Lessons #601 and 602
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+ 1. It is best to use this note after you have listened to the lessons because there are +
+ comments given in the actual delivery not in the note. +
+ 2. The Bible abbreviations are as follows: CEV =Contemporary English version, +
+ CEB = Common English Bible, ESV= English Standard Version, +
+ GW = God’s Word Translation, ISV = International Standard Version, +
+ NAB=New American Bible, NASB= New American Standard Bible, +
+ NEB= New English Bible, NET = New English Translation, +
+ NLT = New Living Translations NJB = New Jerusalem Bible, +
+ NJV = New Jewish Bible, TEV = Today’s English Version. +
+AMP = Amplified Bible, UBS = United Bible Society +
+ 3. Notes have not been edited for grammatical errors. +
+ 4. Text is based on 1984 edition of the NIV +
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Apollos’ Travel plan (1 Cor 16:12)
Now about our brother Apollos: I strongly urged him to go to you with the brothers. He was quite unwilling to go now, but he will go when he has the opportunity.
This verse is the final consideration of what may be considered the travel plans of Apostle Paul and his associates that are the concern of 1 Corinthians 16:5-12. We considered Apostle Paul’s travel plans to visit Corinth at some point but that he was going to stay awhile in Ephesus because of the ministry opportunity the Lord had given him. These travel plans of the apostle we considered in verses 5 to 9. This was followed by the travel plan of Timothy to come to Corinth as Apostle Paul sent him for a specific ministry among them. This travel plan we studied in verses 10 and 11. However, in verse 12, the apostle mentioned the travel plans of Apollos. It is for this reason that we considered 1 Corinthians 16:5-12 as being concerned with the travel plans of Apostle Paul and his associates: Timothy and Apollos.
Apostle Paul began verse 12 in the Greek with a Greek phrase translated in the NIV as Now about. The Greek phrase so translated in 1 Corinthian 16:12 in the NIV, as we have stated previously, is one the apostle used six times in his first epistle to the Corinthians to indicate a change in subject matter or to introduce an aspect of a subject matter that is a subset of the major subject or to link materials that although do not relate to the same general topic but are related in the sense that they form closely linked teachings. In his first usage of the Greek phrase translated now for in the NIV of 1 Corinthians 7:1, it was to introduce the subject of marriage that the apostle discoursed in detailed in that chapter. In the second usage of the Greek phrase in the same seventh chapter of 1 Corinthians, the apostle used it to introduce the subset of the matter of dealing with virgins in the larger context of his teaching about marriage, as we read in 1 Corinthians 7:25:
Now about virgins: I have no command from the Lord, but I give a judgment as one who by the Lord’s mercy is trustworthy.
In the third usage of the Greek phrase in verse 1 of the eighth chapter of 1 Corinthians, the apostle used it to introduce the concern of the Corinthians about eating of food offered to idols. The fourth time the apostle used the Greek phrase is in 1 Corinthians 12:1 to link matters related to the Holy Spirit as they pertain to worship that he began its discussion in the eleventh chapter. The fifth usage of the Greek phrase is in 1 Corinthians 16:1 where the apostle used it to introduce a different subject matter from what he discoursed in the fifteenth chapter. In this sixth and final usage of the phrase in 1 Corinthians, the apostle used it to introduce a different aspect of the travel plans that, as we indicated, were his concern in 1 Corinthians 16:5-12. Again, this last usage of the phrase concerns a different aspect of the travel matters the apostle started to describe beginning in verse 5. As we mentioned previously, the apostle gave a concrete plan although subject to the Lord’s approval of how he would travel from Ephesus through Macedonia to Corinth. He also gave instructions regarding Timothy’s visit to Corinth because he anticipated that after the Corinthians receive this epistle, Timothy would come to them. Thus, we can say that both the travel plans of Paul and Timothy are indeed plans of action but when the apostle wrote about Apollos, he indicated that the plan does not involve an immediate action that would result in visiting the Corinthians. So, the travel plan of Apollos is in a sense a plan that does not lead to an action that will benefit the Corinthians soon but later. It is for this reason we contend that the apostle used the phrase Now about to introduce another aspect of the concept of travel plans that involved him and his associates although the plan this time is in contrast to that of the concrete plan of his and Timothy’s travel plan. Of course, it is possible that the Corinthians would have raised the question to the apostle about the travel plans of Apollos. If this is the case, then the apostle used the phrase to introduce his response to their question about Apollos.
In any case, the major fact the apostle intended to convey to the Corinthians in 1 Corinthians 16:12 is that despite Apostle Paul’s plea with Apollos, he was not immediately coming to Corinth but may do so in the future. If Apollos was not going to Corinth despite the apostle’s plea, we have to conclude that it is not God’s will for him to do so at that time. For one thing, we know that it is God that makes us willing to do His will as the Holy Spirit stated through Apostle Paul to the Philippians in Philippians 2:13:
for it is God who works in you to will and to act according to his good purpose.
Furthermore, we know that although a person may plan what the individual wants to do but God’s plan is what prevails according to Proverbs 19:21:
Many are the plans in a man’s heart, but it is the LORD’s purpose that prevails.
It is not only that God’s plan overrules that of humans but whatever His plan is cannot be thwarted by a human being as Job declared in response to God’s question to him as recorded in Job 42:2:
“I know that you can do all things; no plan of yours can be thwarted.
When we put these facts together, we can assert that the fact Apollos was not going to Corinth despite the apostle’s plea for him to do so must mean that it was not God’s plan for Apollos to visit Corinth at the time the apostle penned his first epistle to the Corinthians. Based on these considerations, we can state a message we believe the Holy Spirit wants us to hear from what the apostle wrote in 1 Corinthians 16:12. The message is this: Learn to recognize that God determines when a minister of the gospel should minister in a given location. We will keep bringing this message to you as we expound what the Holy Spirit directed Apostle Paul to write in the verse of 1 Corinthians 16 that we are about to expound.
The apostle writes in 1 Corinthians 16:12 Now about our brother Apollos. A more literal translation is Now concerning Apollos the brother. There are two major differences between the literal translation and that of the NIV. The first is that Apollos is mentioned first before the word “brother.” Second, instead of “our” of the NIV the literal translation reads “the.” We will say more about this second difference but because the Greek mentioned Apollos first, we will follow the Greek order so that we begin with focusing our attention on Apollos since the Greek begins with the phrase about Apollos.
Apostle Paul had mentioned Apollos six times in this epistle prior to this final mention of him in this first epistle to the Corinthians. The first reference to Apollos involved the apostle’s charge of partisanship that existed among the Corinthians in which some of them claimed to belong to his camp, so to speak, as we read in 1 Corinthians 1:12:
What I mean is this: One of you says, “I follow Paul”; another, “I follow Apollos”; another, “I follow Cephas”; still another, “I follow Christ.”
The remaining five references to Apollos are primarily concerned with the apostle’s elaboration of the problem of partisanship among the Corinthians and how he and Apollos have the same goal or perform different tasks in the ministry of the word. That aside, because of what the apostle said about Apollos, we should understand a few facts about him.
A first fact about Apollos is that he was a Jew born and raised in Alexandria Egypt as we may gather from Acts 18:24:
Meanwhile a Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, came to Ephesus. He was a learned man, with a thorough knowledge of the Scriptures.
Alexandria was one of the leading cities in the ancient world that was a center of learning. This, in part, explains the fact that Apollos was well educated and had a thorough knowledge of the OT Scripture as attested in this passage of Acts 18:24.
A second fact is that sometimes not specified, he became a believer in Jesus Christ and enthusiastically preached Him in the synagogues although he had a limited knowledge of the Christian faith as reported by Luke in Acts 18:25:
He had been instructed in the way of the Lord, and he spoke with great fervor and taught about Jesus accurately, though he knew only the baptism of John.
It would seem that Apollos received accurate information about the person and works of Jesus Christ but was limited in what he knew in that he probably did not know much about what happened following the day of Pentecost. Nonetheless, he accurately taught information he received about Jesus Christ from a source not specified.
A third fact about him is that he was a humble person as indicated by the fact that he was teachable as indicated in his interaction in Ephesus with the husband-wife team that helped to inform him more accurately about the Christian way as implied in Acts 18:26:
He began to speak boldly in the synagogue. When Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they invited him to their home and explained to him the way of God more adequately.
The explanation given to him by Aquila and Priscilla must have included the subject of baptisms in the Christian faith, namely, water baptism and the baptisms associated with the Holy Spirit. The important fact we want to focus is he was teachable for otherwise he would have not listened to the couple that helped him understand the Christian faith much better. In effect, he displayed what many of us, Christians, lack, which is the spirit of being teachable. Some take the position that whatever they learned in the past is sufficient for them and they do not need any further instruction or correction of whatever they learned that might not have been accurate. Apollos was nothing like that since he was willing to listen and learn the truth to go along with his zeal for preaching of Jesus Christ.
A fourth fact about Apollos is that after receiving more adequate explanation of the Christian faith he went to Corinth. This we learn from the fact that he received a letter of recommendation from the church in Ephesus to those in Corinth (Achaia) as stated in Acts 18:27–28:
27 When Apollos wanted to go to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. On arriving, he was a great help to those who by grace had believed. 28 For he vigorously refuted the Jews in public debate, proving from the Scriptures that Jesus was the Christ.
It was during his visit to Corinth that his path crossed that of Apostle Paul as narrated in Acts 19:1:
While Apollos was at Corinth, Paul took the road through the interior and arrived at Ephesus. There he found some disciples.
After Apostle Paul left Corinth, Apollos had a successful ministry of preaching the gospel and teaching or encouraging believers. It is because of this fact that he was one of the personalities that led to the partisanship in Corinth and also for this reason the apostle wrote of both activities of Apollos in 1 Corinthians 3:5–6:
5 What, after all, is Apollos? And what is Paul? Only servants, through whom you came to believe—as the Lord has assigned to each his task. 6 I planted the seed, Apollos watered it, but God made it grow.
Apostle Paul in this passage indicated that Apollos continued the ministry of the word Paul started in the sense that he not only preached the gospel but also taught some truths that Paul did not immediately teach the Corinthians. It is probably after Apollos’ ministry in Corinth that he returned to Ephesus since the apostle implied he was with him as he wrote this epistle, based on what he stated about him in the passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12 that we are studying. Of course, some contend that because the apostle did not mention him in the greeting portion of this epistle that he was not in Ephesus. That is not a strong argument because if Apollos was not with the apostle there would have been no need to reference his travel plans unless Apollos declined the apostle’s appeal to go to Corinth and then left Ephesus before the apostle wrote this epistle. This is not likely and so we cannot confidently assert Apollos was not with the Apostle in Ephesus.
A fifth fact is that Apollos also ministered in Crete in some fashion. For unless this was the case, we would not have Apostle Paul requesting Titus to assist him in his travels as in Titus 3:13:
Do everything you can to help Zenas the lawyer and Apollos on their way and see that they have everything they need.
In any case, Apostle Paul further described Apollos in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:12 our brother Apollos or more literal translation the brother. The definite article used in the Greek may be interpreted in at least two ways. It could be interpreted to mean that the apostle used it to refer to Apollos as the one who is well known to the Corinthians, or it could be used to denote possession and so means “our” as reflected in nearly all our modern English versions. Such translation implies that the one described belonged to both Apostle Paul and the Corinthians not in the sense that they owned the person mentioned but simply to indicate a relationship that exists between the one named, the apostle and Corinthians. The TEV avoided its translation altogether since instead of the phrase about our brother Apollos of the NIV it reads about brother Apollos. Anyway, the definite article is used probably in both senses of pointing to the Apollos as the one well known to the Corinthians as well as the one that is in a relationship with the Corinthians and Apostle Paul.
The relationship between the Corinthians, the apostle and Apollos is described with the word brother. The word “brother” is translated from a Greek word (adelphos) that basically means a male sibling either from the same father or the same mother. This aside, the word has several meanings in the Greek but only two of these possible meanings are applicable in our passage. The word may mean “brother” in the sense of one with whom one has a close affinity or is a member of a group regardless of gender so that it could mean “fellow country man or woman.” It is in this sense that Apostle Paul used it to express his desire for the salvation of the Jews or Israel as recorded in Romans 9: 3:
For I could wish that I myself were cursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, those of my own race.
The phrase my brothers refers to male and female Israelites or in short, the Jewish people. The phrase of my own race is more literally according to the flesh. The word may mean “brother” in the sense of a fellow believer in Christ. The word may mean “a believer” as that is the sense of the word “brother” used by Apostle Paul in his instruction to slaves regarding how to treat their masters who are believers in Christ as we read in 1 Timothy 6:2:
Those who have believing masters are not to show less respect for them because they are brothers. Instead, they are to serve them even better, because those who benefit from their service are believers, and dear to them. These are the things you are to teach and urge on them.
It is clear that “brothers” is used here for believers because of the clause because those who benefit from their service are believers. Hence, the word “brother” is the same as “believer.” Thus, it is not surprising that the translators of the NIV translated the Greek word as “believers” in the letter of the first church council that was sent to Gentile believers as we read in Acts 15:23:
With them they sent the following letter: The apostles and elders, your brothers, To the Gentile believers in Antioch, Syria and Cilicia: Greetings.
The phrase the Gentile believers in Antioch is literally the brothers from among the Gentiles in Antioch. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the word is used in the sense of “male fellow believer.” By the way, some English versions such as the CEV and the REB instead of the word “brother” used “friend” in their translation. This notwithstanding, the apostle meant that Apollos is a fellow believer in Christ although he was Jewish but that could not have been the sense the apostle used it since not every member of the church in Corinth was of Jewish descent. Thus, Corinthians knew of Apollos’ past activities with them and so knew him as a brother in Christ.
Be that as it may, the message of 1 Corinthians 16:12 we stated is this: Learn to recognize that God determines when a minister of the gospel should minister in a given location. However, we should understand that the fact God determines when a minister of the gospel should minister in a given area does not mean that believers should not reach out to a minister to come and minister in their area. I mean that when local congregations need a pastor they should reach out to possible candidates that at that time are not serving another congregation and offer such a position to an individual with the understanding of the message we have stated. We do not always know what God’s plan in many situations is other than what is written in the Scripture; therefore, we take necessary steps to do what we desire with the understanding that God’s plan will prevail. Thus, if a local church invites a potential candidate to be a pastor of their local church, they must have the confidence in the Lord that if that is His plan for the pastor, he would come to them. Hence, it is not surprising that Apostle Paul pleaded with Apollos to go to Corinth as stated in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:12 I strongly urged him to go to you with the brothers.
The word “urged” is translated from a Greek word (parakaleō) with a range of meanings. The word can mean “to invite” as it is used for the invitation of Lydia to Apostle Paul and his team to stay in her house in Acts 16:15:
When she and the members of her household were baptized, she invited us to her home. “If you consider me a believer in the Lord,” she said, “come and stay at my house.” And she persuaded us.
It may mean “to call upon for help”, especially of God who is called upon by humans in time of need and so the word is translated “plead” when it is used to describe Apostle Paul’s prayer for the Lord to remove his thorn in the flesh, as stated in 2 Corinthians 12:8:
Three times I pleaded with the Lord to take it away from me.
The sentence Three times I pleaded with the Lord is more literally thrice the Lord did I call upon. The word may mean to urge strongly hence “to appeal to, urge, exhort, encourage.” The meaning “to encourage” is used to instruct a believer with the gift of encouraging others to exercise that gift in Romans 12:8:
if it is encouraging, let him encourage; if it is contributing to the needs of others, let him give generously; if it is leadership, let him govern diligently; if it is showing mercy, let him do it cheerfully.
It is with the meaning of “to urge” that Apostle Paul used it to invite the Corinthians to imitate him as stated in 1 Corinthians 4:16:
Therefore I urge you to imitate me.
It is with the meaning “to appeal to” that our Greek word is used in Apostle Paul’s request to the Corinthians to conduct themselves in a way that is fitting of believers in Christ as recorded in 2 Corinthians 10:1:
By the meekness and gentleness of Christ, I appeal to you—I, Paul, who am “timid” when face to face with you, but “bold” when away!
The meaning “to exhort” is used to translate our Greek word in the instruction of the Holy Spirit through Apostle Paul to Timothy regarding the treatment of older believers in 1 Timothy 5:1:
Do not rebuke an older man harshly, but exhort him as if he were your father. Treat younger men as brothers,
The word may mean “to comfort” as it is used to describe God’s comfort Apostle Paul and his team received, as we read in 2 Corinthians 1:4:
who comforts us in all our troubles, so that we can comfort those in any trouble with the comfort we ourselves have received from God.
In some contexts, the Greek word may mean to be friendly to or to speak to in a friendly manner. Thus, the officials who put Paul in jail acted friendly or were conciliatory towards him when they released him from jail on learning he was a Roman citizen, as we may gather from Acts 16:39:
They came to appease them and escorted them from the prison, requesting them to leave the city.
Our Greek word is translated “appeased” in the NIV although the meaning “to conciliate” is also possible. The word has the sense of speaking in a friendly manner when Apostle Paul used it to describe his response to those who slandered him in 1 Corinthians 4:13:
when we are slandered, we answer kindly. Up to this moment we have become the scum of the earth, the refuse of the world.
The sentence we answer kindly is more literally we entreat. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the meaning is “to request earnestly.”
The request of the apostle to Apollos to go to Corinth was made earnestly as indicated in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:12 I strongly urged him to go to you with the brothers. The word “strongly” is translated from a Greek word (polys) that pertains to being a large number, hence means “many, a great number of” as Apostle Paul used it to indicate that many individuals would be made righteous because of the work of Jesus Christ on the cross as we read in Romans 5:19:
For just as through the disobedience of the one man the many were made sinners, so also through the obedience of the one man the many will be made righteous.
The word may in some contexts mean “majority” or “most” as the word is used to describe those that decided for the ship carrying Apostle Paul to Rome to proceed in their travel path instead of listening to the advice of the apostle not to proceed as we read in Acts 27:12:
Since the harbor was unsuitable to winter in, the majority decided that we should sail on, hoping to reach Phoenix and winter there. This was a harbor in Crete, facing both southwest and northwest.
The word may mean “number” in the sense of undetermined quantity as it is used in Paul’s defense in referencing the period of governorship of Governor Felix over Israel as we read in Acts 24:10:
When the governor motioned for him to speak, Paul replied: “I know that for a number of years you have been a judge over this nation; so I gladly make my defense.
The word may mean “few” in reference to a number that is less than or equal to ten as in the promise of the Lord to the disciples regarding the event that occurred about ten days after His ascension as we read in Acts 1:5:
For John baptized with water, but in a few days you will be baptized with the Holy Spirit.”
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the word has the sense of “greatly” or “earnestly.”
The earnest plea of Apostle Paul to Apollos was for him to visit Corinth as in the verbal phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:12 to go to you with the brothers. The word “go” is translated from a Greek word (erchomai) that may mean “to go” in the sense of proceeding on a course, with a destination in view. The word may refer to movement from one point to another so that it means “to come.” However, although the word may mean “to come,” there are several nuances conveyed when the word “come” is used. For example, the word “come” may mean “to appear or make public appearance.” In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the Greek word means “to come,” that is, “to travel toward” in the sense of physically approaching someone.
The plea of Apostle Paul to Apollos was to travel to Corinth in the company of others as in the phrase of 1 Corinthians 16:12 with the brothers. This is the second time we encounter in the Greek the word that literally means “brother.” As in the previous use of the Greek word in describing Apollos, the word “brothers” refers to believers in Christ. However, we do not know who these brothers were. Many suggestions have been given regarding their identity. For example, some say the brothers were the three men Stephanas, Fortunatus, and Achaicus mentioned in 16:17. Others take them as the carriers of this first epistle to the Corinthians. Probably, they might have been those the apostle sent to help get ready the contributions to be made for believers in Jerusalem. We say this because the apostle described in his second epistle to the Corinthians of urging some brothers to visit them in connection with the contributions to be made for the benefit of the believers in Jerusalem as we read in 2 Corinthians 9:5:
So I thought it necessary to urge the brothers to visit you in advance and finish the arrangements for the generous gift you had promised. Then it will be ready as a generous gift, not as one grudgingly given.
Regardless of who these brothers were that the apostle wanted Apollos to join to visit Corinth, one thing is clear which is that they responded to the plea of the apostle but not so with Apollos. Thus, the apostle begins his next sentence in 1 Corinthians 16:12 with a Greek particle (kai) that is often translated “and” in our English versions to mark connections between clauses as reflected in our verse in the NASB and the LEB. The meaning “and” may have the sense of being used for additional information that instead of “and” it may be translated “also.” Nonetheless, the Greek conjunction has several other usages. For example, it may be used to introduce a result that comes from what precedes and so may be translated “and then, and so.” It may be used to mark an explanation so that what follows explains what goes before it, leading to the translation “that is, namely, and so.” It may be used to emphasize a fact as surprising or unexpected or noteworthy with the meaning “and yet” or “and in spite of that” or “nevertheless.” Of course, it could be used simply for emphasis with the meaning “even.” The word may be used for introducing something new, with loose connection to what preceded, in which case it may be translated “now” or left untranslated. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, it is probably used to convey not only a contrast between what follows and what preceded it but perhaps to express what follows as unexpected or noteworthy. In effect, what the apostle stated about Apollos may be unexpected and contrasts with the response of the other brothers who were heading to Corinth as per the request of the apostle.
The thing that is unexpected or surprising that contrasts with the response of those described as brothers is Apollos’ response stated in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:12 He was quite unwilling to go now. A literal translation reads but it was not at all (the) will that he should come now. The literal translation indicates there is no indication of whose “will” is involved. It could be God’s or Apollos. The context suggests that it is Apollos whose will is concerned as reflected in the translation of the NIV although the word “unwilling” is used to account for the negative marker used in the Greek.
The word “quite” of the NIV in the sentence He was quite unwilling to go now is translated from a Greek adverb (pantōs) that may be used to express inevitable conclusion in view of data provided so it may mean “doubtless, of course” as the word is used to report the conclusion the islanders of Malta reached about Apostle Paul when a snake attached itself on his hand, as we read in Acts 28:4:
When the islanders saw the snake hanging from his hand, they said to each other, “This man must be a murderer; for though he escaped from the sea, Justice has not allowed him to live.”
The translators of the NIV used the meaning “must” in translating the Greek adverb here since the sentence of the NIV This man must be a murderer is more literally Doubtless this man is a murderer. The adverb may be used for a strong assumption or affirmation with the meaning “certainly, surely, by all means” as Apostle Paul used the word in his strong affirmation derived from his quotation of OT Scripture in support of the fact that those who minister the word of God should be supported from that ministry as we read in 1 Corinthians 9:10:
Surely he says this for us, doesn’t he? Yes, this was written for us, because when the plowman plows and the thresher threshes, they ought to do so in the hope of sharing in the harvest.
When the adverb is used with a negative marker it means “not at all” as the word is used by Apostle Paul in response to his question that implies that Jews are not better than the Gentiles as it pertains to God’s righteous demands as stated in Romans 3:9:
What shall we conclude then? Are we any better? Not at all! We have already made the charge that Jews and Gentiles alike are all under sin.
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the word by itself has the sense of “assuredly,” that is, “without a doubt.” However, because our word is used with a negative, the meaning in our verse is probably “not at all” as reflected in some of English versions such as the NRSV and NCV.
The word “unwilling” in the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:12 He was quite unwilling to go now is translated from a Greek particle (ou) that means “not” and the Greek word (thelēma) that basically means “will” that can be used either in objective sense of what one wishes to happen or in a subjective sense of desiring something. In the objective sense, it can mean God’s will as Apostle Paul used it in Romans 2:18:
if you know his will and approve of what is superior because you are instructed by the law;
Another objective sense of the word refers to what one wishes to bring about by the activity of others, to whom one assigns a task. It is in this sense that the apostle used it to describe God’s perfect will in Romans 12:2:
Do not conform any longer to the pattern of this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind. Then you will be able to test and approve what God’s will is—his good, pleasing and perfect will.
Still another objective sense of the word refers to what one wishes to bring about by one’s own action, since one has undertaken to do what one has willed. It is in this sense that the word is used in connection with salvation plan and work of God in Ephesians 1:9:
And he made known to us the mystery of his will according to his good pleasure, which he purposed in Christ,
There is nothing about salvation that is left to man, so God carried it out to ensure that what He willed with respect to salvation comes into fruition. In a subjective sense, the word relating to God refers to what He purposes or has purposed, what He regards, or does, as good. It is in this sense that Apostle Paul used the word in describing his plan to come to the Roman believers in Romans 15:32:
so that by God’s will I may come to you with joy and together with you be refreshed.
It is also in this sense of what God purposes or has purposed that the Apostle Peter used our Greek word in connection with suffering of believers in 1 Peter 3:17:
It is better, if it is God’s will, to suffer for doing good than for doing evil.
The conditional clause if it is God’s will is more literally if the will of God wills. The literal word “wills” suggests doubt that believers would suffer and that it is God’s will but, in truth, believer’s suffering is God’s will in accordance with His plan. So, Joseph suffered in Egypt because it is in conformity with God’s will so that God’s plan will be manifested through him. The Greek word may mean “desire” as it is used in describing the state of unbelievers in terms of their conduct in Ephesians 2:3:
All of us also lived among them at one time, gratifying the cravings of our sinful nature and following its desires and thoughts. Like the rest, we were by nature objects of wrath.
It is in the sense of “what is willed,” that is, “what one wishes to bring about by one’s own action” that the Greek word is used in 1 Corinthians 16:12 although the meaning “will” is also possible, as some have interpreted it.
All the same, the sentence of 1 Corinthians 16:12 He was quite unwilling to go now, we contend expressed something of a surprise or unexpected since Apollos had ministered in Corinth and so his unwillingness to return to Corinth as per the apostle’s request at the time the other brothers were going to Corinth would be unexpected by the apostle or surprising to him. Nonetheless, there are two ways to understand this sentence: from Apollos’ perspective and from Apostle Paul’s perspective. From Apollos’ perspective, we have a situation where a person did not act to please anyone or to follow the crowd. We do not know the reason for Apollos’ refusal to go to Corinth despite many speculations but whatever it was, it is probably that he had the conviction that he acted in accordance with God’s plan for him. His response should remind us not to be those involved in eyeservice in keeping with the instructions given as to how slaves were to do their work as stated in Colossians 3:22:
Slaves, obey your earthly masters in everything; and do it, not only when their eye is on you and to win their favor, but with sincerity of heart and reverence for the Lord.
The point we are stressing is that a believer should not because others are involved in certain activities do the same if the individual is not convinced that that is a proper thing to do for the individual or the right time to do what others are doing that is not sinful. In other words, a believer may not necessarily be involved in an activity that is not sinful that others are engaged in because the individual is not convinced the activity is proper for the believer at a given time. Take for example, suppose a believer has not planned to give in a local church but because others are doing so the individual becomes compelled to give. This will be an activity where the believer has followed the crowd since the believer had not determined to give at that time but did so in order not to stand out. Anyhow, Apollos was not convinced it was the proper time for him to go to Corinth despite Apostle Paul’s plea.
From Apostle Paul’s perspective, Apollos refusal to go to Corinth was probably a surprise but he also recognized that God is in control of the time a minister would be in a given location to minister God’s word. It is this realization that led to the apostle’s further statement about Apollos’ future travel plans in the last clause of 1 Corinthians 16:12 but he will go when he has the opportunity. This clause contrasts Apollos’ present plan regarding going to Corinth to his future travel plans because of the word but that is translated from a Greek particle (de) that is routinely translated “but” to reflect a contrast between clauses but when a simple connective is desired, without contrast being clearly implied, it may be translated “and,” and in certain occurrences the particle may be left untranslated. It has other meanings such as “now,” “then,” “and,” “so” when it is used to link segments of a narrative. In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, the Greek particle is used to convey a contrast between the present and future travel plans of Apollos as it relates to Corinth.
The apostle recognized that there would be a change in Apollos’ travel plan to Corinth as God determines and so he states in 1 Corinthians 16:12 he will go when he has the opportunity. The expression “has …opportunity” is translated from a Greek word (eukaireō) that means “to experience a favorable time or occasion for some activity,” so may mean “to have time, opportunity” as it is used to indicate that Jesus’ disciples that returned from a mission work did not have time to eat because of the crowd coming to Him as narrated in Mark 6:31:
Then, because so many people were coming and going that they did not even have a chance to eat, he said to them, “Come with me by yourselves to a quiet place and get some rest.”
In our passage of 1 Corinthians 16:12, it means “to have opportunity,” that is, to have time that is suitable or advantageous for a particular purpose.” Thus, Apostle Paul was aware that it is God who determines where a minister of God’s word should minister and the time to do so. It is for this reason that he stated that Apollos would go to Corinth at the time of God’s choosing. Thus, he recognized that there is proper timing for Apollos’ travels in keeping with Ecclesiastes 3:1:
There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven:
In any event, as we end this verse, let me remind you of the message we believe the Holy Spirit wants you to get from it. It is: Learn to recognize that God determines when a minister of the gospel should minister in a given location.
02/23/24