Day 6: The Helmet – Our Hope of Salvation and Our Defence

Bible Reading: 1 Thessalonians 5:1-11; Ephesians 6:17

Using bikes as a means of transport is a common thing around here, and it’s a love-hate relationship for me: I love it when it weaves through a hold-up, almost never stuck. The song that comes to mind is Unstoppable God!  But when I look at those bikes from inside a car as they move recklessly through traffic I remember one hymn famous for its use in a Baptist funeral service ‘O Death, Where Is thy Sting’. 

When you think of how prone the bike is to accidents and the vulnerability of the rider, one would think that wearing a helmet is a no-brainer, but alas! What is meant to be a protector is considered a burden or non-necessity. 

God has really been instructing us over these past few days about the enemy (battle intelligence supply), so that really, there is no reason for us to be caught off guard.

The helmet provides protection or defence for the head. It provides protection for the brain that is thought to be the seat of the mind. 

Satan wants to attack the mind, just like the way he got into Eve’s mind.

God supplies a defence for us against the wiles of the devil as described in our leading text: A helmet, the hope of our salvation. The helmet refers to the mind guarded by God.

But let us, who are of the day, be sober, putting on the breastplate of faith and love; and for a helmet, the hope of salvation. 1 Thessalonians 5:8 

Hope for the past

One big attack of the enemy is to enslave our mind with thoughts of our past, so we don’t have hope for the present and the future.  It’s exciting to know that the salvation that Jesus gave His life for is so encompassing that it covers for all that’s in the past- the sins, the missed opportunities, and so on.  When we come into Christ, old things are done away with and everything is made new (2 Cor. 5:17). If we can lay hold on this truth, then the devil loses another opening.

We hope for what is ahead because the sacrifice of Jesus had made good of our past. 

Hope for your present 

The hope of salvation comes with an assurance that whatever we are going through in the present- whether a rough patch or a smooth phase, will ultimately be worked for our good.  When anything in the present- whether success, anxiety, fear or despair tries to ensnare or distract your mind, your helmet of hope will keep them from causing damage. The devil loses again. 

Please be reminded that because of Jesus, it will all come clear. You tell the devil- you will not have the last word on this matter, I am not giving up, my hope is anchored on Jesus.

But you are a shield around me, O Lord; you bestow glory on me and lift up my head. Psalm 3:3

Hope for the future

All the highs we can ever attain pale in comparison to eternity that we get to look to because we have put our faith in Jesus.  Don’t get too comfortable in your highs that you begin to think of your helmet as a burden. We must constantly see it as a defence! We must not allow the devil to have a foothold. If our minds are fixed on the glory and joy that we will experience when Jesus comes again, we will not fall into the devil’s cheap traps

All the hurt and tribulation we might have to endure pale in comparison to what is ahead in eternity and that is why the believer is encouraged to not sorrow like one who has no hope. The death of a believer hurts, but even then, there is hope. Because of Jesus, it is a story of rest and glory, the pain and sorrow we feel is passing. Even in death, the devil loses again!

Maybe you haven’t put your faith in Jesus for salvation, you really can’t afford to do life without your own helmet, the hope of salvation. 

Satan’s wiles cannot cloud the mind of a person who grasps the full meaning of the salvation we enjoy in Christ.

Inioluwa Akinwale
Inioluwa serves as a volunteer leader at Sycamore