Leviticus 15-17; Acts 18

Acts 18:24-28

Now a certain Jew named Apollos, born at Alexandria, an eloquent man and mighty in the Scriptures, came to Ephesus. This man had been instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, though he knew only the baptism of John. So he began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Aquila and Priscilla heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately. And when he desired to cross to Achaia, the brethren wrote, exhorting the disciples to receive him; and when he arrived, he greatly helped those who had believed through grace; for he vigorously refuted the Jews publicly, showing from the Scriptures that Jesus is the Christ.

What prompted Apollos to come to Ephesus? Did God speak to him? I wonder if three is an untold story behind this. Had he heard that Paul had been there and he wanted to meet him? By the time Apollos got to Ephesus, Paul was already gone. But Aquila and Priscilla had been left there, perhaps for the very purpose of being able to further explain "the way of God" to Apollos. He had already been "accurately" teaching the things of God. And being "mighty in the scriptures" and eloquent, he was boldly proclaiming what he knew. A&P heard him in the synagogue and explained even further the things of God. Apollos became a very valuable instrument for spreading the gospel of Jesus, especially among the Jews because his knowledge allowed him to use the Old Testament scriptures to clearly show that Jesus is the Christ. (Though I don't usually do much commentary reading with my daily journal, I did find it interesting today in looking this up, that some have thought Apollos may have been the writer of the book of Hebrews.)

What a high compliment it would be to be called, "mighty in the Scriptures" like Apollos. He knew what he knew. And not only did he have the knowledge, he was bold and accurate in teaching it to others. "Mighty" is a bit beyond my own understanding and knowledge. But am I fervent and bold in proclaiming what I do know and possess? Even Apollos needed to learn more. But that didn't keep him from teaching that which he did know. I've got to beat back the voice inside that tells me since I don't have all the answers I shouldn't ever offer any.