Daily Thoughts from Acts: Enjoying All God’s Gifts (Acts 18:24-28)

Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord. And being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things concerning Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue, but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.  (Acts 18:24-28 ESV)

Alexandria was a city of great intellectual history and the home of many Jews.  Apollos had apparently drunk deeply of the knowledge available to him and had as well been a disciple of John the Baptist.  This means he had been in Israel at some point, perhaps for one of the required pilgrimages to Jerusalem, and had learned of John’s teaching that the Messiah was coming, and for sure had learned that Jesus was the one identified by John as Messiah.  It is possible, however, that he did not know of Jesus’ death and resurrection.  Now he was in Ephesus and something was missing from his teaching that prompted Priscilla and Aquila (her name being mentioned first is not the norm culturally) to take Apollos aside to explain things more accurately.

Was it proper for Priscilla to instruct a man this way?  Did being with her husband make it okay?  We see Jesus taking time to personally instruct women like Mary, the sister of Lazarus (Luke 10:38-42).  The importance of women learning was a new facet of Christianity, but was there also a new facet of allowing women to teach men?  See an answer to these questions at https://thimblefulloftheology.com/the-role-of-women-in-scripture/.

We don’t know why Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, where Corinth was, but Priscilla and Aquila had been there with Paul and were well known to the church so their recommendation letter would have given Apollos a good reception.  Apollos’ own capable defense of the faith confirmed the recommendation.  Interestingly, it does not say his refutation of the Jews who opposed Christianity resulted in new converts, but it did help those who already believed.  Apologetics (the defense of the faith) aids both in evangelism and in the encouragement of those who already believe. 

In Paul’s first letter to the Corinthians we learn that a faction of the church held Apollos in great esteem and considered themselves his disciples.  They were excited by his eloquence and faulted Paul for his lack of eloquence.  But Paul considered both Apollos and himself merely servants who worked together in God’s field to produce the harvest.  Choosing to exalt one teacher above another instead of reaping the blessing from all the teachers God provides is an evidence of immaturity, or what Paul calls carnality or fleshliness (1 Corinthians 1:10-13; 3:1-9).  Only self-centered immaturity would lead someone to only prize the gold doubloons in the treasure chest and not the jewels and crowns and golden goblets.