I think people who jump out of planes, walk tight ropes, perform daredevil stunts, and all other types of dangerous activities are out of their minds. At least for most activities they wear protective equipment.

For everything from seatbelts to helmets, we try to protect ourselves from any danger that is fatal. We don’t even like anything that can hurt us. Pain is not our friend. All of these protections we put in place can save our lives.

Jesus made us new creatures in him (2 Corinthians 5:17). So much is wrapped up in that statement. Christians have new desires to please Christ, a new mind like the mind of Christ, and a new heart, to name a few.

When Paul got to talking about salvation in the armor of God, he gave it the equipment of that helmet (Ephesians 6:17). The soldiers home it protected the most vital organ of all, the brain. We have several vital organs protected by the breastplate, but without the brain, none of them can survive on their own.

Why would he choose the helmet to talk about salvation? It’s in the understanding of our minds that salvation takes its deepest hold. We understand our salvation with our mind. We choose to obey the Holy Spirit with our mind. It is the processing center of our bodies.

And so it is vital that we guard our minds with the helmet of salvation. The way we think about our salvation, the victory of Christ, choose obedience to the Spirit, ignore our passions and desires, refused to rationalize sin and temptation, these all happen in the mind.

I am convinced that when we properly understand exactly what Christ has done for us on the cross, our new identity in him, how to obey the Spirit, how to deny old passions and designers, how to use our minds to dwell on the things that please God, we will love and serve Christ without exception.

There are so many verbs in the New Testament that relate directly to activities of the mind. It is imperative that our minds are renewed by the Spirit regularly (Romans 12:1). Our minds are crucial to our salvation.

And this is why Paul chose the soldier’s helmet. So that we might learn to guard our salvation. One of the schemes or flaming arrows of the devil is to challenge our salvation. He wants us to rethink whether or not we’re saved.

The devil will condemn us at every turn. He will try to convince us that what we think Jesus did wasn’t good enough. Temptations and our desires from the past will knock on the doors of our fortress and try to wear us down.

If we are not convinced of the work of Christ on the cross and in our hearts, we will be in grave danger of giving up a salvation ruthlessly bought for us. Our minds must be guarded so that our salvation is guarded from the enemy and his wiles.

So how do we put on this great helmet of salvation? How do we guard ourselves against thoughts that take us the other way from the salvation Christ gives? It is through prayer that we fortify our minds against the enemy and this world.

Here are some action steps for praying on the helmet of salvation:

1. Begin by affirming who God is. Affirm what Jesus did on the cross and its importance in your life.
2. Declare the goodness of God and set your mind to meditate on his Word.
3. Think on the good things of God (Philippians 4:8).
4. Prepare to do spiritual warfare with all of your thoughts that don’t please Christ.
5. Put on the mind of Christ. Put away any tempting thoughts.

The armor that we put on to fight our battles is not the same as the weapons are flesh and desires use against us (2 Corinthians 10:3).

Jesus has given us the weapons in our mind to fight every thought and to take it captive to Christ (2 Corinthians 10:5). This power that takes captive every argument and opinion against Christ dwells within our hearts and minds.

Such a powerful weapon like that is dangerous to the devil. That is why we must protect our minds with a proper understanding of our salvation and the power of what Christ and the Spirit have done in us.

The devil is a liar and we must declare him to be a liar. We must ignore the passions of this world. We must use our minds to think only on the things that glorify God. And it all starts with setting our minds according to the mind of Christ like reset a clock to an atomic clock.

Through our prayers we acknowledge the things of God over the things of this world. The battle is won in the mind. Our mind takes control of our speech and actions. It is the seat of volition, emotions, intelligence, creativity, and so much more.

Let us guard our minds and our salvation through praying. Let us ask the Lord to renew our minds and fix our thoughts on him alone. Let us think of him early and often throughout our day. Let us meditate on God’s Word and what he has declared about us.

As we bring our minds to the Lord in prayer, we set ourselves up for victory that glorifies Christ. Leave a comment and tell me what you think about the mind and its importance to salvation.