papastor

[papastor]

Hyper Grace

For almost 17 years, Apostle Paul preached the Gospel of Grace through his God given revelation alone. He preached Christ sa loob ng panahong 'yun without being taught by any of the Super Apostles (12 Appointed Apostles). Now it happened sa Acts 15 that while he and Barnabas stayed at Antioch, some men from Judea ay nagsimulang magturo ng ganito, "Liban na kayo ay matuli ayon sa alituntunin ni Moses, hindi kayo maliligtas (Acts 15:1)." Why is it that those men from Judea had such belief? Ang pagtutuli kasi or circumcision ay naging mandato ng bansang Israel mula pa nung panahon ni Moses. It is included in the Law, or the Torah---the Constitution and Bill of Rights of Israel nuong Old Testament times. Paul and Barnabas had a small dissension with them, because such teaching is against Christ's Gospel. They are committing the common error ng mga Christians-influencers ngayon, an error that is rooted from their failure in rightly dividing the word.

2 Timothy 2:15 (New King James Version) “Be diligent to present yourself approved to God, a worker who does not need to be ashamed, rightly dividing the Word of Truth.” 

Sa mga di aware, the Word of Truth or the Scriptures should be divided because there are two existing major covenants in its entirety. The Law Covenant (from Moses to John the Baptist, ending after the the veil of the temple was torn in two) and the Grace Covenant (which began when Jesus ascended to the Father’s right hand).  

The problem is this people from Judea are mixing Law and Grace, and in the process nullifies Christ’s finished work---Galatians 2:21, “I do not nullify the grace of God, for if righteousness were through the law, then Christ died for no purpose.”

Isipin mo nalang, kapag pala may taong malapit nang mamatay, hindi pa pala sapat na paniwalaan lang nya ang Gospel, dapat tutulian pa muna sya. Kasi baka harangin s'ya sa pintuan ng Kaharian ng Langit at sabihin sa kanyang, "Oops! Bawal ka dito, supot ka pa!" Tapos pagdating n'ya sa impiyerno, tatanungin s'ya ng mga bantay dun, "Anong kasalanan mo at 'di ka nakapasok sa langit?" at sasagot naman 'yung tao, at sasabihing, "Supot pa po kasi ako." Even though biro lang 'yan, pero if you will insist that Faith in Christ is not enough to save a person, then that joke is true to you. Hence, isang malaking kalokohan ang eternity mo.

Going back dun sa scenario, after having a dissension with this Judeans, they decided to settle the issue by asking the Head Council of the Church at that time. Alam mo ang matindi? Kahit maraming taon na ang nakalipas after Christ had ascended, marami pa'din sa mga apostles and disciples ay walang firm knowledge about this issue.

Acts 15:7 reveals to us that there has been much debate. And maybe Apostle Paul was amazed din, kasi for 17 years that they were sharing the Gospel of Grace, ito pala ay hindi pa’din klaro sa mga Apostles at Disciples na unlike him ay nakasama si Christ all throughtout while He was still on earth. They heard Jesus teach for more than three years, yet parang hindi nila nakuha ang pinakang punto ng lahat ng tinuro ni LORD.

Buti nalang biglang sumingit si Pedro at sinabing, "Mga kapatid, alam natin na nung mga naunang araw, pinili ako ng Diyos para sa pamamagitan ng aking bibig ay marinig ng mga Hentil ang Magandang Balita at maniwala. At ang Diyos ay naging saksi sa pamamagitan ng pagkakaloob sa kanila ng Banal na Espiritu gaya ng ginawa N'ya sa atin, hindi S'ya nagtaguyod ng pagkakaiba sa pagitan natin at ng mga Hentil ng linisin N'ya ang kanilang mga puso sa pamamagitan ng pananampalataya (Acts 15:7-9, paraphrased by me.)” and then Acts 15:10-11, "Bakit sinusubok ninyo ang Diyos? Bakit ninyo iniaatang sa mga mananampalataya ang isang pasaning hindi nakayang dalhin ng ating mga ninuno at hindi rin natin kayang pasanin? Sumasampalataya tayo na tayo'y maliligtas sa pamamagitan ng kagandahang-loob ng Panginoong Jesus at gayundin sila.”

Ulitin ko 'yung verse 11 in English para super clear: Acts 15:11, "But we believe that we will be saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus, just as they will.”

Let's be real! At the end of the day you will fail. The standards you set, ikaw din mismo ang magre-reset. Then ikaw din mismo mapapagod at maiintindihan sa sarili mo that it's not about what I should do, rather it's about what Christ did for me.

Cheap Grace. Hyper Grace. Ano pa ba? Bakit hindi mo aralin mismo sa sarili mo ang Kasulatan, imbis na patuloy na panghawakan ang mga preconceived notions and dogmas na tinanim sayo ng mga nakakataas sayo. Don't you know that Jesus wants to reveal Himself personally to you? Why not stop pursuing your idols and start focusing on pursuing no one but Jesus?

I'm hearing people, labeling us that we tolerate sin. That we teach na okay nang magkasala. You develop such stereotype only because you won't hear us completely. Don't you know that even si Apostle Paul ay pinaratangan din ng mga ganan? See Romans 3:8 and Romans 6:1-2. Because he would say things like this, Romans 5:20, "Now the Law came to increase the trespass, but where sin increased, grace abounded all the more."

I won't deny that what we preach is Hyper Grace, alam mo kung bakit? Kasi God's Grace itself is Hyper. Look at Apostle Paul? Look at Peter who denied Christ three times? Look at Thomas who still doubted after everything that Jesus did? And look at the other apostles and disciples who doubted the testimony that Jesus has risen from the dead (Mark 16:14)? Sa tingin mo hindi pa ba Hyper Grace 'yun that Jesus still retained them as His servants?

Even nung hindi pa naku-crucify si Christ, don't you know that God had been very gracious? Moses kind of break God’s principles when he married a Cushite woman other than his first Midianite wife Zipporah (Numbers 12:1); his sister Miriam tried to deal with him pero God defended Moses. Adam and Eve sinned, they were found naked and afraid, pero pinagtahi pa'din sila ni God ng damit to cover their shame (Genesis 3:21). That's what Jesus did to us. We were found naked because of our sins, but Christ put off His robe of righteousness to put it on us, hence He became sin and was crucified for our sake (2 Corinthians 5:21).

If Grace is not hyper? Why it is then na sa Romans 5:20, the original Greek word there for the English word ‘increase’ is the word hyperperisseuō? Revealing that when sin increased, grace didn’t just increase but it hyper-increased.

The real erroneous teaching is the idea that grace can be attain apart from Christ. And to teach that there’s no hell and that everyone will go to heaven is absurd. Kasi holiness, justification and adoption can only be attained by being one with Christ through faith. Without the hearing of the Gospel there will be no faith in Christ, and if there’s no faith in Christ, then that person cannot be in Christ. Hence he/she is still under God’s wrath and has no share sa inheritance ng mga saints.  

2 Corinthians 3:16-18, “But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed. Now the Lord is the Spirit, and where the Spirit of the Lord is, there is freedom. And we all, with unveiled face, beholding the glory of the Lord, are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another. For this comes from the Lord who is the Spirit.”

We preach grace in its true form, unlimited and abounding, because that’s what made us see grace as from God. Ang tao, kapag nagbigay ‘yan ng pabor, it’s either limitado o may hihinging kapalit later on. Why then are we treating God like human? Why do we put a limit to His grace and then treat the power of sin greater than the power of the blood of Christ? Bakit hindi natin mailagay sa kokote natin na palaging hihigit ang biyaya sa kapangyarihan ng kasalanan, kaya imposibleng maging alipin pa tayo ng kasalanan.  Romans 6:14, "For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under Law but under Grace."

1 John 3:9, “No one born of God makes a practice of sinning, for God's seed abides in him; and he cannot keep on sinning, because he has been born of God.” See that? A child of God cannot keep on sinning, kasi God will take care of Him and will help Him grow in righteousness. 

Romans 5:17, “For if, because of one man's trespass, death reigned through that one man, much more will those who receive the abundance of grace and the free gift of righteousness reign in life through the one man Jesus Christ.” What was said there? If a person’s mistake caused too much disaster, don’t you think that God, by a single offering, will be able to fix such mistake? If sin is so powerful that it was able to enslave the whole of humanity, paanong hindi ito mahihigitan ng nag-uumapaw na biyaya ng Dios? If Adam’s sin caused all of humanity to become sinners, paanong hindi hihigit duon ‘yung epekto ng libreng katuwiran na nagmumula kay Hesus? Kaya surely those who have received the hyper grace of God and His free gift of righteousness will triumph over sin and its entirety through the one man Jesus Christ. 

#PaPastor

[papastor]

The WORD of God

Is the Bible the WORD of God? Yes, in a sense that it is the collection of 66 books that was authored by different people, all inspired by the Holy Spirit. The miracle is that it was written by different people, of which some ay mga walang pinag-aralan, yet it effectively promotes a single theme with an absolute unity, and that is the Glory of God.   

Pero is the Bible the same WORD that is described in John 1:1-4?

(John 1:1-4) “In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God. He was in the beginning with God. All things were made through Him, and without Him was not any thing made that was made. In Him was life, and the life was the light of men.”

The answer is no! Because the WORD that is being described there is none other than Jesus Christ. He is God who became flesh. He is the WORD that was with the Father in the beginning, the WORD that brought everything into existence. With that being said already, let’s still declare the obvious---that the Bible is not God and it didn’t turn into flesh, so the Bible is not the WORD of God in relation to that description.

Yet some people fails to understand this. They treat the Bible as the WORD of God in a sense na every single word in it is considered as God’s direct spoken word. Hindi nyo ba alam na may salita si Satan sa Bible? Kasi the Bible is a collection of narrative and poems. They are stories of actual events that shows not only God but the others as well na involve sa narrative ng ating history. Kaya nga whenever it is read, it should be read in context. Hindi ‘yung gagawa agad kayo ng panibagong relihiyon kasi may isang verse na tumusok sa puso nyo.

Why am I clarifying this? Because many Christians today don’t know how to properly use the written word. They have this understanding that every word sa Bible ay spoken statement ni God in a sense na ang bawat salita at verse ay pedeng paghugutan ng katotohan kahit pa ito ay ginagamit ng hiwalay sa original nitong context. At dahil sa ganitong mindset, may mga tao na ang lakas lakas ng loob na gamitin ang Bible para ipagtanggol ang mali nilang idelohiya, kahit pa hindi na nito nire-reveal si Kristo. Kasi who can argue against the word of God nga naman diba? My goodness!

Okay sana kung hindi magdadala ng kaguluhan, pero nakaliligaw ang ganitong sistema. At ang nakakalungkot pa eh nangyayare that they miss the point of the Bible, and that is to testify about who Jesus is.

Nangyare ang ganito sa John 5, let’s read Jesus’ statement... John 5:39-40, 39 You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about Me, 40 yet you refuse to come to Me that you may have life.

Do you know the context of that statement? It was Jesus speaking to the Jews na almost kabisado na ang Scriptures. He said that to their faces, na basa daw sila ng basa ng Scriptures, sinasaliksik pa nga eh, pero they fail to attain eternal life from it because they miss the point of the Scriptures, that it is written to bear witness about Christ, the very WORD of God. 

At ito pa, John 8:31-32... 31 So Jesus said to the Jews who had believed Him, “If you abide in my Word, you are truly My disciples, 32 and you will know the truth, and the truth will set you free.” 

Alam nyo context nyan? Na-shook lang naman ang mga Hudyo after nilang marinig ‘yan, na-offend sila kasi Jesus told them to their faces na hindi sila nag-a-abide sa salita Nya, na hindi daw nila alam ang katotohanan, at sila daw ay mga alipin.

If you know who the Jews are, kahit ikaw mashu-shook din with that statement. For the Jews were raised hearing the Scriptures daily. Kung sila ay naglilingkod bilang mga priest, posible na oras-oras pa nila itong naririnig. Kaya nga we could argue na most of them ay halos kabisado na ang buong Scriptures (OT palang at that time). And yet Jesus said this straight to their faces---that they have to abide in His Word because only then that they will know the Truth and so be set free.

Jesus is trying to emphasize something here, that the Scriptures is nothing kung hindi ito gagamitin to know Him, for He is the very WORD of God Himself. 

Revelation 19:13, “He is clothed in a robe dipped in blood, and the name by which He is called is The Word of God.”

So the Bible, being the written word of God, must be used to bear witness about who Christ is. Kaya nga in the overview, Jesus is simply saying to the Jews na they should stop using the Scriptures like a haystack to search for a missing key; for it should be use as a magnifying lens to completely see the key that is already before them, and that is Jesus.

Yet the same happens today. Makinig ka ng mga trending online preachers ngayon, puro motivation at inspirational talks lang. Ginagamit ang Bible not for its true purpose but for their wordly purpose. Imbis na i-reveal si Christ, lalong kino-conceal, kasi sila mismo they don’t have the WORD abiding in them. Blind guides trying to lead others. They’re so good sa Scriptures, ang lulupit pa ng mga terminology sa theology pero sa loob ay puno ng greed and worldly desires. Kung titignan mukang ayos na ayos nga ang life, ang problema wala naman pala ang pangalan sa book of life. Just like the Pharisees, they are examples for morals, pero when their pride and authority is hit they will attack back with all their might until you would wish to be dead.

2 Corinthians 3:14-16, “But their minds were hardened. For to this day, when they read the old covenant, that same veil remains unlifted, because only through Christ is it taken away. Yes, to this day whenever Moses is read a veil lies over their hearts. But when one turns to the Lord, the veil is removed.

See, it really could happen, kahit pa nga sa time ni Apostle Paul, that people read the Scriptures and then miss out Jesus.

Now I’m not saying na hindi salita ng Dios ang buong Bible. What I’m saying is that you cannot say that you are treating the Bible as God’s word kung ginagamit mo naman ito apart from Christ. 

Ang gitara, pede mong gamitin sa maraming bagay, pede mo syang gamiting panghampas sa taong kinagagalitan mo, pero just because you’re using it doesn’t automatically make you use it right. The same goes with the Scriptures; just because you are teaching and quoting from it does not mean that you are really using it as God’s Word. 

Tignan mo nalang ‘yung mga taong ginagamit ang Scriptures to promote racism nuon. At kahit pa hanggang ngayon, ‘yung iba ginagamit pa’din ito pangpukol sa mga taong kinagagalitan nila. Ang tanong, are they using it right? And in such manner, is the Bible being treated as God’s Word? Obviously, hinde!    

To end this, let me clarify one last thing...

2 Timothy 3:14-17, ”But as for you, continue in what you have learned and have firmly believed, knowing from whom you learned it and how from childhood you have been acquainted with the sacred writings, which are able to make you wise for salvation through faith in Christ Jesus. All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be complete, equipped for every good work.”

Apostle Paul has been very clear about what the Bible does when properly used: 

It makes us wise for salvation.

It can train us for righteousness.

It can equip us for every good work. 

All of those three shows one thing---Christ-likeness. Because that’s what the Bible does, it shows Christ! Kaya naman it’s able to help us in becoming like Christ. Kaya nga hindi mo pedeng sabihin na porke may Jesus kana eh di mo na need ang Bible. No! The Scriptures is breathe out by God and given to the saints to help us in our sanctification.  

Yes, there are things that the Bible cannot do, like give us life and freedom. For Christ alone can do that. Pero because all Scriptures is breathe out by God, we thank God for it because through it we can behold Christ, the source of freedom and life. 

Luke 24:27, “And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, Jesus interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning Himself.”

The Bible is not the word of God in a sense that it’s not Christ Himself. Pero it is God’s word in a sense that it is capable of showing us who God is in Christ. So whenever you read the Bible, see to it that you will read it as the written word that should lead us to the revelation of Christ---the Living WORD of God. 

#PaPastor

[papastor]

Cheap Grace

Grace becomes cheap when people try to look at sin apart from the Holiness of God. It happens kapag ang tingin natin sa kasalanan ay mga simpleng misconduct lang like mga bisyo, pagmumura at ano pang mga barubal na gawain. Kapag ganito lang kababaw ang tingin mo sa kasalanan, you are only viewing it sa human standards. And because of this, you will never see where God should be in the issue of sin. Hindi mo makikita kung bakit kinailangan pang magkatawang tao ang Dios para mabayaran ang ating mga kasalanan.  And such blindness promotes this thinking---that being good can get you to heaven. Well that’s the real cheap grace. For it promotes the idea that man is capable of reaching the glory of God sa pamamagitan lang ng sarili nyang mga kamay. Kung kaya naman pala ng tao, why send Jesus then to die for our sins? And if He was sent to die for our sins only to provide an incomplete salvation, hindi ba’t that only makes His grace look cheap?   You see, God is holy, and we are not. And sin has made a disaster that only a divine being could fix. This is the simple truth: Malaki ang poblemang dinala ng ating mga ninuno. Sinubukan itong ayusin ng mga sumunod na henerasyon pero wala din silang nagawa. Tinawag ni God si Noah para magsimula ng panibago, pero sa paglipas ng panahon naulit lang ang disaster, sin just continued growing like an untamed monster. Tinawag si Abraham, pero ‘yung mga descendants naman nya ay naging pasaway, the LORD even called them as steepnecked people, and it happened nga that they failed to complete the task. See? Historically, people tried and yet they failed from time to time. Kasi nga hindi tayo ang Dios, tao lang tayo.  Ngayon, para ayusin ang poblema nating mga tao, sa paraang mape-preserve pa’din tayo, God became a man through our Lord Jesus Christ and fixed the problem for us once and for all. Hence salvation is by Grace. It is all by God’s doing, and now He chose to give it freely to those who will receive His Son Jesus Christ, thus this salvation is received by grace through faith. Ulitin ko, “By grace through faith.”  Yet many religious leaders today fail to see that. In their effort to escape the fullness of grace by trying to mix it with the Law, nagpo-promote sila ng ideya na kailangan pa’ding mag-ambag ng tao para sa kanyang kaligtasan, suggesting na what Christ did dun sa krus ay hindi pa sapat. They are promoting this idea that the Spirit could fail in sanctifying the saints. That the preaching of the Gospel of Grace could only lead to licentiousness; failing to see that God has ordained it, that it is through the folly of what is being preach that the believers are being saved (1 Corinthians 1:21). It is really foolish to just preach Christ and what He did, yet God made it the very power for sanctification to put the wise to shame, so that even them will be made humble and give glory to God through the Gospel of Christ. 

Let’s make this clear once and for all. Know that we are justified by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone. Hindi ito sa pamamagitan ng gawa, bagkus ito ay regalo ng Diyos na natatanggap sa pamamagitan ng pananampalataya (Romans 3:21-28). But how about James 1:17 ESV, "So also faith by itself, if it does not have works, is dead.”? I always answer that by explaining---the verse is the test-tool to know kung ang isang tao ay tunay ngang sumampalataya. Let’s have it within a scenario. Kunwari, you said that you believe and you have faith na hindi uulan mamaya. Kaso nung lumabas ka ng bahay, nagdala ka pa'din ng payong. With that, I could simply say na hindi ka tunay na sumampalataya; because if you really did have faith na hindi uulan edi sana you acted upon it at hindi kana nagdala pa ng payong. Thus, your faith is dead; as it is without the corresponding action. You just claim to have faith but your heart reveals the opposite through your action. Again, to expound that, let’s study Abraham’s account. Remember, after he heard the promise of God, he believed like a little kid; and Genesis 15:6 reveals to us that he was considered righteous because of this. Why then did God count his faith as righteousness? Kasi God saw that Abraham’s faith will lead him to obedience, thus God foreseeing what will come to pass, count Abraham as righteous at that point in time kahit pa faith palang ang meron sya. James 2:18, “But someone will say, ‘You have faith and I have works.’ Show me your faith apart from your works, and I will show you my faith by my works. You see what James did there? James imply that you cannot separate works from faith. Can you show your faith apart from works? No! Kaya nga he said this to counter it, “I will show you my faith by my works.” Because works is the evidence of faith pagdating sa ating mga tao, for we humans cannot see faith, we can only see the action. Pero God, He sees the soul, thus He could see faith, hence He can judge a person as righteous kahit pa faith palang ang naipe-present.   Jesus revealed this idea as well when He said this... (John 14:12) "I am telling you the truth: those who believe in Me will do what I do—yes, they will do even greater things, because I am going to the Father.---(John 14:16) And I will ask the Father, and He will give you another Helper (Holy Spirit), to be with you forever," Jesus is pointing out that the result of having faith in Him is action. Hindi sinasabe ni LORD dito na kapag naniwala ka eh dapat mag-act ka. Hindi ito command declaration, rather it is a retelling of how our salvation works through our faith. He said na kapag naniwala ang isang tao sa Kanya, actions will automatically follow. And He even added na hindi lang basta good deeds, but “even greater things”; kasi nga through His finished work the Holy Spirit is granted to us as we receive Him by faith.  Nakakalungkot that there are some people who doesn't understand the Gospel. Hindi na nga naintindihan pero may tapang pa'din to mock its message of Grace. They use James 1:17, interpreting it out of context, to attack the message of the Gospel which says, "For by grace you have been saved through faith. And this is not your own doing; it is the gift of God, not a result of works, so that no one may boast (Ephesians 2:8-9)." Dahil nga ina-out of context nila, ang nangyayare tuloy, nagmumukang mali 'yung Bible. Kasi, through their misuse of the text, it starts to sound like it declares an unclear message about how to be truly saved. Kaya kapag nababasa 'yung Galatians 5:4 nagugulantang; hindi makasagot at hindi din makapagpaliwanag.   Galatians 5:4 GNT, "Those of you who try to be put right with God by obeying the Law have cut yourselves off from Christ. You are outside God's grace." Some would even use Philippians 2:12 to stand their ground about this misconception, saying na, “Work-out your own salvation nga eh!” Pero wrong move again kasi out of context, dahil kung babasahin mo 'yung verse 13, it says, "for it is God who works in you, both to will and to work for His good pleasure." Si God pa'din ang gagawa ng paraan, through you, to save you. Supporting the idea that faith justifies, because genuine faith works! And it works because Christ did all the work to secure us the Holy Spirit that grants us life and power to live as we ought to.  Philippians 3:9 GNT, "I no longer have a righteousness of my own, the kind that is gained by obeying the Law. I now have the righteousness that is given through faith in Christ, the righteousness that comes from God and is based on faith."   Be careful, alalahanin mo na ang rason kung bakit hindi nakapasok si Moses sa Promised Land is because he failed to believe and present God as Holy before the people of Israel (Numbers 20:12). Isang beses lang dapat hahampasin 'yung Rock for water to come out, actually, debatable pa nga kung need talaga hampasin, kasi the text says na all he had to do was command the Rock in God's name to bring forth water, pero hinampas nya, and he did it twice. And that scenario echoes ‘yung ginagawa ng ibang mga religious leaders ngayon, they are preaching a grace that is tainted with human effort, and by this they are unknowingly promoting this evil idea na kulang pa ang ginawa ni Jesus sa cross kaya dapat pa itong dagdagan.  Hebrews 10:14 ESV, "For by a single offering Christ has perfected for all time those who are being sanctified." If you are in Christ, fully believing that what He did on the cross has provided for you a justification that is far beyond any human could attain, and if it happened na mamatay ka ngayon, no matter how imperfect you are, surely you are saved by the imputation ng righteousness ni Christ sayo by faith. And if He will give you more time to live in this world, surely you will win over the enslaving power of sin, kasi by God's grace the Spirit of power that raise Christ from the dead now lives in you. That's the simple Gospel! It’s not cheap because it was paid with a hyper amount that made us, worthless sinners, be counted as God’s very own children. Holy and blameless in His sight as we are clothe by the perfect righteousness of Christ. Brothers and sisters, let's not crucify Christ twice by doubting His finished work. The real erroneous teaching is the idea that the preaching of the Gospel is not enough. Well, meron talagang hindi tatanggap, pero that’s their problem na. Pero to those who will receive and believe the Gospel of Grace, they will recieve justification that will allow them to become the temple of the Holy Spirit. And through the continous preaching of the WORD of Christ (the best form of discipleship), the Spirit will testify in our hearts and will cause us to behold Him (John 15:26), and by beholding Him we will be transfromed from glory to glory (2 Corinthians 3:17-18). And it will happen, because God is faithful and He cannot fail (1 Thessalonians 5:23-24).

#PaPastor

[papastor]

Butterflies This book is based on a true story, touched with the wonder of imagination. The names, characters, places and incidents are the product of the author’s experience and made colourful by imagination. Any resemblance to actual locales, or persons, is intentionally done to promote the things of my country, Philippines; and even the secrets of my heart.

Copyright © 2017 by This is Love Cover Copyright © 2017 by This is Love Cover Art by Dhianne Rose A. Carrasco This is Love is an organization that promotes God’s concept of love. It banners the beauty of God’s love that was presented through the Gospel of Jesus Christ. The scanning, uploading, and distribution of this book without permission is a theft of the author’s intellectual property. If you would like permission to use material from the book (other than review purposes), please message us on Facebook: @ThisisLove410. Thank you for your support of the author’s rights. This is Love Facebook, @ThisisLove410 Instagram, @thisislove316 Originally published in softcover by This is Love in January 2017. This is Love is a small company that aims to establish a business in which charity is the center allotment of the profit. We live to shine the light of the majesty of Love Himself. Please visit This is Love Facebook Page. It is a page that aims to redefine love by retelling what it is through God’s Word. PaPastor is the caffeinated being that lives for God’s glory and for coffee. He is the founder of This is Love; founded by the love of God. He is a two-time college drop-out. Now he’s continuing his studies at home where there’s no professor to pressure him and no tuition fee to hurt his finances. He is simply a failure under God’s abundant grace. Everything that PaPastor is—was made possible by God and through the people around him: his family, uncles and aunts, cousins, friends, pastors, and cellgroup members. As my expression of gratitude, this thanksgiving will be printed in every copy of my book. And so I write thank you to my father who consciously and even subconsciously led me to where I am now. To my mother whose love still echoes in my life though she’s no longer around. To my siblings who are the good bacteria in my life, of which if where not around, surely, I wouldn’t be able to stand against the bad things of this life. To my stepmother who has taken care of us in her perfect loving way. To my Aunt Elenita who had supported me practically, thus the publishing of this book became possible. To my pastor who taught to me what the power of believing in someone could do. To my cousins who supported me. To my friends who were always there to help. To my church, Binangonan Church of Christ. And to Jesus Christ whose grace has become sufficient in all my times of weakness. Butterflies (click to download pdf file) It tells about the story of John, an engineering student, who treated love as a gamble only to find himself caught in a game, a game wherein his heart is at stake. Set in the time where smartphones is yet to be born, inside the beautiful walls of Intramuros.   

#PaPastor