Helmet of Salvation

Are you someone who is perfectly at peace … all the time? Nothing in life unsettles you or rocks your boat? Well, go make yourself a cuppa, this post is not for you.

If you are, however, more like me; someone who can struggle to find the sea anchor in the midst of life’s storms, read on.

As a youngster, I loved Get Smart. I loved the gadgets and always had a giggle at the Cone of Silence. The Chief and Max would force themselves into the egg-shaped barrier in an attempt to stop top-secret information escaping into enemy hands.

What if we had our own Cone of Silence?

But in reverse.

What if we could lower a barrier of silence to still the lies and find security in sureness?

Enter the Helmet of Salvation

¹⁷Take the helmet of salvation
Ephesians 6:17a

Once again, Paul pulls inspiration from Isaiah. The prophet paints an inspiring picture of the Warrior God who swoops down to rescue His child, bringing with Him wrath and retribution like a flood. Isaiah 59:15-19

He put on righteousness as his breastplate, and the helmet of salvation on his head; he put on the garments of vengeance and wrapped himself in zeal as in a cloak.
Isaiah 59:17

Even in the time of Isaiah life was tough i.e. there were no “good ole’ days” when it comes to the reality of life. People were swamped, they struggled, and they suffered.

Unchanging grace

However, not only is the human condition unchanging, so too is God.

There is nothing new about destructive thoughts, unsettling worries and sicking anxieties. They are part of life; we are all–past, present and future–fallen people living in a fallen world. Not only do we suffer the consequences of our own sin, we suffer the effects of other’s.

Just like the days of Isaiah … and Moses … and Abraham, God’s loving invitation remains impartial; the door is open to all who would come. However, the love of our God is too powerful to allow us to stay as we are.

So, by the Grace of the Father we are called, by the sacrifice of Christ we are saved, and by the power of the Spirit we are transformed.

Unchanging truth

Human nature cannot be altered by social reforms or education. It must be transformed by a supernatural work of the Triune God.¹
(Erikson, 2000, p. 958)

Before we encountered Christ …

³… we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another.
Titus 3:3

If we choose to acknowledge our sinfulness and commit to turning away from self-worship to glorifying God, we are born again. We are gifted with a new identity.

“But when the kindness and love of God our Saviour appeared, he saved us, not because of righteous things we had done, but because of his mercy. He saved us through the washing of rebirth and renewal by the Holy Spirit … so that, having been justified by his grace, we might become heirs having the hope for eternal life”
Titus 3:4-7

We are no longer blind, broken, and banished: we are aware, repaired and adored.

God’s Helmet of Salvation

The world has not changed, and neither can we without the supernatural work of the Triune God¹. It is critical to note, that no part of this process is based on our worth or merit. Salvation cannot be achieved in our own strength. We can’t even pitch in and help. We are wholly incapable of saving ourselves.

It’s all God.

The only thing in our power is choice: God or self.

If we choose to accept God’s invitation, we are restored to the right relationship we were created for: first with God, then with each other.

So what?

When Satan’s lies tempt us to lose sight of our new identity and restored relationship, when the reality of the world peppers our brain, when anxiety swarms like angry wasps, lower the Cone of Silence; God’s helmet of Salvation. Because truth is, we are at war. But we wear the armour of our God: His …