Saving Protection || Underneath the Armor || Week 5

We are in a six-week series that I’m calling: “Underneath the Armor.” We’ll look deeper at the armor of God shown in Ephesians 6:13-17. Each week, I will discuss a different armor piece, what it represents, and how the themes are shown throughout the Bible. I’ll break down the original Greek words Paul wrote so we can understand them as clearly as possible. Let’s begin by reading the Armor of God scripture and highlighting what we will discuss today. It’s Ephesians 6:13-17, which says: 

13 Therefore, put on every piece of God’s armor so that you will be able to resist the enemy in the time of evil. Then after the battle you will still be standing firm. 

14 Stand your ground, putting on the belt of truth and the body armor of righteousness. 

15 For shoes, put on the peace that comes from the Good News so that you will be fully prepared. 

16 In addition to all of these, hold up the shield of faith to stop the fiery arrows of the devil. 

17 Put on salvation as your helmet, and take the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.

Salvation is a term that I’ve never really studied before. I’ve heard the term in services and Bible studies before, but I’ve never really gone in-depth like I will today. Let’s get into it! 

The term for a helmet is the Greek word perikephalaia (per-ee-kef-al-ah’-yah), which means helmet. It refers to protecting a person’s soul, which consists of the hope of salvation. What’s salvation, then?

The word Paul uses in Ephesians 6:17 is the Greek word sótérios (so-tay’-ree-os), which means saving or bringing salvation. It’s an adjective of sótér (so-tare), which means deliverance or salvation. It’s understood as the Savior, Jesus, who saves believers from their sins and delivers them to safety. Understanding the helmet of salvation means hoping that Jesus will save us from our sins and guide us to safety to protect our souls.

Paul is talking about emphasizing the direct application of God’s salvation. Two words help us understand this. Sótéria (so-tay-ree’-ah) means deliverance or salvation. It’s understood to mean God’s rescue, which delivers believers out of destruction and into His safety. It comes from the concept sózó (sode’-zo), which means to save. The basic understanding is to deliver out of danger and into safety. This is shown when God delivers us out of the powerful penalty of sin and into his provisions. 

The helmet of salvation is the hope that Jesus will save us from our sins and guide us to safety to protect our souls. John 4:22 talks about where this salvation comes from: 

22 You Samaritans know very little about the one you worship, while we Jews know all about him, for salvation comes through Jews. 

This sounds aggressive at face value. It’s easy to read this and paint a negative portrait of John and who Christians can be, but there’s context. Jews and Samaritans didn’t like each other at all. Think about the race wars that transpired in the 20th century and even into today. We’re looking at an equivalent mindset between the Jews and Samaritans. That’s why the Parable of the Good Samaritan was a very radical lesson to Jesus’ audience at the time. So, the tone of this sentence explains why John sounds arrogant. 

John is saying here that only through the Jewish Messiah (aka Jesus) would the whole world find salvation. God promises that the whole earth will be blessed through the Jewish people. Plenty of prophecies in the Old Testament prepared the New Testament audience, and us, for the expectation of who Jesus is. The Old Testament prophets called the Jews to be a light to the world’s other nations, bringing them to a knowledge of God and showing them God’s way of life and how to treat others. It’s why I believe that Jesus says his top two commands are to love God and others. It affirms what the Old Testament teaches them while also flipping what it teaches. I’ve talked before about what it meant for Jesus to come and fulfill the law. The Old Testament taught that there were rituals, sacrifices, and protocols to come in the presence of God. Through the sacrifice of Jesus, those are no more. All believers can come boldly and faithfully into the presence of God. The laws only serve as the parameter of what it means to be a Christian, which we saw live out through the life of Jesus. If you question what the law is saying, seek how Jesus lives it out. The example of his life is what we’re to follow

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Paul shares reasons about why it’s good to be a Christian. Romans 3:1-2 says this:

1 Then what’s the advantage of being a Jew? Is there any value in the ceremony of circumcision?

2 Yes, there are great benefits! First of all, the Jews were entrusted with the whole revelation of God. 

Before discussing some of these advantages, let’s discuss what “revelation” means in this context. It’s the Greek word logion (log’-ee-on), which means a saying or an oracle. It’s understood to mean the divine responses or utterances (even including the entirety of the Old Testament.) It comes from the Greek word logos (log’-os), which means a word (as embodying an idea), a statement, or a speech. This is the word that John uses when referring to Jesus Christ, where it expresses the thoughts of the Father through the Spirit. Logos is an expression of a thought. It comes from legó (leg’-o), which means to say. It’s understood to mean laying an argument to rest or bringing a message to a close. What does this mean to me? 

The Jewish ancestors were entrusted with the divine responses to God that came to be shown through Jesus. Jesus was meant to bring a close to any argument between the law teachers because he is the living embodiment of the thoughts and teachings of God. 

The Jewish nation had many advantages. They were entrusted with God’s laws. God trusted them to understand, learn, and apply them in how God created those laws. They were the people through whom the Messiah had come to earth. There were forty-two generations of people that connected Abraham to Jesus. Each generation is about thirty years long (I know I’ve said forty before, but I’ve found consistent resources that say thirty). 1,260 years of history prepared us for the coming of Jesus Christ. They were the beneficiaries of covenants with God himself. God chose the Israelite nation to fulfill his plan. He could’ve chosen any other nation, but he chose the Israelite nation to prepare the world for the coming of Jesus and to fulfill the plan of bringing the Kingdom of God down to earth. All this sounds high and mighty, but it’s not meant to make Christians better than others. 

I have mentioned before that non-Christians do great things in the world. There are Christians that do evil things in the world. Christianity isn’t meant to be a status to glorify each other. Instead, it is a way of living that does excellent things. The idea is that Christianity is often looked at negatively because those who claim to be Christian commit evil acts that do not show Jesus authentically. It’s our job to change the narrative. Flip the script upside down and show the love of Jesus and the mercy of God to the world. 

2 Corinthians 6:2 says:

2 For God says, “At just the right time, I heard you. On the day of salvation, I helped you.” Indeed, the “right time” is now. Today is the day of salvation. 

This is a quote from Isaiah 49:8, which says: 

8 This is what the Lord says, “At just the right time, I will respond to you. On the day of salvation I will help you. I will protect you and give you to the people as my covenant with them. Through you I will reestablish the land of Israel and assign it to its own people again.

What is Isaiah’s definition of salvation? Is it the same that Paul wrote? Salvation is the Hebrew word yeshuah (yesh-oo’-aw). It refers to God saving his people from external evils. It sounds similar to what we understood in Paul, showing us that the concept of salvation existed all throughout the Old Testament. The first time salvation is mentioned in Genesis 49:18. 

We may not understand the timing of God until long after the fact. Losing my job reinforced this. Learning that the job I hoped for about eight months would no longer exist quickly reinforced this. The answers to what we pray for can be yes, no, or wait, but God will choose what is best for all of us. God’s salvation is for everyone. There’s no better time to accept the gift of salvation than right now. God’s forgiveness is waiting for you. You may think that you can’t be forgiven or that what you’ve done is so bad that you’re not worth it. That’s not right. God’s forgiveness and salvation are for all people, which includes you. Take some time to talk with your pastoral leaders and see what that means for you. If you don’t feel comfortable doing that, reach out to me. I’m neither a pastor nor qualified as a pastor, but I am a friend, and I’d love to encourage you in your spiritual walk. 

Our last scripture is Paul reinforcing his audience to do the work set before them. It’s Philippians 2:12, which says: 

12 Dear friends, you always followed my instructions when I was with you. And now that I am away, it is even more important. Work hard to show the results of your salvation, obeying God with deep reverence and fear. 

The context of this verse shows that this church was to work together to rid themselves of divisions and discord. The church polity that exists is intense. I’ve been involved in church leadership for about twelve years, and recognizing the business aspects and church politics was always troublesome for me. It wasn’t because I couldn’t handle it. It always felt like the church wasn’t supposed to be a business or using polity to determine how to operate. I get that it’s needed, but I’ve seen such a heavy focus on it that it overtakes our focus on what the church is called to do.

The Philippians Christians needed to be especially careful to obey Christ now that Paul was present to continually remind them what was right. We need to be careful about what we believe and how we live, especially when living independently. I’m glad that our God never leaves us. When we don’t have any Christian mentors walking with us through life and keeping us accountable, we must keep our focus and devotion on Christ, so we won’t be sidetracked.

Returning to the helmet of salvation understanding, we’re talking about protecting our souls. Keeping focused and devoted to Christ keeps our souls well protected. It’s easy to look at ways of the world that offer peace and protection that comfort our souls, but those offers seem to only do it for a short time. Jesus is the proper solution that comforts our souls for eternity. 

In closing, the devil wants to make us doubt God and doubt the hope of God saving us from our sins and delivering us to a place of safety. The helmet protects our minds from that doubt. Let us lean on our faith that God will save us and guide us on a path that will lead to blessing and provision. 

Next week, we wrap our series by discussing the Sword of the Spirit. It will be a great message because there’s so much said in those four words. Until then, stay blessed!