~

This is the audio from the May 17, 2026 sermon, “Preparing For the Son: Prepared To Be NEW!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Matthew 4:12-25

• Near  Matthew 4:12-17

  •  

• Eager:  Matthew 4:18-22

  •  

• Well:  Matthew 4:23-25

  •  

Today, how will you live as one prepared to be NEW?

~

This is the audio from the May 10, 2026 sermon, “Prepared To Overcome: Knowing the WORD!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Matthew 4:1-11

• Wilderness:  Matthew 4:1-3

  • We are prepared to overcome when we know the wilderness we live in.  When we realize this life we live is done so in the midst of a wilderness of temptation, we can remain vigilant in not letting the scarcity of life take our eyes off of Jesus.  We overcome when the springs of living water nourish us in the dry and thirsty land in which we live. 

• Opportunity:  Matthew 4:5-9

  • We are prepared to overcome when we know both the opportunities presented and their source.  The enemy will present opportunities to you which will sound very attractive and will often appear as shortcuts to achieving what you really want.  We overcome when we are able to see into the motivation of each opportunity where the true spirit behind them is revealed. 

• Response:  Matthew 4:4, 7, & 10

  • We are prepared to overcome when we know how to respond with God’s Word.  The enemy is good at twisting and misusing God’s Word in ways that are designed to confuse and mislead us.  Our response needs to be more than popular opinion or the way of the world.  We overcome when we become student’s of God’s Word and use it to reject the temptations of the enemy.

• Devil:  Matthew 4:11

  • We are prepared to overcome when we know the relentless nature of the devil.  A victory over temptation does not mean the battle is over.  When we know the attacks are coming, or will return, we can be better prepared to overcome.  We overcome when we know the devil and choose not to give him a foothold in our life.

Today, how will you live as one prepared to overcome by knowing the WORD?

~

This is the audio from the May 3, 2026 sermon, “Preparing For the Son: Completely WET!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Matthew 3

• Warned:  Matthew 3:1-10

  • We are prepared by the Spirit as we are warned about sin, righteousness, and the judgment. 

• Examined:  Matthew 3:11-12

  • We are prepared by the Spirit as we are examined in a way which reveals the work God is doing in us. 

• Taught:  Matthew 3:13-17

  • We are prepared by the Spirit as we are taught to know and do that which is right.

Today, how will you live by the Spirit as one completely WET?

~

This is the audio from the April 26, 2026 sermon, “Lessons From the Road: A Road of LIFE!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Luke 19:1-10

• Looking:  Luke 19:1-4

  • The road of life is found by those who look for it with a whole heart.  While Jesus did come to seek and save the lost, He does so by presenting Himself as the Way, the Truth, and the Life to all who would look for Him and to Him.  We must ask ourselves on a regular basis what it is we’re looking for.  We must look for Jesus with such intention and focus that nothing would stop us and now excuse would shift our focus away from Him. 

• Invitation:  Luke 19:5

  • The road of life involves an invitation, but it is not our invitation to Jesus but rather His invitation to us.  While Zacchaeus did whatever was necessary for him to see Jesus, it was Jesus who invited Himself to the home of Zacchaeus.  Our response to the invitation of Jesus to come and dwell in us ought to be a resounding yes! 

• Fellowship:  Luke 19:6-7

  • The road of life leads us into fellowship with Christ and with one another.  It is this recognition of our great need for a Savior which leads us into common ground with others who also need a Savior.  Jesus brings life to all who would walk in fellowship with Him.

• Expression:  Luke 19:8-10

  • The road of of life will result in an expression of our faith that gets noticed.  In all of the looking, invitation, and fellowship, Zacchaeus realized that his encounter with Jesus was to be transformational.  There is no record of Jesus commanding Zacchaeus to respond with his wealth in a certain way, Zacchaeus responded out of love towards a God who came to seek and save him.

Today, how will you walk with Jesus on this road of LIFE?

~

This is the audio from the April 19, 2026 sermon, “Lessons From the Road: A Road of CHANGE!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Acts 9:1-31

• Conviction:  Acts 9:1-6

  • The road of change generally begins with a conviction that change is necessary.  Even when you are convinced you are doing everything right, God may not agree with your conclusion.  When God’s Spirit and His Word convict us of “sin, righteousness, and the judgment”, we can either choose the road of change or continue in a path which leads to destruction.  Jesus appeared to Saul on the road to Damascus and brought about a conviction that change was necessary. 

• Humility:  Acts 9:7-16

  • The road of change is continued on when we choose to respond to godly conviction with humility.  Needing to change and having the humility necessary to admit we need to change are two different things.  Not only is humility needed by us when we need to change, it is also needed by us when God is calling others to change.  Saul being struck blind on the road led to a somewhat forced humility as others led him to where he needed to be.  Ananias knew of Saul’s reputation and had a well-founded fear, yet at God’s request humbled himself to be obedient to what God wanted.

• Action:  Acts 9:17-19

  • The road of change needs conviction and humility, but it really begins to take shape when it becomes a road of action.  Change begins in our mind, it’s why the Bible tells us we must be transformed by a renewing of our mind, but the change takes on flesh when we put it into action.  Ananias went to where God told him to go.  Saul got up and was immersed into Christ.  Knowing what we ought to do becomes godly change when we begin to do it.

• Notice:  Acts 9:20-25

  • The road of change will result in others noticing something is different.  The difference may be small or it may be large, but it will be noticeable.  While many were likely skeptical, the Christians noticed Saul who was preaching Jesus was the same Saul who had been persecuting them days earlier.  When we allow the transforming power of the blood of Jesus to work in our life, we notice a difference.  As we live out that difference, others notice that we too have been with Jesus.

• Gentleness:  Acts 9:26-27

  • The road of change is best responded to with gentleness.  We learn gentleness in the midst of change through God’s gentleness with us.  When we do experience this transforming change, we must be careful in how we treat others who may also need to change.  It is in gentleness that Barnabas became a mediator between Saul and the disciples in Jerusalem who had plenty of reasons to be afraid.  

• Encouragement:  Acts 9:28-31

  • The road of change is a path which brings encouragement to us and from us.  It is important to live with an awareness of how God changes us so that we can encourage others who may be ready to give up hope that things will ever change.  While we often want things to change such as the circumstances of life, God is more concerned about us changing.  It is this road of change that we continually walk upon which brings us more and more into the image of Christ each day that we live.  As we become more like Christ, we find great encouragement in being united with Him and with one another.

Today, how will you walk with Jesus on this road of CHANGE?

~

This is the audio from the April 5, 2026 sermon, “Lessons From the Road: Walking With the LORD!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Luke 24:13-35

• Loss:  Luke 24:13-21

  • We walk the road with the Lord as we share with Him the things we count as loss.  The followers of Jesus were downcast and broken-hearted as they made their way home.  The loss of Jesus was difficult for them to understand and accept.  As Jesus walked with them, unknown to them, He listened to their hearts and could understand their loss and sorrow.  We have a Savior that is near to the broken-hearted and joins in noticing our loss. 

• Observation:  Luke 24:22-24

  • We walk the road with the Lord when we walk a road of observation, even when our observation isn’t complete.  These followers of Jesus relayed the stories of what they had been told and of what had been seen by others.  Their desire to belief was short-circuited by observations which simply didn’t make sense.  Jesus joined them on the road and listened to what had been observed so that He could speak truth in a meaningful way.

• Revelation:  Luke 24:25-32

  • We walk the road with the Lord when we walk a road of revelation as Jesus takes our loss and observations to reveal Himself in the midst of them.  When the time was right, Jesus first revealed through Scripture the truth of what had just transpired in Jerusalem.  Then, he broke bread with the men and revealed Himself in a way which left no doubt.  We walk in this revelation when we allow our faith to grow through the power of God’s Word and His Spirit.

• Duty:  Luke 24:33-35

  • We walk the road with the Lord when we walk a road of duty . . . a duty that we are compelled by desire to fulfill.  As Jesus joins these two followers on the road in the midst of their loss and observations, He reveals Himself in a way that sends them immediately back to where they had come from so they could share the good news that Jesus was alive.  In similar fashion, we have a duty and responsibility when we walk the road with the Lord to share the gospel in every opportunity that God gives us.

Today, how will you walk with Jesus on this road with the LORD?

~

This is the audio from the March 29, 2026 sermon, “Lessons From the Road: The Road of PALMS!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Luke 19:28-48

• Purpose:  Luke 19:30-34

  • We walk the road of palms when we walk in the purpose God has designed for us.  As Jesus instructs His disciples, He does so with meaning and purpose.  We walk this same road when we gaze intently into God’s Word and find purpose in living according to His commands and instructions. 

• Action:  Luke 19:35-36

  • We walk the road of palms when we walk in the action God has called us to.  It is not enough to simply know God’s plans and purposes, we must take action and do them.  When given instructions by Jesus, the disciples took action and obeyed even if doing so seemed a bit out of the ordinary.  Our action should always grow out of obedience to Christ rather than our own desires.

• Love:  Luke 19:37-38

  • We walk the road of palms when we travel with love as our motivation and goal.  The crowds were loud in their praise of Jesus even though their love was shallow and somewhat self-serving.  It is our love for God that ought to drive the direction of our path as we loudly proclaim Jesus as King.

• Mercy:  Luke 19:39-42

  • We walk the road of palms when we discover the mercy of a God whose heart breaks over our disobedience and rejection of Him.  Even knowing the outcome which would come to a people that rejected Him, Jesus longed for them to turn to Him and know His mercy.  As we roll out our self as the red carpet before Jesus, we find a mercy from Him that He expects us to extend to others.

• Submission:  Luke 19:43-48

  • We walk the road of palms when we proclaim Jesus as King through our willing submission.  Even though the crowds would loudly praise Jesus as He headed into Jerusalem, their hearts were far from Him as they had turned His house into a den of thieves.  We make His house a house of prayer today when we submit to His Lordship and honor Him in our prayers.

Today, how will you walk with Jesus on the road of PALMS?

~

This is the audio from the March 22, 2026 sermon, “The Road To Samaria: Crossing the LINES!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

John 4:1-42

• Legalism:  John 4:1-9

  • We walk the road to Samaria when we cross the lines of legalism in order to share Jesus with others.  Legalism has a tendency to focus more on the letter of the law than the heart of the One making the law.  Jesus made it clear that it is always right to do good, and nothing is of more good than sharing the good news of Jesus. 

• Ignorance:  John 4:10-26

  • We walk the road to Samaria when we cross the lines of ignorance in order to learn that which we don’t know.  One of the largest barricades which keeps us from crossing this line is that we actually think we know more than what we do.  Jesus doesn’t belittle us for what we don’t know, rather He instructs us so that we do know in a way that we can share with others.

• Norms:  John 4:27-30

  • We walk the road to Samaria when we cross the lines of norms in order to love like Jesus in ways which may be unexpected.  It is very easy to cruise through life in the midst of our own comfort zone and do very little beyond what is expected.  While that may be easy, it is not godly nor responsible to allow our life and actions to be defined by the norms of this world when they ought to be established by the truth of God’s Word.

• Excuses:  John 4:31-38

  • We walk the road to Samaria when we cross the lines of excuses which keep us from being who God wants us to be.  There are always “reasons” why we don’t share the good news of Jesus with others or encourage them as God instructs us to.  Unfortunately, those “reasons” are generally just excuses we use to avoid doing what we know we ought to when it comes to being the best representative of Jesus possible.

• Silence:  John 4:39-42

  • We walk the road to Samaria when we cross the lines of silence which keeps our testimony from being spoken.  Many times it is the lines of Legalism, Ignorance, Norms, and Excuses which lead to our Silence, so it is important that as we cross those lines we take this final step of crossing the line of silence in order to proclaim our testimony of Jesus to all who would listen.

Today, how will you walk with Jesus on the road to crossing the LINES?