A Teachable Spirit | Acts 18:24-28 (Apollos) | Pastor Daniel Batarseh

I want to take this time together to talk to you about

one of the most fascinating disciples of Jesus Christ in the

early church. His name is Apollos, and he has

one of the most impressive biographies in all of the New

Testament. And as unique as this man's

portfolio might be, careful attention, we'll discover that

there is incredibly helpful practical instruction that we

can discover together from his life.

And I can say from a personal standpoint that what the Bible

reveals about Apollo's has blessed me tremendously,

especially in the early years of ministry.

And my prayer is that as we take this time to look at the few

verses that have been preserved concerning him, that you too

will be blessed because every part of the Bible has been

breathed out by God for us. And so I want us now, without

wasting any more time, to go straight to the passage that

introduces Apollos to us in the book of Acts.

And so if you have God's Word in your hand, meet me in Acts

Acts 18 · chapter mention

chapter 18. It will begin at verse 24.

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 only

knew the baptism of John. The first thing that we should

observe about Apollo's is that he was a Jew born and raised in

Alexandria, which was in Egypt. Alexandria was known as a hub of

Hellenistic culture and learning, and over the centuries

a large Jewish population grew in that region.

But as common as Jews in Alexandria might have been, we

quickly discovered that Apollos was no ordinary Jew.

He was no ordinary Jew, firstly, because he was a believer in

Jesus Christ as the Messiah. People dispute that.

They argue whether or not Apollos was a believer at this

time, but he was a believer. He was a believer in Jesus.

And besides being a believer, we read that he was an eloquent

man. An eloquent man.

Now we can't limit that to mean that he had this ability to

communicate, that he had flawless skills, that he had a

vast vocabulary. The original word denotes

something much more expansive. Included in that word is that he

was a learned man. Apollos was highly educated and

it makes sense from the fact that he was born and raised in

Alexandria, a place that held and hosted a great university

and a great historic library. But Apollos was not just again

one who was able to speak, he was also one who was able to

retain information, and the area of his expertise was the Old

Testament. We read here that he was

competent in the Scriptures. That's how the ESV renders it,

but most other word for word translations use the word

mighty. He was mighty in the scriptures

and that word mighty speaks of power and it also speaks of

wealth. So you can almost say that

Apollos was strong and rich in the scriptures.

I don't know about you, but if I had a choice to be mighty and

anything, it would be in the scriptures.

We should strive for the same. He was a man who knew the Bible

very well. And interestingly, while others

in the Bible were deeply knowledgeable and skilled in the

Scriptures, no one is directly recognized for having this kind

of mastery of God's Word. That should grab our attention.

And this has LED some to speculate that Apollos was

actually the one who authored the book of Hebrews.

Have you ever heard that there's debate about who wrote the book

of Hebrews? It is a masterpiece, especially

connecting the Old Testament with the New.

So because of Apollo's description, people say it's got

to be Apollo's, or at least Apollo's helped somebody.

I don't necessarily agree with that point, but a major

contribution for this man's lofty knowledge is given to us

in verse 25. We're told that he had been

instructed in the way of the Lord.

Whether that instruction was formal or not, we aren't sure.

But what is certain, however, is that he was a full time Bible

student. And if anybody here has been or

is a full time Bible student, if you're in ministry, especially

as a pastor, you also are a full time Bible student.

At least you should pursue to be that.

You know that that requires dedication, it requires

sacrifice, it requires devotion, and only single minded devotion

can bring a person to the point of having such proficiency in

God's Word. And Apollo's had it competent in

the Scriptures, mighty in the Bible.

But we have to be honest in acknowledging this, that just

because somebody might be knowledgeable, even

knowledgeable in the Bible, doesn't automatically mean that

they are effective in communicating that knowledge.

Some of you have perhaps encountered those who are very

intelligent, but they're very challenging to listen to.

There are smart people that are stale, to be frank.

There are scholars who are stiff.

Apollos was not a dry theologian because we learned here also

that he was what? Fervent.

Fervent in spirit. You know what the word fervent

means in the Greek? To boil.

To boil. You know what that means?

Apollos was fiery. Apollos was engaging, He was

persuasive. He spoke with conviction.

And usually people don't have that package.

They might have the knowledge, but they don't have that ability

to speak. Or some have the ability to

speak and they're very engaging, but they lack substance.

No, no, no, Apollo's had both. And he had a way of expounding

the Word of God and connecting truths together that thrilled

his listeners and silenced his opponents.

And it's at this point that I want to say a few things about

Apollo's that apply to us, though they're not the main

points of the message. The first thing that I want you

to see is that though this man had so much going for him, the

Lord still had so much more for him.

Because as we're going to read, Apollos is going to see an

enlargement of his ministry. And as you read through the New

Testament, you realize he's not just found here in Acts.

He's found primarily in the book of First Corinthians.

And Paul tells us there in First Corinthians 36 that he planted,

Apollos watered, but God gave the increase.

In other words, Paul was responsible for seeing this

church birth in Corinth, but Apollos came along and he

brought nourishment and spiritual growth to this body of

believers. He was loved.

In fact, he was loved too much because there was a little bit

of a cult following there in Corinth that made too much of

him. But we'll get to that in a

moment. Apollos was someone here who

played a major role in the early church.

And each of us should be encouraged to know that if we

are eager and faithful in what Providence has placed before us

today, the Lord will provide opportunities in your tomorrow's

to come. There's no debate that he was

diligent, that he was devoted. And the Lord saw that and made a

way for him. Apollo serve God, and God made

ways for him to serve. And I can already hear some of

you thinking, well, of course, opportunities came to Apollo's.

Given this man's expertise, it makes sense.

Which brings me to my second point.

Ready for this? We don't have to have everything

together before God uses us. Look at verse 25 again.

As advanced Apollo's may have been, the Holy Spirit says

something quite interesting at the end of verse 25.

He spoke and taught accurately the way or the things concerning

Jesus, though he knew only the baptism of John.

Now, Apollo's was accurate in many things, but his teaching

was incomplete. It reached a certain point.

A lot of what he was saying was right, but it wasn't full.

And we're going to see here that a couple recognized the

incompleteness, the deficiency in his doctrine.

So it could be that John's ministry, the Baptist, right,

the First Baptist ever, John the Baptist, his teachings spread

across the world and even reach Alexandria, Egypt.

Or it could be that Apollo's, while in Israel, maybe during

the feast as he would make pilgrimage, heard John's

teaching and preaching and sat under it for that brief time and

then began to spread it elsewhere.

We're not entirely sure why he preached the baptism of John,

but we know what it is. The baptism of John was one that

prepared the people for the first coming of Jesus, to

prepare the people by cleansing themselves and seeking

forgiveness for the arrival of the Messiah.

But that baptism has has no bearing.

It has no need now in the new covenant because in the new

covenant, though there is an element of repentance and

turning to the Lord in our baptism, baptism in the name of

Jesus. It primarily emphasizes you

making a declaration of faith that I'm identifying with

Christ's death, burial, and resurrection a lot different

than John's baptism. Some even argue that Apollo's

this is just an indication of other limitations that he had in

his understanding of the full scope of Jesus teachings.

We're not sure, but what's being highlighted here is that he did

not know what he needed to know and yet he was still being used

to glorify God. Now, I want to be careful how I

say this because I don't want to give the impression that I'm

advocating for ill preparedness or carelessness in our personal

growth. Instead, I want to make the

point to encourage those who feel inadequate or even

frustrated with yourself. God uses us as we are maturing.

He doesn't recruit you once you become the master of your craft

or your calling. That doesn't mean that there are

no standards in God's Kingdom. It doesn't mean that there

aren't goals that we need to reach.

It simply means that you can rejoice in God's grace and enjoy

serving Him while you rest in His patience as He develops you.

And so your awareness of your weaknesses should never diminish

your zeal or commitment to the cause of Christ.

Be aware of them, acknowledge them, but all let it bring you

to the feet of Jesus. And be comforted by the

realization that this is just one of many examples where God

uses imperfect people, limited people, people who still need to

grow, to still touch people's lives for His glory.

We all qualify. Lastly, I want to add something

before we get to the main point. Apollo's teaches us that God

uses those who use their minds for His glory.

You know why I say that? Because most of the time when we

hear sermons or we have teachings or being discipled

genuine Christians who want to serve God.

Here 1st Corinthians 127 being quoted that God chose what the

foolish things in this world to confound the wise, that He chose

the weak things in this world to confound those who are strong.

And that is absolutely true. We should all rejoice in that,

but I think some Christians take it too far and that they think

that just because now they are spiritual and that they come

into Christ that they can turn their brains off and they feel

like there is no need for training and being educated and

growing in reasoning and logic. Listen, when you give your life

to Christ, you don't just surrender your heart, you

consecrate your mind. And if God has gifted you,

especially with a mind, the ability to retain and

communicate truth, use it for his glory.

Use it. And we should all seek to be

people who know how to communicate and know how to

think properly and articulate ourselves.

Apollo shows us that, yes, he uses the foolish things.

Yes, like the other disciples, he uses those who did not have

formal training, absolutely. But it doesn't mean that we

shouldn't seek it if God gives us opportunity for it.

Apollo shows us that your mind should be given over to the

glory of God, you're learning should be consecrated for the

cause of Christ. After saying all that, I want to

make the case that this man's inspiring story is not primarily

found in his gifting, his ministry, his abilities, or his

mind for that matter. In fact, I want to even argue

that this man's expansive ministry, how it's going to

enlarge, is not chiefly due to these reasons either.

There is one particular quality that Apollo's possessed that was

the main contributor to his success for the gospel of Jesus

Christ. You know what it is, and this is

the main point of the message, his teachable spirit.

I want to preach to you today about having a teachable spirit.

It is an undeniable characteristic of true disciples

of Jesus Christ. We didn't read these verses, so

let's come back to Acts 18 and verse 26.

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 the

IKEA, 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. So Apollo's remember at this

point he shows up on the scene in our reading of Acts in

Ephesus. Why is he in Ephesus?

Well, we get the impression that he was kind of a solo

missionary, a travelling evangelist.

And So what does he do? Well, he's competent in the

Scriptures. So he makes his way to the

synagogue. And who's there, to our surprise

in attendance, Priscilla and Aquila.

We should know this couple. They are very well known in the

Scriptures. They are commended throughout

the New Testament. They were dear friends of Paul.

They sacrifice much. Paul uses this language that

they risk their necks for me. So this wonderful couple knew

Paul very well. They actually at this point

we're travelling with Paul, but they were left in Ephesus while

Paul went on. And we have no doubt that they

learned much from their relationship with this mighty

man of God, Paul. And that's going to show here.

Why? Because as they are listening to

this wonderful order, Apollo's the guest speaker in the

synagogue that day, they realize that there needs to be some

development in his teaching. They pick up on it real quick.

And so once the sermon was over and the service was dismissed,

Priscilla Aquila got in line to greet the new preacher in town.

And they probably initially encouraged him at first.

But at some point, though we don't know how the transition

took place, they began to explain to him the way of God

more accurately. Now, let me share a little

secret about those who preach the word of God.

All right, a genuine preacher. We'll always pray and hope that

there will be a sincere and lasting response to what they

are about to speak, including the preacher now.

But I can tell you this with confidence that being corrected

for what you shared is not one of the responses that preachers

look for. Doesn't feel good, though

sometimes it is needed. And so I want you, whether

you're a preacher or not, put yourself in this man's shoes

that after doing or acting in any way publicly thinking that

you did so perfectly fine, someone points out to you that

you actually fell short. And the study that I want us to

consider is that this man handled the situation in such a

wonderful way that it would prove to be a pivotal moment in

his life in ministry. This man who was praised for

being exact in his delivery and data would be discipled by tent

makers. And though he didn't know it on

this day, the teachability of Apollo's would change this man's

life forever. What does it mean to have a

teachable spirit? Now, there are many definitions,

but let me make it as simple as possible.

It is a heart posture that is eager and willing to receive

instruction or correction. And there's a slight difference

between instruction and correction.

Instruction is to receive knowledge about something that

will build upon who you are or what you know.

That's instruction. Correction, however, is

receiving knowledge that will alter, that will change who you

are or what you know. Which one do you think is more

difficult to accept correction. There's some people who love

being instructed to learning. It's correction that has a

special edge to it, to the flesh.

And we see here that this man in a sense, was corrected.

And regardless of how it makes us feel.

Let me repeat it again. This inner disposition is a

characteristic of true disciples of Jesus Christ.

But knowing the definition is not enough.

This little snapshot of the life of Apollos has been preserved

for us to be a mirror so that we can look and see.

Do I walk in that reality myself?

Do I live in that reality? Do I have that conviction?

Is that eagerness true of me? And here are three basic

questions that I want to present to you that will help us assess

this reality in our lives. And following that, we will look

at two brief treasures that come with teachability.

Here's question number one. This is just really discipleship

time for us. This is real practical

Christianity. Some Sundays it's going to be so

theological that'll take you weeks to chew on, and other days

it'll be direct and practical. We need both.

Question number one, if I want to know if I have a teachable

spirit, how do I respond to correction?

Very simple question. And if you look again at verse

26, we read that Priscilla Aquila took him aside, took him

aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately.

So I know our focus is on Apollo's, but let me just make a

brief comment about this couple. Notice how they sought to

instruct and correct Apollo's. They didn't rebuke him publicly.

They didn't look at each other during the surveys and say we

have a new blog post, we have a new heretic in town.

They didn't seek to debate him. They didn't come with arrogance,

they didn't come with aggression.

We have every reason to believe that they came respectfully,

gently embracing him. And if you want to earn the

right to speak into anybody's life, let them first be

convinced that you love them. I'm sure that they saw the the

potential in Apollo's. They saw something wonderful and

obvious, gifting, and they thought what an instrument he

would be to the Church of Jesus Christ.

And so they came with that mindset, investing in this young

man so that he can flourish for the Kingdom of God.

Now we see here that some believe that even Priscilla and

Aquila invited Apollo's to their home.

That's not entirely clear, but what is obvious to us is that

Apollo's voluntarily followed them in order to hear what they

had to say. They didn't say that they put

Apollos in a headlock, did it? They took him aside.

This is a grown man, so he had to be willing to follow them and

hear what they had to say, whether it was on the side of

the sanctuary or at their home for dinner.

There's a proverb that speaks on this in Proverbs 1920.

We read, listen to advice and accept instruction that you may

gain wisdom in the future. You know, I noticed when I read

this first there's an equation found in it that you first must

be willing to listen, then accept before you can gain

wisdom. Do you know where some

Christians go wrong with this equation?

They completely missed the first step.

They don't want to listen. And there are different ways of

that manifest. One of the ways you know you're

not listening to instruction is that when it comes your way, not

only do you become defensive immediately, because oftentimes,

especially when we think we're doing something right, we tend

to perk up and say, wait, what's going on here?

You remain defensive and you stay in defensive mode and you

don't let up and you don't give in and you don't try to pause

and reflect and consider the other side.

You remain in that place. And sometimes the defensiveness

goes as far as what you're the one being corrected.

But I got some things to say about you.

Oh, you're pointing things out about me.

Well, let's, let's get ready to rumble.

What about this? And what about that?

That's not the issue at hand. You're the focus of the

conversation. But defensiveness has a way of

displaying something of our hearts.

And if you don't display it like that, an aggression, you might

do it passively. So here's what we tend to do

sometimes when we're being confronted either by a spouse or

an elder or a brother and sister in Christ.

We're silent, but we're not really listening.

We're tuning you out. There's something else playing

in our minds and we're just waiting for this conversation to

be over with. But there are even more clever

ways that we cannot be listening.

And you got to listen before you can accept and gain anything.

Some of us may have certain individuals that we have

selected to confined in, but if we're honest, these

accountability partners are selected because they never

really offer true instruction or correction.

We know that they will agree with everything that we have to

say. No, no, Apollo's here shows that

I'm willing to hear what you have to offer.

Do you want to know how somebody is walking in full maturity in

this area? They're even willing to listen

to what their enemies have to say about them.

Those that hate them, that persecute them, that are clearly

not like Priscilla Quilla, that want the best for you, that they

want to find things to make you feel discouraged or to

reconsider your value, your purpose, your ministry, whatever

the case may be. A wise person even in that will

tune and say, is there any kernel of truth in this

criticism that I can apply so that I become more righteous and

less blameworthy? How do I respond to correction?

A policy was willing to, it brings us to question #2 am I

willing to receive instruction slash correction from anyone?

So you have Apollo's and Priscilla Aquila.

They differ in obvious ways, right?

This man was a full time missionary who travelled to

preach and debate. What about Priscilla and Aquila?

Let me remind you in Acts 18 three that they were tent makers

by trade. In terms of ministry, they had

different platforms. And look, this isn't the main

point. I might do this a couple more

times, but I can't help myself because there's such an exciting

thought from this. Because we have a case here

where you have a couple who had a business that they were

running together and they proved to be more knowledgeable and

accurate in the ways of God than the traveling evangelist.

Now, if we, if we can all agree that for Apollo's to have this

kind of portfolio, it required hard work, diligence,

discipline, right? We, we can't debate that.

If that is true of Apollo's, then what should we say about

this couple who knew the way of God more accurately?

Does that make sense? Here's why I bring this up,

because Priscilla and Aquila silence any excuse on our part

for not knowing the word of God in a growing, more obvious and

flourishing way. We can't be weak in the Word and

we can't use that excuse of not being in full time ministry to

arrive at greater levels of understanding God's Word.

You have a couple who made tents during the day and were able to

instruct the preacher. And here's what's so

fascinating. I see here that the spiritual

material of this too is shown that they weren't even

mesmerized by Apollos's speaking.

They weren't caught up by any kind of frenzy.

They weren't gripped necessarily to the point where they lost

their discernment. You don't want to see here that

although Apollos was praised for these abilities, Priscilla and

Aquila, when they were sitting in the meeting, they were

focused on the content of the message.

Unfortunately, many people are not.

Unfortunately, many people are listening to people that they

should not be listening to because they're funny, because

they're compelling storytellers, because they're attractive,

because they have a nice sounding voice.

You know what I learned from Priscilla and Aquila?

They were focused on what was being said, not how it was being

said. They were discerning.

Why did he stop at the baptism of John, how we got to talk to

him about this? And I wondered when I was

looking at this last night, how did this couple arrive to this

point? How did they get to this point?

And you know what we're told in the very same chapter.

So go back to 18, chapter 18, verse one.

Here's our introduction to this couple.

But I want you to see another verse after we confirm where

they met Paul, Acts 18 one and three.

After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth.

And he found a Jew named Aquila and a native Pontius recently

come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had

commanded all the Jews to leave Rome and he went to see them.

And because he was of the same trade, he stayed with them and

worked for they were tent makers by trade.

So this was before Paul was able to be funded to go into full

time ministry here in Corinth. If you were at the Maranatha

conference, we talked about this very chapter.

So he met this couple who were persecuted and had to flee Italy

to come to this region. And Paul stay here for a certain

amount of time. And I want you to see what he

did with that time. In Acts 18, verse 11, he stayed

Acts 18:11

a year and six months teaching the word of God among them.

The among them don't exclusively include the Corinthians who were

born again under Paul's ministry.

It also includes who? Priscilla and Aquila.

So you know what? I can just imagine this, that as

this couple spent the whole week stitching and cutting and

putting together and potentially making sales.

At the end of that week, they would rush home, get cleaned up,

put on a different outfit because they were eager to sit

up Paul's feet to hear what he had to say.

Maybe more than once a week. So you had this husband and wife

that we're so hungry to grow in God that they took advantage of

the resources at their disposal, namely the apostle Paul, who is

able to bring the word of God to them.

And my prayer and looking at this is that every couple in

this church would share in that pursuit, would be able to

fellowship over a shared passion for God's Word.

And even if you are here and you're saying I have that but my

spouse doesn't, this still applies to you.

It applies to all of us. How?

Because Priscilla and Aquila did not live to become and remain

and be successful in tent making.

That was their work. That's how they paid the bills.

That's what they just had to do to be good citizens and honestly

good Christians. But down deep inside their heart

of hearts, what they longed for was the acquisition of spiritual

wealth. They had jobs, but their jobs

weren't their identity. Yes, they had responsibilities,

but oh, with whatever time they had left, they wanted to grow in

God's Word. And because of that eagerness,

this couple bless the church. They not only hosted a church,

but when Apollos came into town, they were able to recruit him

and they were able to see him grow because of what they knew

personally. I'm not in Acts, by the way.

I was in Acts a couple of weeks ago, but now I'm in Romans.

I think I just began First Corinthians, actually, But I

read something at the end of the book of Romans that taught me at

least one sign of a healthy church.

Now, if you were, if you were to ask someone or be asked rather,

what's the sign of a healthy church, what would you answer?

Well, let me give you 11 Mark. It's in Romans 15.

And look at verse 14 for a moment, because Paul commends

this church and Paul often righteously criticize the

churches that he wrote to. Only in a few epistles does he

really commend them at this level.

And I want you to see what he says to the Romans in Romans 15

Romans 15:14

verse 14. Paul says I am myself in Romans

1514. I myself am satisfied about you,

my brother, that you yourselves are full of goodness, filled

with all knowledge, and able to instruct one another.

I'm satisfied. Why am I satisfied with your

spiritual condition? Because I've learned that you're

able to teach and admonish one another.

So a sign of a healthy church is not that you have elders who

preach the word of God faithfully, as vital as that is,

but it's that the members of that church are able to expound,

instruct, dissect, apply, interpret the word of God to one

another. So that shows me that even

counseling is not purely from the leadership down.

It's mutual. And the source of our counsel is

the Bible instructing one another.

You have Paul telling Apollo's how to grow in the knowledge of

Jesus message. No, a couple who made tents

during the week. And that's something for us, I'm

sure. Let it be an inspiration.

But I have to come back to the main point.

The main point is Apollo's. Apollo's, though a teacher,

humbled himself to be taught by tent makers.

And a person who possesses a teachable spirit can confidently

say this I'm not only willing to learn from my pastors, but my

peers. I'm not only open to receiving

instruction by someone who's been in the faith for 30 years,

but somebody who might be younger in the faith than me.

I'm not just somebody who's willing to receive enrichment

from brothers in the church, but godly sisters as well, and vice

versa. Question number three.

Question number one was how do I respond to correction?

Question #2 we see here that we should ask, how do I receive or

am I willing to receive instruction, correction from

anyone? And lastly, how well do I work

with fellow Christians? That's a great indicator.

Let's come back to our main passage.

You'll learn here that Apollo's not only listened and accepted

the instruction from this couple, he developed a

relationship with them, and through them he was able to

develop a relationship with the brothers in Ephesus.

So look back at verse 27. And when he wished to cross to

IKEA, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples

to welcome him. When he arrived.

He greatly helped those who, through grace, had believed.

So after an undisclosed period of time, Apollos wished to go to

Corinth. So I feel like I'm done here and

I'd love to go to Corinth and, and preach about what I just

learned. And so the disciples, the

brethren who were there and learned about it said, that's

great, we encourage you to go, but you're going to need

something. And they, they wrote a

recommendation letter. Now, maybe you don't know this,

but this is, this is quite interesting.

Writing recommendation letters for people from one church who

are moving or traveling to another church was a common

practice of the early church. And the reason for that, it was

to safeguard the assembly, right?

You had, you had false teachers polling around, you had people

who would come into the local church and, and deceive the

naive and try to take advantage of the generosity of Christians.

And so these recommendation letters were, were highly

valuable and it became a practice.

And so before they sent a pause, they sent a letter to say, Hey,

this brother that we met, we vouch for him.

He's legitimate, He's a real believer.

He he's, he's sound and they would be able to welcome him.

You actually see an example of this in the Bible.

So I told you to go to Romans 15.

Go to Romans 16 where Paul writes a commendatory letter for

Phoebe. Notice what he says in verse

one. This gives you a little glimpse

of how these churches operated. He writes in verse one.

I commend to you our sister Phoebe, a servant of the church

at Concrete. You may welcome her in the Lord

in a way worthy of the Saints and help her in whatever she may

need from you, for she has been a patron of many and of myself

as well. So notice that even these

recommendation letters would be public.

In fact, I had a chance to have a conversation with Pastor Benna

about this a few days ago where he was kind of sharing about how

some of these churches back home in the Middle East operated and

some of these local assemblies, they would do just that.

If somebody moved into town, it was coming into another

assembly. They would come with a

recommendation letter and the leaders of the church would

stand up before the congregation and read it out loud.

So and so is with us and the church.

And so and so says that they are worthy believers and they are

genuine. They're faithful members.

I think that's wisdom. In fact, for those who have been

members here and you are applying to be members, you'll

notice something in our application that in it you'll

see that we asked what churches you've been a part of before and

if you're open for us to contact those churches, that's derived

from the wisdom of the early church here.

And so we see that this man received recommendation letters

and we all want to be in the place as members, as faithful

church members, that if God were to bring us elsewhere, everybody

in the church at your park can say you're going to be blessed

by so and so you're going to be blessed.

I doubt that Apollo's would have the same opportunities if he had

fallen into the condemnation of Proverbs 18.

Two, as one example, listen to these words.

A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in

expressing his opinion. What would happen to Apollo's if

approached by Priscilla and Aquila and he offended by their

correction? Hey, with all due respect, what

do you guys do for a living? Oh, you're tent makers.

I'm a scholar who is educated in Alexandria, Egypt.

Do you know that? You're saying, do people talk

like this? You'd be surprised.

I wonder if they would be able to confidently send him to court

and say this is a brother that that will bless you.

He works well with the church. He, he, he's willing to listen,

He's willing to receive. Which brings me to the final

portion of this message. I want you to consider 2 clear,

obvious rewards that came from this man's teachability.

Very simple to remember #1 it provided greater opportunities

in ministry and #2 it made His ministry more effective.

We talked about the opportunities He was able to go

to Corinth. But I want you to look at the

wording of verse 27 and verse 28.

It says here, when he arrived in the latter portion of 27, he

greatly helped those who through grace had believed and notices,

for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the

Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.

So when he came to Corinth, he really cleaned up house.

Nobody could stand against him, nobody can refute him, nobody

could debate him. He encouraged the believers and

he subdued those who would try to resist the message of Jesus

Christ. Now somebody had a surface level

understanding of the story and you were to quickly ask them

what was the recipe for success for Apollo's what?

What was the reason for his graduation and his

effectiveness? Someone might likely say his

ability wrong, his teach ability, because if it wasn't

for the teach ability, he would not have known the way of God.

More accurately, that was the linchpin, that was the means,

that was the reason. That was the channel for the

blessing of God to flow in and through Him.

Never forget, the greater your humility, the greater your

ministry. The greater your humility, the

greater your ministry. Oh, this man had a right spirit.

And it wasn't just recognized in the way that he accepted

correction when it came, but it's also known in how he

rejected fleshly praise. I said earlier how when Paul

goes to Corinth, he planted Apollos comes along, he waters.

And again, this man was so magnetic.

He was so compelling. He was so enjoyable that

factions began to develop in the church.

Now there was divisions in the local assembly.

You know what the divisions were?

I I like Pastor Paul more than anybody else.

And yet another group saying no, no, no, Pastor Peter is the guy.

And another group saying, are you guys kidding me?

Have you heard Apollo speak? Nobody can expound and exegete

the Old Testament like Apollo's. This grieves Paul, but I'm

persuaded that it also grieve the Apollos.

So Apollos is mentioned in the first part of First Corinthians,

but he's also brought up in the last part.

So if you go to 1st Corinthians 16, I want you to see what Paul

says. 1st Corinthians 1612 This is another verse that gives us

insight to how the early church functioned relationally, even

especially in the context of ministry.

Notice what Paul says. First Corinthians 1612.

Now concerning our brother Apollos, I strongly urge him to

visit you with the other brothers.

But it was not at all his will to come now.

He will come when he has opportunity.

Many believe that Apollos was so grieved by the divisions,

especially because his name was being used for those divisions,

that he didn't want to come into contact with this church in that

condition. He's I just, I need more time

and they need to figure that out before I see them face to face.

If that is true about Apollo's, what a man he was.

He didn't feed on it. He didn't find his identity in

that. He could care less.

In fact, it broke his heart. But more than that, look, Paul

really believed that if Apollo, if Apollos went to Corinth, he

could really benefit the church. He could really help them in

their spiritual growth. So you can just imagine what

that meeting was like. Paul talks to pauses.

Apollos, listen, they love you and you are obviously gifted by

the Lord. I think if you go, they can

really, you can really solve some of these problems.

And Paul says, I just don't feel led to go.

I just, I don't think I'm supposed to go at this time.

And Paul strongly urged him, try to convince him.

But you know what he didn't do? He didn't force him.

And we're talking about teachability, right?

How teachability is about willing and being eager to

accept instruction or correction.

Paulo shows here the balance. It doesn't mean to be a

teachable person that you don't have personal convictions or

legitimate objections. So let's clarify that, right?

Teachability doesn't mean that you just agree with everything.

No, no, you see a policy who says I have some concerns and he

is no less righteous in that. I, I can't go.

He is no less humble in that. So let's be balanced here in how

we understand this. Paul believed that he should go.

Apollo says I'm not going to go. I'm troubled by this.

And Paul honored that. So if anything, now you see the

humility of the apostle Paul. And that's how a church will

really be successful when everybody has that spirit that

we're willing to hear, but we're also willing to receive.

We're also willing to give, we're also willing to take.

And I want all of us in this place to strive for that because

my desire in prayer is that all of us would have a greater

ministry, greater opportunities, greater effectiveness.

Whether you are one like an Apollos who has devoted your

life to preach in the gospel, or you're an Aquila and Priscilla,

a couple that goes out into the world to make your money, your

savings, you have earthly responsibilities.

But oh, you love the Word of God and your purpose is beyond this

life. I want us to pray and ask God to

help all of us. He is willing to do that.

Lord, we're amazed at how through one man, you can speak

to so many. It's amazing how a few verses

can change the rest of our lives.

Lord, today as we've come eagerly to receive Your Word, we

pray that more than interesting insights that this would get

into the depths of who we are. Thank you, Lord, that you've

shown us how much you honor humility, how you make way for

those who are willing to receive.

So we asked Lord that today, on this Sunday, you would sharpen

us to reflect your Son the Lord Jesus Christ, to know when to

listen and accept and when to speak up and object.

Lord, help us as a church to be strengthened in this area.

Every ministry represented here that every member would be able

to reflect this man. Use us all and wherever we are

weak or need to grow, Lord bless us with friendships and

leadership that are loving enough to speak into our lives.

And so, Lord, we pray for the leadership that like Apollo's,

they would have ears to hear. And we pray for the members that

they also would walk in the ways of this wonderful couple.

Make us all mighty in the scriptures.

Make us all be able to instruct one another.

We want to be mature. We want to be in your perfect

will as your church. Lord, we thank you.

Your word is wonderful. We're amazed by it again and we

want to sing about it now. In Jesus name we pray.

Amen, Amen, Amen. Let's stand.

Let's give him praise for His Word.