July 08th - Priscilla and Aquila

There are so many great saints today that it is hard to choose but I decided to focus on these two very early saints, married to one another and, as the Scriptures (Acts 18:1-3,18,24-26; Romans 16:3-5; 1 Corinthians 16:19; and 2 Timothy 4:19) tell us, like Paul, tent makers.
They were driven from Rome when the Emperor Claudius expelled the Jews from the city, and they took up residence in Ephesus. They provided what was obviously a stable home base, not just for Paul but for a whole community. Paul mentions them often and so they must have been dear to him. They stand in opposition to the many who rejected him, with whom he could not stay.
We owe so much to the early faithful. Their sacrifices and attitudes laid a groundwork that is solid even to today.

---

After this he left Athens and went to Corinth. There he met a Jew named Aquila, a native of Pontus, who had recently come from Italy with his wife Priscilla because Claudius had ordered all the Jews to leave Rome. He went to visit them and, because he practiced the same trade, stayed with them and worked, for they were tentmakers by trade. Every sabbath, he entered into discussions in the synagogue, attempting to convince both Jews and Greeks.
But when Gallio was proconsul of Achaia, the Jews rose up together against Paul and brought him to the tribunal, saying, “This man is inducing people to worship God contrary to the law.” When Paul was about to reply, Gallio spoke to the Jews, “If it were a matter of some crime or malicious fraud, I should with reason hear the complaint of you Jews; but since it is a question of arguments over doctrine and titles and your own law, see to it yourselves. I do not wish to be a judge of such matters.” And he drove them away from the tribunal. They all seized Sosthenes, the synagogue official, and beat him in full view of the tribunal. But none of this was of concern to Gallio.
A Jew named Apollos, a native of Alexandria, an eloquent speaker, arrived in Ephesus. He was an authority on the scriptures. He had been instructed in the Way of the Lord and, with ardent spirit, spoke and taught accurately about Jesus, although he knew only the baptism of John. He began to speak boldly in the synagogue; but when Priscilla and Aquila heard him, they took him aside and explained to him the Way (of God) more accurately. And when he wanted to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples there to welcome him. After his arrival he gave great assistance to those who had come to believe through grace. He vigorously refuted the Jews in public, establishing from the scriptures that the Messiah is Jesus.

-- Acts 1-5, 12-17, 24-28