Ephesians 6:13-18
THE BONNET OF SALVATION
SPIRIT-FILLED WARFARE - PART 2f
Intro: Once again
we turn our attention to the pieces that make up the whole armor of God. Verses 10-13 teach us that the saints of God are engaged in a
great spiritual conflict against a powerful, relentless enemy. Our enemy is
identified in verse 11
as the
devil. This devil comes against the people of God with various wiles, v. 11. He does everything in his power to destroy our
faith and to draw attention away from the God of glory.
Its Gods will that we stand against the attacks of the devil, vvs. 11, 13, 14. When we stand we hold a critical
position against the attack of the enemy.
This speaks of a soldier who refuses to yield even an inch of ground to an
attacking foe. It is the image of a
soldier on the defensive, protecting the ground that has already been taken
from the enemy. It is what God meant when He said, Neither give place to
the devil, Eph. 4:27.
God has given His people some very precious ground.
We have the truth of Who He is, and of how He loves
us.
We have His church.
We have His Word.
We have His Spirit.
We have His grace.
We have His salvation.
We have His blessings.
We have much more besides all this.
Our enemy, the devil, does not
want us to have anything that we have been given by God. So, He does everything
in His power to take away those blessings from us. Of course, there are some
things the devil cant take away, so, like I told you last time, he does
everything in his power to diminish the influence of those things in our lives.
He will nullify the blessings of God that he cannot steal!
If we are going to stand
and hold the precious ground we have been given, then we must put on the whole armor
of God. We have already examined The Belt Of Truth, The Breastplate Of Righteousness, The
Boots Of Peace, and The Buckler Of Faith.
Please forgive me for a little repetition as I
briefly mention what those pieces of the armor represent.
The Belt Of Truth speaks of a life that is built upon faithfulness
to the Word of God and to the God of the Word. It speaks of our being truth in
both our testimony and in our living. This belt of truth gives the believer stability so that they are
enabled to stand. The belt of truth also
provides a place for the other pieces of the armor to rest. Without the belt of truth the soldier of God will find the other pieces of
the armor useless. Unless our lives and testimonies are rooted in, and lived
out in truth, we will not be able to stand in the evil day.
The Breastplate Of
Righteousness speaks of a holy life.
It speaks of a life that is lived in conformity to the Word of God. A holy life
is a powerful defense against the attacks of the enemy. When we allow sin to
dwell in our lives, we give Satan a beachhead from which
he can attack us and exploit us, Eph. 4:27. Sin give Satan the ammunition he needs to assail
the glory of God, and to destroy and devastate our testimonies and reputations.
Personal holiness closes the door to Satan, and it protects us from him when he
attacks us.
The Boots Of Peace speak about our foundation in Jesus. When our feet are shod with the
preparation of the Gospel of peace,
it means that we saved by grace and we know it. Nothing can change our minds.
Satan may try and cause us to doubt, but when we wear The Boots Of Peace, we are sure and secure in our salvation, and we
cannot be moved. Thus, we become a hard target for the enemy and his attacks.
Furthermore, The
Boots Of Peace give us such confidence
in what the Lord has done for us that we want others to know about it too. So,
we share the good news of the Gospel with those who do not know the Lord in the
hopes they will come to know Him too!
The Buckler Of Faith speaks about our daily faith in God that causes us
to trust Him in all the seasons of life. When times are good, the just shall live by
faith, Rom. 1:17. When times are bad, the just shall live by
faith. Even when the fiery darts of the devil are raining down all around us, the shield of faith protects us, and allows us to stay in the fight
for the glory of God. The shield of faith
allows us to stand,
and having done all to stand. When we
live behind The
Buckler Of Faith, we become an
impossible target for the devil to hit.
The piece of armor that has our attention today is The Bonnet Of Salvation. The Bible says, And take the helmet of salvation. In the days when men wore armor into battle, they
referred to their helmet as a bonnet. Lets examine this piece of the armor and
consider what importance it has in our daily lives.
V. V.
17a THE BONNET OF
SALVATION
The helmet worn by the ancient soldier was of the
utmost importance. The helmet was either made of thick leather covered by
plates of metal, or it was made of solid metal that was beaten into the shape
of the human head. Most ancient helmets had metal extensions that covered the
cheeks. These extensions were designed to protect the face.
The purpose of the helmet is obvious. It was
designed to protect the head. In ancient times many armies employed cavalry. These
soldiers were mounted on horseback and most carried a broadsword. This sword
was different from the short sword mentioned in verse 17.
The broadsword was a two-handed sword that was
usually between three and four feet in length, had a double-edged blade. This
sword was swung by mounted soldiers in an effort to either split the skulls of
the enemy, or to decapitate them. The helmet helped to deflect the blow of the
broadsword, and thus, it protected the foot soldier from injury.
Our text says that the spiritual helmet we are to wear in our spiritual battles is the helmet of salvation. This indicates that Satans blows are aimed at
our minds. He is intent on destroying our sense of security and our assurance in Jesus Christ. If the
devil can strike a blow against us that causes us to become discouraged and
filled with doubt, he will have little trouble sidelining us and taking us out
of the battle.
Like the ancient broadsword, the sword wielded by
our enemy the devil is a two-edged sword. One of those edges is discouragement, and the other is doubt.
Lets look at The
Bonnet Of Salvation, and learn how
this piece of the armor can protect us from both discouragement and doubt.
I. THIS HELMET PROTECTS AGAINST DISCOURAGEMENT
If we are not properly protected, the devil will
use the sword of discouragement to defeat us in our walk with the Lord. He will
cause us to look at our sins, our failures, the problems in our lives, our
health issues, or any other negative situation we face in life. When he gets
our attention off the Lord, and on the negative issues we face in life, he
knows we will begin to doubt the Heavenly Fathers love and care for us. This
has the effect of causing us to be discouraged.
Even those who have been in the battle along time,
and have enjoyed much spiritual success, can find themselves the victims of
discouragement and disillusionment.
Consider, for instance, the prophet Elijah. Not
many people have ever enjoyed such a string of great spiritual victories like
those enjoyed by Elijah. Praying fire down from Heaven, slaying the 450
prophets of Baal, after three and one-half years, outrunning the chariot of
King Ahab all the way from Mt. Carmel to Samaria. What a day!
Then the next day there came word from Queen
Jezebel. She was angry at Elijah and she said, So let the gods do to me, and more also,
if I make not thy life as the life of one of them by to morrow about this time, 1 Kings 19:2. Elijah hears this and runs for his life. He
travels to Beersheba and throws himself under a shrub and prays to die, 1 Kings 19:4. He
was so discouraged that he was ready to quit on God, resign from his office as
prophet, and go out into eternity.
God showed up in that wilderness and rebuked the
prophet. Here is what God asked him: And he came thither unto a cave, and lodged there; and, behold,
the word of the LORD came to him, and he said unto him, What doest thou here,
Elijah? 1 Kings 19:9.
Elijahs reply indicated the state of his heart. And he said, I have
been very jealous for the LORD God of hosts: for the children of Israel have
forsaken thy covenant, thrown down thine altars, and slain thy prophets with
the sword; and I, even I only, am left; and they seek my life, to take it away, 1 Kings 19:10.
God assures Elijah in a still, small voice that t here are still 7,000 in Israel that have
remained faithful and that have not bowed to Baal, 1 Kings 19:18.
Elijah learned the truth that spiritual victory
does not insulate us against discouragement. Someone has said, Satan has many tools, but
that discouragement is the handle that fits them all. There is much truth in that.
You may have been saved for years, but if the devil
can get you discouraged in your walk with the Lord, he can get you out of the
battle. If he can get you focused on your problems, on the failures in your
life, on the shortcomings of others, or on any negative thing at all, he can
overwhelm your defenses and cause you to doubt the Lords goodness.
We dont think about it like this, but its true:
when we allow problems, pain, people, and other situations to make us
discouraged to the point where we quit on God, the devil has won that battle.
For a period of time, he has caused us to doubt the goodness and grace of God.
Regardless of the reason we name, when we allow Satan to discourage to the
point where we stop serving the Lord, we are, at that moment, looking God in
the face and telling Him, I dont believe you are bigger than this! That may sound farfetched, but its true
nonetheless.
The book of Job reveals a precious saint of God
whos helmet was in place. Satan unleashed the fury of Hell against Job, and
still Job refused to doubt the goodness of God. Job didnt understand why his
children had to die, why his health had to be taken away, and why everything he
had worked his whole life to amass was lost, but amid the pain and the
problems, Job continued to trust the Lord. In Job 13:5, he says, Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him: but I will maintain
mine own ways before him. Jobs
helmet deflected every blow of the enemy and protected his fragile spirit from
injury.
Another man who wore the helmet of salvation to great benefit was the prophet Jeremiah. When
the Lord called Jeremiah, the Lord told him that he would be rejected,
persecuted, and attacked. Yet, Jeremiah said this, Thy words were found,
and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine
heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts, Jer. 15:16.
Be sure the helmet of salvation
is in place, and refuse to allow Satan to focus your attention on the events of
life, or by the actions of people. If he can get your eyes off the Lord and on
the difficulties of life, you will be easy prey for his slashing broadsword.
Ill. Asaph - Psalm 73.
Its hard not to be discouraged when it seems like
everything in life goes against you. Its easy to be discouraged when the
answers to your prayers are delayed. Its easy to be discouraged when your
preaching, teaching, and witnessing seem to be ineffective.
Discouragement is our default setting most of the
time. Satan knows this and he exploits this weakness in our lives. Even when we
are discouraged by the events of life, we must never forget that our Father
always has our situation well in hand. He can be trusted to do what is right,
all the time, Rom. 8:29.
Thus, we must not be weary in well doing, but we must carry on, knowing that in due season we shall
reap, if we faint not, Gal. 6:9. So, when
we face the enemy in battle, and Satan aims the broadsword of discouragement at
our heads, Be
sober, be vigilant; because your adversary the devil, as a roaring lion,
walketh about, seeking whom he may devour: Whom resist stedfast in the faith,
knowing that the same afflictions are accomplished in your brethren that are in
the world, 1 Pet. 5:8–9.
I. This Helmet Protects Against
Discouragement
II.
THIS HELMET PROTECTS AGAINST DOUBT
The other edge of Satans broadsword is doubt. When
we come to doubt our salvation, or when we come to doubt the Word of God, we
are easily defeated by the enemy.
When we doubt our salvation, we will be
discouraged. When we come to doubt Gods faithfulness, we are easily
discouraged. When we come to doubt the Word of God, we have the very
foundations for our hope in the Lord undermined and we have no ground upon which to stand.
If Satan can convince you that you are not really
saved, or that somehow, you have lost your salvation, you will be devastated
spiritually. Such doubt paralyzes the believer and makes them unproductive and
miserable. Nothing more quickly sidelines the child of God than having their
peace and security in Jesus stripped away. When we forget this truth: Peace I leave with you,
my peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not
your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid, John 14:27, we are easy prey for the enemy. Satan has an easy time defeating a
believer who has lost the assurance of salvation in Jesus Christ.
If Satan has been beating you with that sword, let
me remind you that, if you are in Jesus, you are secure in Jesus.
All that the Father giveth me shall come to me; and him that
cometh to me I will in no wise cast out. For I came down from heaven, not to do
mine own will, but the will of him that sent me. And this is the Fathers will
which hath sent me, that of all which he hath given me I should lose nothing,
but should raise it up again at the last day.And this is the will of him that
sent me, that every one which seeth the Son, and believeth on him, may have
everlasting life: and I will raise him up at the last day, John 6:37–40.
And I give unto them eternal life; and they shall never perish,
neither shall any man pluck them out of my hand. My Father, which gave them me,
is greater than all; and no man is able to pluck them out of my Fathers hand, John 10:28–29.
For I am persuaded, that neither death, nor life, nor angels,
nor principalities, nor powers, nor things present, nor things to come, Nor
height, nor depth, nor any other creature, shall be able to separate us from
the love of God, which is in Christ Jesus our Lord, Rom. 8:38–39.
Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a
good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ, Phil. 1:6.
Blessed be the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, which
according to his abundant mercy hath begotten us again unto a lively hope by
the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead, To an inheritance
incorruptible, and undefiled, and that fadeth not away, reserved in heaven for
you, Who are kept by the power of God through faith unto salvation ready to be
revealed in the last time, 1 Pet. 1:3–5.
When Paul says take the helmet of salvation, he is not referring to being saved. He is, after
all, speaking to people who are already saved. What he means here is that we
are to stand in the full assurance of the salvation we possess
in the Lord. We are hold on to the truth that, if we are saved, the Lord has
redeemed us and He has promised everlasting life. That
knowledge will allow us to deflect the broadsword of doubt when the devil tries
to attack us in the arena of our salvation.
When Satan comes against you, and he will, stand
your ground in the Lord, knowing that you belong to the Lord Jesus Christ.
He bought you
with His precious blood, 1 Pet. 1:18-19.
You are His, 1 Cor. 6:19-20.
He will not abandon you, Heb. 13:5; Isa. 43:2.
He will give you grace sufficient for the attacks
that come against you, 2 Cor. 12:9.
He will keep you through the battles of life, and
He will deliver you safely home to glory when this life is over. For the which cause I
also suffer these things: nevertheless I am not ashamed: for I know whom I have
believed, and am persuaded that he is able to keep that which I have committed
unto him against that day, 2 Tim. 1:12.
Here is the key: be sure you are saved!
Be sure you have more than just a church
membership, or some vague religious experience.
Be sure that you are trusting nothing but Jesus for
salvation.
Be sure that you are resting in the finished work
of the Lord Jesus Christ.
Be sure you are born again.
Be sure you are believing the Gospel.
Examine yourselves, whether ye be in the faith; prove your own
selves. Know ye not your own selves, how that Jesus Christ is in you, except ye
be reprobates? 2 Cor. 13:5
Wherefore the rather, brethren, give diligence to make your
calling and election sure: for if ye do these things, ye shall never fall, 2 Pet. 1:10.
The implication here is simple, dont take what you
think you have for granted. Dont just assume that you are saved because you
have checked off a box or two on the Baptist salvation checklist.
There are several things that we need to examine to
be sure where we stand with the Lord.
-
Look at your
you life and see how you are living.
-
Look at your
priorities.
-
Look at what
you love, what you do, and what you live for.
-
Look at what
you are trusting for salvation.
-
Look back and
carefully examine your salvation experience.
‣
What happened
in that moment you are trusting as the moment when you were saved?
‣
Was there an
awareness of your lost, sinful condition before the Lord? In other words, was
there conviction of sin, John 13:7-11?
‣
Were you
compelled to come look to Jesus alone for salvation, John 6:44?
‣
Was there a
moment when you looked away to Him by faith and instantly saw the truth of the
Gospel, Isa. 45:22?
‣
Was there a
change in your life, 2 Cor. 5:17?
I am not trying to make anyone doubt their
salvation today. I am simply trying to get you to examine your salvation
experience. I want you to be sure you are saved. I do not want you to go to
Hell trusting a false profession. I want you to be able to stand when the enemy
comes against you and seeks to make you doubt. I fear that sometimes, we blame
our doubts on the devil, when all the time it is the Lord Who is trying to show
us that we need to be born again.
Conc: So, are you
saved? Are you sure? Are you secure in your salvation?
How about discouragement? Do you know anything about that? I do, and it can
be devastating. However, the Lord is able to keep us even when we are
discouraged. If you are discouraged today, you need to bring that
discouragement to the Lord. He will help you with that.
What about doubt? Has the devil been hacking at you with the
broadsword of doubt? Why dont you come before the Lord today and ask Him to
help you to take
the helmet of salvation? He can
settle your spirit, and give you peace today.
He can enable you to stand against everything the
devil throws at you. You do not have to be defeated by the devil. You can withstand
the withering assaults of discouragement and doubt. Bring those things to God
and get some help.
If you are settled in Him today, why not praise HIm
for His grace in your life? Listen to His voice and do what He is telling you
to do.
I. The Belt Of Truth
II.
The
Breastplate Of Righteousness
III. The Boots Of Peace
IV. The Buckler Of Faith
V. The Bonnet Of Salvation
