The Helmet of Salvation

This is the First Mustang Pulpit Podcast, a podcast of the weekly preaching and teaching at First Mustang.! Thank you for joining us. So thanks for being a part of what God's doing here.

I'm so grateful for you and particularly for you to be here tonight as we continue to study from Ephesians chapter 6. With that in mind, let's go to Ephesians 6.

A couple of days ago, I ran across a sermon from Alistair Begg preaching on the armor of God. And I heard him say, I'm not sure how old it was, I just found it a few days ago.

I heard him say to his church, he said, imagine you're the preacher and you're going to preach the armor of God and you open up your text for the week and all you have to go on is this phrase.

Verse 17, take the helmet of salvation. And I kind of laughed because I thought that's been my week. What does the Lord want us to learn from this simple phrase, this singular part of the armor of God known as the helmet of salvation?

Well, I don't know how the rest of his sermon turned out, but we'll see how we do with it tonight. The helmet of salvation. As we've done with each part of the armor, let's always begin by trying to understand what Paul's readers would have had in their mind.

And we do that by trying to go back in time to see what would have been in Paul's mind. So let's start with this question that we've been starting with each sermon this semester. What was the significance of the helmet for the soldier?

What was the significance of the helmet for the soldier? In Paul's day, in the Roman army, there were a couple of different kinds of helmets that people would wear. One was made of leather. The other was made of metal.

The word that's used here in Ephesians 6 describes this strong metal helmet that would protect the soldier, historians tell us, from everything essentially other than an axe or a certain kind of hammer.

Now, if somebody got close enough to you with an axe, it could penetrate through the helmet. Otherwise, this helmet was greatly protective for them.

It was generally made of bronze, fitted over with a piece of iron often, and it would be lined on the inside with some kind of linen or cloth.

It was similar, they say, to what a drum symbol would look like and feel like in terms of its consistency and what it would look like, feel like to wear.

Essentially, it was a metal, bronze, iron kind of bowl that would fit on your head. And they would pat it with sponge or felt to try to make it more comfortable to wear.

It had a guard on the helmet that would come down. It would cover their forehead. It would cover their neck. It had plates that came across to cover their cheeks and to cover their nose.

It covered more than just their head. It tried to protect everything, really, from the bottom of your neck up. And so when Paul says the helmet of salvation, what's in his mind certainly is this kind of protective headpiece that soldiers would wear in combat, in battle, to protect the most central, important part of their body.

And what Paul says with that in verse 17 is that as believers, we are to take the helmet of salvation. Which leads us to our second question tonight, what does the helmet of salvation do for the believer?

What does that mean for us? Well, the helmet, in its simplest terms, the helmet protects the head. The head protects the brain.

The helmet of salvation obviously has something to do with how we think. To take up the helmet of salvation is to know certain things, to believe certain things, and to think certain things.

So let me just give you a few things that the helmet of salvation does for the believer. Number one, it reminds us of who we are in Christ.

When we think of our salvation, it reminds us of who we are in Christ. Now, as I've been mentioning each week this semester, not only does Paul certainly have in mind a Roman soldier and draw up on that imagery, but I keep referring you back to Isaiah because Isaiah in the Old Testament is where this imagery of the armor of God comes from in the first place.

Listen to Isaiah 59 verse 17. Speaking of the Lord, he put on righteousness as a breastplate and a helmet of salvation on his head.

Where did Paul get the idea of the helmet of salvation? Well, he's thinking of a Roman soldier. Yes, probably looking at a Roman soldier, maybe chained to a Roman soldier. But in his mind, this goes all the way back to Isaiah chapter 59 to be specific.

Where it is said that the Lord himself puts on the helmet of salvation. In Isaiah, salvation is something the Lord does. In Ephesians, salvation is something the Lord gives.

And we have hope because of the salvation of the Lord, what we just sung about a few moments ago. And so, in football, a helmet not only protects the player, it gives them confidence.

In battle, the helmet not only protects the soldier, it gives them some level of confidence to be able to engage the enemy and to be able to charge the hill where they're trying to attack.

And if they've got a helmet on, it gives them a certain amount of confidence that they are protected. In a similar way, we contemplate our salvation as Christians and it ought to build our confidence in Christ.

The most bold believers that exist are those who never forget the salvation they have in Christ. When people say of those who share the gospel, how can you be so bold?

There may be a number of different answers, but here's the one big central answer. It's because they're thinking about the salvation they have in Christ. The fullness of it. The totality of it.

That He that is in us is greater than He that's in the world. That any risk is worth it to remember and to consider the importance of the message of salvation.

Listen to 1 Thessalonians 5, 8 and 9. But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, having put on the breastplate of faith and love, and for a helmet the hope of salvation.

Did you know the helmet of salvation is referred to not just in the armor of God in Ephesians 6, He also mentions it here in 1 Thessalonians 5. We put on the helmet of hope of our salvation.

For God has not destined us for wrath, but to obtain salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. So when the Christian thinks about salvation, what it should produce within us is the hope that we have because of our salvation and the hope that we have in Christ.

That's where our confidence comes from. Ultimately, not our education, not our giftedness, our hope, our confidence ultimately comes from one singular thing, and that is what we have through Jesus Christ.

So this idea of the helmet of salvation that comes from Isaiah 59, spoken of in Ephesians 6, also in 1 Thessalonians 5, reminds us that God promised to be our salvation in the Old Testament, and now through Christ has made good on that promise.

So be confident. God keeps His promise. God keeps His promise. Let's just look at it as it's described here in Ephesians. Just turn, just give you a few examples here.

Go to chapter 1 of Ephesians. Let's just look at a few things that this letter has already said that we should have confidence in. Look at verse 19, Ephesians 1.

What is the immeasurable greatness of His power toward us who believe, according to the working of His great might, that He worked in Christ when He raised Him from the dead and seated Him at His right hand in the heavenly places, far above all rule and authority and power and dominion, and above every name that is named, not only in this age, but also in the one to come.

And He put all things under His feet and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all.

We have hope in our salvation because of the power of God. Look at chapter 3, verse 18. That we may have strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God.

When you think about God's love for you, it ought to produce hope. When you think about the salvation God has accomplished for you, it ought to produce confidence.

Go back to chapter 2, verse 5. Even when we were dead in our trespasses, God made us alive together with Christ, by grace you have been saved, and raised us up with Him, and seated us with Him in the heavenly places in Christ Jesus, so that in the coming ages, He might show the immeasurable riches of His grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus.

For by grace you have been saved through faith, and this is not your own doing, it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast.

He says that we are seated with Christ. Never forget your position as a Christian. It says we have been saved. It's a perfect passive participle, meaning in original language, this is something that happened in the past, that has continual ongoing effects today.

It's not just something that happened in the past that ends there, it's something that happened in the past that still has an effect today. That's the language He uses. So when you think about your salvation, it ought to produce within your heart hope and courage because of what Christ has done.

So what does the helmet do for the believer? It helps us remember who we are in Christ. Here's a second thing it does. It guards our minds. Just like a helmet literally guards your brain, so the helmet of salvation guards our minds.

Now how do we guard our mind? This is an important question for us to consider. And the Bible tells us explicitly. Make note of Philippians 4 verse 8.

Finally, brothers, whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is anything of excellence, if anything worthy of praise, think on these things.

You guard your mind by thinking of things that are pure and lovely and praiseworthy. Think about your salvation.

Sing about your salvation. Pray about your salvation. Glory. Give praise to Christ thinking of your salvation.

It guards your mind. If you don't do that, your mind will be filled with so much filth of this world, you will find yourself in despair.

So what do we sing tonight? When Satan tempts me to despair and tells me of the guilt within, upward I look and see him there who made an end to all my sin.

Because the sinless Savior died, my sinful soul is counted free for God the just is satisfied to look on him and pardon me.

So one of the ways you guard your mind is you think about your salvation. Never get past that.

Never let your mind and your heart overcome the joy of thinking, Christ saved me. It's an amazing thing.

Think about Jude 1. It says, Jude, a servant of Jesus Christ and brother of James, to those who are called, beloved in God the Father, and kept for Jesus Christ.

Kept. It's the word tero. It means to watch over, to guard, to keep, to protect. Think about that, Christian.

You are being kept. You're being guarded. You're being protected by Christ, for Christ. Sovereignly protected by the Lord for His glory.

Romans 12, 2. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind. The helmet of salvation guards our mind as we continually think about what Christ has done for us.

This distinguishes you from the world because 2 Corinthians 4.4 tells us, speaking of the world, in their case, the God of this world has blinded the minds of the unbeliever.

To keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ who is the image of God. Why do you see the glory of Christ?

Because you have been saved. Let that amaze you. Let that overwhelm you. When we sing, the Lord is my salvation, if you're a believer, you ought to sing that on one side of you thinking, I have so much confidence because of Christ, and on the other side of you thinking, how can this be?

How is it that I, a sinner, can come to the presence of God with boldness, welcomed in His presence, only one reason, because of what Christ has done?

And that's all the hope that you need. And that's all the confidence that you need. It's all the joy that you need. Here's the third thing the helmet of salvation does for us.

It protects us from the attacks of the enemy. It protects us from the attacks of the enemy. Let me give you a few attacks that the enemy will throw against you.

It protects you from the attacks of the enemy when he gets you to doubt your salvation. The enemy will try to do that.

The helmet of salvation protects you when the enemy attacks you by getting you to question your assurance of salvation. Listen as I read from John 6, starting in verse 37.

Jesus says, All that the Father gives me will come to me, and whoever comes to me I will never cast out. For I have come down from heaven not to do my own will, but the will of Him who sent me, and this is the will of Him who sent me, that I should lose nothing, but all that He has given me I will raise up on the last day.

For this is the will of my Father, that everyone who looks on the Son and believes in Him should have eternal life, and I will raise Him up on the last day.

You know why I have so much confidence in my future salvation? Because Christ has promised He will lose none. If you love Him, if you believe in Him, your security, your assurance is based on His inability to lose that which is His.

1 John 5, 13, I write these things to you who believe in the name of the Son of God that you may know that you have eternal life. You can know it.

It is not an arrogant thing to say, I know I'm going to heaven. And somebody looks at you and says, who are you to say, you know, here's the answer, the authority of the words of Christ.

My confidence is not my ability to stay saved. My confidence is Christ's inability to lose that which He has redeemed. And so we have confidence, and we have hope, and it guards our minds when we dwell on our salvation.

Now just a quick word of clarification. Eternal security and assurance of salvation are not the same thing.

Let me take just a minute to unravel this just a bit. It's true that a Christian should have and can have security, eternal security, and assurance of salvation.

But they're not the same thing. There are unbelievers who have no eternal security because they're not converted, yet if you ask them, they will have assurance.

It's not true, genuine assurance, but they feel assured of their salvation because of their family, or because of their generosity, or because of their church attendance, or any number of things they come up with.

At the same time, there are Christians, if you're a real Christian, you have eternal security. But there are some Christians that have eternal security, all of us would, but some who lack assurance.

And what the Scripture is telling us in 1 John 5 is the Scripture is written so that you can know that you belong to Christ.

So as a Christian, if you're truly converted, you have security, though some believers struggle with assurance of salvation.

The Bible is written so that you can know. So just read 1 John. 1 John walks through what you believe doctrinally, it walks through how you live morally, it walks through what you know about Christ, and 1 John will help you to see, are you in Christ?

And if you are in Christ, you have security, and you should have assurance. But the world is filled with unconverted people who have no security, but they have assurance.

Assurance of what? Assurance of a salvation that is not theirs. Are you with me? So you've got to be aware of this. When you share the gospel, and you talk to someone about Jesus, and you ask them if they're saved, and if they think or they know they're going to heaven, and they say, yes, I'm going to heaven when I die, they have assurance.

But there's another question, do they have Christ? Because they may have assurance on something that does not save. It could be tonight that you're here in our evening service, and you feel assured of your going to heaven, but if it's not based on the work of Christ, whatever you're assured of is less than biblical assurance.

But if you are a believer, if you're truly in Christ, you have security, and 1 John 5 says, the scripture is given to you that you can know.

So when the enemy tries to challenge you and threaten you and attack you to get you to question your assurance, your answer should be built upon the word of God.

Why are you assured of heaven? Because of who Christ is. Because of what Christ has done. Because of Christ holding us. Because of Christ's inability to lose that which is His.

Because your assurance is not based on you. Your assurance is based on Christ. And greater is He that is in you, 1 John 4, than he that is in the world.

So the helmet of salvation helps us to think rightly about our salvation, and it guards our minds, and it protects us from the attacks of the enemy.

Romans 5, 9, Since therefore we have now been justified by His blood, much more shall we be saved by Him from the wrath of God.

And so we rest in our salvation. Put on the helmet of salvation is to say, meditate on what Christ has done, and rest in what Christ has done.

Find your comfort in what Christ has done. So let's put the pieces together. Number one, what was the significance of the helmet for the soldier?

It's what protected them. Number two, what does the helmet of salvation do for the believer? Reminds us of who we are in Christ, guards our minds, protects us from the attack of the enemy, and allows us to rest in our salvation.

Now, let's be practical for a minute. Let's ask a third question. How do we rest in our salvation? How do we do that?

What would our minds need to know and need to meditate on for us to truly rest in what Christ has done? Well, the Bible speaks of salvation past, present, and future.

The Bible says that we have been saved, we are being saved, and we will be saved. The Bible speaks of salvation in all these tenses. So how do we rest in our salvation?

Number one, remember you have been justified justified by faith. Remember, you have been justified by faith. Let me root this in Scripture for you.

Turn with me to Romans chapter 3. Make sure that you know these aren't just my words, these are rooted in the Word of God.

We rest in our salvation, one, by remembering we are justified by faith. Romans 3, verse 23, for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, and we are justified by His grace as a gift through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus.

Go to Romans 5, verse 1. Therefore, since we have been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ.

Where does our peace come from? By remembering that we have been justified by faith. Number two, we rest in salvation by remembering we are being sanctified in faith.

Justified, the moment of conversion, now the rest of our time on earth we're being sanctified. We have been saved and in another sense we are being saved.

1 Corinthians 15, verse 1, now I would remind you, brothers, of the gospel I preach to you which you received in which you stand and by which you are being saved.

1 Peter 1, verse 3, Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ. According to His great mercy, He has caused us to be born again to a living hope through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead to an inheritance that is imperishable, undefiled, and unfading, kept in heaven for you who by God's power are being guarded through faith for salvation ready to be revealed in the last time.

So Christian, you were saved by faith. You are being sanctified, transformed in the image of Christ by faith.

That's today, that's present tense. And thirdly, we remember that we will be glorified in faith. You've been justified, you're being sanctified, and one day you will be glorified.

1 John 3, 2, We are God's children now, and what will be has not yet appeared, but we know that when He appears, we shall be like Him, because we shall see Him as He is.

Romans 13, verse 11, Salvation is nearer to us now than when we first believed. Understand the point here. You're saved in the past, but you're being saved today, and one day your salvation, your glorification, will show you just how perfect your salvation truly is.

And that day of our ultimate salvation is closer today than it's ever been. You're closer today, Christian, to being with Christ than you've ever been.

You're closer today to heaven than you've ever been. Romans 8, verse 29, For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to be conformed to the image of His Son in order that He might be the firstborn among many brothers.

And those whom He predestined, He also called. And those whom He called, He also justified. And those whom He justified, He also glorified.

Do you notice in Romans 8, 28 to 30, no one falls off the chain. Nobody got left out. Those that He foreknew, He predestined.

Those He predestined, He called. Those that were called, He justified. And those whom He justified, He glorified. He gets us home.

He gets His children home. So in Mark 8, Jesus says, if anyone will come after Me, let's use biblical language, if anyone would come after Him.

Romans 8 says, those who are believers are those that He foreknew and those He predestined and those He predestined, He glorified.

Let's use biblical language. He foreknew you. He predestined you. He justified you. He will glorify you. I have no problem in Mark 8 saying anyone who would come, come after Christ.

I have no problem in Romans 8 saying those who are believers, He foreknew, He predestined, He justified, and He glorified. I have no desire in Mark 8 to twist the words and not say what Jesus didn't say.

Let's just say what He said. If anyone will come after Me, that's the invitation. If anyone will come after Him, and if you are His and you want to know why you are His, here's why.

He foreknew you, He predestined you, He called you, He justified you, and one day He will glorify you. You know what Charles Spurgeon said about that? Speaking of God's sovereignty and man's responsibility, Charles Spurgeon said, you don't reconcile friends.

They don't need to be. You just preach the Word of God. It's the most freeing thing as a preacher to just preach the text.

It's the most freeing thing. When you're in Mark 8, you say what Jesus said. When you're in Romans 8, you just say what the Spirit said.

Would you believe today? Would you come after Christ? Because if you would come after Christ, He will save you. If anyone would deny themselves, take up their cross daily, and follow Jesus, He will lead you to glory.

If anyone would believe, they shall be saved. And yet, why does that produce no pride? Here's why. Because you're not a believer, because you were better, smarter, wiser, or stronger.

No, no, no. You're a believer, because He foreknew you, He predestined you, He called you, He justified you, and everyone He foreknew, predestined, called, and justified. Every one of them, He will glorify.

Nobody falls out. If you love Romans 8, balance that by reading Mark 8.

And if you love Mark 8, balance that by reading Romans 8. And if those twin truths keep you awake tonight, that's not my problem.

I didn't write it. Call John, he'll be awake all night long. So what do you do with that? Here's what you do with that. You call, Acts 17, on all people to repent.

All people. You pray, Colossians 4, for open doors to share the gospel with all people. And when you lay your head on your pillow and you wonder, why am I safe?

Why am I secure? One reason. Christ saved me. And you rest in that. And you put on your helmet of salvation and you dwell on that.

And as you think about these issues of responsibility and sovereignty and providence and anyone come after me and these he foreknew, he predestined. You stay awake at night and you get headaches and you try to resolve it.

It's okay. It's good for your mind to think about things bigger than you. It's okay to lose a few nights of sleep trying to figure out, understand, what do you do with that?

And then eventually, here's what you say. I don't have to resolve what God has purposed. But I do rest in it.

So, tonight, when we go to sleep at the state and house, we will lock our doors.

And if one of us remembers, we will turn on our alarm. And our hope will be in the Lord.

And when I drive to work tomorrow, I will go to speed limit and I will wear a seatbelt. And my hope will be in the Lord. And I will do my best to prepare for my family and I have life insurance in case I die.

I'm worth much more dead than alive. And my hope will be in the Lord. And I will do my best to live responsibly. But I will rest ultimately in His sovereignty.

And that causes me no heartache. And I feel no tension and no desire to resolve that which is clearly revealed in Scripture that all men should repent.

We should take the gospel to all the neighborhoods and the nations. And every person who is saved has only one reason to believe they are saved.

He made us alive. Lazarus did not come forth from the tomb and say, look what I did! Because he was dead.

And Christ had to make him alive. And if you are saved today, it is because Christ made you alive.

You repented. You believed. You called upon the name of the Lord. Absolutely. Why? Because he made you alive.

Now dwell on that and you'll understand the helmet of salvation. If Christ made me alive and Christ holds me secure, then my confidence in heaven is not in me.

It's in Christ. He paid the price. He purchased my soul. He bought me with his blood. He made me alive.

He saved me. He is saving me. He will save me. And my final salvation is closer today than the moment I first believed.

And so with our days we have left on this earth, let's share the gospel. And let's pray for people to be saved. And let's be generous givers.

And let's lay down our life for the neighborhoods and the nations. And then one day when we get to glory, let's meet up together and say, look what Christ has done.

Dwell on those things. Let me leave you with one last verse. Philippians 2, 12 and 13. Therefore, my beloved, as you have always obeyed, so now, not only as in my presence, but much more in my absence, work out your own salvation.

Not work for, work out your own salvation with fear and trembling. Take your salvation, work it out.

Take your salvation, live it out. Take your salvation, apply it in every situation you find yourself in. Work out your salvation.

Put on the helmet of salvation. Think on these things. Dwell on these things. And just a word to our high school students and college students, because we've got some smart ones here.

And we've got some high school and college students who read good books and think long and hard. And those are good things. Let me give a warning to my friends who are in high school and college.

never love to debate theology more than you love Christ. Be careful.

Because there are lots of people who love to read and love to study and love to think about the sovereignty of God and love to talk about Romans 8, and they want to use that as a weapon and a mallet to crush other people, and the result of that is pride in your own heart which never glorifies Christ.

Instead, let it drive you to a humble, compassionate, kind, faithful mindset that says, I don't know why Christ saved me, but I will give Him glory for it, and I will lay down my life to invite others to repent and to believe, and I will leave the outcome to Christ, and when I get to glory, I will bow at His feet and say, I don't know why you saved me, but to the praise of your name for all eternity, I will glorify the name of Jesus Christ.

So last night, at our house, my dear daughter-in-law, Bailey, said, Michael, what's your favorite hymn? Which got me thinking of about 15 of my favorites.

And I told her that one of my favorites was the church's one foundation. And I want to leave tonight by giving you these words of the church's one foundation.

The church's one foundation is Jesus Christ, her Lord. She is His new creation by water and the Word. From heaven, He came and sought her to be His holy bride.

With His own blood, He bought her, and for her life, He died. Mid toil and tribulation and tumult of her war, she waits the consummation of peace forevermore.

Until with the vision glorious, her longing eyes are blessed, and the great church victorious shall be the church at rest.

Rest. Rest in the salvation purchased, kept for you by Christ.

My brothers and my sisters, this week, take up the helmet of salvation. And work it out in every part of your life.

Lord, we have, I feel tonight, just scratched the surface of this remarkable truth of the salvation You have given to us.

while I have tried to walk our people through this doctrine and try to give them a sweep of the New Testament of how this affects us, I'm aware of how inadequate my words are to even speak of such a holy truth.

I pray that your Holy Spirit would come even this moment in power in our minds and our hearts to help us to understand and to apply these things and ultimately to rest in them.

May we, like the soldier, take up the helmet and put it on our heads to protect our mind and to guard our thoughts. And may our thoughts be on the work that You have done, on the salvation that You purchased for us so that we can say as Scripture does that we have been saved, we are being saved and we will be saved.

Not because we are so good we will arrive, but because You are so strong you cannot lose those who are Yours. Lord, we want to be confident and hopeful, not rooted in some worldly optimism, but grounded firmly in the biblical truth that of those who belong to You, You will lose none.

and You will raise up on that final day. We give You the praise for that truth and we do rest in it.

And it's in the name of our Savior we pray. Amen. Amen. Thank you for being here tonight. We're going to meet next week as our kids praise will be leading us.

The following week, May 13th or 14th, whatever that Sunday is, is Mother's Day. We won't have service and then that next week we will finish our study on the armor of God that third Sunday night in May.

Remember, gentlemen, tomorrow's the deadline to sign up for the Institute. Ladies, remember Tuesday night, ladies' night of theology. Thursday, on the National Day of Prayer, our prayer room will be open from 830 to 430.

We invite you to come and to pray. We also have a group that prays at noon each Thursday. You're always welcome and invited to come and pray with them. We want to pray for our church. We want to pray for our nation.

We want to pray for salvation for those in our church. Pray for salvation for those in our community. Pray for children that need to come to know Christ. Pray for your family to know Christ.

Come on Thursday. You're invited anytime during the day to go to our prayer room and lift up your needs and requests unto the Lord. We encourage and invite you to do so. It's going to be a great week of ministry.

Lots of wonderful things going on. We want you to be a part. If we can serve and help you in a way, please let us know. Love you, church. God bless you. You're dismissed. God bless you.

God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you.

God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you. God bless you.