He Knows How It Feels, Evans olang

John 14:14, “If you ask anything in My name, I will do it.”

It’s nearly impossible to tell someone “I know how you feel” in a tough situation when you have not gone through it yourself. Often mistake made is encouraging someone who has either lost a dear one and say words from no experience of your own. If you have not gone through it or similar, you do not know how it feels. The best way to respond in my judgement is to say something like this “I don’t know how it feels but I want to let you know I care“. The good encouragers are the ones who have had a taste of it and can stand and encourage.

For God to create, He only had to speak, to redeem, Christ had to suffer. There are many things that accompany Jesus’ life here on earth. We know His main mission was to come and die on the cross to save mankind. And while He was here, He also taught, healed, raised the dead, raised leaders etc. He became a person (Man) to identify with us. You cannot redeem what related to.

Fallen From Grace, Evans Olang

Galatians 5:1-4, “1 Stand fast therefore in the liberty by which Christ has made us free,  and do not be entangled again with a yoke of bondage. 2 Indeed I, Paul, say to you that if you become circumcised, Christ will profit you nothing. 3 And I testify again to every man who becomes circumcised that he is a debtor to keep the whole law. 4 You have become estranged from Christ, you who attempt to be justified by law; you have fallen from grace.”

In my study time on Galatians 5, I paused on vs. 4 and started working my way backwards to get a grasp as to what Paul wanted us to understand. Some  have suggested that vs. 4 is one of the strong passages to show that it is possible for one to lose their salvation. I do not believe that is what Paul is addressing here. 

Send Me Peter, 1of3, Pastor Phil Sessa

Acts 10, vs. “5 And now send men to Joppa, and call for one Simon, whose surname in Peter.” 

You’ve heard it said, never send a boy to do a man’s job. Well God says never send an angel to do a disciple’s job. Cornelius was a Roman Centurion responsible for the band of 100 men under his authority. The Scripture says, “He and all his family were devout and God-fearing; he gave generously to those in need and prayed to God regularly (v.2).” Yet despite all of these great qualities he still needed to hear and know the way of salvation through Christ alone. So what did God do to reach this devout Roman Centurion?

An angel of God spoke to him in a vision and said, “Cornelius!” Cornelius stared at him in fear. “What is it, Lord?” he asked. The angel answered, “Your prayers and gifts to the poor have come up as a memorial offering before God. 5 Now send men to Joppa to bring back a man named Simon who is called Peter. 6 He is staying with Simon the tanner, whose house is by the sea.”

John 3 Study: The New Birth 10of10, Evans Olang

John 3:21, “But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen, that they have been done in God”

At the beginning of the series we asked ourselves four important questions in relation to the new birth, WHAT, WHY, HOW, WHO. In addressing each of these questions, the common thread centered on the question WHO. WHO is the cause of WHAT, WHY and HOW. We started with “WHO” because He is the most important in every verse covered. We said “Salvation belongs to the Lord”, Jonah 2:9, Psalm 3:8, Revelation 7:10 and the climax of verse 21 points us back to WHO.

As Jesus and Paul both declared that no one is good, no one does good, no one comes to the light, this verse John 3:21, “But he who does the truth comes to the light, that his deeds may be clearly seen…” This helps us see that we come to the light because we have been drawn by someone outside of us. John 6:44, “No one can come to Me unless the Father who sent Me draws him; and I will raise him up at the last day” Men cannot come to the light unless they are drawn by the truth of the word, the Father draws by His word. This truth helps sinners see how lost, dead, miserable they are and awakens them to the need of a Savior as we have already seen. 

John 3 Study: The New Birth 8of10, Evans Olang

John 3:18, “He who believes in Him is not condemned; but he who does not believe is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only begotten Son of God.”

The greatest sin is unbelief. This is the sin that finally condemns. Anyone who dies in unbelief, their fate is sealed. The downfall of the Israelites was not because they were not religious enough; it is because they counted on their own righteousness. They lacked the true knowledge that would lead them to Christ for their justification by faith to secure righteousness. They had fallen from grace (Galatians 5:4).

I see a direct correlation between John 3 and Romans 10. Here is Paul’s analysis and cry to God for men like Nicodemus and his people, “1 Brethren, my heart’s desire and prayer to God for Israel is that they may be saved. 2 For I bear them witness that they have a zeal for God, but not according to knowledge. 3 For they being ignorant of God’s righteousness, and seeking to establish their own righteousness, have not submitted to the righteousness of God. 4 For Christ is the end of the law for righteousness to everyone who believes”, Romans 10:1-4. Unbelief was their downfall; their only hope was the righteousness of Christ to be received by faith.

John 3 Study: The New Birth 6of10, Evans Olang

John 3:16, “For God so loved the world that He gave His only begotten Son, that whoever believes in Him should not perish but have everlasting life.” 

This verse by far is the most quoted in my judgment. It is one if not the most important verses in the entire bible. I also believe is one those verses abused if not looked at in its context to make it amazing. Grace is not amazing until you bring to light what enables grace to shine.

Had Jesus given Nicodemus John 3:16 before addressing John 3:14-15, it would have made no sense to him or appreciated it. The same way if a doctor gave a patient medicine to cure him without first letting him understand his need for it, the patient will despise it and will not consider it precious. Jesus took Nicodemus back to Numbers 21 where the Israelites spoke against God and Moses; they murmured and complained for not having water or food.

Profiting From Trials, Evans Olang

2Corinthians 4:7, “For our light affliction, which is but for a moment, is working for us a far more exceeding and eternal weight of glory,”

The new year has began, not everyone has began it on a good note. My family for one is in a trying period having finished the year with one only to open with another. The reality is that we live in a fallen world full of pain and suffering, however we as believers can be different from the world by learning to profit from trials.

When it comes to afflictions/trials, three men in new testament tells us how we should respond to them. James encourages us to count it all joy. Paul encourages to consider them light. Peter on the other hand encourages us not to think them strange. Only the grace of God enables us to speak and live in the light of such words with confidence.

Biblical Manhood – Consistency In His Testimony, Evans Olang

John 9:1-41, “25 He answered and said, “Whether He is a sinner or not I do not know. One thing I know: that though I was blind, now I see.”

The story of a man born blind in John 9 is one of my favorite healing stories in the bible. John dedicates a whole chapter to address the healing of this man and the response from both those who saw him healed and his own testimony. While this is a notable miracle, the emphasis here is not the miracle but the purpose of the miracle. This is a picture of salvation, the testimony that lasts. This is a picture of He who initiates the salvation process and completes it. This is a picture of being born of water and the Spirit (washing and believing)

Better And Not Bigger Lord, Evans Olang

2Corinthians 12:9, "My grace is sufficient for thee, my strength is made perfect in weakness"

Sometimes ago I started to experience something with my car I had not experienced before. I watched it closely as I was driving and realized it was losing power. Breaking sound from the exhaust system made it more clear and I wondered what was wrong with my car. Later I took it to a garage where they found the car needed tune up. The plugs were not firing properly and my fueling system was out of place. The car was still performing but not with power.