Sermon Central
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Helmet Of Salvation
Contributed by Jerry Shirley on Jan 22, 2014 (message contributor)
Summary: armor of God.
Helmet of Salvation
http://gbcgracenotes.podbean.com/2014/01/22/helmet-of-salvation/?token=1e449786ff7b90e47d25c8835669cfdf
You are what you eat, physically. You are what you think, spiritually. The battle with temptation and sin begins in the mind. Thought leads to action leads to habit.
No man can keep himself from having a bad thought. But if you linger there and entertain that thought, it is sin. And it will lead to action. And it gets easier to do each time you do it. It is enslaving. Thought leads to action leads to habit.
You can't prevent a bird from landing in your hair, but you can keep them from building a nest.
Stray dogs will inevitably come into your yard, but you don't have to pet them, and don't feed them or they will cease to be stray!
We can't choose what random thoughts come to our mind, but we certainly do choose what we dwell on!
From beginning to end we justify sin in our minds. If only we saw our sin the way God does...
We call it an accident, but God calls it an abomination.
[blunder or blindness / chance or choice / fascination or fatality / infirmity or iniquity / weakness or willfulness / sickness or sin]
Remember, this is armor, because this is a war...and in war, the head is a primary target area. Body armor is good, but put a bullet in someone's eye and they go bye-bye.
The Roman soldier's helmet was made of bronze. It was very ornate and noticeable. It had a leather strap that kept it on his head or affixed to his side...he was never without it, and would never fight without it on his head.
And Paul calls it the helmet of salvation, which tells me that our salvation should be the most beautiful, most noticeable part of our lives, and we should wear it, carry it, and not leave home without it!
People should notice a difference once we are saved. The Bible calls us strangers and pilgrims in a foreign land. Ambassadors for another country. It is not legalistic to believe that Christians should be different! Now, don't just put on a different mask, but allow a true inner difference to surface!
Salvation itself involves the mind. Belief may be a matter of the heart, but repentance is a change of mind that leads to a change of action.
Repentance is much more than just regretting that we sinned, or that we got caught. It is much more than self-pity. It is when we change our mind about our sin and desire a change of life.
Changing our mind helps us grow:
But grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ. To him be glory both now and for ever. Amen.
And be not conformed to this world: but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good, and acceptable, and perfect, will of God.
Let this mind be in you, which was also in Christ Jesus:
A lot of churches today emphasize the heart and emotions alone, to the exclusion of the mind. They equate spirituality with feeling. But how about fact? I love the facts, and they often make me emotional!
The Word of God feeds our minds, and as a byproduct enriches our souls.
Some people choose a church based on how emotionally charged they feel there, regardless of what is being taught there. Who cares about doctrine as long as we feel good?
Well, to truly live as a Christian you need to think like a Christian. You are what you think. Put on the helmet of salvation.
It will protect us from:
1. A divided mind.
A double minded man is unstable in all his ways.
It means looking in 2 directions at the same time. We need singular focus...that stonefaced quality of Jesus!
Divided loyalties, split allegiances, multiple goals, multitudinous desires.
We wind up being half hearted when we go 'all in.' Which is better: To do a couple of things well or to do many things poorly?
We live in a multitasking society, and we are capable of doing more than one thing, but are the multiple plans we make compatible with one another? Or are we trying to have a dose of Jesus and a dose of the world, like that would make us well rounded or something? Can two walk together except they be agreed? [Micah]
ill.--Civil War soldier couldn't decide which side to be loyal to, so he put on a pair of gray pants and blue jacket. They found him shot in the front and shot in the back. Choose you this day whom ye will serve! Who is on the Lord's side?
