Those who remember old western TV shows and theater movies
are well-acquainted with the title of this article. Christians also put up a
battle, but it is “not against flesh and blood,” but against Satan’s spiritual
darkness whether it be in the form of false religious teaching, outright
atheism, or national-political fervor—all of which is included in Paul’s words
at Ephesians
6:12. (Again, I emphasize that although the above three are physical
manifestations of Satan’s “darkness,” Christians are not to literally fight or
engage in physical altercations/confrontations with them. This is confirmed by 2 Timothy 2:24.)
A Christian’s battle is two-fold: First, to protect one’s
self. Second, to fearlessly declare God’s Kingdom to any and all who will
listen and, hopefully, help others take a stand for truth and righteousness.
Paul makes these points clear in the words that follow what he wrote in Ephesians
6:12….
(Ephesians 6:14-18) Stand firm, therefore, with
YOUR loins girded about with truth, and having on the breastplate
of righteousness, 15 and with YOUR feet shod with the equipment of the
good news of peace. 16 Above all things, take up the large shield of faith,
with which YOU will be able to quench all the wicked one’s burning
missiles. 17 Also, accept the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the
spirit, that is, God’s word, 18 while with every form of prayer and
supplication YOU carry on prayer on every occasion in spirit. And to
that end keep awake with all constancy and with supplication in
behalf of all the holy ones….
The reason I have underlined the action-words is to drive
home the actions being emphasized. Take note that they are all defensive and
not offensive. When I started this article, I was particularly intrigued with what
Paul said about the “helmet of salvation.” I wondered why it was rendered “accept
the helmet” and not “put on” or some such phrase. I checked the rendering of multiple other translations.
While at least one did translated it as “put on,” the majority used the word “take.”
Upon scrolling down in the list, I found a commentary by “Jamieson-Fausset-Brown
Bible Commentary” that pretty much said what I expected to find. That is, “take,
receive, and accept” are all legitimate forms of the original Greek word that
Paul used. But what was the significance of “accepting” the helmet? I figured
there had to be some gem of insight that is easily overlooked.
Then I started reflecting on what I knew of the people of
that time—especially those Jews (Israelites) that were contemporaries of Paul.
For many of those, it was a challenge to accept Jesus as their salvation
because they had become steeped in tradition and Jewish Law. Accepting Jesus
in the minds of the leaders (Pharisees, Sadducees and Scribes) was tantamount to heresy, apostasy.
For those “of the nations,” it may have been foreign to their ideologies to entrust salvation to anyone but themselves. There are even cultures today that
are repulsed by the idea of belief in and trust in a savior. So now Paul’s
words make perfect sense in that social climate—he was admonishing those in Ephesus
to humbly accept the provision that God had made for mankind’s salvation. “Accepting”
for the Jews meant having to put aside their trust in working out their own
salvation through sacrifices and other acts prescribed by the Mosaic Law. They
had to realize that nothing
they personally could do would ever amount to salvation. However, after accepting the ransom
sacrifice of Christ as the basis for their hope of salvation, they could
now perform works befitting repentance and acceptance of
Christian responsibility. Even in this modern world, some find wearing a
helmet while riding a bicycle or motorcycle to be bothersome. They feel
self-confident that they are strong enough to withstand whatever can happen.
This drives home even more so how humility and following direction are
important when it comes to accepting the helmet of salvation.
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