Learning to Put On the Armor Part 6: Helmet & Sword

We have been studying the armor of God. When God led me to Ephesians 6, I thought I would cover the armor in two writings. Now, it has turned into seven-part series. As we started in verse 10, we saw that we are to stand against Satan’s wiles. To do that, God has equipped us with armor. False teachers deceive too many Christians into thinking we are in the playground instead of the battleground. Often, we continue as if we are on the playground because we only want to satisfy our flesh. Many Christians act like they are discharged from the battleground and feel they control if they are in battle or not. Once you accept Christ, you are enlisted in the fight. Are you a Christian who seeks God as a civilian in comfort zone, or are you seeking him out as a soldier in a war zone? God has equipped us to for this battle. So far, we have looked at the belt of truth, the breastplate of righteousness, shoes of the gospel of peace, and shield of faith; Today, I want to draw your attention last two pieces of the armor.

17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God;

As I mentioned last time, Paul divides the armor into two categories. First, three relate to the state you should always be in; the last three you pick up as required. Satan wants to attack your mind as he did with Eve. As I write this in the year 2021, the world is in the grip of fear. The psychological effect of a pandemic is staggering, and even before the Covid crisis, mental sickness was on the rise. Science has no answer for mental health, and a slew of medication on the market to address various ailments only provides temporary relief, not cure, and often creates addiction. The only answer is God ( psalm 23:4). The helmet refers to the mind-controlled by God. When God controls the mind, Satan can not lead the believer astray. Satan will not easily mislead the Christian who studies the Bible. When you are grounded in Scripture, it will protect you from Satan’s lies. Now, let me clarify something here, The helmet of salvation is not getting saved. Remember, you are in the battle because you got saved. Satan would not be attacking you if you are not a believer; he would leave you alone. So what is the helmet all about? Simply speaking, Satan wants you to doubt your salvation. He will whisper into your ears; you are not good enough. Are you sure you are saved? He will discourage you. He will try to get you to doubt the promises of Scripture. He will try to get you to give up following God and follow him. The helmet of salvation is for when Satan attacks our mind. It is the confidence in the future and strength to go on. There is a finish line and a victory at the end. There is coming a coronation day. We are going to be in the presence of our king and reign with him. There is no sorrow or tears and no more battle. Satan wants to hit you with discouragement in the battle, know there’s coming a victory day, and don’t give up. In Philippians, chapter 1, verse 6, it says, “Being confident of this very thing that he who has begun a good work will perform until the day of Jesus Christ.” It is Jesus who saved us, It is Him who strengthens us in our daily walk, and It is Him who will see us through. No matter how bad the day gets, no matter how wicked the world around us, we will survive. Jude says, “Amid all the rot around you, you will be set apart by God and kept by Jesus Christ. The helmet of salvation is the assurance of that eternal life which is to come. And, when you have that assurance, it will change how you think and live your life.

It brings us to the last piece of armor, which is the weapon, and that is the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. The Bible is that sword. Now merely having Bible on your coffee table will do you no good. You have to learn to use it. If you own a sword, wouldn’t you learn to use it? Being able to wield the sword is being able to use Scripture’s truth at any given point. I would say that this is a defensive and offensive weapon, as any sword is. We only need one weapon; we only need the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God. Why is it a formidable weapon? First of all, it is powerful. It does not return void. It fulfills the things to which God purposes it and is the source of truth. It brings people to the knowledge of the truth. John 17:17, “Sanctify them by thy truth, thy Word is truth.” Hebrews 4:12 says, “The Word is alive and powerful, sharper than any two-edged sword,” cutting and piercing, dicing and slicing the human heart and revealing the inmost realities. It has the power to cut into the heart, and it also can heal the soul and restore it and sanctify it. 

Now how are we to use this weapon? We have a spiritual weapon that is essentially given to us by the Holy Spirit because the Holy Spirit authors the Scripture. It is a spiritual sword and should be used in the spiritual realm. The Spirit wrote the word, and the Spirit wields as we take it by faith and use it. Peter tried to use a physical sword to protect Jesus in the garden, but he learned at the Pentecost that the “sword of the spirit” does a much better job. When we use the sword against Satan, it cripples him and keeps him from hindering God’s word. When Satan tempted Jesus, Christ used the sword of the Spirit and defeated the enemy. Please keep in mind, Satan also quoted Scripture but not entirely. The better you know the word of God, the easier it will be for you to detect Satan’s lies and reject his offer. The only way to bring down lies and deceptions, false doctrines, anti-God notions, and bring every thought captive to the obedience of Christ is to bring the truth; the Word of God is the truth. Satan has very creative schemes, as it says in verse 11. Satan doesn’t like scripturally sound Christian. Satan does not want you to know everything you need to know because he does not want you to defend yourself against his schemes. Sadly, many Christians are confused about Scripture’s weighty matters such as Holiness, sanctification, and eternal security. Timothy 2: 15 tells us to be diligent, to be approved of God, workmen that need not be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of truth. We are to explore the Scriptures, to know what is taught there.

Ultimately, it all comes down to Jesus. Paul tells us in Romans 13:14 But put on the Lord Jesus Christ, The “Whole armor of God” is putting on the Christ. He is the truth ( John 14:6), and He is our righteousness( 2 cor 5:21) and our peace( Eph 2:14). His faithfulness makes possible our faith ( Gal 2:20); He is our salvation ( Luke 2:30), and He is the word of God ( John 1:1). When we accept Christ, we receive the armor. We are in a daily battle with Satan. David took off his armor and returned to his palace, and found himself in greater danger. We are never out of reach of Satan’s wiles, so we must never be without the whole armor of God. Victory is ours in Christ. Next week, we will conclude this series and learn how we put on the armor. May God add a blessing to His word. Amen.