Above all, taking the shield of faith, wherewith ye shall be able to quench all the fiery darts of the wicked. And take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God: Praying always with all prayer and supplication in the Spirit, and watching thereunto with all perseverance and supplication for all saints; Eph. 6:16-18 (KJV)

Paul the apostle of our Lord says “put on the whole amour of God, that you (the believer of Biblical information) may stand against (misinformation) the wiles (manipulations, false information) of the devil (informant)” [my emphasis in brackets]. Ephesians 6:11

It is obvious that we are living in a time of both spiritual and physical warfare against the corona virus, however, the scripture admonishes us to prepare by putting on our spiritual armory against the wiles of the enemy.

The Greek meaning to the word wiles is something meant to fool, to trap and to trick. An artful deception to our mind. Henceforward, Paul in the 17th verses of Ephesians chapter 6 says put on the helmet of salvation. Why the helmet? To protect the mindset of the believer against information from the god of this world’s information director using the media in communicating falsehood.

Helmet of Salvation
Ephesians 6:17

Whedon’s Commentary on the Bible

• Helmet—The soldier’s cap, made of wood, of skins of wild beasts, or of metal, adorned with plumes, and framed to protect the head against the darts or blows of the foe.
• Of salvation—Safety, moral, spiritual, and eternal; safety from the missiles of Satan, and from sin, death, and hell.
• This warrior, then, is well protected, crowned even now with eternal salvation; and, as said above, sure to conquer unless he turns coward or apostate. But besides all this defense, he bears the emblem of all offensive war, the sword.

In Roman army, the helmet serves as a vital piece of armor, as an attack to the head could result in instant death.

Christian salvation is the redemptive works of our lord Jesus Christ from sin and its effect. Therefore, God (in Christ) became a man (son of God) to save anyone who will believe that he died, buried and on the third day rose again to save (heal) the world (sinners)

This salvation in its present form will keep our heads in the day of battle of misinformation. The more assured we are in our own happy consciousness of possessing the salvation of God, the more shall we be defended from all the temptations that seek to stir into action our lower selves.

Therefore, to put on the helmet of salvation as Christians is to protect our minds with the assurance by the saving works of our Lord Jesus Christ. We are to have in mind that we are saved (delivered, healed) and not to entertain any other source of information which can corrupt our salvation in Christ Jesus. 1 Peter 4:2

Reliable online sources on the new coronavirus and COVID-19

Taking a critical look at work of Dr. Shmerling, according to him, while no one source of information is perfect, some are undeniably better than others! It’s best to look for sites that:

• Rely on experts who use well-accepted scientific analyses and publish their results in reputable medical journals
• Have a mission to inform and protect the public, such as the CDC and the WHO, which recently added a myth busters page to its information on the virus
• Are not promoting or selling a product related to the information provided.

Other good online sources of information on the virus include:

• Medline Plus, from the US National Library of Medicine
• The UK’s National Health Service
• The US Food and Drug Administration
• Major news outlets with deep expertise in health reporting, such as The New York Times, The Washington Post, and The Boston Globe’s STAT News.

While gathering information online may be your easiest initial option, isolate yourself and contact your doctor if you have symptoms of an infection, such as fever, cough, or shortness of breath. (If you don’t have a doctor, call the nearest clinic for advice.) If necessary, a doctor may recommend that you see a specialist at an academic medical center (such as a hospital affiliated with a major medical school) who is likely to have the most recent information about a previously unknown infectious illness like this one.

The bottom line is that, even as we pray, there is the to watch. Jesus said watch and pray so that you don’t enter into temptation. Matthew 26:41

Watch out for my next post tomorrow. Protect your mindset!