Spiritual Warfare - The Helmet Of Salvation - Ephesians 6:17

starting in verse 10, and I'll read through verse

17, which will be our text for exposition this

evening. Finally, be strong in the Lord and in

the strength of His might. Put on the full armor

of God so that you will be able to stand firm

against the schemes of the devil. 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.

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. Stand

firm, therefore, having girded your loins with

truth. and having put on the breastplate of righteousness,

and having shod your feet with the preparation

of the gospel of peace, in addition to all, taking

up the shield of faith, with which you will be

able to extinguish all the flaming arrows of

the evil one. And take the helmet of salvation,

and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word

of God. Let's go to the Lord in prayer. Father,

we come to you this Lord's Day. We thank you

for the opportunity to come and worship and fellowship.

Father, we ask tonight that you would use your

word in our hearts and in our minds. Each one

of us present desperately needs the truth of

the Scriptures. Each one of us needs to be reminded

of the great salvation that Jesus Christ has

accomplished. The work that you have done, Lord.

The work that is effective and cannot fail. Lord,

bless our time in your word. We ask these things

in Jesus' name. Amen. As we continue in this

study, just by way of review. In chapter 6 of

Ephesians, Paul is presenting the Christian life

as one of ongoing and continual warfare. He's

presenting the Christian life as a battle. And

he presents the opposition, which is demonic

forces. He presents their hierarchy. He presents

some of their methodology. But he also goes in

depth into how the believer stands against such

opponents. Spiritual forces. How does the Christian

stand against and stand firm in the Christian

life against unseen spiritual forces? spiritual

foes, and spiritual opposition, which is stronger

and more powerful than anyone in this room. How

can the Christian possibly do this? Paul tells

us that we have to be strong in the Lord and

in the strength of His might. And then the rest

of this passage, tells us and teaches that God

has vested his power into these pieces of armor.

So we have considered each of the pieces leading

up to the helmet of salvation. Tonight we're

going to consider this helmet that the Christian

must put on. It's relating or correlating to

the Christian's mind. So the first thing we have

to consider is the helmet that the Christian

absolutely must put on. Something that is vitally

important for the Christian life. Just as the

soldier's helmet would protect their head, the

helmet of salvation, protects the Christian's

mind. We underestimate, I think, and we don't

give enough thought and weight to the reality

of our minds as the people of God. Temptation

comes and goes in our lives. It's not always

constantly crushing us. There's other struggles

and difficulties. that come and go that are not

present with us, but we always have our thoughts.

They are always present with us. Now, when I

say mind, I distinguish between our brain and

our mind. I believe that the mind, from a Christian

perspective, is seated upon the soul. It's a

spiritual faculty. Oftentimes in the Bible, the

mind is the heart, the epicenter of morality

and life in the Christian. But the brain is a

physical faculty that exists in us as part of

us being physically physical beings. So I distinguish

between those two things. The Bible tells us

that we need to guard our minds. We need to protect

our minds. And we do that by putting on the helmet

of salvation. So if we want to know how to put

on the helmet and what the helmet is, then we

have to ask, what is salvation? Because the helmet

is salvation according to Paul. This requires

us to look through the book of Ephesians and

to consider this briefly. I'm not going to read

all these references, but I will reference them

if you want to go back and look them up at a

later time. So what is salvation? Specifically,

according to the book of Ephesians. Because Ephesians

presents a comprehensive, big view. of salvation

that God has accomplished. Salvation in the book

of Ephesians originates and is according to God's

eternal purposes. We see this in chapter 1 verses

3 -5. Listen to some of these verses. Blessed

be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ

who has blessed us with every spiritual blessing

in the heavenly places in Christ just as He chose

us in Him. before the foundation of the world,

that we would be holy and blameless. It's speaking

of God's choice of the believer. All of salvation,

not just a part or a piece of God's saving work

in Christ, originates from God's eternal purposes.

It is sovereign. It is free grace. That God has

poured out upon his people. In the book of Ephesians,

salvation is accomplished through Jesus Christ.

We read this in verse 7. In him we have redemption

through his blood. The forgiveness of our trespasses

according to the riches of his grace. It's through

Christ's blood. Jesus Christ has accomplished.

And carried out salvation. And the Spirit of

God applies salvation to the believer. It's done.

The Lord Jesus didn't leave any stone unturned

when it comes to redemption, brothers and sisters.

He's finished everything. It's not speaking in

potentialities or possibilities. It speaks of

the finished work of the Lord Jesus. It's accomplished.

Salvation in the book of Ephesians is entirely

of grace. It is all of grace. We read this in

chapter 2, verse 8. For by grace you have been

saved through faith, and that not of yourselves.

It is the gift. Of God. Not as a result of works.

So that no one may boast. All of salvation. All

of redemption. Is all of grace. None of it. Is

earned or merited. The focus. Is on God. And

what he has freely given. And freely accomplished.

On behalf of sinners. Salvation decisively delivers

sinners from spiritual death and gives them spiritual

life. He brings men and women and young people

out of spiritual death and gives them spiritual

life. We read this, and we can see this in chapter

2, where we read that we were dead in trespasses

and sins. Absolute spiritual death and inability.

But we read this in verses 4 -5. But God, being

rich in mercy, because of His great love with

which He loved us, even when we were dead in

our transgressions, made us alive together. With

Christ. So he brings men and women out of death

and into spiritual life. He makes them alive

together with Christ. Salvation unites us with

Jesus Christ. Over and over and over throughout

the book of Ephesians we read, In Him. In Him.

In Him. With Christ. With Christ. We read in

verse 7 of chapter 1, In Him we have redemption

through His blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses

according to the riches of His grace. In Him.

It's speaking of the reality that when God saves

a person, He brings them into a saving union

with Jesus Christ. And everything that he has

accomplished is ours in Christ. Everything. That

is how every spiritual blessing in the heavenly

places are the believers. Because it is in Christ

that they are theirs. Because they have been

brought into a union. That is an unbreakable

bond. That is an unbreakable union between Christ

and His people. But we also see in the book of

Ephesians that salvation creates a new corporate

people and it creates new individual Christians.

If we were to look at Ephesians chapter 2, verses

Ephesians 2:14–16

14 through 16, we would see that God... creates

a whole new people out of Jew and Gentile. They're

made one new man. But we read in chapter 4 that

it's not just a new corporate body. He makes

individuals new. He changes something essentially

about the people that he saves. So it's not that

God just saves individuals in this conceptual

idea, but if a person takes part in the salvation

that God has made, He actually makes them new.

He changes them. He gives them a new ruling principle

within them. We read specifically in chapter

4, verse 24, this. and put on the new self, which

in the likeness of God has been created in righteousness

and holiness of the truth. We've been created

and made new. We've been regenerated by the power

of God. So Christians are literally new creatures

in Christ. Corruption isn't eradicated or done

away with. We still have indwelling sin. But

we are new creatures in Christ. And this last

one is very important. In the book of Ephesians,

salvation is sealed and guaranteed. A down payment

is given that proves that salvation is sealed

and guaranteed for the believer. God will accomplish

and bring about every single redemptive promise

He's made to His people. He guarantees heaven.

He guarantees eternity. He guarantees the full

and final fulfillment of all His promises by

giving us the Holy Spirit. We read this in chapter

1, verse 13. In Him you also, after listening

to the message of truth, the gospel of your salvation,

having also believed, you are sealed in him with

the Holy Spirit, who was given as a pledge of

our inheritance with a view to the redemption

of God's own possession, to the praise of his

glory. Salvation is not just promise, brothers

and sisters. Salvation is guaranteed. Salvation

is sealed in your life by the power and the presence

and the reality of the Spirit of God dwelling

within the believer. So these are all the things

in the book of Ephesians that Paul represents

and teaches us that salvation is. Now, notice

a few things about Paul's presentation of salvation.

All of it is a work of God. If you read through

the book of Ephesians, and you walk through those

things that I just walked you through, there

is absolutely nothing man -centered about any

of it. It is all of God. It is all from God.

It is all accomplished by God. And it is all

for God in His glory. And this is one of the

things that's important for our study tonight

as we consider the helmet of salvation and protecting

our minds. This salvation will not fail. It cannot

fail. Because God is the one who has accomplished

it and there's something at stake. What is it

that is at stake? With regards to the accomplishment.

The effectiveness. And the completion and the

fulfillment. Of redemption. God's glory. We read.

In chapter 1. Verse 12. To the end. Speaking

of salvation. To the end. That we who are the

first to hope in Christ. Would be to the praise.

Of his. Why does God save men and women? For

their good, yes, absolutely. But preeminently

and supremely, God saves sinners. He accomplishes

redemption. Why? For his namesake. For his own

glory. Will he let his glory be diminished? Will

he let his glory be taken away from? Will he

let his namesake not be exalted in the failure

or the incompletion of salvation? No. He will

give himself glory and he will save his people

to the uttermost because of the work of the Lord

Jesus. Salvation is something that the devil

cannot Salvation is something that the devil

cannot stop. It is something that he cannot change.

It is finished. It is a work of God that will

be fully and completely applied and brought to

full and final realization. And the devil cannot

do anything about that. That's important. So

why do we need to put this helmet on? Why do

we need to constantly be appropriating by faith

this great salvation that God has accomplished

on behalf of sinners for his name? Well, we see

because of the natural condition of our minds.

In chapter 2 of Ephesians, again constraining

ourselves to the book of Ephesians, there's other

things we could say from the New Testament and

the rest of the Bible, but we're really focusing

on Ephesians. Listen to this in verses 1 -3.

Of chapter 2. And you are dead in your trespasses

and sins. In which you formerly walked according

to the course of this world. According to the

prince of the power of the air. Of the spirit

that is now working in the sons of disobedience.

Among them. We too all formerly lived in the

lusts of our flesh. Indulging the desires of

the flesh. and of the mind. And we're by nature

children of wrath, even as the rest. What is

the natural condition of our minds? Well, by

nature, we are sinners. We are children of wrath.

We are born with a sin nature. That sin nature

influences and corrupts and mars and affects

and influences every other aspect of our humanity.

And that includes what? Our minds. Our minds

are inclined by nature, by birth, to sin. We

need to protect our minds as believers. The Christian

mind, or man's mind in general, we should say,

is not neutral. It is bent a certain way. And

it is not towards that which is good and that

which is holy. Man in his natural condition is

bent towards wickedness, towards immorality,

towards transgression, towards rebellion, towards

lawlessness, towards any kind or any number of

things. And the mind is an essential part of

that. We see this, I think, often in our culture,

don't we? The mind, the thinking of a person,

leads to all kinds of wickedness in their lives

or in society or in culture. So because of the

natural condition of our minds, they need to

be protected. But also because of the ongoing

danger of sin and threat to the mind. It's not

just the original corruption that we possess,

even as believers, but it's because of the ongoing

danger and threat. That sin is to the mind. In

chapter 4. Verse 17 and 18. We read this. So

this I say. And affirm together with the Lord.

That you walk no longer. Just as the Gentiles

also walk. And listen. In the futility of their

mind. Being darkened in their understanding.

Excluded from the life of God. Because of the

ignorance. that is in them because of the hardness

of their hearts. Sin works through the mind.

The mind, brothers and sisters, is a gateway

for all kinds of immorality in our hearts, in

our hands, and in our very lives. The mind needs

protected. It's in the mind that we find distorted

thinking that leads to unsound living. It's in

the mind that we find perverted thoughts that

lead to perverted actions. It's in the mind that

we find twisted realities that lead to twisted

behavior. The mind is where deception takes root.

The mind is where error is anchored first before

it goes anywhere else in our lives. The mind

needs protected because it is very, very vulnerable.

Sin works through our minds. And we see this

stark contrast with verse 24 of chapter 4 in

Ephesians. He's talking about the futility and

the ignorance and the darkening of their understanding,

the Gentile's mind, the unregenerate, unconverted

man, woman, or person. And that is starkly contrasted

with Ephesians 4 .23, which says this, And that

you, being renewed in the spirit of your mind,

and put on the new self, which in the likeness

of God has been created in righteousness and

holiness of the truth. Why does the Christian

need to continually be renewing their mind through

the Word of God, through truth, through the Scriptures,

because our corruption remains and our minds

are still vulnerable to being affected. So we

need to be renewing our mind in the truth. We

need, in a sense, to strengthen the regenerate

part of us. by the Spirit of God as He works

through the means that God has appointed. We

need to be growing. We need to be increasing

in the grace and knowledge of the Lord Jesus.

We need to be renewing and being strengthened

so that the corruption that is within us isn't

growing and strengthening. Our minds are vulnerable.

But we also see that the mind is the target of

deception in the book of Ephesians. We read in

chapter 4, verse 14, that Paul writes this. As

a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed

here and there by waves and carried about by

every wind of doctrine. by the trickery or schemes

of men, by craftiness and deceitful scheming.

Now, we've pointed out before that that sounds

an awful lot like the craftiness and the scheming

of the devil. And that's because it is. The devil

works through false doctrine. And what's the

result of... A person believing incorrectly about

their salvation. What comes of a person who believes

erroneous truth concerning the person of Jesus

Christ? Instability in their life. Up and down.

Like the waves. They're constantly rocking. There's

no settling. In their heart or their life. It

creates confusion. And chaos in a person's life

to a degree. Because that is what demonic wisdom

is. It brings division and chaos and confusion

and disagreement. And division according to the

book of James. That's earthly wisdom. The devil

aims at the Christian's mind. Because he knows

that if he can get their minds, then he can slither

his way into the rest of their lives. We have

to put on the helmet. Why? Because the mind is

the target of spiritual warfare. Possibly even

the prime target of spiritual warfare. the gate,

the door to the heart? Where is the gate and

the door to the hands and the feet? Where is

the gate and the door to the life of a person?

The mind, brothers and sisters. The devil knows

that if he can get to a person's mind, he can

get to their heart. And if he can get to their

heart, he can get to their hands. If he can get

to their person, their life, he can get to their

whole being. And influence them and direct them.

But where does it start? In the mind. What are

his tactics? Deceit. Lies. Falsehood. Accusations.

Doubt. Perversion and twisting of the truth.

Subtle inconsistencies with the truth. All kinds

of things. In the first place he aims is the

mind. Do you consider your mind to be important

with regards to your Christianity? Do you think

that it is important that you guard your mind?

It is, brothers and sisters. It's vitally important.

For your Christian life. For your living. For

your comfort. For your assurance. For your usefulness.

For your power in life. For your faithfulness.

For you being a father. Or for you being a mother.

Or a son or a daughter. For you being a church

member. If you just let the devil have his way

with your thinking. And you believe all kinds

of things. All of those things are going to be

jacked up. Our minds need to be protected. And

how do we do that? By putting on the helmet of

salvation. Now how do we put it on? Let me give

you a few simple ways. Preeminently, it is by

knowing the gospel of Jesus Christ clearly. Not

being muddled. on what the gospel of your salvation

is. Do you know the doctrine of justification?

Do you know the doctrine of sin and man? Do you

understand and know, are you growing in your

understanding of your doctrine of Christ and

who He is and what He has accomplished? Are you

seeking to grow in your understanding of your

doctrine of God? The work of redemption? The

doctrine of the atonement? These are all vital

and important doctrines. Do you know why? Because

as you understand them, you are guarded and protected

more and more from the arrows and darts of the

devil. If you understand. that your justification

is by faith alone, and that it is Christ's righteousness,

then you will understand. I will never lose my

good standing in the sight of God because it's

based on what Christ has done. If you understand

that the Christian life is not about performance

or works or earning your salvation. Oh, brothers

and sisters, the comfort. That you can enjoy

in your life. But in particular. I think it's

also. By using salvation. As a means of protection.

In times of need in the Christian life. A helmet.

Is not meant. Simply to be pretty. A helmet.

Is meant to be a defense. To be a protection.

To defend against something. So all of that salvation

that we spoke of earlier. The God centered salvation.

The big God salvation that we spoke of. Brothers

and sisters. You need to appropriate it to your

heart. and your mind constantly as you face struggles

and difficulties in life. When you are wrestling

with doubt, when you are wrestling with assurance

in your life, when you are wrestling with what

is true and what is not true, can you not say,

my salvation has come from God. He has accomplished

it. I didn't do it. I didn't do anything. All

I brought to the table was my sin. It's all of

grace. No matter what, it is finished. Does that

not encourage and strengthen the heart and grace?

When you know that you are chosen before the

foundation of the world to be holy and blameless

in Him, Does that not create humility in you

because you know it wasn't based on your goodness?

When you understand that you are a wretched sinner

and that God chose you anyways based on His good

purposes, does that not well up gratitude and

worship and adoration in your heart? Use salvation

by faith. And apply it to the maladies and heartaches

and struggles of your life. To lift your heart

up. To fight against temptation. When sin is

being dangled in front of you. Look to the blood

of Christ. Did not my Savior die for my sin?

Did not the Son of God take on flesh and dwell

among us? Did He not obey that I might live as

a righteous and godly man to bring Him honor

and glory? Not so that I could spat in His face

and enjoy and revel in the sin which He died

for. Does that not help in the face of temptation?

Does the fact that God is not good that God is

good, and He has demonstrated and proven His

goodness in giving His Son, does that not encourage

you in trial and suffering? When the devil wants

you to be downcast and to think that God has

cast you to the side and he doesn't care about

you, Christ died for me. When your heart wants

to condemn you time and time again because the

devil is aiming his arrows at you, there is therefore

now no condemnation for those who are in Christ

Jesus. Brothers and sisters, put on the helmet.

Put on salvation by faith in your life. Wake

up and put on salvation. Get your clothes on

and put on salvation. I will face the day. I'm

putting on my salvation. Go to lunch. Put on

salvation. When you face your husband or your

wife or your children, put on salvation. When

you go to bed at night, put on salvation. Recall

the gospel and the many grand and glorious blessings

that are yours in Christ. but also renew your

mind to the word of God. All of this requires

and necessitates that we get ourselves into the

word. How do we grow in our understanding of

the gospel? How do we grow in our understanding

of the atonement and the work of Christ, the

person of Christ? By going to the Word, brothers

and sisters. By digging in to that gold mine.

By mining its depths and getting out those nuggets

that are so helpful for our souls that are worth

more than anything else. Renew your mind. Pray

in faith and ask the Spirit of God to help you

as you read the Word. And finally, put on the

helmet of salvation by living out the gospel

in your life. Test, try, and prove the truths

of the gospel to be true by experience. Don't

just read in the scriptures about these things.

Live these realities. Live as Paul lived. Mortifying

sin. Pursuing godliness. Honor God. Live unto

His glory. Test, try, and prove the realities

and truths of Scripture by experience in your

life. There is a helmet that the Christian must

put on. I hope and pray that every single believer

will put on that helmet in times of distress.

And understand also why you need to put that

helmet on. Your mind is vulnerable. Every single

believer in here needs to protect and guard their

minds. But also, Remember how you put it on.

By knowing the gospel clearly, using it for protection,

renewing your mind, and living out those truths

in your life.