The Church of Jesus Christ in Zimbabwe

05/11/2025

MESSAGE TITLE : “CALCULATING THE COST OF FOLLOWING CHRIST"

📖 Calculating the Cost of Following Christ
MAIN TEXT: Luke 14:25–35

🔍 Key Questions to Explore

1. Did Jesus mean we should hate our parents and relatives?
- Not in the literal sense of emotional hatred. Jesus used hyperbolic language to emphasize _priority_. Our love and loyalty to Him must surpass all other relationships.

2. Was He referring to biological relatives?
- Yes, but symbolically too. “Father,” “mother,” “wife,” “children,” “siblings” can represent spiritual influences, traditions, and fleshly attachments.

3. Shall we carry a literal cross?
- No. The cross symbolizes _sacrifice_, _suffering_, and _dying to self_. It’s a metaphor for enduring hardship and crucifying fleshly desires.

4. How do we deny ourselves?
- By surrendering personal ambitions, comforts, and sinful habits to pursue Christ’s will above all.

🧠 Understanding the Symbolism

Jesus wasn’t just speaking to individuals—He was addressing a religious system entrenched in tradition, law, and self-righteousness. Let’s decode the metaphors:

SYMBOL/SPIRITUAL MEANING

FATHER: Religious leaders/doctrinal roots (e.g., Pharisees, scribes)
MOTHER :The law and teachings that nurtured the old system
WIFE : The body (flesh) with its desires and appetites
CHILDREN : Habits born of the flesh (e.g., lust, pride, envy)
BROTHERS & SISTERS : Fellow worshippers in false or compromised systems
YOURSELF : Ego, personal agenda, comfort, reputation .
CROSS: Daily sacrifice, crucifying the flesh, enduring hardship---

🧎🏽‍♂️ Galatians 5:16–21 Connection
Paul explains the war between flesh and Spirit. To follow Christ, we must:

- Walk by the Spirit
- Crucify the desires of the flesh
- Reject works of the flesh: sexual immorality, idolatry, jealousy, pride, etc.

🧱 Parables of the Tower & the King (Luke 14:28–32)

- Tower Builder: Don’t start the journey without counting the cost. Half-built faith invites mockery.

- Warring King: Don’t enter spiritual warfare
unprepared. Surrender if you’re not ready.

🧂 Salt That Loses Its Flavor (Luke 14:34–35)

- A disciple who loses conviction and commitment becomes ineffective.
- True discipleship must preserve its spiritual potency.

🧨 SUMMARY: WHAT MUST YOU DENY?

- a) Father – Religious traditions that oppose grace
- b) Mother – False teachings and legalism
- c) Wife – Fleshly desires and bodily indulgence
- d) Children – Sinful habits and behaviors
- e) Siblings – Peer influence in compromised worship
- f) Yourself – Personal ambitions and comfort
- g) Cross – Daily sacrifice and spiritual discipline

🗣️ Final Charge

> “So likewise, whosoever he be of you that forsaketh not all that he hath, he cannot be my disciple.” — _Luke 14:33_

Calculate the cost. Crucify the flesh. Follow Christ.

AMEN AND AMEN
CHURCH CHRIST'S BODY !!!!!!!!!!!!!
For details contact Pastor Hware at +263 776 033 077 603 3126 /0717 102 441

03/11/2025

03/11/2025

*INTERPRETATION OF THE BOOK OF REVELATIONS*

*Revelations 5 to 8*

•Revelations 5 to 8 in summary, is a vision, in which John is seeing the throne, surrounded by Angels, 4 living creatures, 24 elders and a scroll in the right hand of the one sitting on the throne. The scroll is sealed with seven seals, and nobody in heaven or on earth is found capable of opening the seals, except the lamb who was slained. And whenever the lamb opens one of the seals, something happens on the earth.

•Here is the interpretation of the chapters with regard to characters.

Characters:

1.The lamb - *represents Jesus*

2.The scroll - *represents, prophecies of the new testament, or the new testament itself*

3.Seals - *represents signs of the prophecies of the new testament* or *signs of the second coming*

4.144 000 sealed - *represents all those who were saved through the promise given by God to Abraham*,

_The vision is yet to be fulfilled, because some of the signs here, are yet to be observed_

03/11/2025

*UNDERSTANDING THE GIFT OF PROPHECY*🔳 •PART ONE• °lDENTIFYING THE TRUE or THE FALSE PROPHET AS A CHRISTIAN 🟤 ^.. Amen and Amen 🙏💫🔥💪
*UNDERSTANDING THE GIFT OF PROPHECY*🔳 •

°lDENTIFYING THE TRUE or THE FALSE PROPHET AS A CHRISTIAN 🟤
^(by *Muzana the patriach*)^

°Most church leaders of this generation identify themselves as prophets because the title draws crowds (*kungonzi muporofita automatically kunokoka vanhu*). They use the title "prophet" as a marketing strategy to market their churches.They deliberately forsake their true titles, their true spiritual gifts scrambling for the title prophet because it is "catchy", it attracts masses, it invites the uninvited.Whenever someone sees a poster ,a flier or a banner with the candidate being identified as *prophet* ,they are easily captivated, they see their problems already solved. They see deliverance and healing which becomes the center and driving force for their visit to maybe a crusade marketed on a poster .Unlike the titles apostle, pastor, teacher and evangelist.These titles don't draw crowds anymore .They are not liked by many and the false prophets are very much aware of that .*Bear this is mind ,most people in these modern days go to church not for salvation but for prosperity.They want financial breakthroughs .They want a good life .They also go to church because they have a problem that requires immediate help or the consultation of a prophet ,therefore they don't see the potential of deliverance in the title apostle, pastor, teacher but "prophet"*.
§••Muchishona
*Ukabvunza ruzhinji k*ti wakapindirei church yauri anoti ndakaona ruoko rwaMwari ,ndakanamatirwa ndikapora ,ndaive rovha asi ndakawana basa ndanamatirwa nemunhu waMwari ,vava vashoma vanopindira church k*tendeuka kwekusiya mabasa akaipa asi k*ti vazhinji yava nyaya yekunamatirwa matambudziko avo, Saka zita rek*ti prophet rinokoka vanhu vakadai zvikuru ,rine mudano*,
It becomes very crucial for every Christian or believer to understand the gift of prophecy so that they won't be led astray by deceivers.

*DIFFERENTIATING THE GIFTS*

°Some of our church leaders are not even prophets, they are apostles , pastors and teachers that have stolen the title prophet just for it's drawing power and market. Understanding the difference or being able to distinguish these gifts is an armor that can be used by every christian to shield themselves from the arrows of false teachings.....

*WHAT THEN IS THE FUNCTION OF A PROPHET*
The gift of prophecy is different from the gift of evangelism .The gift of prophecy is different from the gift of apostleship, teaching and even the gift of dream interpretation. Like l said before, some of our church leaders are apostles or teachers or evangelists who are now identifying themselves as prophets for "market".So to cut is short :

*A prophet foretells people only what is going to happen in the future. God uses him as his instrument to tell his people about his plans for the future mainly in regard to their sins.
We can conclude this by studying the callings and prophecies of the major and minor prophets of the bible who were :
Ezekiel
Isiah
Jeremiah
Jonah
Hosea
Malachi
Joel..........and so on !

°These men foretold people what would happen in the future *not the present*, take note of that .They were used by God himself to give people a clue on what God was planning for the people in regard to their sins.
So any church leader or anyone who attends to you saying "Your aunt is the reason for your problems, she is bewitching you"(muchishona "tete vako ndovarikukonzera dambudziko rako ndovarikukuroya) . That person is not a prophet but a *seer*
§••Muchishona:
*Muporofita anoudza vanhu zvichaitika mberi chete, uyo anoudza vanhu zviri kuitika panguva ino haasi muporofita "muoni"*(a seer)

Amen

29/10/2024

29/07/2024

Vose vakararama nok*tenda, vaiva nemuono umwe, vachiziva k*t panyika hatina guta rinogara.
Vanotenda havatariri zvikuru mubairo wavo paneino nyika asi iyo yakagadzirwa naMwari inouya.
Isu tinotariravo zvikuru k*ti zuva iro guru raShe risvike takaritarisira timire mutariro mhenyu isingazununguswi.
Nok*ti kana achiti uchabvundisa denga nenyika kamwe, ngatimirevo tisingazununguswi.
Fambai zvakafanira kudamwa kwenyu.

Kutenda kwevakatanga kwaibata zvikuru nok*terera.
Vaitenda k*ti kunaMwari iye wakaita zvose zvinoonekwa kubva mushoko rake.
Nok*ti vakatanga vaiva vasina pavanorava pakanyorwa, asi vainzwisisa kwazvo kubata kwaMwari.
Isu zvatine zvizhinji zvinopupurira k*tenda kwatimire makuri, ngatiwanze zvikuru k*terera zvirevo zvake kubva pamoyo uye mumagwaro.

Baba vedu ndiye mutongi mwana ndiye mumiririri, isu zvatakatengwa navo ndianiko uchatirwisa akakunda? ndiani uchatipa mhaka zvatinoraramira Ishe anotonga marudzi ose?

Mwari ngaavongwe!

09/07/2024

: ADMONITION

Romans 16
17 Now I plead with you, brethren, look out for those who cause divisions and hindrances contrary to the teaching you have learned, and avoid them. 18 For such people do not serve our Lord Jesus Christ, but their own stomach, and by flattery and fine speeches deceive the hearts of the simple. 19For your obedience has become known to everyone. So I am happy about you, but I want you to be wise concerning what is good, and simple concerning evil.

Paul warned believers about false teachers in many of his letters (2 Cor 11:13-15; Gal 1:6-8; Col 2:8, 18; 1 Tim 4:1-3; 2 Tim 3:1-8; 4:2-4). See also Matt 7:15-16; 24:4-5, 24; Acts 20:29-31; 2 Pet 2:1-2; 1 John 2:18-19; Jude 4. Truth is God’s instrument to save people and to establish and build up believers. Falsehood is Satan’s way of trying to destroy people (John 8:44). Satan uses false teachers ,fake prophets,fake pastors and fake apostles to introduce false doctrines into churches i.e prosperity gospel, sabbath keeping ,tithing,transitional doctrine,rapture etc(Matt 24 vs24).Fake bishops are starting their own so-called churches as a business to steal money from poor people to build their mansions ,empires and expensive cars.We can recognize false teachers by the results of their teaching (Matt 7:20). One result will be “divisions”. Another will be that obstacles in the way of following the truth will be created, and these obstacles will be contrary to God’s revealed truth.
When anyone tries to bring false teaching into the church believers must do one thing only – “avoid them”. They must not accept them, have fellowship with them, or permit them to teach

Amen Church of Jesus Christ !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

06/07/2024

THE IMPORTANCE OF THE HOLY SPIRIT

“You foolish Galatians! Who has bewitched you?” (Galatians 3:1)

Don’t you love how kind and gentle Paul’s letters are?

What was it that got the apostle so worked up? It was because the Galatians had the wrong idea about the importance of the Holy Spirit. They understood the role that the Spirit played in their conversion, but they were missing out on His role as Helper in the ongoing life of a Christian. Their new life in Christ had begun by responding to the gospel through faith, but they were now trying to maintain it by human effort, rather than relying on the Holy Spirit.

Many Christians today get caught in the same trap as the Galatians: we forget why the Holy Spirit is so important. If we want to avoid being “foolish Galatians,” we need to respond to the Holy Spirit and the way He operates in our lives.

Here are five key roles that the Holy Spirit plays in the Christian's life.

1. HE GUIDES YOU INTO JESUS’ TRUTH
Jesus was clear on the importance of the Holy Spirit: “But when he, the Spirit of truth, comes, he will guide you into all the truth... he will glorify me because it is from me that he will receive what he will make known to you” (John 16:13-14). Do you want to know what Jesus is saying to you as you journey through this life? Do you want to be able to hear God’s voice as you read through the pages of the Bible? It is the Holy Spirit, the Spirit of Truth, who communicates all of that to you.

2. HE DIRECTS YOUR STEPS
The Holy Spirit not only speaks the words of Jesus to you, but he actually is the one who leads and directs your steps into the abundant life that Jesus promised. Paul wrote, “You, however, are controlled not by the sinful nature but by the Spirit…. And if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead is living in you, He who raised Christ from the dead will also give life to your mortal bodies through his Spirit, who lives in you” (Romans 8:9, 11). The Holy Spirit is the conduit of life from God into your heart. He is the one who controls your thoughts, attitudes, words, and actions as you follow His leading. He will direct your steps through all the complicated paths of life and keep you from sin. That is abundant life!

3. HE GIVES YOU SPIRITUAL GIFTS
The Holy Spirit is also the one who gives spiritual gifts to all followers of Jesus so that we all can play our role in the Body of Christ. Paul gave us a sampling of those gifts in his first letter to the Corinthian church:

“Now to each one the manifestation of the Spirit is given for the common good. To one there is given through the Spirit a message of wisdom, to another a message of knowledge by means of the same Spirit, to another faith by the same Spirit, to another gifts of healing by that one Spirit, to another miraculous powers, to another prophecy, to another distinguishing between spirits, to another speaking in different kinds of tongues, and to still another the interpretation of tongues. All these are the work of one and the same Spirit, and he distributes them to each one, just as He determines” (1 Corinthians 12:7-11).

It is through these gifts of the Spirit that we function best as the Church, and it is through these gifts that we are able to proclaim the power of Jesus to people who desperately need to know our Savior, even though there are no miracles performing today and no speaking of tongues as some people supposed). See 1 Corinthians 14:1-30

4. HE EMPOWERS YOU TO PROCLAIM:
In the book of Acts, Luke recalls over and over the crucial role the Holy Spirit played in the early Church’s proclamation of the Gospel. When Peter and John stood accused before powerful leaders, Luke reported that Peter was filled with the Holy Spirit and boldly proclaimed that Jesus Christ of Nazareth, the One they had crucified, was the only way to salvation (Acts 4:5-12). This is the same Peter who only two months earlier had denied Jesus. And now, standing in the very place where Jesus had been condemned, Peter accused these religious elite that they had crucified the Messiah. That new boldness could only be possible through the empowering of the Holy Spirit.

5. HE GUARANTEES YOUR HOPE OF HEAVEN:
The Holy Spirit is also important because He is the guarantee of your inheritance in heaven. “When you obeyed the gospel, you were marked in Him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God’s possession” (Ephesians 1:13-14). Satan wants to destroy your hope and tries to get you to doubt your Savior’s love. But the Spirit’s leading, teaching, gifting, and proclaiming is proof that you belong to God as long as you live the Christian life and remain faithful to God.

So don’t let anyone “bewitch” you. The Holy Spirit is of vital importance in your life. It is through Him that the character of Christ is revealed in you: “The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, forbearance, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control. Against such things there is no law… . If we live by the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” Galatians 5:22-23, 25 Ps Hware