When Priscilla and Aquila heard Apollos speaking, they invited him to their house and explained the way of God more adequately to Apollos. Apollos accepted their message, and later went to Achaia and proved through the word of God that Jesus was Christ and greatly encouraged the Christians there. Today let’s look at 3 things that we can learn from Priscilla and Aquila’s ministry of explaining the way to God more adequately.
I. The defects in Apollos’ faith (vs.24,25)
Paul returned from his second missionary journey, greeted the church in Jerusalem and then went to the Antioch church where he stayed for some time. Then he left on another missionary trip. This is the third missionary trip which is recoded from here until 21:16 and on. This trip was thought to be three and a half years. On this trip he spent most of his time in Ephesus. This missionary trip’s purpose was to strengthen all the disciples. Therefore, he went around to the churches in Asia Minor and then went on towards Ephesus. His stay in Ephesus is recorded in 19:1 and on. While he was going to Ephesus, something happened in Ephesus which is today’s passage.
Apollos, a learned man, a Jew from Alexandria came to Ephesus. He had a “thorough knowledge of the Scriptures” (24), “taught about Jesus accurately” (25), spoke with great fervor in the Spirit, “and was instructed in the way of the Lord” (25). A learned man didn’t just mean that he spoke eloquently, but meant that he had enough knowledge and training, and learning. Also “a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures”(24) didn’t just mean that he had knowledge of the Bible, but that he was well versed in the Bible. Not only that, He was very enthusiastic towards evangelism, and with great fervor in the Spirit he spoke about Christ boldly. He was smart and spoke eloquently. Also he spoke not timidly, but boldly and at the same time calmly and composed. He was this type of a person so probably he was able to reach out to the hearts of many people. In fact, later when he evangelized in Corinth there were people who said “I belong to Apollos”. He had that much appeal.
However, that did not mean that he was without faults. Apollos was versed in the Bible, but he only knew about the baptism of John. John’s baptism was the baptism that John received and refers to the baptism of repentance. This is written about fully in Luke chapter 3. John said that the person that came after him was so powerful that he wasn’t even worthy of tying his shoes. John preached that to prepare for Jesus’ coming everyone needed to repent of their sin and be baptized. This baptism was for the forgiveness of sins, a baptism for repentance. Apollos only knew about John’s baptism. However, to believe in Jesus Christ as Savior and Lord, and to be baptized in the Name of our Lord Jesus, is in essence different. Apollos knew the Messiah prophesized about in the Old Testament was Jesus Christ, and that he was coming and to be prepared for that we must repent of our sins. However, he didn’t know well that Jesus was put on the cross and died, and by being raised back up 3 days later those who believe are given the blessings of forgiveness of sin and eternal life. In other words, he didn’t know about the baptism of the Holy Spirit very well. He didn’t know well that when the Holy Spirit came on Pentecost, the Christian church was born. What he knew was that Jesus of Nazareth was the Christ. This was not wrong, but it wasn’t a full understanding. It is a little strange that Apollos who was well versed in the Scriptures, and taught well the way of the Lord, wouldn’t know this type of basic things. The Bible wasn’t completed like it is today, so everything was passed by word of mouth. Therefore, it was difficult to understand everything perfectly.
However, now that the Bible has been completed and every individual person can read it, anyone who wants to know more about the Bible, can know more about it. However, sometimes even if we have enough knowledge and training, we have little interest in spiritual things or the opposite we are really interested in things of the Spirit, but have little knowledge of the Bible. In order to be used as a worker of the Lord, a correct knowledge and enthusiasm towards the Bible, both are needed. Therefore, let’s make every effort to gain a correct knowledge of the Bible. Next let’s see how Apollos overcame his defects.
ＩＩ． The love of Priscilla and Aquila
It was Priscilla and Aquila who were used to help Apollos to overcome his defects. Apollos like Paul went to the Jewish synagogue and began to boldly speak. It is thought that he spoke eloquently based upon his learning and knowledge of the Bible. The crowd who heard him was deeply moved. However, when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they realized that there was a huge defect in his message. Therefore, they invited Apollos to their house and ”explained to him the way of God more adequately.” (26) Priscilla and Aquila appear in 18:2,3. When Paul evangelized in Corinth he made tents with them. When Paul went to Antioch they went with him as far as Ephesus. Paul was in a rush to bring the offerings from the Macedonian churches to Jerusalem so he left, but Priscilla and Aquila stayed and Ephesus and continued evangelizing.
It was quite a thing that they realized that there was a defect in Apollos’ message, but more than that is their willingness to invite Apollos to their home and teach him. That’s not something that is easy to do. Probably because they had evangelized with Paul and Paul had taught them the way of God, they realized that there was a difference between what Apollos was teaching and what Paul was teaching. They invited Apollos to their home and ”explained to him the way of God more adequately.” (26) Here we can see their actions of building him up. For example, when a young pastor evangelist with little experience is called to a church, it is difficult for those who have been true to their faith for a long time, and those who know the Bible well to accept the new pastor or evangelist. They think that maybe the new pastor or evangelist may have studied the Bible more or less, but when it comes to experience in the faith and the way to run the church they know more. They find defects even in an experienced pastor so with young pastors and preachers they really find the defects. Whether in public or in private, it’s easy to criticize. At such times it’s difficult to be like Priscilla and Aquila and invite the pastor or evangelist to your house, and teach the way of God more adequately to him. They didn’t in the synagogue or in their home criticize Apollos. They kindly and politely taught him so that Apollos would become even more used of God as an evangelist.
We should notice that they did this in their home. If they did this in front of the congregation, it probably would have ruined Apollos. They thought about Apollos and how to support him. In other words, this was their love towards Apollos. They thought as much of Apollos as they thought of themselves. This is because they loved the Lord. A person who loves the Lord loves the church. Such a person always takes care in building up the church.
III. Apollos who was a great help to the believers. (vs. 27b-28)
“When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him.” Therefore, Apollos when went there where “he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.” (28) As a result “he was a great help to those who by grace had believed.” (27) We can see the type of work he did in the letter that Paul wrote to the Corinthian church. “”I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.”(I Cor. 3:6) In other words, Paul planted the church, but Apollos worked to help the Christians to grow spiritually. Of course it was God who made it grow.
Apollo’s greatness was when in the Corinthian church some people began to say, “I belong to Apollos.” Apollos slipped away to Ephesus. He didn’t want to be exalted. Instead, when he was faced with such a situation, he slipped away and no matter how much he was asked to, he never went back to Corinth. That’s how much Apollos had grown. The ministry of love that Aquila and Priscilla had helped him to grow up wonderfully into a blooming flower.
When you think about it if Priscilla and Aquila hadn’t invited him to their house and “explained to him the way of God more adequately”, then he would not have had this kind of a ministry. Because they taught him, he was able to have such a ministry. No one ever dreamed of this. It was just because Priscilla and Aquila did what the Holy Spirit showed them to do that a seed was planted in Apollos and it caused him to grow greatly.
We may not be anyone special. We may never make any special records. We may be like Priscilla and Aquila and stand behind the stage. However, we can have an influence like Priscilla and Aquila. When we study the Bible well, understand it correctly and use the gifts faithfully that we have been given, we will be used greatly to build up the Kingdom of God. For us that is our greatest joy.