Salvation on Your Head

God tells us to:

  • “Take the helmet of salvation” (Eph. 6:17)
  • “put on…the hope of salvation as a helmet” (1 Thes. 5:8)

In fact, when God saw there was no righteous man, it said He became the warrior on their behalf, and “put on…a helmet of salvation,” (Isaiah 59:17)

In addition to salvation being placed on our heads, we are also told God’s word is to be symbolically bound on “your foreheads” (Deut. 6:8; 11:18).

Thus, God’s word and salvation are both to be put on our head.

The Head

Why not the feet, hands, chest, etc.? Why the head?

It seems, at least in part, that this might speak to our mind, as well as the chief part of us.

Christ tells us God wants us to love Him with “all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind.” (Matt. 22:37-38).

We also know that the head is the place where the oil was poured on Jesus, so that it (later) flowed down to His whole body. In other words, the head was the beginning.

Further, the husband is called the head of his wife (Eph. 5), as the authority.

In all this, the head is:

  • where the mind is – part of our worship to God
  • the beginning and chief point of a matter

God’s Word and Salvation – on our heads

Thus, when we are to take salvation as a helmet, and God’s word upon our foreheads, we are to think, meditate, and make this a chief focus.

2 Timothy 3

We are told as much in Paul’s closing words of his written ministry (from the end of 2 Timothy, his last letter):

“Continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed…with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God…”

2 Timothy 3:14-17

You’ll note that Timothy is already a believer and minister of the Lord, and salvation is a work of faith not of learning and the mind. However, Paul’s closing charge to Timothy is that he steeps himself in Scripture, firstly to be “wise for salvation”.

This didn’t mean he wasn’t saved or didn’t know the gospel. But there was something about the constant study and meditation of God’s word that will make him “wise” for salvation. Not just knowing salvation, but firmly understanding God’s salvation.

How?

Through studying Scripture — “all Scripture” (2 Tim. 3:16).

Hebrews 5-6

A similar charge is seen in Hebrews 5-6. There, the writer is clearly frustrated that his hearers aren’t very good teachers, lacking skills in understanding God’s word:

“You have become dull of hearing…you ought to be teachers, you need someone to teach you again the basic principles of the oracles of God. You need milk, not solid food…”

Heb. 5:11-14

They were stuck doctrinally on foundations that were neither distinctively Jewish nor Christian (see Heb. 6:1-2). See also Hebrews 6:1-2 In Context. These foundations lacked a focus on Christ and the gospel, which is truly and distinctively Christian.

And thus the remedy in Hebrews? “let us leave [these true, yet lacking-explicit-gospel foundations]…and go on…” (Heb. 6:1-2).

Go on to what?

In context, it meant going on to seeing Christ and the gospel in the Old Testament. For instance, Christ is the Melchizedek High Priest that saves us.

Like 2 Timothy, they are told to mature by focusing more (not less) on Scriptures, but doing so from a vantage point of seeing Christ and the gospel more throughout the Bible (specifically the Old Testament is referenced in Hebrews, but by extension this would include the New Testament).

In summary:

  • Study Scripture to be wise unto salvation (2 Timothy 3)
  • Train yourself in Scripture to see Christ and the Gospel (Heb. 5-6)

This, I believe, is at the essence of putting on the helmet of salvation.

The Gospel: More than 2 Verses

Even if all of the above wasn’t spelled out for us, I think we can see the same message just by comparing what the Bible says about the gospel.

Let’s start with 1 Cor. 15:3-4, where the gospel is spelled out:

“Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures”

1 Cor. 15:3-4

We might be tempted to think the gospel is as simple as knowing and memorizing these 2 verses. This isn’t a bad starting point, but surely it’s just a starting point.

Even in 1 Cor. 15:3-4, you are told that you should find this gospel in the rest of Scripture [which actually would have chiefly been the Old Testament at the time of Paul’s writing].

So Paul is not saying the gospel can be boiled down into 2 verses, and if you know those verses you are set to move on to more “mature” things in the faith separate from growing in understanding the gospel / our salvation. God forbid!

No, the gospel is much deeper and richer than 2 verses (as good of a starting point as they may be).

Mark – The Beginning of the Gospel

With this in mind, look at Mark 1:1 – “The beginning of the gospel…” Mark starts his book saying this is the beginning of the gospel. And after this, Mark proceeds to give a 16 chapter description of Jesus’ life and death and resurrection.

I do believe the gospel in a word is “reconciliation,” between Holy God and sinful humanity. And in a nutshell this reconciliation happens when God came as a man, died for our sins, resurrected from the dead, and we receive it by repenting and believing. That is the gospel boiled down to 1 word and 1 sentence.

Further, we are commanded to celebrate and remember the gospel in a simple way by communion with the rest of the saints. Again, this is not a drawn out study of what the gospel is to know and receive communion.

But knowing the gospel only at this depth is forsaking any meaningful study of the rest of Scripture. Not that Scripture adds to this gospel. Instead, it enriches the beauty and depth of what this reconciliation means. It is, I believe, putting on the helmet of salvation to study and know this deeper.

So, back to Mark, we can see the gospel is found throughout all of Mark (and of course Matthew, Luke, John). We even call these 4 books, “gospels,” because they draw out the story of God becoming man, and dying and resurrecting for our sins. This calls us to more than knowing 1-2 sentences. This is a lifetime of study.

The Gospel in the Old Testament

And beyond these gospels, as said above, God through Paul tells us that the gospel is seen throughout the Old Testament “Scriptures”.

Jesus says the same when He resurrected and walked through the Old Testament to explain the gospel to the 2 to Emmaus as well as the rest of the disciples (see Luke 24).

Romans for the Church

Further still, consider that many use Romans to explain the gospel to non-Christians. This is wonderful and I have no complaints with this practice. But you will notice Romans is written, “To all those in Rome who are loved by God and called to be saints,” (Rom. 1:7). Thus, the rich gospel exposition found in Romans was meant to be studied by the church.

Totaling this up, we have the Old Testament and the gospels and Romans (as well as, by extension, the rest of the Bible!) that is given to the Christian for study. Why? A big reason is to be “wise unto salvation” (2 Timothy). In other words, know more about this great gospel.

And, truly, from that starting foundation, many great works in Christianity are sure to follow (see 1 Cor. 3).

Put on the Helmet

In all this, surely we’ve seen that it is the duty of every Christian to study Scripture more, in refining and understanding the gospel better. This, at least in part, I believe is what is meant by “putting on the helmet of Salvation.”

And it is horribly foolish to fight a battle without a helmet.