Sermons from Lone
Rock Bible Church They Will Know We Are Christians by our . . . Helmet In his description of the believer’s spiritual armor, the apostle shifts gears to encourage us to “take up” the helmet and the sword. What is the importance of the helmet? Let’s ask:
Today we will be talking about the helmet of salvation, but there is much that comes before. Ephesians
6:10-17 When I was a boy we used to regularly visit Grandma and Grandpa’s farm. Grandpa was one of these fellows who could do about anything and did. He had a number of sheds on his little farm full of all kinds of things that would fascinate a little boy. I remember being particularly taken with what I saw time after time hanging on the wall of one of Grandpa’s sheds and I kept bugging him. “Grandpa, what are you going to do with that old helmet?” He’d say, “Oh, I don’t know. Let’s leave her hang there.” “Grandpa, I’d sure like to have that helmet.” And finally, he broke down and he gave it to me. He said this to me, very interesting words: “I have had that helmet for 47 years.” This was in 1965. He said, “You have to keep it for 47 too.” I said I will, Gramps, and it’s been 42 years now, so we’re closing in on it. Grandpa wore this in France in World War I and it has his name and his unit painted on the inside around the edge. He was Private J.Q. Holmes, Joe Quincy Holmes,701st Allied Expeditionary Force, St. Nazaire, France. This was his helmet. I think about this and realize that Grandpa wore this and he took gas, lost a lung, and all that. He was right in the trenches. As I reflect on what he did and as I reflect on our text, I realize that the helmet fills two purposes. One, it identified Grandpa as a soldier. They would know whose side he was on. As a matter of fact, you can still vaguely see a painted letter “D” on the front of the helmet. It identified him as a soldier and also protected his head. I think about that as I reflected on Ephesians 6:17. Oftentimes when the apostle, writing in the New Testament, is quoting from the Old Testament it will be marked somehow. Paul didn’t just make this up. He is sitting in prison in Rome so he sees the Roman soldiers getting decked out in their armor and their accouterments for battle in their panoply. He is also at the same time mindful of what God has done in history. In his mind is not only the idea of the soldier getting ready for battle in Rome but also what he knows of God the warrior, from the Old Testament. We have used these verses before, but he repeats them so I will as well, from Isaiah 59, talking of Messiah setting out to rescue His people as a warrior king. Isaiah
59:17 He put on righteousness like a breastplate, We sometimes don’t see God’s
person as accurately as the Bible depicts Him. We, in our New Testament way of thinking
consider God as God is light, God is love, God is holy, God is all these good things, but
the Bible does a much better job of presenting a well- rounded picture of the character of
our God, God as warrior king, as a leader in the conflict, the One who is the vanguard of
setting a wrong world right as He builds His kingdom. It’s a picture we are given in
Scripture. Paul picks up on it and says by the way that’s you folks, too. Now one other interesting point in Ephesians 6 that surfaces in verse 17: The helmet and the sword are set apart by the language from the rest of the armor. The other four pieces of armor that are mentioned have to do with the soldier taking his stand. “Stand therefore, having your loins girded about,” all having to do with your stand. Now however, the apostle changes his use of words, his use of verbs, and says, “Take up the helmet the salvation, take up the sword,” because now you are charging forth in the company of your warrior king. It’s an active taking up of the helmet, an active taking up of the sword. It seems to me that what we have here is an emphasis on what God has saved us to rather than simply what He has saved us from. I fear that we Christians tend to think of salvation too personally, too narrowly, maybe too casually. “Are you saved?” “Oh, yeah, I’m saved. I’ve been saved for all this time.” “Do you think he’s saved?” “I don’t if he is; she’s sure not saved.” We talk about that as though it’s some sort of status, and it is. Other times we’ll camp on the notion of saved with an eye to the past. We’ll say I was saved out of all that smoking, drinking, chewing, going with girls that do and all that stuff. I’m away from all that; I’m saved. I don’t do that any more.” Sometimes we consider being saved from the standpoint more of what we don’t do than what we ought to be doing. Paul comes to this point in his discussion of the armor and he is saying now it’s time to engage in the fray. It’s time to move forward into where we are going while certainly not forgetting where we’ve been. This helmet of salvation business I have been pondering it and I am impressed. I hope we all will be with the greatness of God’s kingdom because that’s what salvation really is about. It’s about God taking a mess, a fallen world, and turning it into a glorious kingdom. He takes the lead in it. He brings us along and that’s how we are saved. That is part of His process, part of what He is doing. Salvation goes beyond you and me as an individual into a grand building and enterprise of our Father, an eternal one. We are blessed to be included. We will be impressed with God’s kingdom. Hopefully we will be humbled as we take our place in what He is doing. I have two points. First we want to talk a bit from Isaiah 59, that’s an interesting verse, and ask and hopefully answer the question, “Why would Messiah wear a helmet?” He is the king. He is the winner. He is the warrior general. I think before we can answer the question, we need to back away and put on a wide angle lens and try for the bigger picture, backing away as far as the first chapter of Genesis. It is impressing me more and more that where God is taking everything; that is, the culmination of His creative work and His saving work. All that He is about in building His kingdom had its beginning in His original intent in what He had in mind to do. Let me try to explain that. In Genesis 1 the account of creation is recorded for us. Everything is created. Finally God creates people as the pinnacle, the capstone of His creative work. He creates people in His own image and He gives the people marching orders and shows in Genesis 1:28 a window on what He intends to accomplish and indeed what He will. After God creates man and women in His own image, it says in verse 28 that God blessed them and said to them “Be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” That’s interesting. Is this just some sort of afterthought of God? Or could it be that this really is what He really intends to carry out? I believe it is. As a matter of fact, if we consider that concept, God telling these people -- they had not fallen, they had not sinned, this is if you will, His ideal. He wants His people to fill the earth under His rule. The best definition I have ever heard of the kingdom of God is “God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule.” That’s where He is taking history and that is where you and I are going if we are His. God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule. It’s interesting to go the end of the book, which is always a good idea. Read from the 21st chapter of Revelation. What does God have in mind? As the apostle John surveys the landscape of heaven and tells us what we will see there, he tells us where God is taking everything, about this heavenly city and foundation stones and gates and so forth. Revelation
21 That is, God’s people from all over the world in God’s place under God’s rule. He is going to pull it off! This where it goes (Revelation 21) and it parallels precisely His intent of Genesis 1:28. See that? God’s people in God’s place under God’s rule. However, we have a problem. Genesis 3 – with the sin and the fall of the race, a curse is levied and suddenly we have conflict. The serpent is cursed, the woman is cursed. The man is cursed, and these curses stick. God’s ideal agenda now comes up against what man has done, thus creating conflict. What man has done, might I add, according with what Paul had said in Ephesians, the devil is in it too. We war not against flesh blood, he says, but against the power and principalities of the spirit world. Sure enough, Satan is in there plugging. So there is conflict between where God is taking everything and the resistance brought on by the rebellion of the human race. There is conflict at every turn and that’s why so much of the Old Testament comes to us from the standpoint of warfare. Conflict, as God’s inroads occur in a fallen world and are resisted by people, key people, by tribes, by communities, by whole nations. God’s people begin to understand their Lord as a warrior king who is taking territory back from the enemy as He builds His kingdom. Indeed, He is. This warfare idea is developed as God’s kingdom is unfolded and expanded. For instance, we all know they got to Egypt way back in the book of Genesis. Joseph sold into slavery, famine, Jacob and the twelve sons all end up down there and the nation of Israel is born. How did they get up out of Egypt? Did one day the Pharaoh, the leader of the civilized awaken in a stroke of benevolence saying, “You know what, those people have been here long enough. As a matter of fact, I honor their God. They need to go home.” Oh my, no. The Pharaoh is in lockstep with the agenda of the world, the flesh, and the devil. They’re not going home. So we have conflict and what does Israel need? Israel needs a warrior
king who will lead them out. Israel needs to field the standing army because even when
they are free of David, that man after God’s own heart, saw the Lord and he saw Him accurately fighting for David and his people. There is an interesting Psalm, Psalm 68. Let’s turn there because there are words here you may find familiar. Psalm 68 is a Psalm of David and it describes a conquering king who would go forth into battle, defeat an enemy. He is taking ground from the enemy and then plundering the enemy and bringing back the loot from that distant place to his own people and handing out gifts to everyone as the conquering king. Very interesting imagery. In the 68th Psalm he comes right out and says it. 17The chariots of God are myriads,
thousands upon thousands; You have conquered them! You have taken
their stuff. You have passed it out. Verse 21: 21Surely God will shatter the head
of His enemies, The rest of the Psalm through verse 35
discusses God as the warrior king. We know what happened historically with the children of
Israel. Under the first half or so of Solomon’s reign, things were good. Then Solomon
was distracted by his many wives and other interests and he collapsed morally and
spiritually. Then, a divided kingdom. Northern Israel, southern Judah, and a series of
leaders who really wanted very little to do with the God of Israel. Those conditions are
described in Isaiah 59. Isaiah 59 begins like this: 1Behold, the
LORD'S hand is not so short On and on it goes describing a people who
at one time had followed the God who was the warrior king. Now they had rebelled and gone
their own way. They weren’t going to make it on their own. They didn’t have in
their own flesh what it took. So the Lord saw. It was displeasing in His sight. He saw
there was no man (Isaiah 59:16) no one to intercede, so His own arm brought salvation. His
righteousness upheld them. And then, we see the picture of the Messiah, the anointed
deliverer of God, the only one capable of bringing lasting salvation and total victory. He
stands up and He puts His armor on. Seeing that people won’t fix their own mess,
never can, never will, Messiah rises to the task as the only one so equipped. He puts on his breastplate of righteousness
and then in Isaiah 59, he slips on his helmet. Why? To identify Himself as God’s
warrior king, as the One who indeed will lead. He is suiting up and Messiah is thought of
now in the role of warrior. At this point in Scripture, roughly, the angelic host is
introduced as warriors, who carry swords, who do battle with the opposing angelic forces
where international issues are at stake. The conflict, the cosmic spiritual conflict comes
into more stark relief as Bible history unfolds. Such was the situation when the time of the
Old Testament yielded to the time of the New. Conflict had not abated and now Messiah
shows up. We see indications in the gospel accounts of Jesus, how the angels continue to
stand at the ready. They minister to Him, they stand ready to deliver Him from the hand of
the Roman soldiers if He should so choose. But He becomes, and He knows it, the captain,
the leader, the One with the helmet. Why would Messiah wear a helmet? To identify Himself
as God’s warrior king. He doesn’t need head protection, but He identifies for
the sake of people. So let’s just roll this over to the
apostle Paul in his words, telling people who claim to be Christians to take that helmet
of salvation and put it on. That’s what Ephesians 6:17 is all about. Not only now are
we identifying like my Grandpa did. He’s with Company D, remember. But we need the
identification and we also need the protection. That’s where we differ from our Lord.
Why should we wear a helmet? For the identification and for the necessity. I think about this: If you have ever
watched a Pro bowl game, the different teams would wear the same jerseys but would keep
their helmet from their original team. So what is that helmet doing? It’s telling us
where this guy plays, where his home town is, what his team really is, but it’s also
protecting his head. That helmet is doing double duty. I think that’s exactly what is
being enjoined to us in Ephesians 6:17. We need the identification. Put on the helmet of
salvation. We are a part of “team salvation” if you will and we need that
identification, but also we need our head protected. Nobody charges into a football game
or onto a field of battle without a helmet. We take it up to go forth, to take ground
with our warrior king. We have to remember one other thing before we get into the helmet
on our head. The Bible is very clear that there is a hard and fast connection between
Jesus risen to the right hand of the Father and His church. I would normally go to Acts 9,
I’ve done this many times. Saul of Tarsus is chasing the Christians down on the road
to Damascus. He is knocked to the ground in a blinding light and the voice says, “Saul,
Saul, why are you persecuting Me?” Not my people, not those nice Christians, not
those not-nice Christians. “Why are you persecuting Me?” because in the
mind of God and in the economy of God you can’t separate the head from the body. He
is the head; we’re the body. God takes that very seriously so if Jesus
wears a helmet, why shouldn’t we? There is more than that. I’m going to John’s
gospel, to the 20th chapter, to a place that some might consider to be
confusing. Jesus has been crucified. He has been raised from the dead. This is one of
those interesting moments when the disciples are trying to figure out what happens next.
What do we do? Where do we go? What happened to Him? Are those rumors true? What’s
next? 19So when it was evening on
that day, the first day of the week, and when the doors were shut where the disciples
were, for fear of the Jews, Jesus came and stood in their midst and said to them,
"Peace be with you." Then one of those great Bible understatements: The disciples then rejoiced when they saw the Lord. I’ll bet they did! I’ll bet they turned
handsprings. They could not have been more astonished, more bowled over, more impressed.
Then Jesus said very interesting words to them. Knowing their uncertainty, knowing where
He wanted them to go, knowing that there would be an inextricable connection between the
two. There would be no separation of the head from the body as far as He is concerned, He
says: “Peace be with you; as the Father has sent Me, I also send you.” The Father sent Jesus. This is a heavenly commission. That’s
right, and now here is another one. As the Father sent Me; I also send you.” 22 And when He had said this, He breathed on
them He breathed on them in a way that was undeniable,
unmistakable, and unforgettable to them. He breathed upon them breath, air, wind -- same
word -- spirit, and said, “Receive the Holy Spirit.” We’re astonished at that, but then verse 23 is even more
so: 23 If you forgive the sins of any, their
sins have been forgiven them; if you retain the sins of any, they have been retained. Jesus is putting His followers, His church if you will, in an
extremely significant position, linking His forgiveness with that of the church.
Fascinating! I am not prepared to plumb the depths of that except to say this: What we do
in the mind and the economy of God has eternal implication. We are not just a Kiwanis
meeting, hanging out and showing up once a week, going through the motion. The Christian Church is the body of Christ, His
representative body on earth. He takes that very seriously, right down to the decisions of
the church reflecting decisions already made in heaven. Don’t ask me to figure that
out. He is saying take this seriously, receive the Holy Spirit. The breath part clearly
was to prepare them for the day of Pentecost a few weeks away, so that when the Spirit
would fall on that day (Acts 2) they would know without a doubt it was from Him, the word
picture from Jesus. Back to the question: Why should we wear a helmet? Twofold
answer. One is imagery. We wear the helmet of salvation. I don’t know what color it
is, but it probably has a great big “S” on it. We are members of God’s
salvation team and we wear the helmet of salvation in a fashion where it can be seen. We
are identifiable as being on His team, in His corps, in His squad. That reminder is
important. We need it. We need to remember when we get up in the morning, when we
encounter the day, when we rub shoulders with
people, we need to remember whose team we are on. Our teammates need it to encourage one
another, to remind one another, to exhort one another, to lift up one another, to love one
another. We have so many “one anothers” in the Bible we are clearly aware we
need to know who is on our team, who the Christians are. We need the reminder, our
teammates need the reminder and the world needs to know. I’ve heard it a hundred times in my Christian life. A
Christian says I don’t need to say anything, I’ll just live a good life. Whose
team are you on though? How can we only just live a good life thinking that’s
supposed to draw someone to heaven? No, it’s never intended to do that. The words
need to be spoken. The music needs to be played. The music is a good life. The word is the
Good News. We have to be identified that way. If we are Christian, the world needs to be
on notice which team we are on. So we have imagery. Secondly, we wear a helmet not just for
identifying our team, but we wear a helmet because we need it. We need our head encased
and protected. Notice we are not to put on the jersey that identifies our team because a
jersey won’t stop a hit. A helmet, however, will deflect. To deflect the hit, to
protect the head – that’s the idea. We need to remember our salvation from at least three
different directions. If we are on God’s salvation team, this is what has to happen
in our heads. The key to understanding and to applying and to appreciating the armor of
God is all here. The head is critical. It’s the seat of our soul. We have to deal with the brain and so we have to
school ourselves in matters relating to salvation. We have to talk to ourselves. We have
to train ourselves. We have to deal with ourselves. Remember your conversion, if you can. Remember salvation past. My conversion. The change of life I began to enjoy by way of
contrast with the old. The first love. It’s well to remember the past. The devil
would love to fog it out. The enemy would love to confuse our thinking in that regard,
perhaps to distract us, but if you and I can remember when we came to faith, that’s a
good thing. Sadly, many Christians leave it there. “Oh
yeah, I got saved.” No, it’s a past issue and it’s a critical issue, but we
have to take it beyond that. Not just saved from the penalty of sin. I know that I am
converted. The blood of Jesus is applied to me. He paid my debt to God. I don’t have
to. I’m going to heaven. That’s great. But it also affects my life today. So I
think past and present salvation today. This very day, if I am a Christian, the Holy
Spirit of God lives in me today. I’m encouraged to walk in the Spirit, to be filled with
the Spirit, not to grieve the Spirit, not to quench the Spirit – today. My new life,
it’s still new after 32 years. My new life, strength God gives to resist, to change,
to overcome, to repent. I rejoice today that my life because of Him has purpose. I know
what I’m doing. I know what He wants. I know where it’s going. I get the point.
That wonderful! Why are you here? I know why – to glorify God and enjoy
Him forever. Hallelujah. Now the enemy would rather accuse us. “Nothing is changed.
Same old story, different day.” The enemy would confuse. The enemy would distract,
would derail, would defeat, but as I remember today, He is mine and I am His today. The
enemy won’t have that chance because I have the helmet on. I’m remembering my
salvation. I’m remembering my conversion and I’m realizing it today and I’m
looking forward to where it’s going. This business of wearing the helmet of salvation
is really as simple as not so much covering our heads as filling our heads. That’s
what it comes down to. In I Thessalonians 5 the apostle writes also about the
helmet, but he talks about the helmet of the hope of salvation. We think, oh no, it’s
just a hope? Good news. When the New Testament uses the word “hope,” it does not
mean wish, anticipate, maybe. This is the definition: “confident expectation.”
That is hope in the Bible – confident expectation. I put that in my head as well, my
confident expectation that He indeed is going to wrap this thing up as He said. Good news.
He is never early, never late, always sufficient or more. I remember the promises of the Bible and I reflect on all
that God has done and brought to pass directly on schedule in accordance with His
prophetic word. I am encouraged by that and I realize He is going to fulfill it exactly.
What does the enemy do with that? I suggest nothing, because the enemy knows the end as
well as we. He has to admit that the lake of fire is his destination. He cannot compete
with us with regard to the future; the present, yes; the past, yes, but not the future.
Lo, his doom is sure, as Martin Luther sang. If in fact you are sitting in this room today and you have
never surrendered your heart and soul to Jesus, never seen yourself as guilty before a
holy God, I am here to say on the authority of Bible you indeed are guilty. That’s
the bad news. The good news is Jesus paid your debt with His blood on the cross. He set
you up to be right with God. How does that work? Simply surrender. Easy, no. Simple, yes.
I put all my trust only in Jesus to save me from my sins. The Bible says amazing things happen then. The Holy Spirit
comes and lives inside. The Bible begins to make sense. I have purpose for my life and I
find strength I never knew was there. God begins to work a change. Sometimes it’s
radical; most times, I suspect, it’s gradual, but it’s real and I’m glad of
that. So if a person is converted – Paul is talking to people
who claim to be converted – he says now put on the helmet of salvation. How do I do
that? Here are four steps: Remind myself of God’s great plan. I do that by meeting
with Him alone. It’s about God who said in Genesis 1:28, I want the whole world to be
My people in My place. In Revelation 21 He makes it happen. He brings it to fruition, and
I am a part of that. It isn’t all about me; it’s all about Him, and that’s
good news. I remind myself through the Word and prayer of God’s great plan, on the
one hand, and of my blessed part in it on the other – which I do not deserve. Second, how does someone put on the helmet? Tell someone else. Tell someone, whether that means sharing the gospel directly or simply learning to include the gospel in conversation every day. Isn’t God wonderful? We are so blessed here. We get to see the mountains. I don’t know what they do where there aren’t any mountains. I’m sure there are other ways of being reminded of God’s vastness and His perfection and His beauty. I don’t know what they are but they have to be there. But look at the advantage that He has given us here and I think, “God, you are so great and you are so wonderful.” I will pray this: Is there a way I can bring God into my words for that day. I’m paid to do that, but you’re not. How can God become so much a part of my life and His saving, wonderful work in Jesus that I will actually tell someone? Tell someone who is a believer – that’s great. Tell someone who isn’t. That’s great too. But as we hear ourselves say the words, we are reminding ourselves back to step 1 that indeed, this is His salvation and I am on His team. It’s a way of life given to remembering. Third, and this is something we learn as we go. I observe and I ask questions to remind me of the conflict. How does that work? Watching the news. I ask myself as I listed to the people talk and hawk their wares, “Elect me.” “Elect this person.” “Support that person. Stay away from that person. I ask myself why does this person want to do this thing? What is the agenda here? Have you thought of that? Does it have anything at all to do with God’s kingdom-building enterprise? Mostly, no. But I need to remind myself of that and I need to set that up, that comparison in my head so that I don’t get swept away either in anticipation or in fear about where the world is going. He has it in His hand. I need to remember that. Observing and asking the questions, why does this guy react this way. Why is it that the leader of the nation of Iran would deny that there ever was a holocaust? What’s behind this? Could it be what the Bible talks about spirit forces at work on an international level? Yes. Could it be the prediction of Scripture with regard to the treatment of God’s ethnic people? Yes. Is God in this? Sure, He is. We as Christians need to train ourselves to see it and to understand it and be reminded in our brains that there is a conflict and that there are teams and we do have a helmet to put on. Finally, I like to ponder on what are the biblical response to issues that we face, whether it’s personal issues, a surgery, a terminal illness, a bereavement, an unforeseen accident or all the way to national and international stuff. I don’t like the bracelet but I like the question, “What would Jesus do?” Train ourselves to think like that. If it takes a bracelet, wear the bracelet. But what would He do? Great question to ask and to answer. What does the Bible say? What is God’s perspective? As I learn to think like this, starting with just me and working my way out to the way the world impacts me, I’m putting that helmet on. I’m walking around with a constant sense of the presence of God and an eagerness to respond to whatever may come as He would have me respond. You’ve watched these football games before. When the coach walks along the line of players and they’re sitting on the bench. He taps one because it’s his turn to go in the game. That player jumps up, grabs his helmet and puts it on. We now know whose team he is on and we know he is protected and we know he’s going into the game.
Jim Carlson 2006, Lone Rock Bible Church, Stevensville Montana, USA |