“But since we belong to the day, let us be sober, putting on faith and love as a breastplate, and the hope of salvation as a helmet. For God did not appoint us to suffer wrath but to receive salvation through our Lord Jesus Christ. He died for us so that, whether we are awake or asleep, we may live together with him. Therefore encourage one another and build each other up, just as in fact you are doing.”
1 Thessalonians 5:8-11 NIV
Those who live life seeing clearly should:
Put love and faith over our hearts.
We shouldn’t give anything, other than God, the permission or opportunity to win first place for our love.
Too easily we let someone or something take the priority of our love. We should guard first place, letting no one but God have it.
Protect our minds from trusting in anything, other than Jesus, to save us.
We must not try to earn it or make up for missing the mark. We must continually have our faith fully in the fact that Jesus is the only means by which we are saved.
Putting salvation on as a helmet is remembering our salvation is only by our faith in Jesus.
Jesus suffered our wrath so we can receive His righteousness and live with Him forever.
We need to protect the priority of our love and who/what we trust to save us.
This is the gospel with which we encourage one another. We must remind each other to make God the priority of our hearts, mind, soul, and strength and to trust only in Jesus for our salvation.