Christian Warfare - Pt. 4
We continue, today, with our series on Christian Warfare. In our previous studies in this series, we have seen that we are engaged in a spiritual war. All of the forces of evil are arrayed against us to prevent us from doing the divine will of Jesus Christ our Lord and reaching our Heavenly Home. We have learned that Christ Jesus does not leave us unequipped for battle but, on the contrary, He has provided us with powerful spiritual resources that can enable us to achieve victory - the armor of God.
If we are to have strong victorious spiritual lives, we must know about our armor and weaponry and use them each day and all through the day. We have examined the first piece of combat equipment - the belt of sincerity. The first requirement for victory is to be supported and strengthened by a genuine and singular desire to please the Lord and promote His glory. Having girded ourselves with the belt of sincerity, we are ready to put on the breastplate of righteousness. Our heart - the fountain source of our feelings, attitudes, words and deeds - must be transformed; that is, changed from being inclined toward sinfulness to one inclined toward righteous obedience. God grants the Christian the gift of the indwelling Holy Spirit to bring-about that transformation; however, we must cooperate with the Spirit by filling our hearts with righteousness. This is accomplished by feeding our minds solely on the Word of God and other things that are true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, virtuous, and worthy of God’s praise.
Now, we come to the next vital piece of armor, in verse 17, which is "the helmet of salvation".
I. The Helmet.
Protection for the head was essential to the Roman soldier as he was involved in close combat Thus, he wore an iron-reinforced helmet. Some had additional bronze pieces to protect the ears. The helmet was polished with oil so as to make the metal slick or slippery. This caused the blows of swords, war clubs or battle-axes to be deflected upon impact.
II. Hope of Salvation.
Paul states that we have head protection for our battles, it being salvation. Now, I do not believe that "salvation" here has reference to conversion He is not referring to salvation from our sins which we received when we obeyed the Gospel.
Instead, I believe Paul is looking ahead to the future. It is what is alluded to, in Romans 13:11, when he says, "now is our salvation nearer than when we first believed." It is, says 1 Peter 1:5, "a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time [or end of time]."
That the salvation of our helmet is a future salvation is made clear, in 1 Thessalonians 5:8, where Paul refers to it as "the hope of salvation." Note that this salvation is a hope. Paul says, in Romans 8:24-25, "if we see what we hope for, then it is not really hope. For who of us hopes for something we see?" In other words, hope looks to something we do not see or have rather than for something we already see and have.
So, the salvation of our helmet is something yet future, something as yet not possessed or not fully entered into. It is referring to a salvation that is to be ours when Christ comes again. Hebrews 9:28, "Christ…shall appear a second time for [a] salvation without reference to sin, to those who eagerly await Him."
In short, we can say that the salvation that we hope to receive at Christ’s second coming is, as it is stated, in Titus 1:2, "the hope of eternal life, which God, Who cannot lie, promised long ages ago." Now, eternal life is more than just life after death. Eternal life is like a diamond, a single jewel yet possessing many marvelous facets. When we consider eternal life, it includes the following blessings:
A. Deliverance from God’s wrath.
1 Thessalonians 5:8-10 we have "a helmet, the hope of salvation. For God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us." For the bulk of Mankind, the return of Christ is not going to be a happy occasion because it will be the occasion of God pouring out His righteous wrath on the unprepared. 2 Thessalonians 1:7-9, says "the Lord Jesus shall be revealed from heaven with His mighty angels, in flaming fire dealing out retribution to those who do not know God and to those who do not obey the Gospel of our Lord Jesus. And these will pay the penalty of eternal destruction, away from the presence of the Lord and from the glory of His power."
B. Abiding in the Presence of the Lord.
Notice that part of the punishment for the ungodly is that they will be cast "away from the presence of the Lord". The second marvelous facet of eternal life is that it means abiding in the presence of the Lord. For, returning to 1 Thessalonians 5:9-10, we read "God has not destined us for wrath, but for obtaining salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ, Who died for us, that….we may live together with Him." This reminds me of the Lord’s words in John 14:3, "I will come again, and receive you to Myself; that where I am, there you may be also."
C The Resurrection and Transformation of our Bodies.
Our Lord’s receiving us will be quite dramatic. The third marvelous facet of eternal life is the changing of our bodies at the resurrection. You see, for us to be received by the Lord and to dwell with Him requires a change in our natures 1 Corinthians 15:50-53, "Now I say this, brethren, that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of God; nor does the perishable inherit the imperishable Behold, I tell you a mystery; we shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trump; for the trumpet will sound, and the dead will be raised imperishable, and we shall be changed For this perishable must put on the imperishable, and this mortal must put on immortality"
What an exciting change. Philippians 3:20-21, "the Lord Jesus Christ; … will transform the body of our humble state into conformity with the body of His glory, by the exertion of the power that He has even to subject all things to Himself." 1 Thessalonians 4:13-17, "But we do not want you to be uninformed, brethren, about those who are asleep, so that you will not grieve as do the rest who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose again, even so God will bring with Him those who have fallen asleep in Jesus For this we say to you by the word of the Lord, that we who are alive and remain until the coming of the Lord, will not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord Himself will descend from heaven with a shout, with the voice of the archangel and with the trumpet of God, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive and remain will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air, and so we shall always be with the Lord."
D Heavenly Inheritance.
Being adopted children of God, the fourth marvelous facet of eternal life is obtaining and enjoying our eternal and glorious inheritance. Paul says, in Ephesians 1:18, "I pray that the eyes of your understanding may be enlightened, so that you will know what is the hope of His calling, what are the riches of the glory of His inheritance." Colossians 1:5 refers to it as the "the hope laid up for you in heaven." 1 Peter 1:3-4, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope…, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you." Of what does this inheritance consist? Jesus referred to it, in Luke 12:33, as "an unfailing treasure in heaven, where no thief comes near, nor moth destroys." In addition, Romans 2:7, 10, states we will receive "glory and honor." 1 Peter 5:10, says "the God of all grace,…call[s] you to His eternal glory by Christ Jesus"
Deliverance from God’s wrath, being resurrected with an imperishable and immortal body, eternally abiding in the presence of the Lord and receiving the heavenly inheritance of honor, glory and riches…. all these are incorporated in the meaning of eternal life. This is the salvation for which we hope.
Having defined "salvation", it is important that we define "hope." In the Bible, in relation to God’s people, hope never means ‘wishful thinking’. Christian hope is different from secular hope, in that it is devoid of the worldly element of uncertainty. It is not wishing that something good will happen in the future but a certainty that it will happen The Greek word translated "hope" is elpis and it means "a joyful and confident expectation". It is ‘blessed assurance’. Romans 5:5 says that the Christian’s hope will bring no shame of "disappointment". Why? Biblical hope is rooted and grounded upon the trustworthy promises of God.
III. The Hope of Salvation As Our Helmet.
We now wish to conclude our lesson by examining how the "hope of salvation" corresponds to a combat helmet.
Perhaps, we can understand this helmet of the hope of salvation by seeing how it was worn by our Great Example - Jesus Christ.
In John 16:33, Jesus told His disciples, "In the world you have tribulation, but take courage; I have overcome the world." How did Jesus endure and overcome all the temptations, all the trials, all the afflictions and deprivations and all the persecutions He had in His life? What sustained Him?
Isaiah 59:17 prophesied that the Messiah or Christ would, Himself, wear the helmet of the hope of salvation. We have an account of how He used that helmet and how it helped Him to become the ’Overcomer’ that He was. Hebrews 12:2, "Jesus,…Who for the joy set before Him endured… and has sat down at the right hand of the throne of God."
What did Jesus focus on that enabled Him to endure and overcome?
Was it the frequent and intense temptations?
Was it His earthly poverty?
Was it the verbal abuse?
Was it the rejection He suffered?
Was it the humiliations of the mock trials and crucifixion?
Was it the physical exhaustion and torturous pain?
No, had He kept His mind focused on any of these things, He would have surely fell rather than endured. He wore the "helmet of the hope of salvation"; that is, He focused on "the joy set before Him".
He did not dwell upon His temptations. He did not dwell on His lack of earthly goods and comforts. He did not dwell on His mistreatment. He did not dwell on His acute pain? He made sure that His mind dwelt on the guaranteed eternal honor and glory and riches to be given to Him by the Father after He had faithfully finished His course. That hope brought joy. That hope comforted Him. That hope encouraged Him That hope empowered Him. That hope made Him triumphant.
If we wear that helmet, it will do no less for you and I.
Brethren, if we focus solely upon our battles here and now - life’s temptations, life’s trials, life’s afflictions and pain, life’s heartaches and sorrows, we are leaving ourselves wide-open to Satan’s attacks of discouragement and despair. When soldiers become discouraged and despondent on the battlefield, they are prone to surrender.
Paul commands us to wear our helmet of the hope of salvation in Colossians 3:1-4, "Therefore, if you have been raised up [from the waters of baptism] with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth….When Christ, Who is our life, is revealed, then you also will be revealed with Him in glory."
What does hope of salvation produce in us?
1. Hope Produces Holiness.
Are you feeling overwhelmed by the temptations. Do you feel it becoming more difficult to resist temptation and the desire to indulge our fleshly nature. John says put on the helmet of the hope of salvation, for it is an empowering inducement to remain pure. 1 John 3:2-3, Beloved, now we are children of God, and it has not appeared as yet what we will be. We know that when He appears, we will be like Him, because we will see Him just as He is. And everyone who has this hope fixed on Him purifies himself, just as He is pure."
2 Peter 3:10-14 - "But the day of the Lord will come like a thief. The heavens will disappear with a roar; the elements will be destroyed by fire, and the earth and everything in it will be laid bare. Since everything will be destroyed in this way, what kind of people ought you to be? You ought to live holy and godly lives as you look forward to the day of God and speed its coming. That day will bring about the destruction of the heavens by fire, and the elements will melt in the heat. But in keeping with his promise we are looking forward to a new heaven and a new earth, the home of righteousness. So then, dear friends, since you are looking forward to this, make every effort to be found spotless, blameless and at peace with him." Put in simple terms, we are to live each day as if Jesus were coming back that very day, turning from sin, and turning to God.
2. Hope Produces Perseverance.
Are you tired of always doing good deeds? Are you tired of your sacrifices and giving? Do you ever feel like you are just spinning your wheels for nothing? Do you feel tempted to give-up and say, ‘let someone else do these things?’ If so, put your helmet on. 1 Corinthians 15:58, "My beloved brethren, be steadfast, immovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord, knowing that your toil is not in vain in the Lord." Galatians 6:8,9, "The one who sows to the Spirit shall from the Spirit reap eternal life. Let us not lose heart in doing good, for in due time we shall reap if we do not grow weary"
Do you get tired of your bodily ailments and pain? Do you get so frustrated and miserable with your physical afflictions that you are tempted to murmur and complain? Are you tempted to consider the advice of Job’s wife - curse God and just die? If so, put on your helmet. Romans 8:18, 23-25, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us…. And not only this, but….we ourselves groan within ourselves, waiting eagerly for our adoption as sons, the redemption of our body. For in hope we have been saved, but hope that is seen is not hope; for who hopes for what he already sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, with perseverance we wait eagerly for it." 2 Corinthians 4:16- 5:2, "Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day. For momentary, light affliction is producing for us an eternal weight of glory far beyond all comparison, while we look not at the things which are seen, but at the things which are not seen; for the things which are seen are temporal, but the things which are not seen are eternal. For we know that if the earthly tent which is our house is torn down, we have a building from God, a house not made with hands, eternal in the heavens. For indeed in this house we groan, longing to be clothed with our dwelling from heaven."
Are you being persecuted for your Faith? Are you getting discouraged by the snubs and mistreatment you bear for up-holding the Truth and confessing Jesus? Are you getting tired of being the ‘odd one out’? Put on your helmet. Matthew 5:10-12, "Blessed are those who have been persecuted for the sake of righteousness, for theirs is the kingdom of heaven. Blessed are you when people insult you and persecute you, and falsely say all kinds of evil against you because of Me. Rejoice and be glad, for your reward in heaven is great." 1 Peter 4:13, "But rejoice, inasmuch as ye are partakers of Christ’s sufferings; that, when his glory shall be revealed, ye may be glad also with exceeding joy."
3. Hope Produces Joy.
Does the burdens of this life weigh heavy on your heart ? Do the problems get you down ? Does it seem you are constantly under a dark cloud? Are you discouraged because things in this life are not what you would wish them to be ? Is your heart devoid of joy and peace? If so, put on your helmet.
We are to be, says Romans 12:12, "rejoicing in hope." 1 Peter 1:3-6, "Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who according to His great mercy has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, to obtain an inheritance which is imperishable and undefiled and will not fade away, reserved in heaven for you, who are protected by the power of God through faith for a salvation ready to be revealed in the last time. In this you greatly rejoice, even though now for a little while, if necessary, you have been distressed by various trials." Romans 5:2, "we exult in the hope of the glory of God." Romans 15:13, "Now may the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, that you may abound in hope by the power of the Holy Spirit"
Are you wearing the helmet of the hope of salvation? To neglect to exercise hope is to fail to have a heavenly perspective, to become comfortable in this life, to fall prey to worldliness, or discouragement. To exercise Christian hope is to fully realize your eternal destiny, to live each day in preparation for that destiny, and by giving a reason for the hope that is in you, to endeavor to bring as many souls as possible with you. Hebrews 6:17-19, "In the same way God, desiring even more to show to the heirs of the promise the unchangeableness of His purpose, interposed with an oath, so that by two unchangeable things in which it is impossible for God to lie, we who have taken refuge would have strong encouragement to take hold of the hope set before us. This hope we have as an anchor of the soul, a hope both sure and steadfast."
