ACTS of the Apostles, Part 2

Thursday, September 8

ACTS of the Apostles, Part 2

Learning How to be Daring and Dynamic

Read Acts 18:18-28

Focus Verses: Acts 18:24-26

Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.

It seems as if over the centuries, we, as Christians, have grown a bit lazy. Many of us sit back in the pew at church on Sunday and let the minister feed us the Word. We strive to live good “Christian” lives and may even give generously to missionaries in foreign lands. We figure that this is all that God expects from us. Let’s compare Christians today to Apollos. Apollos was well educated and knew the Scriptures. He had accepted Christ as Savior and Lord. He was eagerly teaching others about Jesus—anyone who would listen to him. But he had never been baptized. Back in that time, many of early Christians had only heard bits and pieces of the gospel. Except for the apostles’ visits and Paul’s letters, the gospel was passed on mostly by personal experience and word of mouth. Apollos knew about the baptism of John the Baptist, but had never heard about dying to sin and rising to a new life with Christ through baptism. That didn’t deter him, though. He boldly preached what he knew.

Two believers, Priscilla and Aquila, had traveled with Paul to Ephesus. There they heard Apollos preaching in the synagogue. They realized that he was teaching Christ accurately but was missing a few critical truths. So, Priscilla and Aquila invited him home with them and brought him up to speed. Fired up even more, Apollo let the local Christian group know that he wanted to travel to Achaia to share the Word. They agreed that God was urging him to go, so they wrote a letter for Apollos to take that introduced him to the disciples who lived there.

Notice that Apollos wasn’t satisfied with just sitting back in the pew and soaking in biblical teaching every week. He was too excited about the gospel to just give to missionaries. He became a missionary! This should be our attitude, too—to eagerly share Christ wherever God puts us.

There is another lesson in this passage for us—especially for those of us who have been Christians for a while. We should do what Priscilla and Aquila did. They mentored Apollos so that his message about Christ would be complete. They encouraged him to keep sharing the gospel. Are we doing this? When God has us meet a new Believer who Is struggling with doubts, what do we do? Do we take that person under our spiritual wing and help them mature in the Lord? Are we sensitive to the leading of the Holy Spirit like Priscilla and Aquila? How ready are we to disciple other Christians into the deeper truths of the gospel?

Dear Lord, thank you for reminding us that we should have a missionary’s spirit like Apollos. He preached what he knew about Christ wherever he was. He also had a teachable spirit and shared as he learned more. As we experience You more deeply, give us an eagerness to share those lessons as opportunities arise. And, like Priscilla and Aquila, give us the right words to help others mature in their faith. In Jesus’ Name and for the Father’s Glory. Amen.