God's Pure Love for You

In conclusion to my thoughts on the Helmet of Salvation, here are some very helpful Bible verses to memorize to help you have the mind of Christ.

Romans 8:7: “the mind set on the flesh is hostile toward God; for it does not subject itself to the law of God, for it is not even able to do so,”

Colossians 3:2: “Therefore if you have been raised up with Christ, keep seeking the things above, where Christ is, seated at the right hand of God. Set your mind on the things above, not on the things that are on earth.”

With the Helmet of Salvation on, we won’t be like the person in James 1:8: “…a double-minded man, unstable in all his ways”.

Philippians 2:5: “Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus,”

2 Corinthians 10:5: “We are destroying speculations and every lofty thing raised up against the knowledge of God, and we are taking every thought captive to the obedience of Christ,”

1 Corinthians 2:14-16: “But a natural man does not accept the things of the Spirit of God, for they are foolishness to him; and he cannot understand them, because they are spiritually appraised.

But he who is spiritual appraises all things, yet he himself is appraised by no one.

For who has known the mind of the Lord, that he will instruct Him? But we have the mind of Christ.”

We must constantly be consciously putting Christ on through prayer, because we are so forgetful and fall into our fleshly ways. “Rejoice always; pray without ceasing; in everything give thanks; for this is God’s will for you in Christ Jesus.” – 1 Thessalonians 5:16-18

You will have the mind of Christ if you wear Him as your Helmet of Salvation. He will protect you from the invading temptations of Satan, and He will fill your thoughts as you focus and think on Him! It is only when you come to “the end of yourself” that you are willing to surrender to Christ and accept His saving grace, help, and protection! Are you ready (and desperate enough) to put on Christ and His full armor, including the Helmet of Salvation?

As stated in “Part 1″, Satan also uses our modern media, such as television, radio, certain kinds of music, Hollywood, and you name it, to attack our minds. The Bible tells us to pull down these strongholds.

2 Corinthians 10:4, “(For the weapons of our warfare are not carnal, but mighty through God to the pulling down of strongholds;) Casting down imaginations and every high thing that exalts itself against the knowledge of God, and bringing into captivity every thought to the obedience of Christ.”

Satan appeals to our minds, our emotions, and our will with his temptations. We need something to protect ourselves and keep him “out of our heads”. God has supplied just the armor we need to keep Satan at bay. The Helmet of Salvation is the fifth piece of armor that we are to always wear.

Christ is our Salvation; we wear Him when we trust Him as Lord and Savior. We should focus on the fact that we are wearing Him, our Helmet of Salvation, to protect our thoughts against Satan! Like the Roman soldier with his metal helmet made of iron, bronze, or brass, we will be protected by Christ from Satan’s assaulting arrows.

When we pray, the peace of God will guard our hearts and minds in Christ Jesus.

“Be anxious for nothing, but in everything by prayer and supplication with thanksgiving let your requests be made known to God. And the peace of God, which surpasses all comprehension, will guard your hearts and your minds in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians 4:6, 7)

Christ, our Salvation, saves us completely, including our thought-life, if we commit ourselves to His safe-keeping! God knows that the very core of our being is in our thoughts and hearts.

We must not allow Satan’s strongholds to tempt our minds. We must, as good soldiers, walk away from bad influences, so that Satan will not have an  inroad into our minds. When we follow after worldly pursuits, it’s like taking our Helmet of Salvation off for a while so we can “enjoy” these pleasures. Be like Moses, who chose to not enjoy the pleasures of sin for a season”!

“By faith Moses, when he was grown up, refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter,  choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward.” – Hebrews 11:24-26

We should not want to “take off Christ”. Be a wise soldier, and always wear all of the Full Armor of God! Are there areas in your life where you especially need Christ to be your Helmet of Salvation? I urge you to commit all of your life to His tender care, and also put these verses in your weaponry against Satan! Jesus will be there for you beyond your grandest dreams!

Next: More on how to have the mind of Christ in “The Helmet of Salvation (Part 3)”

All of our heart issues are a result of what we allow our thoughts to dwell on. If something can get into your mind, it can affect your emotions, health, sleep and eating patterns, life choices, spending habits, friendships, marriages, and everything. All you are and do starts in the mind.  See why it’s so important to guard and discipline your mind to think positive thoughts?

Ephesians 6:10-18, the passage we are studying in this series says:

(10-14) “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…

(17)And take THE HELMET OF SALVATION, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God. (18)With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints,”

This task of always thinking good thoughts is impossible on our own! But aren’t we told to think on what is true, honorable, right, pure, lovely, of good repute, and on whatever is excellent, or worthy of praise? How can we possibly do such a thing?

God has given us a defense against crazy, invading thoughts that could bring us down. He knows who the source of all misleading thoughts is. Satan started sticking his (crooked?) nose into our business and thoughts in the Garden of Eden. He said to Eve, “Indeed, has God said, ‘You shall not eat from any tree of the garden’?”

Satan and the demons mess with our minds by making us question God and His wisdom. They speak temptations into our thoughts, telling us to do wrong. The route they use to destroy marriages and families is through our minds. They twist God’s true word to fit their agenda. If we don’t know the Bible well enough, they can mislead us into believing error. We will also fall into sin if we know God’s word, but refuse to obey it.

Satan uses many things, especially our modern media, such as television, radio, certain kinds of music, Hollywood productions, and you name it to attack our minds.  Bible tells us in to pull down these strongholds. Do you every wish that you could be free of Satan’s “foot in the door” of your life?

Please see how to do this by reading more about the Helmet of Salvation in the upcoming Part 2!

Our strength is in the LORD Jesus, for against Satan, we have no strength of our own. Ephesians 6:10-16 says, “Finally, be strong in the Lord, and in the strength of His might. Put on the full armor of God, that you may be able to stand firm against the schemes of the devil.”

Put on the Full Armor of God to have this unconquerable strength. We don’t have to be wimpy Christians! When we put on Christ, our Full Armor, we can be invincible against Satan and his schemes. Yes, Satan has schemes against you, but God has much greater plans for you that He is ever involved in! You might say, “Oh, I’m not that important. Satan won’t bother me. I can get into trouble on my own.”

If you say this, I want you to know that if you are a born-again Christian, you are very important in Satan’s eyes. He and all the demons loathe you, doing  anything to try to destroy you! They don’t want you to be used of God to further God’s kingdom. Or you might say, “I’m fine on my own. It’s other people that make me angry or make me do wrong. Hold on; see verse 12!

“…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.” These spiritual forces are Satan and the demons tormenting us.

Behind every human conflict, lie, hurtful word and action, is the “father of lies”, the one who is “a murderer from the beginning” (John 8:44).

But, cheer up! You have a strong defense against this wicked foe. Let’s focus today on “The Shield of Faith”. The Roman soldier could stand or crouch down behind his 2 1/2 x 4 1/2 foot, door-sized shield to hide from any arrows aimed at him. It covered his entire body. As Christians, we can hide securely behind our Shield of Faith. Our steadfast, God-created faith in the LORD is able to extinguish all the fiery darts of the evil one.

The Roman soldier used arrows with tips wrapped in cloth and soaked in pitch, which he would light before shooting. Satan has his darts of temptation ready to ignite and shoot at us at opportune times.

Like the Roman shield that was made of wood covered with metal or heavily-oiled leather, picture our Shield of Faith bearing the emblem of a wooden cross that bore the metal nails and was soaked in the oil, sweat, and blood of the Lord Jesus! If, in faith, we hold up Jesus, our Shield, He will extinguish Satan’s flaming arrows!

The war-time shields were carried by soldiers standing side-by-side in the front lines, forming a “wall of shields“ against the enemy! The arrows of Satan are sooner extinguished if we merge forces with other Christians in prayer and form a blockade of faith against Satan, each believer holding up his Shield of Faith in Christ!

We take up the blessed Shield of Faith when we first trust in Christ for our salvation and can carry it thereafter, forever trusting in Christ and His saving grace as our way to heaven and our sure defense against our arch-enemy Satan.

God the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit are the Objects of our faith. As we have faith in the only One worthy of our trust, He will be our Armor, Shield, and Defender!

As Satan attempts to attack and destroy us with the arrows of doubt and distrust in God, we can hold up Christ, our Shield, to extinguish Satan’s every flame. Christ has been pierced by the nails; now we do not have to be pierced through with Satan’s arrows of temptation. We can escape unscathed, trusting in Christ as our All-Sufficient Shield!

“No temptation has overtaken you but such as is common to man; and God is faithful, who will not allow you to be tempted beyond what you are able, but with the temptation will provide the way of escape also, so that you will be able to endure it.” 1 Corinthians 10:13. Christ, our Shield of Faith, is our “way of escape”. Hide behind Him, and  be safe!

Devotional: Feet Shod with the Preparation of the Gospel of Peace

The third part of the Full Armor of God is “having shod your feet with the preparation of the gospel of peace” or wearing the “Shoes of Peace”. Ephesians 6:13-15 says, “Therefore, take up the full armor of God, that you may 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;”

We can put this armor on our feet each day. In fact we are commanded to put it on. It’s for our own protection! God knows what’s good for us, so He tells us to do this. Would a  soldier of ancient Rome walk out into battle without the proper armor? No! So we, as women (and men), also need to be clad with the proper spiritual armor to protect us from the trickery, deception, and deadly arrows of our enemy Satan!

Just what does it mean to wear the “Preparation of the Gospel of Peace” on our feet? To answer that , let me quote the verse of Isaiah 52:7 – “How lovely on the mountains are the feet of him who brings good news, who announces peace and brings good news of happiness, who announces  salvation, and says to Zion, ‘Your God reigns!”

So the spiritual Armor of God includes something to put on our feet, because our feet are what carry us as we go to the world to share the Good News, or the Gospel of Peace! We have been told by Jesus Himself to “Go into all the world and preach the gospel to all creation.” – Mark 16:15.  As we put on and wear our “Shoes of Peace”, we can share the Good News of Jesus and His saving grace to a lost and dying world.

Romans 10:15 also says, “…’How beautiful are the feet of those who bring glad tidings of good things!’ “ When your feet are “shod with the preparation of the gospel of peace”, you have beautiful feet! Talk about a new kind of pedicure or beauty makeover…Jesus gives the best kind of beauty makeover, from the inside-out!

With the Lord Jesus living inside of you (because you have trusted in Him to be your Lord and Savior), you not only have spiritual armor worn on the outside, but you have Someone who is greater than any foe living INSIDE of you!! “Greater is He who is in you, than he who is in the world.” – 1 John 4:4.

Whoa! Let me back up  a minute here. Maybe this is all new to you. Maybe you’ve never heard of the Full Armor of  God. Maybe you don’t have Jesus living inside of you, because you have never heard that such a thing could be possible. If this is the case for you, please see my post, “JESUS IN MY HEART”!   ♥