Haven City Church Sermons

In this message from 2 Corinthians 1:15–2:4, Pastor Josh Turansky looks at Paul’s “change of plans” and the accusations that he was flaky and double‑minded. We trace Paul’s original travel itinerary, why he delayed his visit, and how he defends his integrity by anchoring it in the faithfulness of God whose every promise is “Yes” in Christ. Along the way, we see how Jesus rescues us from suspicion...

What does it look like to do relationships as a New Covenant partner with God? In this message from 2 Corinthians 1:12–14, Pastor Josh Turansky explores how Paul relates to a hurting, suspicious church with a clear conscience, godly sincerity, and transparent communication. Paul doesn’t just do ministry; he narrates his motives, his decisions, and his hope for the Corinthians all the way to “the d...

In 2 Corinthians 1:3–11, Paul shows us that God is the Father of mercies and the God of all comfort. In this message, Josh Turansky explores how suffering strips away self-reliance, teaches us to depend on the God who raises the dead, and equips us to share Christ-shaped comfort with others.

In this sermon Haven City Church launches its 2 Corinthians series by slowing down over the opening greeting of the letter. In a strained relationship between a weary pastor and a complicated church, Paul introduces himself as an apostle “by the will of God” and dares to call the Corinthians “the church of God” and “saints.” From there we discover a surprising truth: before God gives explanations...

Amos delivered a devastating word to a prosperous people who had mistaken God's patience for His approval. Within 38 years, every word of judgment came to pass — the Northern Kingdom was scattered across the Assyrian Empire, the booth of David reduced to rubble. But Amos wasn't finished. Against all odds, God promised to raise what looked irreparably broken. Seven hundred and ninety year...

In this message, Pastor Josh continues our series in Amos by walking through God’s visions of the plumb line and the basket of ripe fruit. We’ll see how Israel mistook God’s patience for permission, how Amaziah the priest embodies the danger of managing God’s word instead of receiving it, and how these warnings point us to Jesus—the true plumb line and the One who bears the judgment our sins have...

In this sermon from Amos 6, Pastor Josh Turansky explores why God says, ‘I loathe Jacob’s pride,’ and how that word speaks directly into life in Baltimore today. Walking through the text, he shows how Israel’s pride took the form of complacent ease, insulated luxury, and practical atheism—using God’s gifts to hide from God’s heart. Then he contrasts biblical pride with a healthy, gospel-shaped sel...

In this sermon from Amos 5, Pastor Josh explores what it means when God says He actually hates His people’s worship—not because He’s against singing or gatherings, but because their rituals are divorced from justice, righteousness, and real repentance. Through Amos’ funeral lament over “Virgin Israel,” the repeated invitation to “seek Me and live,” and the warning that the Day of the Lord will be...

Amos 4 will help us ask an uncomfortable but freeing question: What if some of the hard things in our lives are not random, but invitations from God to come back to Him with our whole heart? Together we’ll hear the sobering call, “Prepare to meet your God,” not as a threat for other people out there, but as a gracious warning for us—to repent of empty religion, selfish comfort, and injustice, and...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 24:29-35, contrasting the kingdom present in the heart (Sermon on the Mount) with the future kingdom revealed in the Olivet Discourse, asserting that belief in Christ's return is necessary to justify the hardships of living as a kingdom citizen now. Jesus details the immediate post-distress cosmic cataclysms, the visible arrival of the Son of...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 24:15-28 and the cosmic battle theory, explaining that humanity was created as image-bearing covenant partners placed in the midst of an ongoing war against Satan, where acts of faithfulness constitute spiritual warfare. Jesus provides a key end-time sign, the abomination of desolation, which is a defiling act leading to unparalleled great distress...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 23:37-39, explaining Jesus's lament over Jerusalem just days before his crucifixion. He describes how this passage reveals God's persistent, compassionate love for his people, likening it to a hen gathering her chicks, and contrasts it with humanity's tendency toward spiritual stubbornness and self-sufficiency.

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 22:1-14, presenting Jesus's parable of the wedding banquet as a rebuke to the religious leaders who rejected God's invitation to His kingdom. The parable illustrates the historic rejection of God's invitations by the initially invited, the subsequent broad invitation to all, and the essential requirement of accepting God's provi...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 21:33-46. He presents the parable of the tenant farmers, where a landowner's servants and son are abused and killed by the farmers entrusted with his vineyard, symbolizing Israel's rejection of God's prophets and ultimately His Son. Jesus uses this to declare that the kingdom of God will be taken from those who reject Him and given t...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 21:28-32. He explains the parable of the two sons, contrasting the son who says "no" but obeys with the son who says "yes" but fails to act, emphasizing the importance of follow-through and genuine obedience to God's will. Jesus applies this by stating that tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God befo...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 21:18-27. He explains Jesus' cursing of the fig tree as a profound spiritual diagnosis of outward appearance without inner fruitfulness, contrasting it with God's desire for a living trust and faith that enables one to do mighty things. He also discusses Jesus' encounter with the religious elite, highlighting how Jesus' question...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 21:12-17, explaining Jesus's cleansing of the temple where he drove out buyers and sellers, overturned money changers' tables, and healed the blind and lame, declaring the temple a "house of prayer" rather than a "den of thieves". Josh contrasts the indignant response of the religious leaders to Jesus's actions an...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 21:1-11. He explains Jesus's intentional triumphal entry into Jerusalem, fulfilling Old Testament prophecy as a humble king on a donkey rather than a warhorse. Josh contrasts the crowd's desire for a political liberator with Jesus's true mission to save humanity from sin and offer reconciliation with God, highlighting that Jesus is t...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 20:29-34, focusing on the healing of two blind men near Jericho. He explains that the kingdom of God responds to desperate faith and humility, particularly when those in genuine need refuse to be silenced by cultural or religious pressure, and that Jesus asks questions as an invitation for honest engagement that facilitates His compassionate and re...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 20:1-16, using the parable of the vineyard workers to explore the principles of the kingdom of heaven. He explains that God's economy operates on radical grace and generosity, challenging human tendencies toward merit-based thinking, comparison, and resentment, as all recipients of God's blessing are ultimately recipients of unmerited fav...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 19:27-30, where Peter asks what reward the disciples will receive for leaving everything to follow Jesus. He explains that while "leaving everything" is a heart matter and a call to radical commitment and surrender of ownership of one's life to Jesus, not necessarily a physical change of profession or location for everyone, Jesus pro...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 19:16-26. He teaches about the rich young man's encounter with Jesus, emphasizing that true discipleship involves identifying and surrendering one's "one thing" or idol—which often serves as a source of security, hope, and meaning—and reorienting one's entire life to Jesus, because while entering the kingdom of God is impos...

In this sermon Josh Turansky teaches from Matthew 19:3-12, discussing Jesus' teaching on marriage, divorce, and singleness. He explains Jesus' ideal for marriage from Genesis 1-2 and contrasts it with Moses' accommodation for divorce in Deuteronomy 24 due to the hardness of human hearts, also addressing the meaning of "defiled" in that context and listing other biblical ac...