Armour of God – Helmet of Salvation
by Philip Asselin
Apologies that these devotionals about the armour got a bit out of order: this final one is looking at ‘the helmet of salvation’. When a Roman soldier got ready for battle, the helmet was the last piece of armour to be put in place. In fact, without the helmet, a soldier would be so vulnerable that the rest of the armour would be almost useless.
The Roman helmet, known as a galea, could vary quite a bit in design, as each helmet was created individually. The helmets were usually made of metal, though poorer soldiers may have had leather helmets strengthened with pieces of metal. Obviously, the main point of the helmet was to protect against blows to the head, as a single major blow could kill or incapacitate the soldier. Helmets usually had cheek plates to protect against blows to the face, and a metal piece in the back to protect the back of the neck.
Why is the helmet of salvation so important? Because salvation, or deliverance from sin, opens the door for us to join the family of God—to live forever with Him as His precious child. Satan hates this fact and will do everything in his power to prevent, or at least hinder, us from believing this truth. The helmet of salvation is not exclusively about deliverance from sin, but also about living forever as a child of God.
Salvation is not something we can work towards. It is a free gift from God, which we receive if we trust and believe in God, leaning our full weight on Him. As this world is corrupt and filled with sin, our salvation acts like a helmet in the way it protects our minds. The Bible tells us that, as Christians, we are in the world but not to be of this world. Romans 12:2 says, ‘Do not conform to the pattern of this world but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is his good, pleasing and perfect will.’
A helmet protects a soldier against damaging and deadly blows to the head. Spiritually speaking, the helmet of salvation provides us with hope and protects our mind against anything that could confuse or disorientate us, such as lies, discouragement, and deceit. We live in a world where everything is constantly changing, but the promise of salvation, made possible through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ on the cross, never changes. It demonstrates stability in an unstable world. It continually gives hope when things seem at their worst.
The helmet also protected the eyes of the soldier, enabling him to stay clearly focussed with his eyes fixed on the goal, the end of the race, and pressing forward without distraction. The helmet reminds us that our victory will come, not from us, but from God Himself, who wants to give us that victory no matter what Satan throws at us.
Before we can fully put on the ‘helmet of salvation’, we need to take off anything else we rely on for protection. For many it is achieving our own salvation through good works, yet the Bible is very clear that this is impossible (Ephesians 2:8-9). That won’t protect us from the lies of the enemy. So let's take it off and put on God’s true helmet of salvation and believe in Christ!
Philip Asselin Philip is on the associate ministry and teaching teams with Glyndley Manor. He and his wife Gillian attended the second Healing Retreat at Glyndley Manor in 1992, and were greatly helped. They have two grown up children, one grandson, and a step-granddaughter in California, and a daughter and granddaughter in Eastbourne. His desire is to see people healed and set free to serve God.
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