Helmet of Salvation
While I was ice skating with my best friend, I was nervous about not wearing a helmet. I didn’t know if people wore helmets while ice skating, but it just felt right, especially since I hadn’t skated before. Thankfully, I didn’t fall, but it would have made me less anxious if I had worn a helmet like the young kids did. Though Paul was referring to a centurion's helmet, which Roman soldiers wore during his time, we similarly should be wearing the helmet of salvation if we want to protect our heads and keep our minds in Jesus’ perfect peace.
What is the helmet of salvation? It is a metaphor Paul uses to explain one of the spiritual tools that God gave us to withstand spiritual warfare. The helmet of salvation is the act of protecting the mind by staying focused on Jesus, remembering that we are saved, and knowing what our salvation means. Because we are saved, we are no longer bound by our sinful nature. Instead, as Christians, we have a personal relationship with Jesus and can rely on the Holy Spirit to give us the strength and wisdom to live our lives as God intended. We don’t have to let the challenges of life have control over our thoughts and actions.
When the enemy attacks us with harmful thoughts, distractions, and lies, our helmet of salvation keeps our minds set on Jesus and rejects the enemy's attempts to make us fall away. However, the helmet of salvation – this mindset of being focused on Jesus, with the help of the Holy Spirit – is not something we put on every once in a while or when trouble comes. We must always wear it; we must always be intentional about what we are thinking about, what thoughts we are letting enter our minds, and which thoughts we agree with. Thoughts produce actions, and so we want every thought to be aligned with God’s will so that our actions don’t fall out of line with His will.
Verses: Ephesians 6:12-13, 17 NIV, 2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV
“For our struggle is not against flesh and blood, but against the rulers, against the authorities, against the powers of this dark world and against the spiritual forces of evil in the heavenly realms. Therefore put on the full armor of God, so that when the day of evil comes, you may be able to stand your ground, and after you have done everything, to stand… Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” (Ephesians 6:12-13, 17 NIV)
“For though we live in the world, we do not wage war as the world does. The weapons we fight with are not the weapons of the world. On the contrary, they have divine power to demolish strongholds*. We demolish arguments and every pretension that sets itself up against the knowledge of God, and we take captive every thought to make it obedient to Christ.” (2 Corinthians 10:3-5 NIV)
*A stronghold is a stubborn pattern of negative thinking that affects your spiritual growth because your actions are dominated by harmful, incorrect thoughts. A stronghold is also an impenetrable fortress used for defense during warfare. (asterisk added as a footnote for additional information)
