When Tenzig Norgay of Nepal was asked about his work as a Sherpa guide with Sir Edmund Hillary who first summited Mt. Everest, he answered simply, “We mountain-climbers help each other.” We may admire his humility. Without Norgay’s help, safe to say, Hillary would never have accomplished the great feat of climbing the world’s tallest mountain. How would we ever succeed without the help of others?
Apollos possessed great potential as a preacher who came to Ephesus from the great learning center of Alexandria in Egypt. Growing up there as a Jew, he likely had access to the greatest library and learning resources in the ancient world. Combining his Hebrew heritage with the best in rhetoric, he amazed the crowds with his words. He knew about Jesus but his knowledge was incomplete. He had no understanding of the work of the Holy Spirit.
Thankfully, Priscilla and Aquila were there to help him. It was uncommon in the ancient world to mention a wife before her husband. Why does Luke? We also observe that both of them were involved in teaching Apollos. Is it possible that Priscilla was the primary teacher of the two? Had she been serving in the background, Luke would surely not have written it this way. Once again the book of Acts gives us a fuller narrative about the vital role of women in the early centuries of Christianity. True, Paul wrote in some of his letters about the role of women, but the larger context of the New Testament offers more information which we must not ignore.
In our church, I have been blessed to work with dynamic wife and husband teams. Lavonia and Roger, Mang and Thong, Elizabeth and David come to mind. There are a hundred more dynamic duos in our church. I see it in the new deacon candidate husband/wife teams. God is great at putting the right people together. In our church too, great young preachers Afshin Ziafat and Louie Giglio found encouragers in Larry Bertrand and Jerome Smith respectively. We mountain climbers help each other!
How did a mountain climber like Apollos fulfill his potential? Like Sir Edmund Hillary he had some help along the way. Again and again, Luke shows us unsung heroes like Ananias, Barnabas, Philip, Dorcas, Aquila and Priscilla who served the saints and helped others in Jesus’ name. Paul never glorifies the person, but he does show us the way forward for the church. It will take all of us fulfilling our roles, seizing the opportunities the Spirit offers us, so that the church can reach its full potential. If we get the chance today, we should definitely help each other. We have not reached the summit yet.
