The Divine Intention

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Mark 4:21-25

– Facing the knowledge that we do not control the soil (heart) of those in whom we sow the seed of the Gospel, the Christian may wonder what our purpose is? Christ Himself reveals the divine intention of our work to us in Mark Chapter 4 by using the parable of the lamp to define our duty in evangelism. Our job is to scatter seed and be a light in the darkness, and our Gospel proclamation is the only method God has ordained for His message of salvation to spread. The Christian, therefore, is responsible for putting their light on a lampstand where it can shine forth and pierce the darkness, rather than hiding it away.

America: A Religion of Lies (Part 2)

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Romans 1:18-32

– In light of the recent Supreme Court ruling in favor of same sex marriage, many Christians might be asking what God has to say about the current situation in our country. We can look no further than Romans 1 to find the answer, as we come to understand that judgement is, in fact, not coming to America, but rather it has already come. The verdict has already been rendered by God and this most recent case is only evidence of that. With that in mind, we begin to examine three imperatives: 1) Our nation’s relationship to God, 2) The nature of society’s perversion, and 3) The Church’s response.

– Add. Ref.: Rom. 1:15-17; 1 Cor. 5:9-13; Ezekiel 37:1-6

NOTE: The listener is encouraged to listen to this message together with the preceding message (Part 1) for proper context.

America: A Religion of Lies (Part 1)

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Romans 1:18-32

– In light of the recent Supreme Court ruling in favor of same sex marriage, many Christians might be asking what God has to say about the current situation in our country. We can look no further than Romans 1 to find the answer, as we come to understand that judgement is, in fact, not coming to America, but rather it has already come. The verdict has already been rendered by God and this most recent case is only evidence of that. With that in mind, we begin to examine three imperatives: 1) Our nation’s relationship to God, 2) The nature of society’s perversion, and 3) The Church’s response.

– Add. Ref.: 1 Cor. 6:9-11

NOTE: The listener is encouraged to listen to this message together with the following message (Part 2) for proper context.

Pastoral Installation Service

June 28th, 2015 marked the official Installation Service for Pastor Matt Tarr and his wife, Melody. Since this was not a traditional “sermon” and was more of a commemorative celebration featuring a series of charges and prayers, the audio for the Installation Service will not be posted on the SermonCast. However, the audio will be made available to anyone upon request. If you would like to request a download link, please submit a request to our web team.

Thank you for showing interest in High Point Baptist Church’s pulpit ministry.

 

What Do You Hear? (Part 3)

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Mark 4:1-20

– Over this three part sermon in the fourth chapter of Mark, we have come to understand that it is not the sower or the seed itself, but the quality of the soil that determines whether or not seed will yield a crop. It is merely the sower’s job to sow, not to tamper with the seed. And now, looking back into this passage, we see how the type of soil represents the heart of the hearer in which the Word is sown.

What Do You Hear? (Part 2)

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Mark 4:1-20

– Christ spoke in parables not to enlighten the masses or to make His messages more palatable and understandable, but to purposefully mask the true meaning of His words. This was in response to a people who had heard Him preach for two years and had seen countless miracles proving He was Who He said He was, and yet they still did not believe. However, to those who did believe in Him, He would explain the meaning of the parables, and whether or not the meaning meant anything to them all depended on what kind of “soil” they were.

– Add. Ref.: John 6, Hebrews 13:17

What Do You Hear? (Part 1)

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Mark 4:1-20

– Jesus, as He is actually presented in Scripture, is quite different from the Jesus we often hear about. The true, biblical Jesus was One Who was driven, fierce, and uncompromising. This is no more evident than when He begins to speak to the thousands following Him in parables but without offering an interpretation, leaving the crowds confused. Most shockingly is that this was actually Christ’s full intention, as He had saved the revelation of the meaning of His parables for only a select few who had ears to hear, while leaving the rest to their blindness.

– Add. Ref.: Isaiah 6:9-12

The Unforgiveable Sin

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Mark 3:20-35

– There is one sin mentioned in Scripture that is unforgiveable: Blaspheming the Holy Spirit. But what does it mean to commit this most grievous of sins? There are many differing viewpoints of what it actually means to blaspheme the Spirit, but many of them are wrong. Learning what this sin actually means, however, has an impact on the life of the believer as much as the unbeliever, as it all comes down to one question: Who is Christ?

– Add. Ref.: Proverbs 6:16-19

Comprehending an Incomprehensible God

Pastor Matt Tarr

– Scripture: Psalm 139

– God, in all His majesty, is incomprehensible. Though it is possible to know Him intimately, it is impossible to know fully the breadth and depth of His being, as He is so far beyond human reason and understanding is so many ways, yet none of them are more incredible than how a limitless, infinite God choses to concern Himself so deeply with each and every one of us.

Reversing the Decline

HPBC Elder: Greg Lynch

– Scripture: Selected Scriptures

– There’s no arguing that our nation is in a state of spiritual decline. However, with whom does the burden of blame lie? Is the government to blame, or does the nation’s decent into spiritual vapidness a result of the ever decreasing biblical behavior of the American “church”? It is the true church’s job to remain faithful in the face of such trends, and spiritual stands must then be made at the individual, church-wide, and societal levels.