GOT IT! NOW, LET’S GET IT!(Acts 18:24-28)

As most of you know … I grew up and have spent most of my life as what I would consider an “outdoorsman”. I’ve spent all my life hunting and fishing … some trapping as a young man … and a good many years as a taxidermist working with furs, hides, antlers, horns, bones, and stuff. I’m no Daniel Boone or anything … in fact there are some of you who are probably way more “outdoorsman” than I am … but I get by and I know some stuff. BUT … I have to tell you a story.

A few years ago … maybe more than a few … some of the guys from the church went up to Utah for a fishing trip. I won’t go into all of the details (it does seem like I caught the biggest though). In any event … I was bent over gutting some trout when Butch Mitchell came up and observed what I was doing and proceeded to tell me that I was doing it wrong! Grant it … I was never much of a trout guy … I fished mostly for warm water species such as catfish, bass, and crappie … but I have gutted a few fish in my day! I thought I was doing just fine! I indulged him though, as he went about showing me how HE learned to gut a trout and I gotta tell ya … I was INSTANTLY convinced that HIS way WAS the RIGHT way, and I had been doing it wrong! At 50 years old an old dog had learned a new trick and I’ve been doing it HIS way ever since.

Now there are TWO things that I want you to take away from this story. Number one is that you have to search far and wide to find another church that uses a trout gutting illustration to introduce a sermon … so feel privileged in that sense. Also … believe it or not that story sort of … in a way … if you cock your head just right and squint … kind of goes along with today’s message entitled:-----------------------Slide 1

GOT IT! NOW, LET’S GET IT!(Acts 18:24-28) -----------------------------If you recall … last week in our return to Acts, Paul had left Corinth … shot across to Ephesus where he dropped off Aquila and Pricilla, reasoned in the local synagogue, then headed to Caesarea, Jerusalem, and Antioch before heading out on his THIRD Missionary Journey.-----------------------------Slide 2

---------------------------Now in our text we LEAVE Paul and HIS travels and go BACK to Ephesus and the account of a man named Apollos! Let’s take a look … verse 24 of chapter 18------------------------------Slide 3

(Acts 18:24) Now a Jew named Apollos, an Alexandrian by birth, an eloquent man, came to Ephesus; and he was mighty in the Scriptures.------------------------------Before we get into Apollos … let’s talk a little about Ephesus. Ephesus wasn’t a little hamlet. It was the capital of proconsular Asia at the time and where the governor resided. It is estimated that it was a city of a half million or so during Paul’s time, and was important in its political prominence, and its economic prominence (largely due to its geographical position on major trade routes), and its religious leadership as a center for the worship of Diana, or Artemis a Greek Goddess. In fact the city boasted the Temple of Diana or Artemis considered one of the Seven Wonders of the World. Here is an artist rendering of the temple as it probably looked then:--------------------------Slide 4

----------------------------------Here are the ruins as it stands today!----------------------------------Slide 5

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In fact today “ruins” is pretty much all that remains of the once great Ephesus. If you were to go there today, this is what you would find of that particular city known as Ephesus.-----------------------------------Slide 6

-------------------------There is now a small Turkish town called Ayasaluk in the place of the once great metropolis Ephesus. The fact that IT WAS once a great city … a moving and shaking place was probably the draw for missionaries and preachers such as Paul, Aquila and Pricilla, AND this man named APOLLOS!

What do we know about Apollos the man?

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APOLLOS THE MAN-----------------------------First we know that he was not a Greek … he was not a Gentile … he was a Jew … Jewish!-------------------------------Slide 8

A Jew---------------------------------However, he was not a Jew born in Israel … instead he was born and raised in Northern Africa … in Egypt …. Alexandria, Egypt.----------------------------------Slide 9

Born in Alexandria, Egypt---------------------------I’m told that Alexandria had a LARGE Jewish population at that time and although raised outside of Israel, Apollos was probably raised VERY Jewish in a very Jewish cultural setting. The good doctor Luke by mentioning his birthplace was in a sense conveying those facts to folks in the know of that day.

The other thing mentioned is that he was an “eloquent” man. This is not to be confused with “elegant” man … we’re not talking LOOKS here. We’re talking about someone who was either very skilled in public speaking or well-learned or BOTH.

The Greek word translated as “eloquent” is only used ONCE in the entire bible. Here. I’m told it can either mean a “man of words”, or a “man of ideas”. Apollos was likely BOTH … a gifted orator and well educated at the same time. I can’t improve on the translation … he was eloquent.-----------------------------Slide 10

An eloquent man-------------------------Another thing we glean from verse 24 about Apollos is that he was “mighty” in the Scriptures. -------------------------Slide 11

Mighty in the Scriptures---------------------------

This is “cool” if you are a nerd like me … this word translated “mighty” is the Greek word “dunatos” which is the round-a-bout root of our English word “dynamite”! It isn’t used ANYWHERE about ANY other preacher (including Paul). If I am getting the right impression … we’re talking about someone who is POWERFUL … DYNAMIC … CONFIDENT … PURSUASIVE … sort of a HEAVY HITTER … maybe even a ROCK STAR when it came to knowledge and communication of the Scriptures!

“Scriptures” by the way here refers to “Old Testament” Scriptures. Apollos KNEW the Old Testament Scriptures and could debate them in a dynamic, eloquent, and educated way! What a guy!

Verse 25 gives us even MORE insight into the “man” Apollos.---------------------------Slide 12

(Acts 18:25) This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus, being acquainted only with the baptism of John;------------------------------It says that he had been “instructed” in the way of the Lord. This does NOT mean that he was a Christian. I don’t think we’re talking about the “Lord Jesus” when it says “way of the Lord”.

The term or phrase “the way of the Lord” I’m told is an Old Testament term for instruction “in the things of God”. It’s used throughout Old Testament Scripture … God talking to Abraham in Genesis 18:19 telling him to keep his household and raise his children according to the “way of the Lord”. In Judges, Psalms, Samuel, and Proverbs and on and on … it is made clear that the “way of the Lord” refers to standards that God expects from his people! So in THAT sense he had been instructed in the way of the Lord … well versed in God’s expectations and standards.-------------------------------Slide 13

Well versed in God’s expectations and standards---------------------------What else? Well … verse 25 also tells us that he was FERVENT in Spirit! I don’t know about you … but I don’t usually talk like that. I typically don’t use the word “fervent”. What does it mean … “fervent in Spirit”?

Let me throw out some synonyms for the word “fervent” … impassioned · passionate · intense · vehement · ardent · fervid · sincere · feeling · profound · deep-seated · heartfelt · deeply felt · emotional · animated · spirited · enthusiastic · zealous · fanatical · wholehearted · avid · eager · earnest · keen · committed · dedicated · devout

I’m going to go out on a limb and say that Apollos was an enthusiastic and passionate speaker!-------------------------------Slide 14

An enthusiastic and passionate speaker-----------------------------Again … It sounds to me like this Apollos fellow was quite a guy! Luke, the author of Acts, certainly thought highly of him. Apollos was making a big splash in Ephesus evidently. He was making quite a name for himself he had a ministry prior to his transition!----------------------------Slide 15

APOLLOS’ MINISTRY BEFORE TRANSITION------------------------------- He was on a mission … he had come to the BIG city and was trying to get his fellow Jews onboard with this Jesus thing. He was making his case from the Old Testament Scriptures and what he knew from John the Baptist’s preaching … the call for repentance … the turning from their sins and turning back to God … the baptism of John signifying that … the making the way for Jesus! Apollos thought that he had it down and was speaking and teaching accordingly. He was speaking and teaching what he knew of the truth regarding Jesus!-----------------------------Slide 16

He was speaking and teaching accurately what he knew concerning JesusLimited because he had only a familiarization with the baptism of John

----------------------------------Again … I think Apollos was convinced from the Old Testament Messianic Prophesies that Jesus was the Messiah. He fully embraced what John the Baptist had proclaimed regarding His coming. I think he fully believed that Jesus was the Lamb of God and was VERY persuasive in convincing others of the same thing. He was charging ahead with what he knew. He was being obedient to what he knew. He was gettin’ ‘er done based on all he knew. He was gutting the trout just fine based on what he knew … but he didn’t know it ALL! He didn’t have the whole story! There was more to know … more to learn. Verse 26----------------------------Slide 17

(Acts 18:26) and he began to speak out 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.

-----------------------------Apollos showed up in Ephesus and got a speaking engagement in the local synagogue, which was a pretty common thing at that time … opportunity for a Jew to speak at the local synagogue. Aquila and Priscilla (Paul’s buddies … fellow Jews, fellow tent makers, fellow Christians, and fellow ministers) heard this passionate, dynamic, eloquent speaker go off in the synagogue talking about Jesus and they looked at each other with wide eyes and went “Whaaaat?” “Shut-up” “Is this for real?” (Actually, that’s my interpretation) I don’t know what they said to each other, but they had to be fired up! Impressed! They had to have felt like they struck gold! The thing is … Apollos needed straightening out on some things though. What he said was TRUE … but there was more to the story. Their hearing Apollos resulted in them pulling him to the side and filling him in on the rest of the story and thus Apollos’ transition!------------------------Slide 18

APOLLOS’ TRANSITION

Aquila and Pricilla explained to Apollos the rest of the story--------------------------------Again … it says that Apollos was acquainted with the baptism of John … and I assume the preaching of John the Baptist. John was preaching repentance … turning back to God, making ready for the coming of the Messiah … Jesus. John’s baptism was a baptism symbolizing a “cleansing” by God because of repentance. CHRISTIAN baptism is a picture of UNION with Christ, a union with His death, burial, and resurrection. Christian baptism PICTURES it … expresses it, but the UNION has already occurred PRIOR to that. It’s a union that occurs at the time of our SPIRITUAL baptism … it occurs the MOMENT we trust Christ for our salvation! I don’t think Apollos KNEW that!

I’m assuming that Apollos didn’t quite understand the full nature of the atoning death of Jesus and the resurrection and its impact. He probably didn’t understand baptism of the Spirit or the spiritual nature and possibility of Christ in him. He was RIGHT about what he DID know … he just didn’t know it all. BUT … a couple of NOBODY tent makers somehow got an audience with him and CONVINCED him … explained to him the more accurate … the more COMPLETE story … the REST of the story (as Paul Harvey used to say).

This is pretty impressive or amazing to me. First … when I think of an eloquent, dynamic, educated speaker, teacher, and debater, I don’t associate that with someone who would be open to listening to a blue collar, uneducated, common labor, individual telling him that he had it wrong. I picture those guys as being pretty confident and grounded in what they believe and not interested in outside opinions. Especially from those with no

CREDENTIALS to speak of. But this APOLLOS guy … he demonstrated a GODLY humility. He humbled himself … he LISTENED … and evidently EMBRACED what was said to him. He recognized it as the RIGHT way … the TRUTH. How do I know that he embraced it? I base my assumption on his actions from then on. Take into account the mention of his effectiveness in Corinth in the letter of 1st Corinthians that we studied not too long ago. Take into account the rest of this passage! He was given the green light by the BRETHREN or encouraged by the brethren in Ephesus to keep on keeping on, and he DID! Apollos took what was told him … embraced the whole truth and responded accordingly.------------------------Slide 19

Apollos embraced the whole truth and responded accordingly-----------------------------Apollos transitioned from a guy passionately preaching his limited knowledge of Jesus from his command of Old Testament Scriptures and his understanding of John the Baptist’s message, to a guy passionately preaching ACCURATELY the REST of the story regarding Jesus … the GOOD NEWS … the GOSPEL of Christ … the WHOLE truth and nothing BUT the truth!

Jim Jones and I were talking a couple of weeks ago and he mentioned something that Dallas Theological Seminary professor Dr. Howard Hendricks used to ask his students. It was along the lines of “When was the last time that you allowed the word of God to change your mind?” We all get caught up in tradition and what we’ve always been told or have been led to believe. We all have our own sacred cows of some sort, and it’s EASY to blow off something that goes against that. But we have to be open to the truth of God’s word … receptive to it … willing to accept what it says even if it goes against what we’ve come to wrongly accept.

I’m going to do some more speculation here … but I’m thinking that Apollos measured what was told him by Aquila and Pricilla against his impressive knowledge and command of the Scriptures and came away convinced of the truth of what they had told him. He was OPEN to the truth … open to allow the truth of God’s word to change his mind, to change his thinking, to change his speaking and teaching to a degree. As a result … we have verses 27 and 28 that speak to Apollos’ ministry POST transition.---------------------------Slide 20

APOLLOS’ MINISTRY POST TRANSITION-------------------------Let’s take a look …---------------------------

Slide 21

(Acts 18:27) And when he wanted to go across to Achaia, the brethren encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him; and when he had arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace,

(Acts 18:28) for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.----------------------------------Apollos was now armed with the whole truth … he now fully understood and could convey the gospel and teach and encourage others. He felt led to shoot across the Aegean Sea to the region of Achaia to do just that! Achaia … sound familiar? The CAPITAL of the Achaian region was CORINTH, home of the Corinthian church!

Again … just so you get a feel for where the two places lie in proximity to one another… the map!---------------------------Slide 22

--------------------------Again … how do we know Apollos bought in? The BRETHREN … the BELIEVERS in Ephesus signed off on him. They ENCOURAGED him to go to Corinth!

In fact so sure were the brethren … so confident in Apollos … so impressed … that they fired off a letter to those folks in Achaia (likely Corinth) asking them to “welcome him”!

Sort of a letter of commendation … a letter vouching for him. Encouraged and commended by the Ephesian brethren … he went on to Achaia.--------------------------Slide 23

Encouraged and commended by the Ephesian brethren he went to Achaia

-------------------------------The folks in Corinth wouldn’t know Apollos from anyone. But armed with a letter from other believers in Ephesus … he had a foot in the door so to speak.

Evidently … it didn’t take long for the Corinthians to experience the great minister and the great ministry of Apollos. The verse says that when he ARRIVED he GREATLY helped those who had believed through grace!------------------------Slide 24

In Achaia he greatly benefited the believers there-------------------------A couple of things that I want us to note here. First is the word “greatly”. It is translated well and means exactly that … greatly, immensely, abundantly, over the top, a HUGE help! I would expect no less of a man described as eloquent, mighty, and fervent. Apollos evidently was the REAL deal with a REAL affective ministry!

The second thing I want to highlight is the phrase “those who had believed through grace”. If you read this wrong or interpret it wrong, you can get confused. I don’t want anybody to be confused. So … you need to understand that there ain’t two types of believers in the Christian world … those who believed through grace and then some others who believed some other way. There AIN’T no other way. ALL believers have believed through grace! We are all SAVED by grace through FAITH in Christ Jesus PERIOD!

Paul later wrote to the Ephesians … in Ephesians 2:8-9----------------------------Slide 25

(Ephesians 2:8) For by grace you have been saved through faith; and that not of yourselves, it is the gift of God;

(Ephesians 2:9) not as a result of works, so that no one may boast.------------------------- Paul in his letter to the folks in the Galatian region points out it was GOD who did it all … set him apart before he was born and called him through His grace … Galatians 1:15

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(Galatians 1:15) But when God, who had set me apart even from my mother's womb and called me through His grace, was pleased …------------------------------Grace is God giving us a gift we don’t deserve … unmerited favor bestowed upon us … ALL of us who are the saved!

So … the language “those who had believed through grace” is just the Holy Spirit through Luke proclaiming the marvelous grace of Jesus in salvation and is referring to ALL the believers that Apollos ministered to. All the legitimate believers in Corinth were helped greatly by Apollos.

I’m sure they were “helped” or “benefited” in a number of ways. I’m sure there was encouragement and edification in many forms. But what is mentioned in verse 28 is the public proclaiming and debating and demonstrating the legitimacy of Jesus as the --Christ. Verse 28 again …-------------------------Slide 27

(Acts 18:28) for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, demonstrating by the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.-------------------------------Apollos POWERFULLY refuted the Jews in PUBLIC! Other versions read “mightily” or “vigorously”. But you get the picture. Apollos would take on the stiff necked opponents … the set in stone Jews and intensely debate them publically … publically kicking their rears with FACTS … TRUTH. Disproving them at every turn … using the very same Scriptures that they claimed to love and embrace to prove undeniably … indisputably that Jesus was the Christ!---------------------------------Slide 28

He powerfully refuted the Jews in publicUsing the Scriptures to prove that Jesus was the Christ

-----------------------------These same Jews that had hauled Paul before the governor not long ago … flexing their muscles … were now being put in their place and publically proven to be wrong by their own Scriptures! They didn’t have anyone to go against and defeat Apollos, and Apollos had TRUTH on his side.

How did that GREATLY help the Corinthians? Well … its gotta be a big encouragement to be on the winning team for a change. It’s gotta be a big encouragement to have someone stand against the bossy Jews and shut them up. It’s gotta be a big encouragement to see others come to Christ as

a result. It’s gotta be a big encouragement and edification to hear the arguments themselves … shoring up what they believed. It’s gotta be a big encouragement to have a guy like Apollos carrying the banner and leading the charge!

The DANGER though is the very human trait of putting more value on the messenger than the message. Evidently … Apollos developed quite a cult following in Corinth after that. Remember from our study of 1st Corinthians? Specifically chapter 1, verses 11-13-----------------------Slide 29

(1 Corinthians 1:11) For I have been informed concerning you, my brethren, by Chloe's people, that there are quarrels among you.

(1 Corinthians 1:12) Now I mean this, that each one of you is saying, "I am of Paul," and "I of Apollos," and "I of Cephas," and "I of Christ."

(1 Corinthians 1:13) Has Christ been divided? Paul was not crucified for you, was he? Or were you baptized in the name of Paul?------------------------------Apollos found himself named with Paul, Cephas or Peter, and Christ Himself! If Apollos was a legitimate servant of Christ (which I believe he was), he didn’t seek that sort of following. He would be highly disturbed that folks didn’t GET IT … and were placing HIM on a pedestal rather than the Lord Jesus Christ whom he was preaching and proclaiming!

As impressive as this Apollos must have been … eloquent … dynamic … passionate … intelligent … he was motivated and moved by the truth of God’s word. He demonstrated humility and allowed the truth to change his mind and acted accordingly. HIS focus was on Christ … the GOSPEL of Christ, the truth of the word of God. As impressive as some of our teachers and spiritual leaders are … our focus must be on the message and not the messenger … OUR focus should be on Christ … the GOSPEL of Christ, the truth of the word of God and nothing less.

Meanwhile … next week … Lord willing, we’ll leave Apollos in Corinth and catch up with Paul who finds himself back in Ephesus. But that’s NEXT week. For now … let’s pray!