WARRIORS. Ephesians 6:10-17—“Finally, my brethren, be strong in the Lord, and in the power of his might. Put on the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to stand against the wiles of the devil. For we wrestle not against flesh and blood, but against principalities, against powers, against the rulers of the darkness of this world, against spiritual wickedness in high places. Wherefore take unto you the whole armour of God, that ye may be able to withstand in the evil day, and having done all, to stand. Stand therefore, having your loins girt about with truth, and having on the breastplate of righteousness; and your feet shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace; above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked; and TAKE THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the Sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.” (Emphasis added.)*** When the Apostle Paul wrote of the Armor of God, he was quoting in part from the prophet Isaiah. God Himself wore “righteousness as a breastplate, and an helmet of salvation upon his head…” (Isaiah 59:17). Does God really need a helmet to protect His head? Does God require salvation? Of course not, Beloved. Like the Old Testament Kings and the Romans and even modern day uniforms, headwear signified status as King or Centurion or Officer, different from the regular soldier or Enlisted Marine. That’s found in the verses after verse 17. God is wearing his “rank” helmet to take vengeance on “His enemies…so they will fear the name of the LORD from the west and His glory from the rising of the sun…” (vss. 18, 19). WE wear the Helmet of Salvation because we need to protect our brain housing group. Every thought (and subsequent act—Proverbs 23:7) begins in our head. Our bodily functions are controlled by the brain, housed in the head. Indeed, Beloved, our mental and emotional and spiritual health is in our head. It must be protected. Like modern warriors who wear a Kevlar helmet, as Spiritual Marines we guard our heads with the assurance of our salvation. Scripture says our salvation “is the power of God” (I Corinthians 1:18) to thwart the enemy’s lies and doubts in our minds that, for example, our salvation experience wasn’t real and that we are not really saved (Romans 8:1, 16). Our guarantee of salvation comes from “…our Lord Jesus Christ who shall also confirm you unto the end…God is faithful, by Whom he were called unto the fellowship of His Son Jesus Christ our Lord” (I Corinthians 1:7-9). In other words, the protective power of our Helmet comes from the One Who gave His Word (John 3:34) and gave His Spirit as a pledge (John 7:39; Romans 8:16; I Corinthians 1:22; Galatians 3:14; Ephesians 1:13)—AND gave His life (Matthew 20:28) and shed His blood for us (Acts 20:28). The Helmet is but one of the parts of the Armor of God, and these work together to protect us, so that the Breastplate and the Shield and the Helmet are as one to stop the enemy’s attacks through doubts, fears, and temptations. God gave us these defensive tools with their protective power, along with the offensive weapon of His Word, and we need only surrender to Christ’s indwelling Spirit to overcome (Proverbs 1:23; Proverbs 20:27; Romans 8:1, 4-6, 14); Galatians 5:16; Ephesians 3:16).
Posted on: Tue, 07 Oct 2014 00:59:47 +0000
Trending Topics
Recently Viewed Topics
© 2015