Acts 18:25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.
Apollos was a man who had studied the scriptures and understood that the way of the religious leaders was not proper. Apollos […]

Acts 18:3 And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers.
Paul was in a period of waiting of his life. Paul understood that he had been sent out by the church as a team with Silas. Silas was still working with Timothy in […]

Proverbs 9:10 The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom: and the knowledge of the holy is understanding.
You can spend years in school learning but it will not necessarily increase your understanding in the ways of the Lord. You obtain knowledge of the ways of the Lord by taking the time to hear […]

Act 18:27 And when he was disposed to pass into Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him: who, when he was come, helped them much which had believed through grace:
Apollos was a man who was given great talents by God. Apollos while not very knowledgeable in all the ways of God, was […]

Acts 18:24 And a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man, and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus.
Paul had been asked to stay in Ephesus and continue to preach the gospel. Paul however felt that he was supposed to go to Jerusalem and keep the feast. Paul saw a field ripe […]

Acts 18:3 And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers.
Paul left Athens and went to minister in Corinth. Silas and Timothy were still in Berea ministering to the people there. Because he did not have the accountability and help of Silas and […]

Acts 18:28 For he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ.

Apollos was ready to move on from Ephesus to continue to preach the gospel to the Jews. The disciples in Ephesus wrote references for the disciples in Achaia so that they understood that Apollos has already proven himself faithful. Apollos may have had a great gift from God in that he was an eloquent speaker who was bold in proclaiming the truth. However, because he was new at preaching the gospel, he did not have a reputation that would cause the Christians in other communities to open up their doors to him.

Acts 18:25 This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.

The believers in Ephesus had requested that Paul stay in their community and continue to preach. However, because Paul felt led of the Lord to return to Jerusalem, Paul did not stay. While Paul was not the answer to prayer that the believers in Ephesus were looking for, God sent to the city Apollos, a Jew. Apollos was an eloquent man who was mighty in the scriptures. Apollos was able to expound the scriptures to the believers while Aquila and Priscilla were able to expound unto him the way of God more perfectly.

Acts 18:3 And because he was of the same craft, he abode with them, and wrought: for by their occupation they were tentmakers.

Paul left Athens and came to Corinth. He was still waiting for Silas and Timothy to arrive from Macedonia. While he waited, Paul stayed with Aquila and Priscilla and worked with them as a tentmaker. Paul was called to be a great missionary yet he was willing to do manual labor. Paul�s calling to be a missionary did not cause him to become proud and refuse to do manual labor. Instead, Paul was willing to humble himself to earn wages while he waited for the Silas and Timothy to come.

I Timothy 1:2 Unto Timothy, my own son in the faith: Grace, mercy, and peace, from God our Father and Jesus Christ our Lord.

Timothy was not Paul�s biological son but Paul treated him as a son. Paul treated Timothy as a son because through Paul�s ministry, he led Timothy to the Lord. Paul did not simply lead Timothy to the Lord and then go on his way, but instead, Paul invested time and energy into the life of Timothy, disciplining him to enable Timothy to draw closer to God.

As Timothy drew closer to the Lord, his faith grew and Timothy was able to minister for God apart from Paul. Paul had properly trained Timothy in the faith so that when Timothy matured, he did not depart from the faith. Paul led many to the Lord but he did not treat them all the same way he treated Timothy. Paul saw something special in Timothy and he thus cultivated a father son relationship with him so as to be in the position to work with Timothy.

Just as a parent is responsible for the development and maturing of their child, so to did Paul take spiritual responsibility for the development of Timothy. Paul had no obligation other then the prompting of the Holy Spirit to spiritually adopt Timothy, but once Paul did take Timothy under his wings, Paul had an obligation to work with Timothy to spiritually train him so that he would be prepared to serve the Lord long after he departed from the presence of Paul.

A good parent understands that their children do not live with them the rest of their life. They understand that there is going to come a day when they will release their child into the world to fulfill their own purpose in life. A parent�s duty is to train up that child so that when the child is released, the child will have the capabilities of fulfilling their purpose. Paul did not take Timothy as a spiritual son to keep as a helper for his ministry for the rest of his life. Paul did receive some benefit in having Timothy as a fellow laborer but Paul�s purpose was to train Timothy to eventually release HIM.

Paul was always looking for individuals that he could disciple so that they could continue the work. Aquila and Priscilla are another good example of Paul disciplining someone and preparing them for future ministry. Paul spent a period of time mending tents with Aquila and Priscilla in Corinth. We know from scripture that Aquila and Priscilla continued to serve the Lord for many years and that they not only hosted the Church in their house but that they also had an active part in disciplining other believers.

The body of Christ has many parts. Some are commissioned by God to bring many to salvation; others are responsible for taking the newborn Christians and working with them to assist them in their spiritual walk so that they can become productive members of the body of Christ.

You have a duty to God to fulfill HIS purpose for your life. However, while you are fulfilling your purpose in life, part of your responsibility to God is to help develop the next spiritual generation. You need to be looking for opportunities to work with others so that the church will grow and your freedom to worship God will not be lost.

Ephesians 4:11-13 And he gave some, apostles; and some, prophets; and some, evangelists; and some, pastors and teachers; For the perfecting of the saints, for the work of the ministry, for the edifying of the body of Christ: Till we all come in the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, unto a perfect man, unto the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ:

Christ desires that the body of Christ be united together in one faith. God has entrusted each one of us with different talents and different abilities. These various callings are designed to work together so that the Christians are perfected in Christ. God has given different callings for different individuals to specialize in so that the body of Christ is edified. God does not call everyone to be an apostle. While both an apostle and a pastor may preach, they really did have different ministries and different obligations to both God and the body.

Acts 18:26 And he began to speak boldly in the synagogue: whom when Aquila and Priscilla had heard, they took him unto them, and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly.

After Paul left Ephesus Apollos arrived. Apollos was an eloquent man who was mighty in scriptures. Scripture tells us he was instructed in the way of the Lord and he was diligent in teaching the things of the Lord. However, Apollos doctrine was shallow in that he only knew the doctrine of John.

Aquila and Priscilla saw this diligent man who had a heart for the things of the Lord and as iron sharpenth iron, they worked with him to assist him in understanding the scriptures more fully. Aquila and Priscilla were not quick to go preach in front of all the people in the synagogue, but they were willing to disciple individuals. They gave instruction to a wise man, and he became wiser: they taught a just man, and he increased in learning.

Acts 18:6 And when they opposed themselves, and blasphemed, he shook his raiment, and said unto them, Your blood be upon your own heads; I am clean: from henceforth I will go unto the Gentiles.

Paul came to the city of Corinth and while he waited for Timothy and Silas to rejoin him, he was faithful to serve God every week at the synagogue. During the rest of the week, he worked with Aquila and Priscilla on tents. Once Timothy and Silas arrived, Paul was pressed by the Spirit to testify that Jesus was Christ. The Jews rejected this message.

Paul heard from God that he was supposed to preach that Jesus was Christ, yet this message was not accepted. Paul did not doubt that God had told him to preach that message, but instead, he took the rejection that he received while pursuing the will of God as a sign from God that he was not called to preach to the Jews any more. Paul did not allow this huge rejection to distract him from pursuing the will of God.