Josh Turansky

Talking About Forgiveness

Sun, 19 May 2013 13:10:04 -0700

This morning I had the privilege of teaching at Calvary Chapel Living Hope in Robinsville, New Jersey. This is a new fellowship that my Dad planted last year.

I shared about forgiveness. Here was my application.

First, We need to forgive people unconditionally, unilaterally in our hearts as fast as possible. This means that we are at least, sparing the offender our wrath, bearing with the offender and not giving up on them, covering over the sin so that it is not our focus when we think about them or talk about them, identify it as something left or something we are divorced from, seeking their favor and blessing,and lastly agree to cancel their moral debt to you.  

This response is described in Romans 12:17-21

“Repay no one evil for evil, but give thought to do what is honorable in the sight of all. 18 If possible, so far as it depends on you, live peaceably with all. 19 Beloved, never avenge yourselves, but leave it to the wrath of God, for it is written, “Vengeance is mine, I will repay, says the Lord.” 20 To the contrary, “if your enemy is hungry, feed him; if he is thirsty, give him something to drink; for by so doing you will heap burning coals on his head.” 21 Do not be overcome by evil, but overcome evil with good.” 

Russ Moore “One of the reasons this is hard for us is because we too often assume forgiving a trespasser means allowing an injustice to stand. This attitude betrays a defective eschatology. At our Lord’s arrest (Matt. 26:47-54), Jesus told Peter to put his sword back into his sheath not because Jesus didn’t believe in punishing evildoers (think Armageddon). Jesus told Peter he could have an armada of angelic warriors at his side (and one day he will). But judgment was not yet, and Peter wasn’t judge.  That’s the point.  When we forgive, we are confessing that vengeance is God’s (Rom. 12:19). We don’t need to exact justice from a fellow believer because justice has already fallen at the cross. We don’t need to exact vengeance from an unbeliever because we know the sin against us will be judged in hell or, more hopefully, when the offender unites himself to the One who is “the propitiation for our sins, and not for ours only but also for the sins of the whole world” (1 Jn. 2:2).”

Second, we still address other believer’s sin because of our love for them and a desire for them to be sanctified. We also address issues of sin because we want to protect others from being injured. Confrontation/Conflict cannot be selfish. (Note: our confrontation of other’s sin is not based on vindication, a desire to inflict pain, or to get even.)

Galatians 6:1 “Brothers, if anyone is caught in any transgression, you who are spiritual should restore him in a spirit of gentleness. Keep watch on yourself, lest you too be tempted.”
Matthew 18:15 “If your brother sins against you, go and tell him his fault, between you and him alone. If he listens to you, you have gained your brother.

Third, sometimes we allow natural consequences to transpire or impose social limits so that a sinning person is motivated to repent. (Note: again, this is not done out of vindication, a desire to inflict pain or to get even. And they need to know that you are ready to restore favor once they have repented.)

1 Corinthians 5:3-5 For though absent in body, I am present in spirit; and as if present, I have already pronounced judgment on the one who did such a thing. 4 When you are assembled in the name of the Lord Jesus and my spirit is present, with the power of our Lord Jesus, 5 you are to deliver this man to Satan for the destruction of the flesh, so that his spirit may be saved in the day of the Lord.
Matthew 18:17 If he refuses to listen to them, tell it to the church. And if he refuses to listen even to the church, let him be to you as a Gentile and a tax collector.

This guy tagged along with me tonight. He is becoming a little...

Sun, 05 May 2013 18:52:04 -0700

This guy tagged along with me tonight. He is becoming a little man. (at Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa)

The Christian Parenting Handbook

Mon, 29 Apr 2013 09:10:57 -0700

Today is a big day for my dad. His latest book is being released through Thomas Nelson. I’ve gotten a chance to look over it and I can’t recommend it high enough.

This is a great tool for new parents and it should be a standard gift at baby showers.

You can also score a tone of free resources if you buy the book this week. Check out the details here.

I’m thankful for the heritage God gave me. This book is...

Fri, 26 Apr 2013 10:29:45 -0700

I’m thankful for the heritage God gave me. This book is proof. – View on Path.

9 Ways to Keep Up With Calvary Chapel News

Wed, 03 Apr 2013 15:27:29 -0700

There is no single news source for Calvary Chapel and it is easy to feel disconnected from the movement as a whole. Here are nine ways I stay current with Calvary Chapel news.

1. Web Sites

2. Facebook

I have clicked the “fan” button on many Calvary Chapel pastor’s and church’s Facebook pages.
I also have “friended” a number of Calvary Chapel leaders and found them eager to connect.

3. Twitter

I have created a list of Calvary Chapel Leaders on Twitter and I’m reading off of this list multiple times a day.
I also will do a search for “Calvary Chapel” to see what is being said.

4. Podcasts

Apple has recently been giving more attention to their Podcasting App for the iPhone and iPad. You can search for Calvary Chapel Pastors and follow along with their weekly studies. I’m subscribed to Joe Focht, Damian Kyle, Brian Brodersen, and David Guzik

5. Calvary Chapel Magazine

The Magazine is published quarterly and does a professional job of summarizing Calvary Chapel events. The primary focus is on current outreach and missions trips done by Calvary Chapels. You can check out their web site here.

6. Subscribe to a Google Search

Do a google blog search for the phrase “Calvary Chapel”. At the bottom of the page you can either “Create an email alert for Calvary Chapel” or you can click on RSS and add the URL to your RSS reader of choice.

7. Subscribe to Blogs

Up until a month ago I was using Google Reader to subscribe to various Calvary Chapel blogs. But Google announced that they are killing off this app and so I moved over to Feedly.

8. Regional Conferences

Find your local Calvary Chapel ministry conferences and plan on attending. Now, good luck in trying to find info online about your regional conference. There is no centralized list of conferences with dates. But you can contact the leaders listed in your region to find out what is scheduled.

9. The List Serve and Email Loops

Based on what region you are in, there are different tools used to communicate privately among leaders. Typically these private messaging systems are only accessible to senior pastors, but you would want to ask your local leadership about what is available.

The Week's Happenings

Tue, 02 Apr 2013 15:15:00 -0700

I’m enjoying my Easter break this week. Here is a snap shot of what is on my radar.

Easter Break from School

Writing a research paper on Calvary Chapel’s history for my Church History class. Here are some of my sources.
Catching up on homework, speed reading,

#TheBible Series Concluded

Peter Enns Reviews the season.
Gospel Coalition Summary

New Books

Zero Church (Free on ebook)

2013 Major League Baseball opens this week and I’m rooting for my home team: the Philadelphia Phillies.

He arose! We have been raised with Him.

Sun, 31 Mar 2013 07:56:03 -0700

He arose! We have been raised with Him.

Nice day for the park – View on Path.

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 15:49:11 -0700

Nice day for the park – View on Path.

Introducing the Straw man (Plus cool graphic)

Thu, 14 Mar 2013 09:59:21 -0700

Introducing the Straw man (Plus cool graphic):

This is a great little post from my friend Brian Weed.

Phil Robertson from Duck Commander shares his testimony.

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 14:19:00 -0700

Phil Robertson from Duck Commander shares his testimony.

"Often the loudest have the least to lose and the quietest have the most to lose. This is unfortunate..."

Wed, 13 Mar 2013 10:18:00 -0700

“Often the loudest have the least to lose and the quietest have the most to lose. This is unfortunate because the one with the most to lose probably has something good to say.”

- A strong leader is willing to speak up in the face of potential loss.

Give Tebow a Pass

Sat, 23 Feb 2013 17:01:03 -0800

When I came to Troas ⌊to preach⌋ the gospel of Christ, the Lord opened a door for me. I had no rest in my spirit because I did not find my brother Titus, but I said good-bye to them and left for Macedonia. (2 Corinthians 2:12, 13 HCSB)

If you give Paul a pass on his decision to move through Troas, then you should give Tebow a pass. Not every open door requires us to engage.

Men’s Breakfast (at Refuge Calvary Chapel HB)

Sat, 23 Feb 2013 08:30:14 -0800

Men’s Breakfast (at Refuge Calvary Chapel HB)

Prayer Request from Clay Worrell in Ireland

Thu, 31 Jan 2013 09:26:00 -0800

I got an update from my Pastor friend Clay in Ireland. Please keep these guys in prayer.

“The last few months we have seen God do some absolutely amazing things in Calvary Waterford, we were getting settled in to our building on the Quay and really making progress in the building projects. The church has grown substantially in this short amount of time, I don’t think there has been a week without multiple visitors or new people since we have been meeting in our new facilities. We are really encouraged and are anticipating great things for this next year. God is truly awesome.

However, with growth comes growing pains and when God is doing awesome things there is always opposition. This tuesday I had an appointment with the Fire Marshal to go through the building and asses our fire safety. I knew there would be a list of things we would need to work on at the end of this meeting, but I expected him to give us a time frame to make the appropriate changes. Things definitely did not go how I had expected, it turns out the building will need a lot more work than I ever could have thought in order for it to be safe for general assembly use. The fire marshal banned us from meeting in our building active immediately until we get make the necessary changes and get a fire safety certificate. This process will surely be timely and costly.

So, for the time being, we will be meeting in the conference rooms of Treacy’s Hotel, the hotel owned by our landlord, which happens to be right down the street from our building. Ironically enough this is the very same hotel that we started Sunday Services in almost 4 years ago. We thank God for the provision of the hotel and we rejoice in the fact that the church is not the building that we meet in, the church is the people of God gathering together, no matter where it is. So we are not crushed by this, we are not even discouraged, we are looking forward to seeing God work in and through this for His glory.

But we do ask you to pray, please pray for provision and for a quick resolution. We do want to be back in our building as soon as we can, this process could take a few weeks or it could take several months. We don’t know yet what cost we will be responsible for in this yet, we should find out in the next week or so.

Thank you for your prayers and support, I will keep you posted as things progress.”

You can view the church web site here.

Video of Hayden winning first place overall.

Sat, 26 Jan 2013 13:23:14 -0800

Video of Hayden winning first place overall.

Hayden was the winner of the 2013 Pinewood Derby. Processed with...

Sat, 26 Jan 2013 13:12:00 -0800

Hayden was the winner of the 2013 Pinewood Derby. Processed with Analog

Pinewood Derby Day

Sat, 26 Jan 2013 11:26:46 -0800

Pinewood Derby Day

Transition

Mon, 21 Jan 2013 11:38:00 -0800

As of this past Sunday I officially transitioned out of managing the content for calvarychapel.com into the role of assistant pastor at Calvary Chapel of Costa Mesa. (…requiring me to purchase some new clothes. Thus, the picture above.) I’m thrilled to join the team of guys that serve the body here at CCCM.

I also will be teaching 2nd Corinthians at the School of Worship and assisting the church with some of their higher edu projects.

It is always fun to make changes like this. I’m excited to be closer to the “people” ministry of the church.

I was honored to share at this last years #ReEngage conference...

Tue, 15 Jan 2013 11:08:00 -0800

I was honored to share at this last years #ReEngage conference for Church Planters. My topic was Social Media

We are on our way. Pray that these kids get better. They...

Mon, 07 Jan 2013 14:08:16 -0800

We are on our way. Pray that these kids get better. They don’t want to miss out. – View on Path.