The Armor Of God Part 5: Salvation And The Word Of God Series

We are all in a spiritual war, every day, every hour, and every minute. We considered the enemies we fight, whether it be the devil, the world, or even ourselves. But the word tells us:

Ephesians 6:12 For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly places.

Our fight is against the unseen forces in the spiritual realm. These forces can bring about our destruction, in both the physical realm as well as in the Spiritual realm. We are in a battle, not for land or for political ideology. We are in a battle for souls of men that have eternal effect. So we are told to:

Ephesians 6:13 Therefore, take up the full armor of God, so that you will be able to resist in the evil day, and having done everything, to stand firm.

Today are considering the last two pieces of the armor for God. Next week we will look at prayer, upon which all these pieces of armor are dependent.

The list of our armor, that is provided by God, finishes out with "The helmet of Salvation and Sword of the Spirit which is the Word of God."

Ephesians 6:17 And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Like a soldier, do you not think that we would need to be well acquainted and well trained on the armaments and weapons with which we fight this war?

2 Corinthians 10:3–4 For though we walk in the flesh, we do not war according to the flesh, 4 for the weapons of our warfare are not of the flesh, but divinely powerful for the destruction of fortresses.

I hope you have your Bibles open to Ephesians 6, look back at what we have covered.

Verse 14, we have already girded our loins with truth – we put on the very belt of truth which holds all the armor together. Also we have the breastplate of righteousness, for right living leaves no room for the enemy to get a foothold.

In verse 15, we have put on the shoes of the Gospel of peace. This Gospel of peace is for our own souls. We can have peace with God and we can experience the peace of God, regardless of the turmoil happening in the world around us. If we have peace in the depths of our soul, we can face anything the enemy sends our way.

Verse 16, we have the shield of faith. Faith here is not the saving faith we have in Jesus (that I will cover in just a moment), but a living faith, a trust in the promises and the power of God. Faith is a defensive weapon which protects us from Satan’s fiery darts. Faith is knowing that God has got this, He is on His throne, and nothing happens without His knowledge.

Now we come to:

Ephesians 6:17a And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION

Notice this is in all caps in the NASB. This means it is a quote from the Old Testament, like a lot of this imagery of the Armor of God, Paul borrows from the OT.

Isaiah 59:17 He put on righteousness like a breastplate, And a helmet of salvation on His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.

But not only does Paul borrow from the OT, he also relates it to the Roman soldier of his day. Remember Paul was chained to a soldier while he was in prison, while he wrote this letter. The Roman helmet was made of either heavy leather, or of medal and it would often have cheek pieces. All this was to protect the head. For the Christian, the mind, the heart and soul of the believer is protected. Because of our salvation, we possess the peace of God.

Philippians 4:7 And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.

Possessing the salvation that only Christ can give, the Christian is not discourage. Salvation is a present reality and a future hope.

1 Thessalonians 5:8 But since we are of the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and as a helmet, the hope of salvation.

We can look back and know our sins are forgiven. But we also realize the continued forgiveness of sin as we look forward. It gives us strength to move ahead. We know the ultimate victory has already been won and that even in dire circumstances, the Christian is preserved from retreat or surrender. With the helmet firmly in place, we know Jesus will never let go of us. We face the battle knowing our salvation is assured: