You Already Have What You Need - The Finale
“Put on the full armor of God [for His precepts are like the splendid armor of a heavily-armed soldier], so that you may be able to [successfully] stand up against all the schemes and the strategies and the deceits of the devil. For our struggle is not against flesh and blood [contending only with physical opponents], but against the rulers, against the powers, against the world forces of this [present] darkness, against the spiritual forces of wickedness in the heavenly (supernatural) places. Therefore, put on the complete armor of God, so that you will be able to [successfully] resist and stand your ground in the evil day [of danger], and having done everything [that the crisis demands], to stand firm [in your place, fully prepared, immovable, victorious]. 17 And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the Word of God.”
Welp, we made it through the five-part series that was never intended to be. I’m always grateful for the push to dig deeper. The Word is alive and active - we should never take in Scripture only at face value and never return to it. And quite honestly, this series has shown me where I need to grow and how to sharpen my “armor.” So here we are on the last pieces of our protective suit - the helmet and the sword. Both of these items are freely given to us as soon as we confess the Lord as our Savior. And like the other pieces, it’s up to us to use them for our benefit and victory.
The Helmet
We all know the importance of a helmet. It protects the one thing that makes us human and sets us apart from the rest of creation. All that we hold - our knowledge, logic, emotions, actions, and personalities are packed into one organ. So it’s no surprise that the foundation of our faith, salvation, would be placed upon our minds, literally and figuratively.
I don’t want to spend so much time on the defining points of salvation as I do the impact of salvation on our minds, and thus on our actions and viewpoints. Salvation, or our deliverance into heaven through the death and resurrection of Christ, brings us into peace with God. Our peace with God is not the emotion of peace as we would describe it, but the state of no longer being in competition with God. This is our Divine peace, our grace and mercy, our adoption into Sonship.
The moment we accept Jesus Christ into our lives is the moment we are given our helmet of salvation. The problem is, many of us spend far too much time walking with our helmets under our arm than we do with it on our head. In other words, we tout salvation, but our mindsets and lifestyles are not reflective of the undeserved gift we were given. You see, our peace with God shouldn’t remain vertical (only between us and Him). It should overflow outward and horizontally into all areas of life, from one type of peace (no longer in spiritual competition) to the other (the emotion and feeling of peace).
When we put on the helmet of salvation, our minds are meant to be transformed to that which is of Christ and not of the world. Colossians 3:15-17 (NIV) tells us to “Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts, since as members of one body you were called to peace. And be thankful. Let the message of Christ dwell among you richly as you teach and admonish one another with all wisdom through psalms, hymns, and songs from the Spirit, singing to God with gratitude in your hearts. And whatever you do,whether in word or deed, do it all in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him.” So we can see that receiving the helmet of salvation is one thing, but putting it on comes with the responsibility of living the way Paul told the Romans:
Love must be sincere. Hate what is evil; cling to what is good. Be devoted to one another in love. Honor one another above yourselves. Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervor, serving the Lord. Be joyful in hope, patient in affliction, faithful in prayer. Share with the Lord’s people who are in need. Practice hospitality. Bless those who persecute you; bless and do not curse. Rejoice with those who rejoice; mourn with those who mourn. Live in harmony with one another. Do not be proud, but be willing to associate with people of low position. Do not be conceited. Do not repay anyone evil for evil. Be careful to do what is right in the eyes of everyone. If it is possible, as far as it depends on you, live at peace with everyone. (Romans 12:9-12)
Living righteously and being reflections of Jesus is in itself a weapon against the enemy. Remaining blameless prevents shame, condemnation, embarrassment, and doubt from throwing you off. It takes the focus off of our way, and puts it on God’s way, which the enemy has no power over. But the helmet of salvation helps us to overcome our battles in another way: it transforms our mindsets from earthly thinking to spiritual thinking. It allows us to utilize the benefits that come from belonging to the Kingdom of God. For instance, the helmet shifts our thoughts from anxiousness to confidence in prayer, and peace into our hearts. The helmet gives us continual confirmation that “God did not give us a spirit of timidity or cowardice or fear, but [He has given us a spirit] of power and of love and of sound judgment and personal discipline [abilities that result in a calm, well-balanced mind and self-control] (2 Timothy 1:7, AMP). It reminds us that we are equipped to “Resist [the enemy], standing firm in the faith, because you know that the family of believers throughout the world is undergoing the same kind of sufferings.” (1 Peter 5:9, NIV).
It’s more than a symbol of our faith. The helmet of salvation, quite literally, saves us from losing our minds during battle.
The Sword
One passage sums up this piece of armor:
For the word of God is living and active and full of power [making it operative, energizing, and effective]. It is sharper than any two-edged sword, penetrating as far as the division of the soul and spirit [the completeness of a person], and of both joints and marrow [the deepest parts of our nature], exposing and judging the very thoughts and intentions of the heart. (Hebrews 4:12 AMP)
Of all of the components in the Armor of God, the sword is the only piece which has the function of harming our opponent(s). It’s also probably the only piece that, if used incorrectly, can be used to harm those on our side, or even ourselves. Wielding an almost-two-foot sharp piece of iron takes practice and knowledge. And I want to reiterate practice, because having someone tell you how to use a sword is not enough to win the battle; we will only get so far using only the words someone gave us.
We each have our individual swords, and it’s up to use to learn how to use them effectively. We have swords lying by our bed, sitting on the bookshelf, or maybe buried under some papers somewhere. It’d be a shame to find ourselves in a compromised situation in which we have ready access to a weapon but no knowledge on how to use it. Unfortunately, there are far too many Christians who love the idea of the sword, but have no personal knowledge of its purpose. (And that’s not to shame, but we all need a push sometimes). Sure, there are different training methods that some may follow and various instructors we have preferences for, but at the end of the day, we have to be personally responsible in order to become experts at wielding this weapon.
What’s awesome about the sword is that you can teach others how to fight with their own. This knowledge will penetrate and transform the next person’s spirit as much as it did yours. Pretty soon, you will have an army of equipped people who know God for themselves, and are utilizing all parts of their armor.
When we empower others through the love and power of Christ, we all win - individually and collectively. So many of us are suffering unaware of the tools we have available to us, be it wisdom, faith, truth, righteousness, or the Word. In fact, I believe most of us are already operating with some of these tools, but we are unaware of their potential power that could be unlocked with some sharpening and knowledge. I desire for all of us to stand in victory, even if we get knocked down a couple of times.