In our last session The Shield of Faith, we saw that faith let’s us see past Satan’s lies as he tries to limit our perception of God’s purpose in us.
But when Satan can’t get us to doubt God’s faithfulness as the Master Designer of our lives, he’ll use other methods to distract us from our calling.
What methods?
Trend Tracking
It is both fascinating and alarming to know that technology companies today track online user activity so they can instantly offer products and services that specifically appeal to them.
That’s exactly what the Satan does when he looks for ways to distract us from our calling.
Satan Uses Generational Sins and Curses to Distract Us
What are generational sins?
Generational sins are attitudes, actions, beliefs, behaviors and/or habits that we have inherited from our family or relatives.
The Bible has some specifics things to say about generational sins and curses that we need to understand in order to combat Satan.
Blessings and Curses
Today I am giving you the choice between a BLESSING and a CURSE. You will be blessed if you obey the commands of the Lord your God that I am giving you today. You will receive a curse if you reject the commands of the Lord your God and turn from His way by worshiping foreign gods.
Deuteronomy 30:19
If the Israelites committed a sin and did not repent of that sin, this is what God said would happen:
‘The LORD is slow to anger, abounding in love and forgiving sin and rebellion. Yet he does not leave the guilty unpunished; he punishes the children for the sin of the parents to the third and fourth generation.’
Numbers 14:18
The family would receive a curse that would extend to the third and fourth generation.
It’s not that the children are responsible for the sins of their forefathers, it’s that they are vulnerable to the sin patterns created by the sin. SIN PATTERNS are passed along to the children.
This is what the Satan is looking for in you. He is tracking the sin patterns created in you through ancestral sin. He knows where you are the weakest.
For example, lets say you have a propensity towards ANGER. This is what it could look like:
Satan purposely forces your anger. He’s behind the scene egging you on. He is attacking your MIND. In this, Satan wants to make you feel guilty. He wants to defeat, distract and discourage you so you’ll give up on God’s vision for your life.
But God has given us the Helmet of Salvation.
God deals with the fact that Satan is attempting to make us believe something about ourselves that isn’t true.
Satan is trying to make you feel like a hypocrite.
He’s saying, “See, you’re still sinning. You haven’t changed a bit. You think you’re Godly, but look at you, you can’t even control your tempter. Some Christian you are!”
But what does God have to say about this? What does God have to say about who you are?
As we discussed in the Breastplate of Righteousness, God says, that through salvation you are a NEW CREATION. God says that you are the RIGHTEOUSNESS of God.
Therefore, if anyone is in Christ (having acquired the new nature), he is a NEW CREATION, the old has gone, the new has come.
2 Corinthians 5:17
God made him who had no sin to be sin for us, so that in him we become the RIGHTEOUSNESS of God.
2 Corinthians 5:21
So which is true? What Satan says about you or what God says?
(For a complete understanding of why God says you are blameless in Christ, read my article, Understand Who You Are In Christ).
Agreeing With God And Dealing With Sin
The Helmet of Salvation is about protecting your thought life by AGREEING with what God says about YOU rather than Satan.
But some will say, Satan’s got a point! We do sin! How can I claim that I am the righteousness of God?
Once again, God protects us with the Helmet of Salvation. Sin isn’t a problem when you deal with it God’s way.
Many people think that God expects them to DO something about their sin. But when you are born into God’s Kingdom, you don’t DO anything about sin, you just REST. That’s because Christ has ALREADY taken care of sin through His death and resurrection. For a complete understanding of how this works, see my article, How To Deal With Sin.
While Satan wants to keep you stirred up about your sin, God wants to show you how to TRANSFER the new you born in heaven, (new nature) to the fallen you on earth, thereby OVERCOMING Satan’s accusations against you. The Bible calls this sanctification. It’s the TRANSFORMING of your MIND.
Do not conform any longer 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.
Romans 12:2
Of course Satan doesn’t want you to understand this, he doesn’t want you to protect your mind, because if you do you won’t fall for his accusations. Instead, you’ll heartily pursue God’s vision for your life.
That’s why as a Knight of the Way in Training, it’s paramount that you understand how God views you and how to effectively deal with the sin in your life.
In our next session, we’ll discuss the Sword of the Spirit. Up to this point each piece of armor has been DEFENSIVE in nature. When Satan attacks our thought life we glance the blow by putting on the armor.
However, the Sword of the Spirit is different. It is OFFENSIVE in nature. In the next session we’ll learn how to keep Satan on the run.
Synopsis
Piece of Armor: The Helmet of Salvation (Ephesians 6:17)
Concept:
1. Agreeing with God about your new Identity.
2. The sanctification of man’s MIND.
Action needed to put on piece of armor:
1. Meditation. Read my article, The Purpose of Meditation.
2. Appropriate who you are through Christ— the righteousness of God. Read my article, Understand Who You Are in Christ.
3. Deal with sin God’s way. Read my article, How To Deal With Sin.