As a kid I grew up playing baseball. I played several positions in the infield, but my favorite position was catcher. I enjoyed putting on all the catcher’s equipment. It was like putting on armor. A foul ball could hit me square in the face, but the catcher’s mask would deflect the ball and protect my head.
As followers of Christ, we have spiritual armor as well. The armor of God is a metaphor that the Apostle Paul uses to illustrate how walking according to the commands of Scripture act as protection for believers. Protection from what? The Scripture tells us that the armor protects us from the “schemes of the devil.” A scheme is a form of trickery, usually done in a systematic way. That means that the demonic forces are studying you and making plans according to your weaknesses. Temptation is persistent; that is why we are commanded to flee from it (2 Timothy 2:22, 1 Corinthians 10:13). Have you ever noticed that you are often tempted in the same way regardless of the circumstances or location? I have seen people who struggle with substance abuse being offered drugs while on vacation in an unfamiliar city. The temptation seems to find them! Temptation is also opportunistic. When I struggle with temptation, I know that the more tired I become, the harder it is to resist. I decided to get good rest whenever I can to minimize opportunities to sin!
“and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.”
Ephesians 6:17 (ESV)
In Ephesians 6:17, one of the pieces of armor that the Scripture outlines is “the helmet of salvation.” Recall our principle from Part 1 that each piece of armor is put on by walking in its source. What then is the link between the helmet and our salvation? What is it about our salvation that protects our mind? For the saints who are in Christ Jesus, salvation is the true reality of our present moment (1 John 5:12). That truth is not based on how we feel or the circumstances we are experiencing. Rather it is grounded in the unchanging person of Christ. In 1 Corinthians 2:1-16, the Apostle Paul instructs us regarding what it means to have the mind of Christ. The reality is that we have access to wisdom and knowledge which is vastly superior to the wisdom of man. Wisdom that was once hidden is now revealed through the Holy Spirt and cannot be understood apart from the work of the Spirit. Walking in this wisdom brings the helmet of salvation into existence!
One way that a believer can grow in the wisdom and knowledge of the Spirit is to study the Proverbs. The purpose of Proverbs is to enable God’s people to learn wisdom, discipline and understanding. God’s Word promises guidance to His children who explore and meditate on them (Proverbs 1:1-7).
Another piece of armor described in verse 17 is “the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.” We often think of the “word of God” as the Bible in its written form. The Greek term which we translate for the written word is logos. But the word used in this verse is rhema, which refers to the spoken word of God. In other words, Paul is telling the believers in Ephesus to quote the word of God in response to temptation from the devil. We are to speak Scripture to directly confront lies with the truth of God’s Word. Jesus used this method in Matthew 4 when He was tempted by Satan. In Matthew 4:3, the devil tempted Jesus to turn stones to bread and break His fast prematurely. However, Jesus defeated the attack in part by quoting Deuteronomy 8:3, “Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceeds from the mouth of God.” Jesus leveraged the power of the Holy Spirit through His ability to recall the logos (written word) in order to speak the rhema (spoken word).
I remember suffering terrible anxiety attacks after I made the decision to change careers and separate from the military. These anxiety attacks always came on at night when I had time to reflect on the coming changes for our family. One of the ways I would confront this demonic scheme was to quote Psalm 55:22, which says, “Cast your cares on the Lord and He will sustain you; He will never let the righteous fall.” I would pray this verse many times throughout the night and day until the anxiety would relent. If you are not already in the habit of doing so, I encourage you to start memorizing God’s word so that you will have access to the sword of the Spirit when the attacks come!