A Letter of Recommendation
When you're looking for a job, a letter of recommendation from the right person can mean everything. Your interview may have been OK. Your resume might be unimpressive. But a letter of recommendation from someone who knows you and has seen you in action under pressure assures your new potential new employer that you've got the goods.
That's the case with Apollos here in v27-28. Priscilla and Aquila have just graciously corrected him concerning his powerful but incomplete teaching about Jesus (Acts 18:24-26). Armed with the complete Gospel, the man from Alexandria is excited about telling others about Christ.
We pick up the narrative with Apollos wanting "to cross to Achaia" (v27). This is the area on the Peloponnesian peninsula of Athens, Corinth and Cenchreae. Paul had just departed from the region after spending a year and a half there (Acts 18:11, 18). While in Corinth, the apostle initially planted the Corinthian church from both the Jewish congregation as well as Gentiles (Acts 18:7-8).
We don't know exactly why Apollos was so hot to go to Achaia, but it could be his new friends Priscilla and Aquila. They had just come from Corinth and ministered side-by-side with Paul in the city (Acts 18:2-3). The couple landed in Ephesus when the apostle headed home to Antioch (Acts 18:19). They would have told amazing stories about what God had done in Corinth as well as their many friends there.
The large cities of Corinth and Ephesus sat some 275 miles apart on either side of the Aegean Sea. Maritime trade and travel between the two cities would have been regular and easy. It's probably important to note the Paul would write his letters to Corinth from Ephesus. Despite resting on two different continents, communication and commerce between was relatively painless.
When Apollos shared this desire to sail to Achaia, "the brothers encouraged him" (v27). The verb here is protrepomai. This is the only time it appears in the NT. It's a compound word literally meaning to turn (trepo) towards (pro). The term certainly has the meaning of urging forward or persuading to a particular task. But it was also used to describe someone turning to fight with total focus and complete abandon. In other words, when Apollos mentioned his desire to go to Achaia, his Ephesian friends stoked the fire.
This is a great example of how God uses others in our lives to speak into our lives. What a stay Apollos had in Ephesus! Priscilla and Aquila graciously corrected his teaching about Jesus. And when he mentioned that he wanted to sail to Achaia and tell others about Christ, his brothers and sisters encouraged him to do so. While sometimes such counsel can be wrong, God certainly uses other believers to guide us in our walk with Him. Proverbs tells us, "Without counsel plans fail, but with many advisors they succeed" (Prov 15:22). That's exactly what is happening to Apollos in Ephesus.
The Ephesian believers wanted to make sure that their Corinthian brothers and sisters knew Apollos was the real deal so they wrote him a letter of recommendation. They were attesting that they could trust this man and what he would teach. His Gospel was correct. He was a good guy. We see Paul writing on behalf of several folks throughout his letters (Rom 16:1-2; 1Cor 16:10; 2Cor 3:1-2; Col 4:10). Apollos' papers were in order for his trip to Achaia.
Once in Europe, we see that "he greatly helped those who through grace believed" (v27). This is a confirmation of what Paul wrote to the Corinthians. "I planted, Apollos watered, but God gave the growth" (1Cor 3:6). Paul had originally planted the church and now the Alexandrian continued to nurture and cultivate what God was doing in the Corinthians. Sadly, Apollos had such a powerful impact on these believers that they eventually broke off into various factions, some following Paul, others following Apollos, some claiming allegiance to Peter and even others arrogantly citing to follow only Jesus (1Cor 1:12). But this seems to be no fault of Apollos.
We also read of God's amazing grace in these Corinthians coming to faith in Jesus. They had come to believe "through grace" (v27). They had not worked their way to a place of faith. The Holy Spirit opened their hearts to salvation. This is Paul's point to the Ephesians. "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God" (Eph 2:8).
We can't hear enough of His amazing grace. Justice is getting the punishment deserved. Mercy is being spared that deserved punishment. Grace is being given something we in no way deserve. As sinners, we all deserve punishment and death. God not only spares us from these, but He welcomes us into His family as fully adopted children!
This was mind-blowing message of God's grace was exactly what Apollos shared with the believers in Achaia. And a letter of recommendation from the Ephesians opened the door.
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