Acts 18

1 – 3

Later, Paul left Athens and went to Corinth. Here he met a Jew named Aquila. Aquila was born in the country of Pontus. But Aquila and his wife, Priscilla, had recently moved to Corinth from Italy. They left Italy because Claudius commanded that all Jews must leave Rome. Paul went to visit Aquila and Priscilla. They were tentmakers, just as he was. He stayed with them and worked with them.

Roman history books say that Claudius sent the Jews out of Rome because of “Chrestus.” Some Bible teachers say that Claudius thought Christians were part of the Jewish religion.

Aquila and Priscilla became faithful helpers in Ephesus and Rome. We see that Paul had a job making tents. He never asked the churches for money for himself. 2 Corinthians 11:9, 1 Thessalonians 2:9

4 – 6

Every Sabbath day he talked with the Jews and Greeks in the synagogue. Paul tried to teach these people to believe in Jesus.
Silas and Timothy came from Macedonia and joined Paul in Corinth. After this, Paul used all his time telling people the Gospel.

He showed the Jews that Jesus is the Christ. But they would not accept Paul’s teaching and said some evil things. So he shook off the dust from his clothes. He said to them, “If you are not saved, it will be your own fault! I have done all I can do! After this, I will go to non-Jewish people!”

Remember that Paul was under the covering of the Jewish-Christian leaders in Jerusalem. He always gave the Jews the first chance to hear the Gospel.

If I warn the wicked, saying, “You are under the penalty of death,” but you fail to deliver the warning, they will die in their sins.. Ezekiel 3:18

Silas and Timothy brought a gift from the Philippian church. Paul thanked them later for this because it helped him work in the ministry and not have to make tents. Philippians 4:17.

7 – 8

Paul left the synagogue and moved into the home of Titius Justus. It was next to the synagogue. This man worshiped the true God.

Crispus was the leader of that synagogue. He and all the people living in his house believed in the Lord. Many others in Corinth also listened to Paul. They too believed and were baptized.

It is possible that Paul wrote the book of Romans while staying at the house of Titius. Paul probably wrote the letters to the Thessalonians here also because Timothy would have brought a letter from them asking Paul to answer some questions. Crispus lost his job because of following Christ.

9 - 11

During the night, Paul had a vision. The Lord said to him, “Don’t be afraid! Continue talking to people and don’t be quiet! I am with you. No one will hurt you because many of My people are in this city.” Paul stayed there for a year and a half, teaching God’s Word to the people.

Jesus told Paul that nothing would hurt him, but He did not say there would be no attacks. Hearing God’s Words speak to you is the cure for fear. We see that in a place where there is more evil God gives more grace. Romans 5:20

12 – 16

Gallio became the governor of the country of Southern Greece. At that time, some of the Jews came together against Paul and took him to the court. They said to Gallio, “This man is teaching people to worship God in a way that is against our law!”
Paul was about to say something, but Gallio spoke to the Jews. Gallio said, “I would listen to you Jews if you were complaining about a crime or some wrong. But the things you are saying are only questions about words and names—arguments about your own law. So you must solve this problem yourselves. I do not want to be a judge of these things!” Then Gallio made them leave the court.

Roman history books say that Gallio was a very friendly person. His brother was a Roman leader. Later Nero killed many of the Roman leaders including Gallio. Because of Gallio the Corinthian church was never attacked again.

17. Then they all grabbed Sosthenes. Sosthenes was now the leader of the synagogue. They beat him there before the court. But this did not bother Gallio.

Some Bible teachers think that Sosthenes later became a Christian. This reminds us that God can turn our enemies into friends if we continue to pray for them. 1 Corinthians 1:1

18 – 21

Paul stayed with the believers for many more days. Then he left and sailed for Syria. Priscilla and Aquila went with him. At Cenchrea, Paul cut off his hair. This showed that he had made a promise to God. Then they went to Ephesus, where Paul left Priscilla and Aquila. While Paul was there, he went into the synagogue and talked with the Jews. When they asked him to stay with them longer, he refused. He left them, but he said, “I will come back to you again if God wants me to.” And so he sailed away from Ephesus.

Remember that the Holy Spirit had told Paul not to go to Ephesus more than a year before this (Acts 16:7). He left his team members there and took some time to ask the Lord what he should do. It is a good idea to get alone with the Lord and wait before you make a big decision. Paul wanted to build a strong foundation in Ephesus and wait for God to give him directions.

22 – 23

Paul landed at Caesarea. Then he went and gave greetings to the church in Jerusalem. After that, Paul went to Antioch. He stayed there for a while and then left and went through the countries of Galatia and Phrygia. He traveled from town to town in these countries, giving strength to all the followers.

Some Bible teachers say that Paul wanted to be in Jerusalem for an important holiday. It is interesting that Jesus also went to Jerusalem for the Passover. Paul believed that if you are Jewish you should still live as a Jew, but that doing Jewish things did not save you.

24 – 25

A Jew named Apollos came to Ephesus. He was born in the city of Alexandria. He was an educated man who knew the Scriptures well. He had been taught about the Lord. He was always very excited when he spoke and taught the truth about Jesus. But the only baptism that Apollos knew about was the baptism that John taught.

All that Apollo’s knew was that people need to turn back to God and be baptized. We need to be patient with people who do not know as much as we do. There was a time when we did not know these things also.

26 – 28

Apollos began to speak very boldly in the synagogue, and Priscilla and Aquila heard him. So they took him to their home and helped him better understand the way of God. Now Apollos wanted to go to the country of Southern Greece, so the believers helped him. They wrote a letter to the followers there, asking them to accept him. These followers had believed in Jesus because of God’s grace. When Apollos went there, he helped them very much. He argued very strongly with the Jews before all the people. Apollos clearly proved that the Jews were wrong. Using the Scriptures, he proved that Jesus is the Christ.

We see that Priscilla and Aquila took Apollos and talked to him privately. Please do not correct people in front of other people. If we handle the situation carefully we will see a person become powerful in the Scriptures because someone took the time to patiently build them up.

If another believer is overcome by some sin, you who are Godly should gently and humbly help that person back onto the right path. And be careful not to fall into the same temptation yourself. Galatians 6:1