Before reading my about page, I invite you to first watch this video by Dr. Monte Shanks of the Ask a Bible Prof, YouTube channel. In it he discusses how to select a good Bible Commentary and what to watch out for. (Note to the reader; this Bible commentary written by Gary Eugene Howell is free on this website.)
About Gary Eugene Howell
Beliefs:
Gary Eugene Howell believes that Jesus Christ is the Son of God, who came into the world to save humanity from sin. As a sinless and perfect sacrifice, He was crucified on the cross to atone for our sins, was buried, and on the third day rose from the dead, conquering death once and for all. After His resurrection, He ascended into heaven, and the Holy Spirit was poured out upon all who believe, empowering them to live in fellowship with God and to walk in newness of life.
It is also Gary’s belief that salvation is through faith in Jesus Christ and that there is no other path by which people can enter into the kingdom of heaven. Those who fail to put their faith in Jesus Christ prior to their natural death will be separated from God for eternity in a place where there will be weeping and gnashing of teeth.
Those who put their faith in Jesus will spend eternity with Him in everlasting joy and peace. In His presence there will be no more sorrow, pain, or death; only the fullness of life that God intended from the beginning. Heaven will be a place of perfect love and fellowship, where believers will dwell in the glory of God, worshiping Him and reigning with Christ forever. There, every tear will be wiped away, and the redeemed will experience unending rest and communion with their Savior for all eternity.
Credentials:
Gary is not a pastor or seminary graduate. He holds no formal degrees in any biblical study. Rather, he is simply a follower of Jesus Christ who has spent nearly 20 years reading, studying, and seeking to live by God’s Word. His approach to writing this commentary is a deep love for Scripture and a desire to encourage others to engage with the Bible for themselves through a reliance upon the Holy Spirit.
Gary holds an Associate of Applied Science (A.A.S.) degree in Electronic Engineering Technology. During his career, he worked for a United States defense contractor in a Materials and Process laboratory, where he contributed to multiple satellite programs that are currently in orbit.
In addition to his professional background, Gary has been actively involved in church ministry and Christian education for nearly two decades. He has written and published articles for his denomination’s nationally distributed magazine. He led a weekly Bible study at his church for seven years, authored and published daily devotional writings on his church’s website for ten years, and served as a prayer counselor for six months. He currently serves as the media specialist at his church, where he is responsible for presenting song lyrics and sermon slides during weekly services.
Gary has also completed several church-based training courses, including Missions 101, Discipleship Training, Church Leadership Training, and Prayer Counselor Training. In addition, he has taught classes in one-on-one discipleship, spiritual giftings, and developing a deeper walk with God.
While Gary does not claim to have all the answers, his hope is that this work will serve as a helpful resource for those who, like the Bereans (Acts 17:11), desire to examine the Scriptures daily and grow in their understanding of God’s truth.
As with all things, Gary encourages you to test what is written herein against the Word of God and seek the Lord’s wisdom above all.
Testimony:
Gary’s first interaction with Christianity was in the 2nd grade when he snuck his mother’s bible and hid in the closet to read Genesis Chapter one. At the time he thought he was doing something he wasn’t supposed to.
In high school, every Sunday, Gary’s parents would drive him 15 minutes across town and drop him off at the church attended by his high school friends. His parents would then turn around and go back home. An hour and a half later, they would drive all the way back to pick him up. Gary never knew why his parents didn’t go to church. Despite being on time and in the parking lot, they would merely drop him off and leave.
When Gary was 25 years old, he met a co-worker who identified himself as a pastor. Finding that peculiar, Gary would ask him, on a daily basis, questions about his religious beliefs. However, the man seldom answered Gary’s questions with words. Instead, he would pull a small Bible from his shirt pocket, spend 5 or 6 seconds thumbing through it and would then hand it to Gary and say “Read that right there”. When Gary would read what he was pointing to, it would turn out, on every occasion, to be addressing the very question Gary had just asked.
After many months of these interactions, Gary came to realize for the first time that all of Christianity is based solely upon the Bible. Christianity has no other book. Therefore, Gary reasoned, if he was going to call himself a Christian, as he had been doing his whole life, he ought to base his beliefs upon what’s written in the Bible.
Between ages 25 and 35 Gary would read from the Bible sporadically and intermittently. However, in 2006 he joined a young adults ministry in Melbourne Florida at which he met people his own age who were not only on fire for Jesus, but were abounding in spiritual wisdom and were able to effectively articulate that wisdom to Gary. It was through the inspiration of those relationships that Gary gained the desire to truly engage with the Christian faith and make his relationship with Jesus a regular and consistent aspect of his daily life.
Gary met his wife at that same young adult ministry in Florida. They married in 2010.