of Apollo. So Acts chapter 18 and we'll be looking at verses 24 through 28 and refer to some other passages as well. Acts 18 and verse 24 and a certain Jew named Apollos born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the scriptures came to Ephesus. 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. 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. 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." he mightily convinced the Jews, and that publicly, showing by the Scriptures that Jesus was Christ." So, Apollos, who is this individual that we know of as Apollos? Well, we first of all know that he was a Jew. He is identified in Acts 18 and verse 24 as a certain Jew. But where was he from? He was from The area that we know of as Egypt, Alexandria was the specific city that he was from. So we would drop down on our map south of the Mediterranean Sea, and we see there Alexandria in what we know of as Egypt. And it's right there on the coast, a very important city. There was a large population of Jews that had settled there. And though it was not as highly populated as the areas there north of the Mediterranean Sea, nevertheless, there were some Jews, a good number of Jews, who had settled there in Alexandria, and that is where Apollos was from. Born in Alexandria, and he is identified as an eloquent man. So he had good speaking ability. He had been blessed, he had been gifted with, ability to speak. And we know how important it is to be able to speak in our culture today. There is so much that is on video and of course with all the different arenas and events and everything from churches to political speeches. We know how much our culture emphasizes speaking ability. Well here's a man by the name of Apollos who was an eloquent man. He had an ability with his speaking that stood out. Now, as a former school principal, I always made it a requirement at our school that every student, in order to graduate from our school, they had to take at least one semester of speech. And I know that the state of Indiana dropped a speech requirement many years ago, but I refused to drop that as a requirement at our school because I knew how important speech class is. And I took speech in high school, and then I took two semesters of it my freshman year, and then I took two more semesters of pulpit speech my junior year. And obviously as a preacher, as a pastor, someone who's called to talk a lot and speak obviously from the word of God, I have learned through the years, and I'm not, I don't consider myself an eloquent speaker at all, I don't consider myself charismatic speaker, but I have learned through the years the importance of being able to speak, to articulate, to be able to speak publicly, and I was taught in pulpit speech class by both of my professors to not get in the way of the word of God, to be able to preach in such a way that you don't become a distraction to the word of God. So our pulpit speech teachers, and then Dr. Burke in Principles, Oral Principles of Interpretation, or something like that, and then my freshman speech teacher, and then even my high school speech teacher, they emphasized things like, don't be constantly saying um, you know, like, um, you know, you know, And those kinds of filler words and filler phrases and don't be afraid of a pause, all those things. And then in pulpit speech, we had to learn vocabulary words. I thought that was only for English class, but we were forced to memorize vocabulary words because our pulpit speech teacher wanted us to be able to speak in a way that we didn't just use the same old words and phrases over and over and over. but be able to vary our words and to be able to speak in such a way that we spoke intelligently and to do so in such a way that honored the word of God and that we did not become a distraction to the word of God. We were taught things like don't wear flashy ties. Don't wear flashy suits. Don't let your wardrobe be a distraction. On and on and on. I'm so thankful for that kind of training. Apollos, we don't know where he got his formal training, if he had formal training. Assuming he did, he probably had natural ability, but I'm assuming he was educated in the ability to speak. Now, as our evangelist reminded us a few weeks ago, There can be a disadvantage to someone who speaks well, but says nothing, or speaks well and says lies, speaks lies. And we know the dangers of individuals who have very persuasive, very charismatic, very eloquent speaking abilities, but they speak lies. They tell nothing but half-truths and lies, and they are deceivers. And we know in our culture how people will follow individuals who are very charismatic, very eloquent, but they're just liars. Well, Apollos was not that way. He was a preacher of the truth. He preached the truth and he did so in an eloquent way. It is one of the character traits or one of the ways in which he is referred to in Scripture as an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures. He is described as a man who was a mighty man of the Word, a man mighty in the Scriptures. What a commendation. What a way to be referred to to be known as someone who was mighty in the word of God. Oh, that we would have that kind of testimony. And then he was a passionate man. He was fervent in the spirit. Verse 25. He was a man who was passionate for the truth. He was passionate for preaching and the teaching of the Word of God for the proclamation and the presentation and the dissemination of the gospel and he did so by the power of the Holy Spirit. But we'll see here with Apollos that there was something else that was interesting about him. So as we go through, and maybe, and I forgot to remind us of the outline in the prayer list, in the prayer bulletin on the one half sheet, there is an outline of sorts if you want to follow along, and maybe fill in the blanks, we look at his ministry. We look at his, we just looked at his background, now we look at some of the details of his ministry. He's only mentioned 10 times in the scripture But several of those are mentioned in the context of the divisions in the church at Corinth. So let's look at his ministry for a moment. We see in verse 24 that he was there at Ephesus. So he had a ministry in Ephesus, but notice as we go down to verse 27 that he passed over into Achaia. So this is probably where his ministry began at Corinth. So Paul had been to Corinth and Priscilla and Aquila were there at Corinth. Paul had gone on to minister further at Ephesus and Priscilla and Aquila were left at Corinth and they wanted someone to come and to minister to them. They needed a preacher. They needed a pastor. Apollos had such a reputation, verse 27, that he was disposed to pass into Achaia and the brethren wrote exhorting the disciples to receive him. So he had been at Ephesus, verse 24, so apparently there were letters of reference by the people there at Ephesus to the people there in Achaia, probably Corinth, and they're writing about Apollos and he has such a testimony that they write letters of recommendation, letters of reference. You ever had to write a letter of recommendation, a letter of reference? I've had to do many and there are occasionally those individuals who they ask for a letter of recommendation and you're finding yourself trying to figure out what to say that would be nice. You ever had one of those? And you're like, they asked me for a letter of recommendation? Let's see here. They have nice hair. You're trying to figure out something nice. They were a brat in school. Can I just be honest with you? I've had some of these where the students, they gave me nothing but trouble. And then they want me to write them a letter of recommendation because I'm the principal of the school. And so I have to mention something in the letter about they have good speaking ability. In other words, they talk a lot in class. Or something along that line. I'm trying to think of a nice way of saying that they have a big mouth, or they don't know when to be quiet, or whatever. You know how it is. But that wasn't the way with Apollos. With Apollos, the disciples were happy to write, here's the church at Corinth, at Achaia. That region there, and they're looking for a path. They need a preacher. And they hear from the disciples at Ephesus. These letters come of recommendations saying, here's a man who will help your ministry. Here's a man who will be a blessing to you. That's the kind of testimony we should have. That's the kind of reputation we should have, that we have other people who know us. And I know only God knows our hearts. But there is something about a good name that is more to be desired than great riches. There is a measure of our testimony in our reputation that is important. At the same time, yes, our first and foremost testimony ought to be before the Lord. We're not to just live as men pleasers. But it is important that we have a testimony, that we have a reputation that is such that we show forth the praises of the Lord, we have the grace of God evident in our lives, so that people would write a letter of recommendation and they would say, this person loves God, will be a good worker, will be a faithful person, will be someone who is going to be a blessing to you, to your family, to your church, that kind of testimony, that kind of reputation. We want that for our children. We want that for our grandchildren. We want that kind of testimony, hopefully for our lives, that one day we'll stand before the Lord and hear, well done, thou good and faithful servant. Apollos had that kind of reputation. But there was something about Apollos' ministry. It says in verse 25 this man was instructed in the way of the Lord and being fervent the Spirit he spake and taught diligently the things of the Lord But notice at the end of verse 25. He knew only the baptism of John. This is interesting Something about this man's ministry where he wasn't fully educated, fully informed, something was missing. He had a vibrant ministry. It says that he taught, he spake diligently the things of the Lord. So he had a knowledge, he had an understanding of the Old Testament. of the Messiah, of Jesus Christ, we go down to verse 28, showing by the scriptures that Jesus was Christ. Now, I realize that's after Priscilla and Aquila speak to him, but this man knew the Lord. I believe he would be considered in the category of a Old Testament saint, a redeemed person from the Old Testament. He knew the Messiah, he knew the prophecies of the Messiah, he taught diligently the things of the Lord, but he was still not fully versed, educated, informed regarding Jesus Christ and his death, burial, and resurrection, and the meaning of those truths. So when it says he only knew the baptism of John, Commentators have various opinions about what that meant. I believe that Apollos was a saved man in the Old Testament sense of that word. He was a redeemed individual, but he had an Old Testament understanding. He knew the preaching of John the Baptist. He had probably been baptized in the sense of John's baptism, having only known the baptism of John. And what was the baptism of John the Baptist? It was a baptism unto repentance. Remember, he told the religious leaders, don't come to me and want to be baptized, show forth fruit, meet for repentance first. John's baptism was one that followed conversion, followed one's faith and profession of faith in Christ. He wanted to see evidence of one's salvation, and then he would baptize. But what was missing in Apollos's understanding, he knew, obviously, who Christ was, who Jesus was, who did John the Baptist preach? He preached Jesus. We know from John 3, John the Baptist was saying, he must increase, I must decrease. John the Baptist was saying, behold the Lamb of God who taketh away the sin of the world. So I believe that Apollos knew the Messiah, knew Christ, but I'm not sure he fully understood the meaning of Christ's death, prayer, and resurrection to its fullest extent or understanding. One commentator even said it this way, he did not understand the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Without getting too nuanced here in our understanding of what Apollo's, what his understanding was. I believe he understood repentance and faith. I believe he understood that Christ was the Messiah. But I can't help as I'm reading through, as I'm studying, I can't help but think that it was this aspect of the baptism of the Holy Spirit that Apollos did not fully understand. The baptism of the Holy Spirit is not some epileptic fit that people get that supposedly comes by the laying on of someone's hands or being hit in the head and being slain in the spirit. I'm not talking about that kind of false idea of the baptism of the Holy Spirit. In the book of Acts, there were transition times where there was the gift of tongues. That was the external evidence of the internal placing of a believer into Christ as a saved individual. After the book of Acts, after that transition time, there was no need for the sign gift of tongues. The sign gift of tongues has ceased. It has gone away. It is no longer necessary. It was a sign gift during the time of the transition of the church from the apostles in the church age, in the early days, in the book of Acts, and we see in Acts 2, and the Jews, and being assigned to the unbelieving Jews, we see with Cornelius, and we see with another group that received the Holy Spirit, and there was the gift of tongues. By the time we get to 1 Corinthians 14, Paul is highly regulating the gift of tongues, and saying that it needs to be done this way, with proper gift of interpretation. So all that being said, I believe that the gift of tongues has ceased, but what I believe Apollos was not fully understanding was that the Holy Spirit now indwells every saved individual. in every individual upon receiving Christ as their Savior. They are placed by the Holy Spirit into Christ. This is Romans 6. This is 1 Corinthians 12 and verse 13, Galatians 3.27, Colossians 2.12. All which speak of The placing of a believer into Christ, immersed in Christ by the Holy Spirit. So then Paul writes about being in Christ. I believe Apollos' understanding was, or misunderstanding or lack of full understanding had to do with this aspect of the Holy Spirit indwelling every individual. and the baptism of the Holy Spirit of the individual into Christ. But how did he get this fuller understanding? Priscilla and Aquila. What do they do in verse 26? And when Priscilla and Aquila had heard, they took him unto them and expounded unto him the way of God more perfectly. I'm so thankful for the Priscilla's and Aquila's. I'm so thankful for the Priscilla's and Aquila's in my life. I'm thankful for the Priscilla and Aquilas in our church and in our other ministries and that we have had through the years and right here at Berean. I'm thankful for people who very privately, they took him aside. Verse 26, it doesn't say that they went up into the church and called out Apollos and said, you rookie preacher, don't you understand? They didn't do that. They called him unto them. Maybe they took him to McDonald's. I'm just joking. They took him to a meal, maybe brought him over to their house. And they saw here was a young man gifted in the ministry, called of God, who knew the Old Testament, who knew Christ, but he was not completely understanding some things. And he just needed a little bit of straightening out. And they did so very humbly, very kindly, very carefully. They encouraged him in the ministry. They helped fix his thinking. I can only imagine what that conversation might have been like. Hey, Apollos, we know that God has called you. We are thankful for your ministry. But have you thought about the Messiah in this way, that the Messiah, Jesus Christ, now indwells every believer? Here's some examples as we have ministered with the Apostle Paul. Have you heard of the gift of tongues? That is the sign of the indwelling of the Holy Spirit. Now every believer upon salvation receives the Holy Spirit. That's the baptism of Jesus Christ, the Holy Spirit baptizing each individual into Jesus Christ. Every believer now has the Holy Spirit. as his comforter, as his paraclete. You, Apollos, are preaching by the power of God, but you need to preach this way from now on. And very gently, very kindly, very compassionately, very humbly, they helped Apollos. And what did he do? He was used of God, went across the sea there to Achaia and to Corinth, and God used him in a mighty way. He was a gifted preacher, and he was an apologist. He mightily convinced the Jews. He went over, and he was in the synagogues, no doubt, and he was among the Jews, and he continued to preach Christ as the Messiah, and he convinced publicly, showing by the scriptures, that Jesus was Christ. Here is a man, literally, when we see their mightily convinced, he vigorously refuted the Jews and their wrong thinking concerning Christ. And he publicly showed them from the scriptures that Jesus is the anointed one, the Messiah, that the Old Testament prophesied of. So we know that in 1 Corinthians, if we'll turn there from Acts 18 to 1 Corinthians chapter number one, that Apollos, used of the Lord there at Corinth, in the region of Achaia, we know that there were some who became overly, excessively loyal to Apollos, to a fault. Verse number 12, 1 Corinthians 1. Now this I say, that every one of you say it, I am of Paul, and I of Apollos, and I of Cephas, and I of Christ. Isn't this just like human nature sometimes? Different people, God uses different men, different people, and what do we sometimes do in our human nature? I think the Corinthian church had a bad case of celebrity, however you wanna say it, celebrity-tism. It's infected American culture. It just has. We think that everybody has to have a celebrity status. I mean, I see it in my, circles of preachers, of pastors. It just seems like now, especially with social media, that there are some preachers, some pastors, that they get caught up in being a celebrity pastor. They've gotta be a social media phenom. And if they aren't, then they don't have an effective ministry. Again, I'm not saying that it's wrong to have social media. I just, I can't keep up, I cannot possibly compete with some of these social media national pastors. I can't do it. Woe is me if I sit there and I think that I am a worthless servant of God because I don't have a million followers on my social media account and have videos made of me preaching every Sunday. I just, I can't get caught up in that. But believe me, I'll be honest with you, it's a temptation. I get on social media and I see pastors who are younger than me and they have social media followers, they have accounts, they have polished videos, and I ain't got nothing like that. And I have to catch myself. I get into the envy mode, I get into the jealous mode, and I'm not Mr. National Pastor. Well, God hasn't called me to be a national pastor. God has called me to pastor Berean Baptist Church. This is the flock of God that God has called me to that I know and I love and I want to pastor this church. I'm not called to a national circuit to pastor a million people around the world through social media. I just feel like sometimes in our social media celebrity crazed world, I know pastors who are not in the ministry today because they wanted to have a national reputation and they lost their local church because they were too busy preaching halfway around the world half the year. And I just don't want to be like that. I don't want to be a pastor who is so busy trying to make a name and a reputation out there that I lose the flock of God that God's called me to. But here is the Corinthian church looking for a celebrity, looking for somebody, oh, I'm better than you because I got saved under the ministry of Apollos. Well, I'm better than you because I got saved under the ministry of Paul. Well, better than you, I got saved under the ministry of the apostle Peter. And then there's the real holier than thous, right? Fooey on all of you, I'm simply a follower of Christ. Now, again, I'm not saying that, I mean, obviously all of us should be followers of Jesus Christ, and I'm not sure of what the attitude and the mentality of all those groups was, but I can just imagine, right? These groups, they're all competing, and they're saying who's better than who because of who they got saved under, or who their favorite minister was, or what their ministry, how they were discipled, or whatever. And it became a petty jealousy envy. Not that they were all followers of Christ humbly and submissively like they should. They were divvying up into groups as to who their favorite pastor, minister, preacher, whoever was. And Paul called them out and he called them carnal. Now there's nothing in scripture that says Apollos promoted that in any way. But we can see Apollos as an eloquent man, used of the Lord. If the Corinthian church was his carnal, As we can imagine, they were picking and choosing who their favorite pastor, favorite preacher was. And it became an envy, jealousy, divisive, carnal thing in the church. And may that not be the case for any of us, but it does speak to the influence, the effectiveness of Apollos' ministry. I don't think he was a prideful man. Nothing in scripture indicates that he promoted this kind of division and this kind of carnality. I think just the opposite. But it just goes to show you where people can be in their carnality in this celebrity-type culture. We have to guard ourselves against it. So, whoops, I went too far. In the few minutes that we have here as we close, what are some lessons, some practical lessons that we can apply? Well, not all of us have the eloquent speaking ability of an Apollos. the education or whatever kind of background that Apollos had that gave him this kind of speaking ability. Obviously, some of it was natural talent, but we have to remember that God wants to use all of us. Whether we have five talents, two talents, three talents, or one talent, God wants us to surrender our abilities, surrender ourselves as a living sacrifice, to be used of him, to be humble servants of the Lord, and not to exalt ourselves or lift ourselves up in pride. And no matter what ability we have, whether it's an ability that everybody can see or an ability that very few see. whether it's, again, a little thing or a big thing. God wants us to be faithful in the little things as well as the big things. And many times, he never gives us big responsibilities, because we're not faithful in the little responsibilities. God wants us to give ourselves to him, to surrender everything, all of our abilities, and all that we have to him. And I know Apollos was referred to as being one mighty in the scriptures, but shouldn't we all? Should we all be mighty in the scriptures? Wouldn't that be good for all of us to have that kind of title, that kind of reputation? And then I love the fact that he had a fervency for the Lord. He was fervent in the spirit, and that's the way we should be. Fervent in spirit, serving the Lord, Romans 12 and verse 11. Oh, that we would have a passion for the Lord. We have passions for lots of things. I know I have passions for lots of things, but I have to check myself. Is my passion for the Lord greater? Do I love the Lord my God with all my heart, soul, mind, and strength? And do I have that kind of fervency in my spirit for the Lord as Romans 12, 11 teaches and as Apollos exemplified? And then I can't help but think of Priscilla and Aquila once again. There are times where biblical confrontation and counsel is necessary and it can make a big difference in people's lives. just taking someone, pulling them off to the side, not embarrassing them, but saying, hey, have you ever thought of this? I'm thankful, again, for people in my life who come up to me as I was trying to find my way in the ministry and preaching in various ways, and even to this day, and I'm thankful for our church family, very kindly, very considerably sometimes says, hey, have you thought about this, or have you thought about this, or did you think about this? But all through the years, I'm thankful for people who've helped me in the ministry. and even helped correct me when I said something wrong or I overlooked a passage or something. But I'm thankful for the Priscilla's and the Aquila's. And sometimes God uses us in that way to encourage and to help. And maybe it's a confrontation, maybe it's just a counsel, but it can make a real difference in people's lives. That's Apollos. I hope that this has been a help and encouragement. Thank you for being here tonight. Let's close in a word of prayer. Lord, we come to you again. We thank you for Apollos. Thank you for these Bible characters. and the lessons that we can learn from their lives. Lord, may we have a passion for thee, and Lord, may we be mighty in the scriptures and be used of you as we surrender ourselves to you. In Jesus' name we pray, amen. Enjoy some time of fellowship. Thank you for being here. Hope you have a great rest of the week. Look forward to seeing you on Sunday.