In preparation for a weekly Bible study in which we are working our way through the book of Acts, I was reminded of something that can get lost in the shuffle of growing and maintaining churches.
As the 18th chapter moves into the 19th, we encounter Apollos. He is described as being an "eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures." Moreover, "being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John."
This description of him reminds me of many people who grew up like I did with an emphasis on the primacy of the Bible, accepting Jesus to have your sins forgiven, being baptized for repentance (John's baptism), and then doing the best you can in your own strength to limp to the gates of heaven to present your permanent ticket for entrance. Acts 18:25 had said Apollos has a "fervent spirit," but that was merely a human zeal. Obviously, when Aquila and Priscilla took him aside and shared with him "the way of God more accurately" (18:26), they taught him about the Holy Spirit, which is then the emphasis at the beginning of chapter 19.
When Paul referred to Apollos in 1 Cor. 12, it is clear that he had become well known to the Corinthian church and carried a similar status to that of Paul himself. While we do not know much more about Apollos, he must have had the same emphasis on Holy Spirit that Paul did. If we come short of this emphasis, we keep people in the humanistic effort to do the best they can and miss the reasons Jesus said it was better for Him to go to the Father and send to us the Holy Spirit (John 14-16).
The Gospel is neither complete nor accurate without daily input and empowerment by Holy Spirit.
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Pastor Joe,
Thank you for this great word study. I had always wondered why if Apollos had such a 'fervent spirit' and spoke and 'taught about Jesus accurately' that Paul felt a need to mention Aquila teaching him "the way of God more accurately." So often I forget that the chapter divisions were NOT there in the original language and that it is a continued thread of thought. In the next chapter Paul speaks clearly about John's baptism and the need for the Holy Spirit as our next step in our walk of faith.
In our family devotions this morning, we learned in Luke 7: 36-50 about the Pharisee named Simon who was so legalistically focused on 'doing what was right.' He became critical of the woman with the jar of perfume washing Jesus' feet.
After reading your "More Accurate Way" blog, one could view this story as a comparison between one who follows the letter of the law, versus the Son of God who listens and walks by the Holy Spirit. The woman's sins were forgiven and her soul was saved on that day, because she was obedient to the Spirit of God.
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