Acts, Chapter 18

Please, in your Bible, read this chapter.

Verses 1, 2 “After this, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla, because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. Paul went to see them”.

For many ages Jews had rejected Gentiles. Now, during this time of transition, there the rolls went into reverse. The Gentiles were throwing out the Jews. It was the beginning of the rejection and persecution of Jews throughout history. But . . . God! He will never forget His covenants with their forefathers.

Paul went to see them

Verse s 3, 4, 5 “And because he was a tentmaker as they were, he stayed and worked with them. Every Sabbath he reasoned in the synagogue, trying to persuade Jews and Greeks. When Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia, Paul devoted himself exclusively to preaching, testifying to the Jews that Jesus was the Christ”.

The Jews at Corinth also must hear and learn that Jews at Jerusalem had crucified Jesus of Nazareth, the son of Mary, Who ‘was the Christ’. On their Sabbath-days those Jews could be found in their synagogues That is why Paul went there and found them..

Verse 6: “But when the Jews opposed Paul and became abusive, he shook out his clothes in protest and said to them, ‘Your blood be on your own heads! I am clear of my responsibility. From now on I will go to the Gentiles”.

Throughout the ages and in many places the Jews have suffered, terrible agony has been their lot. All that will come to its climax, when in the Great Tribulation Israel will pass under the rod of the righteous, Most Holy God. All their sufferings, by the hands of man, in the ages past, will be pale, in contrast with that pain still to come by the hand of God (Matthew 24).

Verses 7, 8: “Then Paul left the synagogue and went next door to the house of Titius Justus, a worshipper of God. Crispus, the synagogue ruler, and his entire household believed in the Lord, and many of the Corinthians who heard him believed and were baptized”.

Opposition, abuse, sneering, wilful rejection, Christians know all about that, but . . . GOD! He will never be stopped from carrying out His plans and purposes!

Verses 9, 10, 11: “One night the Lord spoke to Paul in a vision: ‘Do not be afraid; keep on speaking; do not be silent. For I am with you, and no one is going to attack and harm you, because I have many people in this city. So Paul stayed for a year and a half, teaching them the Word “.

Today also, people may have visions. Then they must be jolly sure their vision is truly the speaking of the Lord. Powerful evil spirits also can give visions. For Paul it was not a mistake. In spite of all enemy opposition, for a year and a half, he kept on speaking, teaching the Word of God. In fact it was not Paul; it was God doing the speaking.

Verses 12, 13: “While Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews made an united attack on Paul and brought him into court. ‘This man’ they charged, ‘is persuading the people to worship God in ways contrary to the law”.

They could not say which law, whose law, Paul was contravening. Gallio knew it was not a Roman law.

Verses 14, 15: “Just as Paul was about to speak, Gallio said to the Jews: “If you Jews were making a complaint about some misdemeanour or serious crime, it would be reasonable for me to listen to you. But since it involves questions about words and names and your own law – settle the matter yourselves. I will not be a judge of such things.’

Gallio did not hear the words that Paul heard in the vision. God used Gallio to confirm it to Paul: ’Do not be afraid, I AM WITH YOU’! In the synagogue, in the market-place, in the court-room, ‘I am with you’

Verses 16, 17: “So he had them ejected from the court. Then they all turned on Sosthenes the synagogue ruler and beat him in front of the court. But Gallio showed no concern whatever”.

Gallio showed no concern. And God? Did He show concern for Sosthenes? How many times did His children ask ‘Father God, why don’t you help me? Why do You not do what I am asking for?’ Why? Why not? Here at least, is part of the answer. Amongst many other things the children of God need to learn and know is ‘the peace of God, which transcends all understanding’, and to experience what that peace will do (Philippians 4:4 – 7).

Verses 18, 19: “Paul stayed on in Corinth for some time. Then he left the brothers and sailed for Syria accompanied by Priscilla and Acquila. Before he sailed he had his hair cut off at Cencrea because of a vow he had taken. They arrived at Ephesus where Paul left Priscilla and Acquila. He himself went into the synagogue and reasoned with the Jews.

Now the Jews in Ephesus must learn that Jesus crucified is Jesus the Christ, the Son of God. No doubt it was this subject about which Paul ‘reasoned with the Jews’. But in every step on his journey, it was God Who did show the way. He had a ministry in mind for Priscilla and Acquila and Paul must move on.

Verses 20, 21: “When they asked him to spend more time with them, he declined. But, as he left, he promised ‘I will come back if it is God’s will’. Then he set sail from Ephesus”.

Verse s 22, 23: “When he landed at Caesarea he went up and greeted the church and then went down to Antioch.. After spending some time in Antioch, Paul set out from there and traveled from place to place throughout the region of Galatia and Phrygia, strengthening all the disciples”.

Traveling from place to place, strengthening all the disciples; Who was building the Church? Who is building the church today? Is the world changing? Yes, it is, but not for better, the world is changing into worse. From those days to these, to the glory of God and His Son, the Church is growing on its way to glory. The world is ever more evil, on its way to God’s judgment. Let us not think the Church can change the one or the other.

Verse 24, 25: “Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures. He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor, and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John”.

Why did he come to Ephesus? Was there, for him, not enough preaching and teaching to do in Alexandria? Was this learned man anxious to meet another learned man, like Paul? But when he arrived, Paul had already left Ephesus.

In Ephesus Apollos was not slow in coming forward, he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately. Yet, this learned man, in all his thorough knowledge of the Scriptures, did not yet know about baptism in the Name of Jesus. And his learned brother Paul was not there to share about that. But . . . God ! He knew about all that and has more wisdom and knowledge than Paul and Apollos together. He beforehand made His arrangements

He, Apollos “began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately”.

Priscilla and Aquila. They had been sensitive to God’s leading in their lives. As well, they were obedient. If they did have any questions, here was the

answer. God had the couple in Ephesus to be His instruments in the life and ministry of Apollos. “They explained to him the way of God more adequately”.

After more than sixty years of reading my Bible I am so grateful to the God of the Bible, for the Christians who explain to me ‘the way of God more adequately’.

Verses 27, 28: “When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. On arriving he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ”.

When Apollos refuted the Jews, he did not have a Bible. Not one of the New Testament gospels or epistles. The Old Testament was the only Scriptures he could use. He could not refute the Jews by trying to tell them what Isaiah thought about Hosea or what Daniel thought about the Book of Jeremiah. He could refute the Jews by taking the Scriptures literally. For him, line by line the Scriptures literally told him what God did say through the mind and lips of His servants, who wrote the scrolls. If Apollos had departed from that truth, he would not have been able to stand in those debates. The truth about Jesus of Nazareth, the Christ of their Scriptures, remained unacceptable to the majority of the Jews.