APOLLOS
COURAGE TO BE DIFFERENT
“Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus.
He was an eloquent man, well versed in the scriptures …. (Acts 18:24)
Although mentioned only a few
times in the Bible, Apollos was an important figure in the EarlyChurch.
He was noted for his eloquence and fine pastoral work.
What set him apart from others,
however, was his meekness and willingness to learn:
“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
and expounded to him the way of God more accurately.” (Acts 18:25. 26).
Apollos
did not scorn Priscilla and Aquila, who others
might see as lowly tentmakers (Acts 18:2,3). What a
person teaches should not be rejected because he does not have a high
education, but weighed with sound judgment, the Word of God, or the special
revelation of the Holy Spirit.
What really prevents a ‘learned’
man from accepting the truth is most often, his pride. That is why he cannot
accept contrary ideas from one he regards as an intellectual inferior. Apollos
did not allow his pride to hinder his acceptance of the Truth. The great value
of acquiring knowledge of the Bible and the Truth is not being undermined here.
What is being warned against is accepting what someone teaches solely on the
basis of his personality or qualifications.
However, this should never be
taken to mean that every intellectual or trained theologian is to be treated
with suspicion and doubt. 1 hose that do, hide their own ignorance by
misquoting the verse:: but God chose what is foolish in the world to shame the
wise …” (I Cor 1:27)
“I planted. Apollos watered, but
God gave the growth” (1 Cor 3:6). In his epistles, Paul spoke of Apollos as a
fellow-worker (cf. 1 Cor 16:12; Tit 3:13). He not only taught, but he also
labored much for the Lord.
Every member of the body of Christ
should also combine words and deeds, as’ John wrote, “Little children, let us
not, live in word or speech, but in deed and in truth” (I Jn 3:18).
The Church needs leaders like
Apollos: meek, willing to accept correction, and diligent.
Apollos
is an excellent model for all workers of God.
