Apollos: A Disciple in the Making

“In 1739 arriv’d among us from England the Rev. Mr. Whitefield, who had made himself remarkable there as an itinerant Preacher…It was wonderful to see the Change soon made in the Manners [behavior] of our Inhabitants; from being thoughtless or indifferent about Religion, it seem’d as if all the World were growing Religious; so that one could not walk thro’ the Town in an Evening without Hearing Psalms sung in different Families of every Street.”

Ben Franklin on George Whitefield in
“Benjamin Franklin’s Autobiography: An Authoritative Text”

¹² What I mean is that each one of you says, “I follow Paul,” or “I follow Apollos,” or “I follow Cephas,” or “I follow Christ.” (1 Corinthians 1:12, ESV)

⁵ What then is Apollos? What is Paul? Servants through whom you believed, as the Lord assigned to each. ⁶ I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth. (1 Corinthians 3:5–6, ESV)

²⁴ Now a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was an eloquent man, competent in the Scriptures. (Acts 18:24, ESV) 

1. Apollos reminds us that the gospel is for .

¹⁴ And this gospel of the kingdom will be proclaimed throughout the whole world as a testimony to all nations, and then the end will come.  (Matthew 24:14, ESV, emphasis added)

2. Apollos reminds us that we need the gospel.

²³ for all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God, ²⁴ and are justified by his grace as a gift, through the redemption that is in Christ Jesus, (Romans 3:23–24, ESV)

²⁵ 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 knew only the baptism of John. 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. (Acts 18:25-26, ESV) 

3. Apollos reminds us that we all need to in our understanding and application of the gospel.

⁶ Therefore, as you received Christ Jesus the Lord, so walk in him, ⁷ rooted and built up in him and established in the faith, just as you were taught, abounding in thanksgiving.  (Colossians 2:6–7, ESV) 

My consistent pattern of meeting regularly with someone, or in a group, to grow as a follower of Christ is:

²⁷ And when he wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed, ²⁸ for he powerfully refuted the Jews in public, showing by the Scriptures that the Christ was Jesus.  (Acts 18:27–28, ESV)

4. Apollos reminds us to have a mindset of  as we other followers of Christ.

¹¹ Therefore encourage one another and build one another up, just as you are doing.  (1 Thessalonians 5:11, ESV)

“Only where hands are not too good for deeds of love and mercy in everyday helpfulness can the mouth joyfully and convincingly proclaim the message of God’s love and mercy.”

Dietrich Bonhoeffer, Life Together

I will encourage:

5. Apollos reminds us of the of Jesus as we read Scripture and proclaim the gospel.

 ³⁸ And Peter said to them, “Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. ³⁹ For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. (Acts 2:38–39, ESV, emphasis added)

I will share the gospel with: