Aquila and Priscilla

Discipling Side by SideActs 18:1-28; 19:1-7

Background Acts 18:1-2

52 A.D. - Roman Emperor Claudius – Edict expelling all Jews from the city of Rome– Suetonius - Persecuting their Christian

neighbors and causing considerable disturbance in the city

– All Jews were uprooted from their homes and banished from Rome, the innocent along with the guilty

Aquila– A Jew who had migrated to Rome from the

province of Pontus on the Black Sea– Left for the city of Corinth with his faithful

wife, Priscilla

They Made Their Living Together Acts 18:1-8

“For by trade they were tent-makers” – v. 3 – Not every husband and wife can work together like this

• It takes a mature relationship to work closely under the kind of pressure a job sometimes generates

– They were not only mates; they must have been good friends and companions

• Be willing to give to each other more than they tried to take• Be able to accept suggestions as readily as they offered them• Enjoy being together and working together

– They were inseparable

They Made Their Living Together Acts 18:1-8

God’s Timing - vv. 1-3– The Apostle Paul entered Corinth looking for

work to sustain him as he ministered – Every disciple making relationship begins with

a hello– That day a deep and lasting and productive

relationship was born

The Complete Marriage vv. 4-8

v. 8 – “Many others in Corinth also became believers and were baptized”– Aquila and Priscilla lived together, worked

together, and suffered exile together, came to know and love Jesus Christ together

– It made their marriage complete– True oneness can only be found in Christ

They Grew in the Word Together Acts 18:9-11; 18-26

Their Discipler taught them together - vv. 9-11

– From the day Aquila and Priscilla met the Savior, they grew in the Word together

– They must have gone with Paul to the synagogue each Sabbath day as he reasoned with the Jews and Greeks

– Eighteen months of Bible study under the greatest Bible teacher in the early church

– Sharing the Word together strengthened their love for each other and their spirit of togetherness

They Learned God’s Word Thoroughly Acts 18:18-26

Paul left Corinth for Ephesus and they accompanied him

Paul left them in Ephesus when he left for his home church in Antioch– Apollos was not improperly instructed, but he

was inadequately instructed– “But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they

took him aside and explained to him the way of God more accurately” - Acts 18:26

They Learned God’s Word Thoroughly Acts 18:18-26

It is very difficult to decide which one to admire the most– Aquila and Priscilla modeled servanthood and

disciple‑making skills– Apollos modeled a receptive spirit and a

delightful submission Later, Apollos “desired to cross into

Achaia” – Acts 18:27‑28 – Acts 17:3

They Served the Lord Together 1 Corinthians 16:19

Their home was a church– Paul left Antioch – 3rd missionary

journey - Acts 26:31• Returned to Ephesus

• Remained teaching the Word of God for approximately three years

– 1 Corinthians 16:19• “The churches of Asia greet you. Aquila and

Prisca greet you heartily in the Lord, with the church that is in their house”

Their Home Was a Church When Paul left Ephesus for Greece – God directed Aquila & Priscilla back to

Rome– Romans 16:3-5 • “Greet Priscilla and Aquila. They have been

co-workers in my ministry for Christ Jesus. In fact, they risked their lives for me. I am not the only one who is thankful to them; so are all the Gentile churches. Please give my greetings to the church that meets in their home.”

Their Home Was a Church We have church buildings but there is no

substitute for the home as a center for evangelism– Evangelistic dinners– Coffee cup evangelism

• Establishing close friendships with neighbors and sharing Christ with them over the kitchen table

– Home Bible studies – Opening homes to youth groups

They Were Remembered 2 Timothy 4:19

16 years since Paul first met them at Corinth– Paul was in a Roman prison for the second time– Death at the hands of the emperor Nero was

imminent– Writing the last paragraph of his long and

fruitful life– “Greet Prisca and Aquila, and the household of

Onesiphorus” Just a brief and simple greeting, but they

were on Paul’s heart in his last hours

They Were Great Disciple-Makers Together

Disciple‑Making is Inevitable – Man is a social creature

• He desires relationships

• He wants fellowship

• He influences each person around him

– Everybody with any influence at all makes disciples

• Parents make disciples of their children

• Children make disciples of their parents

• Friends make disciples of their friends

• If you ever learn anything from anyone else, that person has discipled you

Disciple‑Making is Inevitable

A disciple is “one who learns”– Apollos

• “This man was instructed in the way of the Lord; and being fervent in the spirit, he spoke and taught accurately the things of the Lord, knowing only the baptism of John.”

– “You can no more tell what you don’t know than you can come back from where you ain’t been!”

• Apollos had not “been there and done that” • But he powerfully told what he did know ‑ and he

made disciples!

Disciple‑Making is Inevitable

When you disciple another person, you give a part of yourself to that person

– 2 Timothy 3:10‑11– Luke 6:40 - “When the process is completed,

the disciple will be like his teacher”– The outcome is inevitable, the product is

predictable• Is my life worth copying?

– Those you disciple are molded by • Your Bible study• Your prayer life• Your worship

The Problem Of Disciple‑MakingActs 19:1-7

All you can give is what you have experienced and practiced

– All Apollos had was the piece of John the Baptist that had been planted in him ‑ and it wasn’t enough!

– He was an incomplete disciple ‑ and he reproduced incomplete disciples

Ten generations from you– How extensive would God’s work be? – How strategic would God’s work be? – How relational would God’s work be? – How obedient would those people be?

God’s Provision in Disciple‑Making God has made provision to “fill in the blank

spots”– The John the Baptist movement wasn’t intentional,

and it wasn’t heretical– It was just an incomplete understanding, but it still

went on generation after generation God sovereignly appoints His Aquilas and

Priscillas – At strategic times and places in our lives to help us

build the disciples God has given to us – How many people has God used to disciple you?

The Product of Disciple‑Making Is Predictable

Certain causes produce certain effects• John the Baptist directly or indirectly discipled

Apollos• Apollos discipled the Ephesian disciples• Paul had discipled Aquila and Priscilla• Aquila and Priscilla discipled Apollos• God mightily used Apollos in Corinth to make and

build disciples there

Apollos emerged complete in Christ Jesus– And both Ephesus and Corinth were impacted

mightily for Christ – The Gospel went unto the uttermost parts of

the earth til the end of time!

One of God’s Greatest Privileges

Getting to serve the Lord together with your spouse

– A personal blessing– A church blessing– A family blessing

God wants couples – To minister as a team– To mature as a team– To disciple as a team