The helmet of salvation, part 2

Isaiah 59:16-17: “And He saw that there was no man, And was astonished that there was no one to intercede; Then His own arm brought salvation to Him; And His righteousness upheld Him.
And He put on righteousness like a breastplate, and a helmet of salvation on His head; And He put on garments of vengeance for clothing, And wrapped Himself with zeal as a mantle.”

I enjoy seeing how God sent prophecies of the coming of Jesus Christ into our world in the Old Testament…and then seeing those prophecies fulfilled in Jesus Christ in the New Testament. Here was a foretelling of Jesus’s coming; my Bible footnote on verse 16 states that it refers to the first advent of Jesus (His coming the first time to us in human form). Verse 17 tells of Him coming the second time…as the King, the conquering King. My wife, in discussion about this devotion, reminded me about the manner and raiment in how He would come again (she is studying Revelation in her own personal study). I have read through the Bible once (and I sheepishly admit it was some time ago), but I didn’t remember this reference in Isaiah until I did the aforementioned word study.

Let me take an aside here into the world of high school football. One of the rules I had to know as an official was this: if the ball-carrier’s helmet should come off during his running of the ball (usually due to contact by the defense), the play will be whistled dead at the spot where the helmet came off…even if the ball-carrier is still running down the field. The reason, of course, is safety. Note that if any other piece of equipment flew off the ball-carrier, the play could continue, but the helmet especially was the key to the play being whistled dead and over. The ball-carrier was not allowed to go further.

Now, think about the game we call life. You’re the ball-carrier, running toward eternity. If you’re not saved by the blood of Jesus Christ and know Him as your personal Lord and Savior, you’re not wearing the helmet of salvation, so to speak. You will be stopped from going any further…in this case, into Heaven. You don’t want to be stopped short of the goal! If your salvation is in Christ, don’t worry…you won’t lose that piece of equipment, and the play won’t be whistled dead.

Have a blessed day in Him!