MINISTER WITH WHAT YOU HAVE

By William R. Cunningham
Sunday November 9, 2003

INTRODUCTION

I remember about ten years ago how I had been studying the Bible diligently for about ten years prior to that. I remember studying all day long and preparing lessons to teach at Sunday school. However, I never thought that I was prepared enough to go outside of my childhood church to actively teach the Word of God that I had learned. I used to pray to God and ask if I was ready to teach. He would always tell me that I was in training. Then nothing.

I remember having prayed to God several times about teaching. Again I asked if I was ready. He used to tell me that I was in training, but this time I heard nothing. I don't remember how long this continued but it was more than a couple of years. I arranged to meet with the pastor of the church that I was attending because she was head of the Bible School and I figured surely she would know. Her name is Pastor June Austin of Victory Christian Fellowship. She basically told me to go ahead and teach. She encouraged me to simply teach what I had learned.

I decided that I would teach after meeting with Pastor June Austin. Then all of a sudden I was asked to teach a lunchtime Bible study class on my job. The Bible study class was held each day from 12:00 to 1:00. It was a great experience and God did use me to teach people the word of God, and even how to study the Bible.

However, as time passed I realized that I still learned more things about the Christian Faith and the Bible. I even fine-tuned some of my earlier studies and earlier beliefs. In short, I continued to develop as I continued to study the Bible and as I started interacting with others outside of my church, even those in different religions.

Another situation arose when people were referring to me as "pastor." I never considered myself as a pastor and I surely had no intentions of starting a church. However, there was this calling on my life that I just could not escape. I started asking pastors about this and I will never forget what I was told by a pastor from Michigan, if I remember correctly. Basically he said for me to do what God wired me to do. It's not about being a pastor or starting a church. It's about obeying God and allowing Him to guide you. The point here was not to seek to be a pastor. Just seek to do what God wanted me to do and if that meant that I would be a pastor of a church, then so be it.

I learned a valuable lesson from those two experiences and from listening to people as they step out in their calling. The best we can do is simply to obey God. It is OK to share what you have learned to others. Just teach or share what you know. As a matter of fact, that's all we can do anyway at any stage of development. Even now I can only share with you what I have learned through study and revelation. Perhaps next year my understanding will be more mature, but for know I have what I have.

This lesson will deal with not being afraid or apprehensive about doing what God has called you to do. Some of us want to wait until we have graduated from seminary or obtained a certain level of knowledge about a certain topic. However, you will always have the opportunity to learn more things as you grow older. Why should that stop you with what God has told you know.

We are going to examine the incident with Apollos in Acts 18 and how he was so effective even though his knowledge was not complete. God corrected him in due time and God will do the same thing for you as well.

APOLLOS

Let's look at Acts 18:24-28

Acts 18:24-28 (NKJV) 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.

Let's examine these scriptures for information first and then we will move to the principle that it reveals.

Jew from Alexandria: First we see that Apollos was a Jew and that he was from Alexandria. Alexandria was the capital of Egypt during the Roman and Greek times. It was founded and named after Alexander the Great. Alexandria did have a rather large Jewish population. It is very probable that Mary and Joseph traveled to Alexandria when they fled from Herod (Matthew chapter 2). Apollos traveled across the Mediterranean Sea and arrived in Ephesus.

Eloquent man: We also find that Apollos was an eloquent man. The word eloquent is translated from the Greek word, "logios" and it means "fluent" or an orator. This means that Apollos was a good speaker.

Mighty in the Scriptures: The Bible goes on to say that Apollos was mighty in the Scriptures. The word "mighty" here comes from the Greek word, "dunatos" and it means "powerful" or "capable." So Apollos was powerful and capable in the Scriptures. This suggests that he knew the scriptures very well. I should point out here that the scriptures in question is the Old Testament scriptures since the New Testament hadn't even been written at this time.

Came to Ephesus: Now Apollos came to Ephesus. Ephesus was a major coastal city in Asia Minor about 600 miles northwest of Jerusalem. Here are some facts about Ephesus.

1. It was prominent in economics since it was a major trade port city
2. It was the largest city in the Asia province of Rome (about 300,000 people)
3. Ephesus was culturally well developed. It boasted a 25,000-seat theatre, wide roads leading to the Mediterranean Sea, gymnasiums, baths, and impressive buildings. It was a major developed city.
4. The Temple of Artemis (or Diana) was built in Ephesus. This temple was one of the Seven Wonders of the World.
5. Christianity probably first appeared in Ephesus in a systematic way by the efforts of Aquila and Priscilla in about 50 AD.

Instructed in the Way of the Lord: Apollos had been taught about the Christian faith. However, as we will see shortly, his knowledge was not complete.

Fervent in spirit: Apollos was fervent in spirit. The word fervent was translated from the Greek word zeo, which literally means to be very hot. Figuratively it means to be extremely zealous. So Apollos was a very zealous man.

Spoke and Taught Accurately: Apollos spoke and talked accurately what he had learned about the Christian faith even though he only knew of the baptism of John the Baptist.

Spoke boldly in the Synagogue: Apollos even began to speak boldly about Christianity in the center of Jewish religion, the synagogue. Remember that he was a gifted orator so speaking was not a problem for him.

AQUILA AND PRISCILLA

Aquila and Priscilla was a husband and wife dynamic duo of the Christian faith. Aquila was a Jewish Christian that lived in Corinth, which is about 250 miles west of Ephesus across the Mediterranean Sea (The Great Sea). Priscilla was the wife of Aquila and she was a zealous advocate of the Christian faith along with Aquila. See Romans 16:3; 1 Corinthians 16:19). She was also called Prisca (2 Timothy 4:19)

Aquila and Priscilla invited Apollos to their home when they heard him speak and found that he was not complete in his knowledge about the Christian faith. The Bible doesn't say what indicated to them that Apollos was not complete in his knowledge. However, it probably had something to do with the baptism, since Apollos only knew of John's Baptism, which was a baptism of repentance. Notice that Aquila and Priscilla did not rebuke or correct Apollos openly but respectfully instructed him in private at their home. They taught Apollos the way of God more adequately (more exactly or perfectly).

Apollos Goes to Greece: Verse 27 says that Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, which is another name for Greece less Thessaly in Roman times. It was a Roman province and Corinth was it's capital. The brothers (fellow Christians, brethren) wrote letters to the disciples in Achaia to welcome Apollos there.

It is recorded that Apollos was a great help to the believers there. He vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate about the Christian Faith, noting his new more accurate knowledge. He showed the Jews from the Scriptures (OT Scriptures) how Jesus was the Christ (Messiah).

GOD'S PROVIDENCE

Consider the following scripture.

Psalm 37:23 (NKJV) The steps of a good man are ordered by the Lord, And He delights in his way.

The word "good man" comes from a Hebrew word that means, valiant man or warrior, general it does refer to simply a person. Now what we have to understand is that God was working in Apollos and through Apollos so that the Gospel would be preached. Consider that Apollos simply taught and spoke of what he knew, even though it wasn't complete. Let's consider the sequence of events in this story.

1. God's initial preparation: Apollos was intrinsically an orator. He had the disposition of one who speaks. One might call this his first tool to do the work of ministry long before he knew anything about Christianity. God prepared Apollos for his ministry from birth. The same applies to us. We all have intrinsic abilities that were placed there by God to do a particular task. We all have a predisposition for something and that can be put to great use for the work of ministry.
   
   What has God placed in you? Are you a speaker, organizer, helper, medical person, security minded, or financially astute? Consider that your gift can be used and probably was place in you to be used for the work of ministry in the Body of Christ.
   
   Now don't think of ministry as merely an activity associated with a church or religious institution. Ministry is ultimately between people and not between people and organizations. People minister to other people, which is actually God ministering to us all. So you might have a gift that you cannot directly associate with a particular church or the like. However, that gift can just as well be used in the Body of Christ to fulfill the purpose that God has for it. All of our gifts can serve a purpose for ministry in one way or another. So consider your gift.
2. Importance of Knowledge: He also was mighty with the Scriptures. It is evident that Apollos was well versed with the Scriptures and was capable in regards to sharing and explaining them. However, keep in mind that it was the Old Testament Scriptures that he was familiar with.
   
   This is important because there are some that hold that knowledge is unimportant in the Body of Christ and that all we need is the spirit to teach us. Though this is true, we cannot negate what God has systematically created for his people. If the written word, which is our cannon, was not important then why did he have it written and preserved for so long? Yes spiritual revelation is important, but knowledge is also important. We could all develop a different theology and ultimately a different Christianity without knowledge of the written revelation that God has prepared for us.
   
   The intellect and the spirit do not conflict. It is the Holy Spirit that illuminates the Word of God to us so that we would receive the spirit of that Word. Jesus said in John 6:63 that His words are Spirit and they are life. So the written word, which we call the Bible, is both conducive for the intellect and spiritual enlightenment of the Christian faith.
   
   With that said, we find that it is important to also be mighty in the Scriptures so that we would always be ready to give an answer for the hope that we have. We should always be capable of explaining our beliefs to others. The only way that this could happen is if we study the Scriptures and become mighty in them with the guidance of the Holy Spirit.
3. Preparatory Attribute: Apollos was a zealous person (like Paul the Apostle). This was also very conducive to his ministerial work, though not all ministers have to be zealous like Apollos or Paul. God has wired us differently. Apollos' zeal probably was one reason that he traveled to Ephesus and then to Greece (Achaia). He wanted to confront people with the Gospel and preach the Gospel to as many people as he could.
   
   What attribute has God prepared you with? Are you a zealous person? Perhaps you are more mild mannered. You could even be quietly zealous, that is, a zealous person that is not boisterous but systematically determined to get the job done in a more moderate manner. Keep in mind that God has prepared you for the ministry that you are to have even when you had no idea about ministry or even Christianity.
4. Do What You Know: Apollos spoke and taught accurately (what he knew at that time) and he spoke boldly in the synagogue. He took what he knew of the Scriptures and began to share it with others. Was he ready for ministry at that time because after all, he only knew the baptism of John the Baptist? Evidently he was prepared to share what he knew, even though he had a shortcoming. We see that God corrected Apollos through Aquila and Priscilla to bring his knowledge up to par.
   
   Are you doing something with what God has taught you or are you waiting for a degree or something of the sort. If God has prepared you then act on what you know. Of course it is important that what you know is indeed accurate, though it might not be complete. You have the written word to fall back on and to test your thoughts or understanding. You might not know everything about Theology, Apologetics, All of the books of the Bible, and the like, but you might know very well the things that you do know. Therefore you can share those things and begin fulfilling the ministry in you.
5. Correction: We found that Apollos was corrected in his understanding of the Christian Faith. Aquila and Priscilla privately instructed Apollos more adequately or completely the things pertaining to the Christian Faith. This brought Apollos up to a more complete understanding of the Gospel and the things pertaining to Jesus Christ.
   
   One thing that we have to realize is that God will correct us if we remain true to Him and open to correction. We don't have to be afraid of not being adequate because God will correct us and guide us as we share the truths that we know.
6. Progress with more completeness: Press forward with your new knowledge and revelation from the Lord. Apollos first crossed the Mediterranean Sea from Alexandria to go to Ephesus. One can conjecture that Apollos might have been enticed by the opportunity to share his Christian faith in a manner that would be affective with educated people, as those in Ephesus. This could also have been the same impetus that enticed him to go to Achaia, another place of learned men.
   
   We can see the progression of Apollos' ministry as God moved him from one level to another. Apollos became very popular to such an extent that people were following him (see 1 Corinthians 3:4-6). Though we can't say that Apollos was concerned about his incompleteness, though he might not have been aware of it. In any case, we shouldn't feel that we have to ascend to a certain level of knowledge or certification to do God's will. God has already been training you and preparing your for His work.
   
   Take the necessary steps to increase your knowledge as God directs you but do not feel as though a degree, certification, or association is a requirement for the work of ministry. Get knowledge. Get understanding. Most of all get revelation from God and direction so that you can effectively fulfill your ministry goals.

CONCLUSION

With this day and age of certifications, we forget that ultimately it is more than mere scholastic achievements that prepares us for the tasks that we are to complete. God has prepared us long before we entered a particular educational institution or seminary. God has been preparing you for your ministry before you were born. The wheels were in motion with you parents, grandparents, and beyond to establish the environment that you would need for the path you were to walk.

In addition to God's preparation, there is also the need to study whatever is necessary to perform the duties that we are to complete. I used to wish that there was a pill that I could take to learn to play the piano a certain way. However, instead it took long hours of practice to progress in a manner that would lead me to my goal of playing. The same is true with everything. As humans, we have to acquire knowledge for the things that we are to do and therefore know. Jesus taught his disciples and they in turn taught others. We are also required to learn what Jesus taught and beyond so that we would be intellectually equipped for our ministry.

It is important that we do what God has told us to do and that we don't feel as though we have to acquire man-made requirements for a particular ministry. Yes we should be accountable and we should venture on our own behalf else we risk developing strange doctrine. However, we should feel totally confident in the calling that God has placed on our lives to do whatever God has called us to do. Besides. The only thing that we can do at any time is to minister with what we have, which ultimately comes from God. Amen.