Over the past few posts, I’ve talked about the Helmet of Salvation and the Sword of the Spirit.  I looked at them individually in order to understand what they are and how they operate.

But if you remember, when I first talked about them, I said that they were given to us as a set.

Take the helmet of salvation and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God.
Ephesians 6:17

After we lift up the Shield of Faith, the next step is to receive, accept, the helmet and sword.  As I’ve said, these are the two pieces of armor that God bestows on us once we’re sufficiently trained.

You may not like this teaching.  Most others preach that these are ours to use simply by faith.  However, I think that a quick look at the church today will prove that relatively few believers are victorious over the enemy and his kingdom.

Personally, I want to see results in my Christian walk.  To do that, I need to trust what Scripture says and not a good sounding preacher.

I need to first prepare myself for battle.  I take up the belt, breastplate, shoes, and shield.  I submit myself to the training of the Holy Spirit.  Only then am I in a position to receive the helmet and sword.

To review, the Helmet of Salvation is the authority of God working through me.  The Sword of the Spirit is the power of God.  This is a lethal combination against the enemy’s kingdom.

Authority is the permission you need to carry out your calling effectively.  Power is the ability to see it accomplished.  You can’t complete your assignment without both of these ingredients.

The concept of “issued armor” is not only a spiritual truth.  It works this way in the physical as well.  Think about what it takes to become a Police Officer.

First, they have to undergo classroom training.  They need to learn the law, tactics, and procedures.  Then they need weapons training.  After that, they need to practice their fieldwork.  If they pass all their training, they can graduate from the Police Academy.

However, even then, they can’t hit the streets and start arresting criminals or issuing tickets.  There’s one more important step.  They need to be accepted and hired by a police force.

Let’s say that a graduate from the academy is hired by the NYPD.  Only then are they issued their two most important pieces of equipment.  I’m talking about their badge and their gun.

The badge tells the city they work for, their rank, and the authority they have in the department.  The gun gives them the power to enforce the authority that’s been given to them.

The Scripture teaches that it’s the same way in the spirit.  We need to be issued a helmet and sword.  Unfortunately, because of a lack of teaching about this, there are many believers trying to battle the enemy hand-to-hand.  We were never called to do that.

On the contrary, we speak as men approved by God to be entrusted with the gospel.  We are not trying to please men but God, who tests our hearts.
1 Thessalonians 2:4

We get into trouble when we ignore verses like this.  Paul clearly taught that God has an approval process before He’ll entrust you with His Word of power.  It’s the Holy Spirit that does the testing.

This concept is found all through the New Testament.  We would do well to understand it and walk in it.  Only then will we see the power and authority of Christ affecting the world around us.  I believe that this is the next step on God’s agenda.  He wants to train His church to live and minister as Christ did.

Over the next few posts, I’m going to talk about this approval process.

Question: How does the spiritual helmet and sword increase the effectiveness of our evangelism?

© 2019 Nick Zaccardi