The Whole Armour of God Part 5

VIII. “And take the helmet of salvation...” (EPH 6:17). A. This is another piece of armour God Himself as Messiah puts on. ISA 59:17. B. helmet: A defensive cover for the head; a piece of armour, usually made of, or strengthened with metal; which covers the head wholly or in part. C. The helmet protects the head, which implies guarding our thoughts. 1. If our thoughts are rooted in ignorance, we are liable to oppose Christ instead of glorifying Him. JOH 16:3; ACT 26:9. 2. If our thoughts become corrupt, our conduct will shortly follow. PRO 23:7; MAT 12:34. 3. If our thoughts are not well-grounded in Christ, they may be beguiled. 2CO 11:3. 4. This underscores the importance of “...bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ” (2CO 10:5). D. It is the helmet of salvation. 1. Knowing the truth about eternal salvation protects the saint from all manner of heresies, from “do-it-yourself” righteousness, from fear and doubts about one’s security, from misguided decisions and actions, etc. 2. Knowing the truth about temporal salvation protects the saint by empowering him to “...obtain the salvation which is in Christ Jesus with eternal glory” (2TI 2:10) and live the abundant Christian life. JOH 10:10. 3. Our zeal for God should be according to knowledge (ROM 10:2), not ignorance, errors and assumptions. a. John the Baptist was sent to “...give knowledge of salvation unto his people by the remission of their sins, Through the tender mercy of our God...” (LUK 1:77-78), a salvation by mercy, not by sinners’ righteous works. TIT 3:5. b. Knowing HOW we are saved, and THAT we are saved does much to direct our zeal appropriately. c. This also liberates the soul from bondage to error. GAL 5:1. D. Remember, Paul elsewhere describes this helmet as THE HOPE of salvation. 1TH 5:8. 1. “Salvation must be our helmet (v.17); that is, hope, which has salvation for its object; so 1 Thess. 5:8. The helmet secures the head. A good hope of salvation, well founded and well built, will both purify the soul and keep it from being defiled by Satan, and it will comfort the soul and keep it from being troubled and tormented by Satan. He would tempt us to despair; but good hope keeps us trusting in God and rejoicing in him.” (Matthew Henry Commentary) 2. hope: Expectation of something desired; desire combined with expectation. [See PRO 13:12] 3. We are, in a sense, saved by hope. ROM 8:24-25; HEB 6:17-20. a. Our hope in a new heaven and earth of righteousness which we have never seen is a motivation for present holy living. 2PE 3:13-14. b. Our hope in a new body free of weakness, sorrow, pain and death likewise is an incentive for overcoming now. PHIL 3:20-21; 1JO 3:2-3. c. When our performance is weak or sin has overcome us, our hope in God’s mercies saves us from desperation. PSA 130:7; 33:18. d. In times of trouble, our hope in God, His love, His justice and eventual deliverance saves us from depression. PSA 42:9-11; JOB 19:25-27. 4. The resurrection of Jesus Christ is the grounds of our hope. 1PE 1:3-4. a. It is a living hope of a secure eternal inheritance, not a dead hope of an temporary earthly inheritance squandered by disobedience. b. His resurrection is the guarantee of our own. 1CO 15:20. c. His resurrection is our comfort when loved ones in Christ die. 1TH 4:13-14. d. His resurrection enables us to draw nigh unto God. HEB 7:19. e. His resurrection completed our salvation which Calvary began. ROM 4:25. f. No wonder Paul lays so much emphasis upon it. 1CO 15:12-19. E. Consider the relationship of the helmet of (the hope of) salvation to the other pieces of Christian armour. 1. Hope is not independent of the truth. a. Hope in something false or imaginary is doomed to be dashed, or worse, to be satisfied by Satan, not God. Consider the vanity of those who think to upload their consciousness to “the cloud” to secure eternal “life.” b. The Jews hoped for a carnal kingdom and king, and so rejected Christ Whose kingdom is not of this world. LUK 17:20-21. c. Many hope for a literal, earthly millennium to come, which Scripture predicts will actually be the kingdom of the beast. REV 17:10-11. d. Many hope for an invisible coming of Christ to rapture them from the presence of the wicked but Scripture tells saints to anticipate a co-existence with the wicked until the harvest and judgment of the world. MAT 13:30, 39, 47-50; LUK 17:26-30. e. Some hope that conversion to Christ will be the end of their troubles in this world. But following Christ in truth guarantees trouble from an unbelieving world. JOH 16:33; ACT 14:22; 2TI 3:12. f. Hope of the sure promises of God in Christ is hope that may be distant but never dashed. 2CO 1:19-20. g. Hope without truth is what compelled the unbelieving Jews to not abandon Jerusalem in 66 A.D. when Cestius’ army withdrew the siege. 2. Hope is not independent of righteousness. GAL 5:5. a. First, the hope of believers is grounded in Christ’s righteousness on their behalf. ROM 5:19; 2CO 5:21. b. Evidentially, it is the righteous that have a sure hope for the future, not the wicked. PSA 24:3-5; ROM 2:6-10. c. It is the righteous that have a genuine hope at death. PRO 14:32. d. It is the righteous that have a genuine hope of a good resurrection. JOH 5:28-29. e. Unrighteousness invites deluding judgments from God which blind the mind to deliver it to false hopes. 2TH 2:10-12; MAT 7:21-23. f. Hope without righteousness is like the man who builds his house on sand or the rich man who is only rich in himself. MAT 7:26-27; LUK 12:16-21. 3. Hope is not independent of (the gospel of) peace. a. One had better have an excellent helmet if he intends to run or fight unshod. There is likely to be much falling down. b. Knowing that God has made peace with us through Jesus Christ is more than adequate cause for hope. ROM 5:1-2. c. The gospel of peace which declares our hope also teaches us that we are, as God’s loved ones, especially cared for in every respect, even in times of testing. And this should give us personal peace. PHIL 4:6-7. d. If we expect our witness of our hope to others to have credibility, we ought to have peace within ourselves which is evident to them. e. If we lack peace, we are likely also to lack the joy of the LORD, a source of our strength (NEH 8:10), and so jeopardize our hope by a weakened condition more subject to Satan’s influences. f. Hope without peace is like the newly engaged person who has long desired a spouse but can now only think of the troubles married life represents. 4. Hope is not independent of faith. a. As before, hope and faith are virtually inseparable. HEB 11:1; GAL 5:5. b. We have hope because of WHAT we believe about God, His promises, His love, His future, etc. c. We have good hope depending on HOW intensely we believe God, His promises, His future, etc. The fuller our faith, the more abundant our hope. ROM 15:13. d. Hope without faith is wishful thinking at best and is likely to be dashed upon the hard rocks of reality and impatience. HEB 6:11-12. e. Hope without faith is like depending on smoke to support an elephant. No substance = no support. HEB 11:1. 5. Hope is not independent of Scripture. a. Hope is invigorated through reading in the scriptures of God’s works, His love, His longsuffering, His people’s trials, His promises, etc. ROM 15:4. b. We hope in the word, for it is the faithful record of God’s promises. PSA 130:5. c. True hope springs only from the scriptures, not from feelings, assumptions, traditions, experiences, technology, politics or philosophy, etc. (1) The scriptures alone declare salvation from sin. (2) The scriptures alone declare salvation from death. (3) The scriptures alone declare salvation from hell. (4) The scriptures alone show the way of salvation. (5) The scriptures alone have proved to be utterly reliable. (6) The scriptures alone have a corresponding witness within us. ROM 8:14-16. (7) The scriptures let Christ rest in hope in His sufferings. ACT 2:26-28. (8) Hope in programs, philosophies, governments or technologies of men is hope in things mutable, but the scriptures are immutable. PSA 119:89, 160. e. Hope without the scriptures is hope based on fantasy or delusion. (1) It is the vain hope of the pagan who sacrifices a child to an idol to invoke the idol’s blessing for the upcoming year. (2) It is the vain hope of the Muslim who thinks that his keeping of Islam’s five pillars of faith shall save him. (3) It is the vain hope of the materialist who thinks that his wealth is the certain sign of his eternal favor with God. (4) It is the vain hope of the Jew who thinks that his pedigree guarantees eventual world dominion and God’s favor. f. Hope without Scripture is like the deluded investor in a pyramid scheme who continually waits for that eventual big payday for everybody.