Graduate Profile: Olamide Falase

My name is Olamide Falase. I am a redeemed sinner, husband, father, Nigerian, Reformed Baptist, and academic dean. By God’s grace, I serve as one of the leaders of the Reformed Baptist Fellowship I planted in 2021 in Nigeria. We are currently in the process of being formally constituted as a local church under the guidance and oversight of Emmanuel Baptist Church in Coconut Creek, Florida. Alongside this, I continue pursuing deeper theological training.

My first real awareness of God came at the age of ten. A local contractor vividly described the reality of hell and God’s determination to judge sinners. Frightened by the thought of eternal punishment, I prayed the sinner’s prayer he led me in. Yet the transforming power of the gospel had not truly taken root in my heart. For years afterward, my life was characterized more by outward religious conformity than inward regeneration. I wrestled privately with lust and pride while looking down on others whose sins were more openly displayed. I took comfort in my moral behavior and religious activities, remaining blind to the depth of my sin and my desperate need for a Savior. I lived as a false convert, feeling occasional sorrow for my sins but never truly broken over them.

By God’s sovereign grace, everything changed in 2008. The Holy Spirit convicted me, not only of particular sins, but of the deeper truth that I was, by nature, a rebel against a holy God, a reality I had long evaded. The weight of my sin became unbearable. I saw clearly that no amount of good works or religious effort could save me. In November 2008, I repented and placed my trust in Christ alone, trusting His perfect life, atoning death, and victorious resurrection as my only hope. By His mercy, I was born again.

As I studied the biblical teaching on election, predestination, and God’s absolute sovereignty, the doctrines of grace unfolded before me like a treasure chest. What I had once casually dismissed as “Calvinism” I now embraced as the faithful teaching of Scripture itself; that glorious reality of God’s electing love, irresistible grace, and the perseverance of the saints.

God has called me to serve His people through teaching, preaching, and leadership. As academic dean and vice president of the Institute of Pastoral and Theological Training (IPTT) in Nigeria, I have the privilege of equipping pastors and Christian leaders in sound doctrine, faithful hermeneutics, and biblical pastoral ministry. My passion for hermeneutics arises from the conviction that right interpretation of Scripture protects the church from error and unleashes the full power of God’s Word. Whether defending apostolic authority as the Apostle Paul did or warning against loose, self-styled approaches that lead to doctrinal confusion and even blasphemy, my longing is to see the Nigerian church—and the broader global church—return to careful exegesis and the bold, clear proclamation of Christ crucified.

My studies at Reformed Baptist Seminary have been an immense blessing from the Lord. The seminary’s Christ-centered, winsomely Reformed, and church-based approach has equipped me to serve my local fellowship more effectively even as I continue my training. Sitting under godly professors who model a passionate love for God’s glory and the Scriptures has strengthened both my orthodoxy and my orthopraxy. The rigorous training in exegesis, historical theology, and pastoral ministry has sharpened my ability to preach Christ faithfully and guard the flock from false teaching. I am especially thankful for the opportunity to apply what I learn immediately through preaching, teaching, counseling, and defending the gospel in the life of the church.

I am also deeply grateful that RBS granted me a four-year scholarship, which has significantly eased the financial burden of this valuable theological education.

I thank God for my dear friend and mentor, Pastor Nicholas Kennicott, whose loving encouragement, prayer, counsel, and support have been a great blessing. I am thankful for the brothers who continually spur me on to love and good works. I also thank the professors at Reformed Baptist Seminary for their faithful teaching and pastoral care. Above all, I thank my wife, Taiwo, who has borne the greatest burden of my studies. Her unwavering support, sacrifices, and prayers have been grace upon grace to me. Without the Lord’s sustaining hand and the love of His people, none of this would be possible.

For who makes you differ from another? And what do you have that you did not receive? Now if you did indeed receive it, why do you boast as if you had not received it?

1 Corinthians 4:7

I remain an unprofitable servant, yet privileged to serve the King of kings. May Christ be exalted, His gospel proclaimed, and His church built up to the praise of His glorious grace.