1 Timothy 5: No magic in the church

As the Spirit moves among believers, one could expect some kind of magic happening in the church, but Paul gives very ground based councils. Timothy was some kind of bishop. He had to manage leaders in the church:

17-18 Give a bonus to leaders who do a good job, especially the ones who work hard at preaching and teaching. Scripture tells us, “Don’t muzzle a working ox” and “A worker deserves his pay.”
19 Don’t listen to a complaint against a leader that isn’t backed up by two or three responsible witnesses.
20 If anyone falls into sin, call that person on the carpet. Those who are inclined that way will know right off they can’t get by with it.
21-23 God and Jesus and angels all back me up in these instructions. Carry them out without favoritism, without taking sides. Don’t appoint people to church leadership positions too hastily. If a person is involved in some serious sins, you don’t want to become an unwitting accomplice. In any event, keep a close check on yourself. And don’t worry too much about what the critics will say. Go ahead and drink a little wine, for instance; it’s good for your digestion, good medicine for what ails you.

There was no magic. It was supposed that the leader received power from the Lord to conduct the church when Timothy's hand was laid upon him (v22); however, it didn´t mean that the leader was free from sinning; however, he could be false accused too by evil people inside the church. Thus, Timothy should carry the judgement without favoritism. Somehow, the Lord gave men the ability to judge, to analyze and to make decisions. Paul instructs Timothy on how make good decisions.

1 Timothy 4: The Lord loves all mankind

The false masters were spreading a different message: not to marriage, not to eat certain foods. Paul shows a loving God:

4 For everything created by God is good, and nothing is to be rejected if it is received with gratitude; 5 for it is sanctified by means of the word of God and prayer.

The loving God, loves all mankind:

10 For it is for this we labor and strive, because we have set our hope on the living God, who is the Savior of all mankind, especially of believers.

Salvation is open to every man and woman. It happens for those who believe in Jesus, our savior and Lord.

1 Timothy 3: Christian leader qualifications

The church in Ephesus had false masters, bad leaders. Paul addresses the qualifications of the leaders that should take place the bad leaders. The message/teachings of the bishops/masters were crucial. The focus of the message:

16 This Christian life is a great mystery, far exceeding our understanding, but some things are clear enough:
He appeared in a human body,
    was proved right by the invisible Spirit,
        was seen by angels.
He was proclaimed among all kinds of peoples,
    believed in all over the world,
        taken up into heavenly glory.

1 Timothy 2: the false leaders and their followers

Paul wrote to Timothy:

11-15 I don’t let women take over and tell the men what to do. They should study to be quiet and obedient along with everyone else. Adam was made first, then Eve; woman was deceived first — our pioneer in sin!—with Adam right on her heels. On the other hand, her childbearing brought about salvation, reversing Eve. But this salvation only comes to those who continue in faith, love, and holiness, gathering it all into maturity. You can depend on this.

Are these verses to be applied as a commandment to all churches? Perhaps no. Suppose that the false leaders in chapter 1 had deceived women who began to spread these false teachings. Suppose that these women were being more and more vocal in the church to the point of commanding men. Timothy had to control these women in order to fix the church, to make them remember that Jesus must be in the center of their lives.

1 Timothy 1: a toxic church

Paul was released from his prison, in Rome. Timothy is in Ephesus taking care of a toxic church. Evil leaders in the church are naturally inclined to their our honor and glory. In Ephesus, they were focusing in details of the Bible (genealogies, for instance) instead of focusing that Jesus came to save sinners. In doing so, they appeared to be wise, while in fact they were distancing the congregation from the faith and love. Timothy was in a very difficult situation: to oppose influential leader and to make the church return to the core of the gospel:

5-7 The whole point of what we’re urging is simply love—love uncontaminated by self-interest and counterfeit faith, a life open to God. Those who fail to keep to this point soon wander off into dead ends of gossip. They set themselves up as experts on religious issues, but haven’t the remotest idea of what they’re holding forth with such imposing eloquence.

Ephesians 6: Armor of God: Atack and defense

A Christians is a new creature - governed by Jesus who becomes a target of the evil forces, therefore he must resist its attacks:

13-18 Be prepared. You’re up against far more than you can handle on your own. Take all the help you can get, every weapon God has issued, so that when it’s all over but the shouting you’ll still be on your feet. Truth, righteousness, peace, faith, and salvation are more than words. Learn how to apply them. You’ll need them throughout your life. God’s Word is an indispensable weapon. In the same way, prayer is essential in this ongoing warfare. Pray hard and long. Pray for your brothers and sisters. Keep your eyes open. Keep each other’s spirits up so that no one falls behind or drops out.

Imagine a pastor who is calling many to Jesus. If he falls, he becomes a joke or a flag against Christians. Even if he doesn't fall, evil can lie and accuse therefore, it is imperative to pray hard and long and to live in community, in a church supporting each other.

Ephesians 5: Ordinances

There are many commands in Ephesians 4-6. We read:

14 For this reason it says,
“Awake, sleeper,
And arise from the dead,
And Christ will shine on you.”
15 So then, be careful how you walk, not as unwise people but as wise, 16 making the most of your time, because the days are evil. 17 Therefore do not be foolish, but understand what the will of the Lord is. 18 And do not get drunk with wine, in which there is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, 19 speaking to one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody with your hearts to the Lord;

Before conversion, I was dead in my sins but after believing in Jesus, I was called to arise from the dead and receive Christ's light. In Christ's light, I am aware of my actions. I am retired, so it is easy to waste my time, but I am called to make the most of my time, because the days are evil. How to make most of my time? Grow in love, show love to my family, taking care of wife and children and to repent when I fail in my mission.

Ephesians 4: Orders to Christians

In Ephesians 1-3, a Christian is someone planned by the Lord before creation, he was dead in his sins, incapable of search the Lord but Jesus came and opened a new age when gentiles are called to be united in the assembly of the saints.  In Ephesians 1-3, the Lord is doing all the work of salvation; but in Ephesians 4, a Christian is called to put off his former nature and put on the new life in Jesus. Is this transformation in hands of men? No. I know by myself that I was very egoistic; but somehow, Jesus broke this excessive focus on myself only. This freedom enables me to put off my former life; but I have to align my new heart and make some effort to adjust my life with my calling. I also must remember that I am not alone. The Spirit is in me, working in me, changing my heart and enabling me to be more and more like Jesus, however it is possible that I grive the Spirit:

30 Do not grieve the Holy Spirit of God, by whom you were sealed for the day of redemption.

I don´t want to grieve the Holy Spirit, but I am aware that I do it many times. I repent and I am confident that my seal, the Spirit, is still with me for the day of redemption. So, in a way, I am day by day changing clothes. I was called to put off my old self, and put on the new life in Jesus, everyday. 

Ephesians 3: Mystery revealed.

Paul was chosen by the Lord to reveal a great mystery:- gentiles are also chosen to serve the Messiah.

4-6 As you read over what I have written to you, you’ll be able to see for yourselves into the mystery of Christ. None of our ancestors understood this. Only in our time has it been made clear by God’s Spirit through his holy apostles and prophets of this new order. The mystery is that people who have never heard of God and those who have heard of him all their lives (what I’ve been calling outsiders and insiders) stand on the same ground before God. They get the same offer, same help, same promises in Christ Jesus. The Message is accessible and welcoming to everyone, across the board.

Paul was a pharisee, proud about his Jewish heritage. As a pharisee, he saw non Jews as people outside the covenant, lost in their idolatry and somehow despised by him. However, by grace, the Lord Jesus chose Paul to reveal a mystery that could never foresee. Jesus filled Paul with love, and Jesus enabled Paul to love the gentiles, to the point of being persecuted by other Jews for opening the covenant to non Jews.
It is like a religious person, grown in a church, who despises Muslims, and one day, by grace, he understands that he is loved by Jesus and want to spread that love to Muslims.

Ephesians 2: From being dead to being a workmanship.

1 And you were dead in your offenses and sins, 2 in which you previously walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, of the spirit that is now working in the sons of disobedience.

I was dead (nekros) in my sins; but the Lord looked to me:

8 For by grace you have been saved through faith; and this is not of yourselves, it is the gift of God; 9 not a result of works, so that no one may boast. 

I wasn't saved because I became good but because the grace made me believed in the Messiah, with a purpose:

10 For we are His workmanship/Poiema, created in Christ Jesus for good works, which God prepared beforehand so that we would walk in them.

I was created in Jesus for good works. I am getting old, I am aware of my strong tendency to be egoistical, but I am beginning to acknowledge that others are images of the Lord despite being very imperfect. I am beginning to root for others.  

Ephesians 1: A new identity

Paul prayed for the Ephesians:

15-19 That’s why, when I heard of the solid trust you have in the Master Jesus and your outpouring of love to all the followers of Jesus, I couldn’t stop thanking God for you—every time I prayed, I’d think of you and give thanks. But I do more than thank. I ask—ask the God of our Master, Jesus Christ, the God of glory—to make you intelligent and discerning in knowing him personally, your eyes focused and clear, so that you can see exactly what it is he is calling you to do, grasp the immensity of this glorious way of life he has for his followers, oh, the utter extravagance of his work in us who trust him—endless energy, boundless strength!

Now I am retired, and even though I had been reading the Bible along years, I still need to know more God personally, I still need  to grasp the way of life God has for me and the boundless greatness of God's power toward me who believe. I want to see the kindness and power of the Lord in order to praise more the Lord for the king Jesus in my life. 

Philemon: Jesus, the king of peace

Paul intercedes for Onesimus - a fugitive slave. By law, Onesimus shoud be severely punished or even killed by Philemon, his master. Paul argued that Onesimus met him (in Rome) and now, he is a Christian, a brother in Jesus, therefore Paul asks Philemon to treat Onesimus graciously. Onesimus carried two letters: to Colossians and to Philemon. 

I imagine Onesimus carrying this letter, surrendered to Jesus. He didn't know what expected him, but he was in peace, confident that the Lord is in control. 

The life of Onesimus and Philemon were changed by Jesus - the king of peace.

Colossians 4: Prayer

2-4 Pray diligently. Stay alert, with your eyes wide open in gratitude. Don’t forget to pray for us, that God will open doors for telling the mystery of Christ, even while I’m locked up in this jail. Pray that every time I open my mouth I’ll be able to make Christ plain as day to them.

My everyday thoughts are somehow egoistical. If I were Paul, in prison, I would prayer for deliverance. Paul main's concern is to proclaim the gospel. It reminds me the Lord's prayer: "your will be done, on earth as it is in heaven.".
The more I admire/praise the Lord, the more I will desire what the Lord aims. 

Colossians 3: new life

3-4 Your old life is dead. Your new life, which is your real life—even though invisible to spectators—is with Christ in God. He is your life. When Christ (your real life, remember) shows up again on this earth, you’ll show up, too—the real you, the glorious you. Meanwhile, be content with obscurity, like Christ.

My old life, centered in me, is dead. My new life is becoming more and more like Jesus. However, this transformation is not passive, through magic; and it is not also based on my own efforts, legalistic. It is a transformation that begins in the mind, in believing that Jesus is in me.

Colossians 2: Reality in Christ

Jesus is the King who conquered to us a new life so that we became citizens of the kingdom of God. The Colossian church was under attack. Bad teachers were teaching how to be more "holy" through circumcision, keep the Sabbath, kosher food, etc.
We read:

16-17 So don’t put up with anyone pressuring you in details of diet, worship services, or holy days. All those things are mere shadows cast before what was to come; the substance is Christ.

18-19 Don’t tolerate people who try to run your life, ordering you to bow and scrape, insisting that you join their obsession with angels and that you seek out visions. They’re a lot of hot air, that’s all they are. They’re completely out of touch with the source of life, Christ, who puts us together in one piece, whose very breath and blood flow through us. He is the Head and we are the body. We can grow up healthy in God only as he nourishes us.

Paul warned: We are holy through Jesus because he is the substance, while diet, Sabbath, etc. are only shadows of Jesus. There is a strong trend in our human hearts to find some holiness in our own effort, but this is a lie. We are made to look to Jesus.