Acts 19 Paul’s Third Missionary Journey
19 While Apollos was in Corinth, Paul traveled through the interior regions until he reached Ephesus, on the coast, where he found several believers. 2 “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?” he asked them.
“No,” they replied, “we haven’t even heard that there is a Holy Spirit.”
3 “Then what baptism did you experience?” he asked.
And they replied, “The baptism of John.”
4 Paul said, “John’s baptism called for repentance from sin. But John himself told the people to believe in the one who would come later, meaning Jesus.”
5 As soon as they heard this, they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. 6 Then when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came on them, and they spoke in other tongues and prophesied. 7 There were about twelve men in all.
Apollos, that brilliant scholar and teacher from Alexandria, is currently in Corinth, where Priscilla and Aquila are teaching him about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. Meanwhile, Paul has encountered some of Apollos’ students who have been taught about John’s baptism but know little of Jesus. What does Paul do? As the primo disciple to the Gentiles, Paul might haughtily inform these men that their instruction has been woefully inadequate. Paul might gently insult Apollos for having failed to teach these men about the baptism of the Holy Spirit. But Paul does none of these things. Paul knows that Apollos has done as much as he can, given his level of knowledge at the time. And these men have not been mis-instructed; they merely need more information. Without preamble, Paul goes on to supplement the gaps in the teaching these men have received, baptizing them in the name of Lord Jesus and laying hands on them so they receive the Holy Spirit.
I completed my general surgery training a long time ago in Charleston, West Virginia. West Virginia mountains do not tower as do the Rockies; however, roads run where the valleys allow them to and where people may be quite poor. Someone might live 30 miles from Charleston and yet require several hours to get there. A typical story would be, “Well, first I walk down the holler to the dirt road, then I walk down the dirt road to the hard road, then I catch a ride into town, and then I take the bus to Charleston.” The head of my surgical program, Dr. James P. Boland, taught us that under no circumstances should we undermine the authority of the family doctors in surrounding small towns, because we wouldn’t be out in one of those towns when people fell sick in the middle of the night while these other doctors would be there and could help. Dr. Boland would have agreed with the Apostle Paul.
The issue of women in ministry is a red-hot topic again because one large denomination has barred women from serving as pastors or deacons. Never mind that one of the greatest missionaries this denomination has ever produced was female, Lottie Moon, or that one of their major missions appeals is named after her.
This morning a friend posted a short video in which a pastor from that denomination is speaking, and this man makes the most sense of anybody I have heard speak on the topic. This man pointed out the fact that there were many people on both sides of the question who could quote Scripture, handling it accurately. Then this man “quit preachin’ and went to meddlin’.” This man pointed out that the main duty of Christians is to witness to people about love and salvation in Jesus Christ, not to argue about doctrinal issues. He continued, contending that if doctrinal issues were now more important than demonstrating the love of Jesus to a lost and dying world, Christians had lost their focus and were straining at gnats while swallowing camels. The speaker concluded that if you did not believe women should be ministers, then attend a church where the pastor was a man. If you believed women could be ministers, then attend a church that welcomed women into ministry. But either way, remember that the most important thing was to tell people about Jesus and graphically demonstrate the love of Jesus.
That famous British evangelist of the nineteenth century, C.H. Spurgeon, frequently emphasized that the name on the life boat was not nearly as important as delivering shipwrecked passengers from death. At one time, Spurgeon was so popular that British newspapers printed his sermons after he had delivered them. One man picked a crumpled newspaper from the gutter, read the sermon it contained, and accepted Jesus on the spot.
2 Corinthians 5:14-17 tells us, “14 Either way, Christ’s love controls us. Since we believe that Christ died for all, we also believe that we have all died to our old life. 15 He died for everyone so that those who receive his new life will no longer live for themselves. Instead, they will live for Christ, who died and was raised for them.
16 So we have stopped evaluating others from a human point of view. At one time we thought of Christ merely from a human point of view. How differently we know him now! 17 This means that anyone who belongs to Christ has become a new person. The old life is gone; a new life has begun!”
As a highly-qualified intellectual, Paul had a choice; he could have criticized Apollos for inadequate teaching. He could have lorded it over these new believers. But Paul did none of that because Christ’s love controlled him. (Some versions say “constrained,” indicating that the force of Christ’s love was unchangeable and unstoppable.)
It’s wise for each of us to examine ourselves and our motives. Are we sharing the good news of the Gospel because the love of Christ controls us? Or are we sharing something less in hopes of proving ourselves right on some minor point? May God help us to remain grounded in the love of Christ so that we refuse to strain at gnats while swallowing camels!
PRAYER: Father God, thank You for loving us and caring for us. Lord, help us to keep our eyes fixed on You, on Your love, and on Your Will. May we always serve as channels of Your love and grace. In the mighty and precious Name of King Jesus. Amen.
Burunche's Blog 
Leave a comment