Take a moment to read 1 Thessalonians 5:8-5:11 and Ephesians 6:10 – 6:18.
Key points:
- This passage about fighting the good fight of sustaining faith, the nod to ‘hope of salvation’ points me beyond the act of having been saved.
- The hope of Jesus is a certain hope, sure to empower us, now and forever, beyond the battleground of this fallen life.
- Listen to this episode of Real Hope in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
In my Bible I search for ‘hope’ references.
I gravitated to 1 Thessalonians 5:8.
Why? I feel like I’ve never before seen this mention of ‘the hope of salvation as a helmet’… although I’ve read this New Testament letter.
This passage about fighting the good fight of sustaining faith, the nod to ‘hope of salvation’ points me beyond the act of having been saved.
Most of us know ‘the armour of God’ as outlined in Ephesians 6.
When I spied 1 Thessalonians 5, the apostle Paul’s description of armour instantly reminded me of that other catalogue of divine protection against the devil’s attacks.
There are interesting differences between them, though.
One is that Ephesians 6:17 mentions the helmet of salvation; 1 Thessalonians 5 describes putting on ‘the hope of salvation as a helmet’.
The hope of Jesus is a certain hope, sure to empower us, now and forever, beyond the battleground of this fallen life.
Small distinction but an intriguing one, right?
I’ve been chewing on it for a bit and I don’t really get why hope has been added to the salvation helmet.
Listen to this episode of Real Hope in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
But in this passage about fighting the good fight of sustaining faith, the nod to ‘hope of salvation’ points me beyond the act of having been saved.
While it’s wonderful to combat sin with the head gear of salvation at front of mind, the hope of salvation reminds of everything promised by Jesus’ rescue of me and you.
A certain hope sure to empower us, now and forever, beyond the battleground of this fallen life.
Listen to this episode of Real Hope | The Podcast in the player above or wherever you get your podcasts.
Subscribe to the YouVersion plan or listen to Real Hope | The Podcast wherever you get your podcasts.
Feature image: Photo by CanvaPro
Devotion written by Ben McEachen (originally published as ‘Hope as a Helmet’ on 12 January 2023).
Feature image: CanvaPro
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