they are valuable, the devil could confront God and declare that he has a right to hinder you because it is ungodly and you claim to be a child of God. What could God do about that? We know having the horror collection is not right, God knows and the devil knows too. What can God do?
In the book of John, verse thirty of chapter fourteen, Jesus was talking to one of His disciples and said the prince of this world cometh and found nothing in Him. The prince of this world which is the devil came to see if the Son of God has anything worldly within His heart that He may hold dear. However, the enemy could not find anything in Jesus.
The devil is looking to hinder any believer who knows right from wrong that has a hard time letting go or getting rid of carnal valuables. The enemy desires to have access to these lives that they do not reach their potential because he sees them as a threat to his plan. Therefore, to not give place to the devil is to let go of anything that will give him the right to disrupt or corrupt your goals especially if it is to build the kingdom of God. No carnal vacancy.