NOTES for Rom 6:11
A dead person is one who does not respond when addressed. But every response of ours is an action backed by the human will. The apostle Paul relies on this idea when he offers us this way of living. "It is impossible that temptations should not come," the Lord once said. We live in conditions where sinful thoughts, temptations, and desires will inevitably touch our hearts. But it is possible not to answer them, as a dead person answers nothing.
At the same time, it is remarkably important not to forget the second half of the apostle's phrase: "consider yourselves... alive to God." For if, while not responding to sin, you are nevertheless open to communion with God, then sinful impulses will not break through to your consciousness, because you will have no time to think about them. In fact, all Christian ascetic practice, that is, the tactics and strategy of resisting sin, is built on this simple contrast.