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This is the audio from the May 18, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: Knowing the SON!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 17

• Significance:  Matthew 17:1-13

  • More than just a good guy who could do wonderful and miraculous things, Jesus was revealed to be the very Son of God.  Even after the initial observation of the transfiguration and Moses and Elijah showing up, Peter thinks the best thing to do would be to memorialize the occasion with the erecting of shelters for each of them.  I believe in Peter’s mind, this was just another great moment with his friend Jesus.  It is when God speaks and declares Jesus to be His Son, it appears the disciples catch the significance of who Jesus really is as they fall to the ground in fear.  The correct response to knowing the significance of Jesus as God’s Son is to listen to Him in all things. 

• Opportunity:  Matthew 17:14-23

  • As Peter, James, and John are with Jesus on the mountain, a man brings his son to the other disciples so that they would heal him.  Unfortunately, the disciples were not able to do so and after Jesus returns and heals the boy, the disciples want to know why they couldn’t.  Matthew tells us Jesus responds to them about their little faith.  Other gospel writers indicate that prayer and fasting was required . . . and evidently not being practiced fully by the disciples.  I suspect the disciples were simply trying to do what Jesus had done before, yet they never stopped long enough to understand how Jesus did what He did.  As the Son of God, Jesus reveals to them the opportunity to do even greater things if they would only have a faith that was fully placed in what God could do, and what God wanted to do.  The correct response to the opportunity which comes through knowing Jesus as God’s Son is to be available for God to work through you.

• Nature:  Matthew 17:24-27

  • When Peter is questioned by the collectors of the temple tax, he appears to answer without really knowing if his answer was accurate.  Not wanting to be in trouble, he gave what sounded like it should be the correct answer, “of course Jesus pays the temple tax!”.  I say that I’m not sure if Peter’s answer was correct simply because the response of Jesus to Peter seems to declare His belief that He was exempt from the tax as the Son of the King.  Yet even with that statement, we find in the very nature of Jesus a desire to do all that He could to not offend people.  The nature of God’s Son is to provide for Himself and for those who are His.  The correct response to understanding the nature of Jesus as God’s Son is to trust Him to care for you.

Today, how will you experience the SON?

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This is the audio from the May 11, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: The Right TRACK!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 16

• Teaching:  Matthew 16:1-7

  • Jesus often found the need to correct the teaching of the religious leaders of His day.  Instead of following the teachings of God’s Word and acknowledging the arrival of Jesus as the Messiah, the leaders often tried to use their understanding of scripture to test Jesus.  Unfortunately, it isn’t just the people in the days of Jesus who fall into the trap of making up teachings which they agree with.  We are surrounded by people who teach a variety of things of their own making, and some who do so claiming they represent Jesus.  When we choose to follow Jesus on the right track, we must gaze fully into His Word to follow the right teaching. 

• Report:  Matthew 16:8-14

  • As news of Jesus spread, many had their own idea of who He was.  In fact, when asked who the crowds said Jesus was, the disciples had a variety of answers based on the reports they had encountered.  We also will encounter people with all kinds of claims about who God is, and even reports of some who claim to be the returning Messiah.  Rather than be derailed by false reports, when we choose to follow Jesus we evaluate the source of every report and only accept as truth that which comes from God.

• Answer:  Matthew 16:15-20

  • One of the things which people often came to Jesus about was a desire to have an answer which would fulfill their greatest questions.  The difficulty came as people settled for their own answers rather than turning to Jesus for the right answer.  Peter gives the classic answer of who he believes Jesus is and we’re told that this answer was not of his own doing but came from God Himself.  When we choose to follow Jesus we must be careful to both give and receive the right answers . . . answers which come from the truth of God’s Word.

• Christ:  Matthew 16:21-23

  • The Bible makes it clear that there were many, and will be many, who claim to be the Christ.  Some of these individuals can be quite persuasive and they lead many people astray.  As Jesus declares Himself to be the Son of God, He defines the Christ in a way which is exclusive and as God providing the way for us to be right with Him.  When we choose to follow Jesus, we do so with Him as the fulfillment of all prophecies concerning the coming of the Christ to save His people from their sin.

• Kingdom:  Matthew 16:24-28

  • As Jesus lived and taught, He told of the coming of a kingdom like no other.  This was a kingdom that required repentance in order for people to be prepared for it.  The right kingdom is the kingdom where God is King and we are His subjects.  It is through our willingness to take up our cross daily that we identify with this spiritual kingdom where Jesus is Lord, not just of the kingdom but of us.

Today, how will you follow the right TRACK?

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This is the audio from the May 4, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: Living With FAITH!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 15

• Focus:  Matthew 15:1-3

  • Living with faith requires that we live with an accurate focus on the actual things of God rather than our tendency to be sidetracked by making our likes and dislikes the things of our life’s focus.  We must keep our eyes on Jesus because He is the beginning of our faith and the completion of our faith.  Even our traditions must be evaluated by how they serve God’s purpose in bringing people to a growing faith.  When we live with faith, we understand the need to live with a focus on God. 

• Acceptance:  Matthew 15:4-9

  • Living with faith requires that we have a complete acceptance of Jesus being Lord, therefore He is in charge of all things.  Far too often we can become guilting of having ears which do not hear and eyes which do not see, simply because we don’t want to hear and see truth.  This is not an acceptance of all things being equal, or of any way being as good as any other.  No, it is the acceptance of the teaching of Jesus being that with all authority.  When we live with faith, we live with an acceptance of Jesus being King and Lord of our life.

• Instruction:  Matthew 15:10-20

  • Living with faith requires that we live with, and according to, the instructions of God’s Word.  as Jesus prepared to ascend back into heaven, He left us with the command to make disciples.  This process involves us going, it involves people being immersed into Christ, and it involves teaching everything Jesus commanded.  Faith should always lead us to do what God says even when, and especially when, we don’t fully understand.  When we live with faith, we live according to the instruction of Jesus.

• Trust:  Matthew 15:21-28

  • Living with faith requires that we live with complete trust of the One we place our faith in.  In this section of Matthew 15 (which I did not actually read during the sermon) we find a Gentile woman whose faith led her to trust Jesus could heal the sick . . . even a sick Gentile.  While all the reasons were stacked  against her, and even Jesus seemed reluctant to help her, it was her faith that drew the attention which not only gained the healing needed, but it resulted in a commendation from Jesus regarding her great faith.  When we live with faith, we live with a trust in a God who can, even when it seems impossible.

• Hope:  Matthew 15:29-39

  • Living with faith results in a life of hope which surpasses all the world’s reasons not to hope.  As Jesus cares for people and ministers to their needs, He once again is filled with compassion for their physical needs as they had been with Him for three days with nothing to eat.  It was hope for real help that sustained the people even more than a hope for temporary help ever could.  As Jesus takes a few loaves and fish to once again feed a multitude, it was the power of God evident in His compassion which filled the people with great hope.  When we live with faith, we live with a hope which the world cannot take away because this hope is placed in, and fulfilled by, Jesus.

Today, how will you live with FAITH?

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This is the audio from the April 27, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: A Time For LIFE!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 14

• Beliefs:  Matthew 14:13-16, 25-26

  • When faced with situations which seemed impossible, such as feeding large crowd or seeing someone walk across a lake toward you, the disciples were often challenged by a common belief that they couldn’t accomplish what needed done.  When our boat of life is tossed about in the storms which come, we would do well to invite Jesus into our beliefs so that we consider what He can do rather than what we can do. 

• Observations:  Matthew 14:17-19, 27-28

  • What the disciples believed was often influenced by what they were able to physically observe.  In Matthew 14, the disciples observed a lot of hungry people and very little food.  Then they observed the figure of a man walking across the water and in both cases their observations led a an incorrect conclusion.  When our boat of life is tossed about in the storms which come, we would do well to invite Jesus into our observations so we would see what He can do rather than what we cannot.

• Actions:  Matthew 14:20, 29-30

  • By the time it comes to action in the stories from today’s text, we find the disciples finally listening more fully to Jesus in obedience to what He asks.  After inviting Jesus into their beliefs and observations, they were willing to distribute food to all and Peter was even willing to step out of the boat onto the storm-tossed waves.  When our boat of life is tossed about in the storms which come, we would do well to invite Jesus into our actions so that He would do more in us and through us than would ever be possible on our own.

• Touch:  Matthew 14:21, 31-36

  • One of the defining characteristics in the life of Jesus on earth was His willingness, and even desire, to touch those He encountered.  It was the touch of Jesus on the bread and loaves which multiplied them to feed a multitude.  It was the touch of Jesus to lift Peter from his doubts which carried them both back to the boat where the storm was to be calmed.  When our boat of life is tossed about in the storms which come, we would do well to not only live as those touched by Jesus but to extend His touch to all we encounter.

Today, how will you live with Jesus in your BOAT?

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This is the audio from the April 20, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: A Time For LIFE!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 28

• Love:  Matthew 28:1-4

  • At the heart of the resurrection was the fullness of God’s love being shown to mankind through the life of His Son, Jesus.  Love will always compel us to do things which nothing else could motivate us to do.  As the women head to the tomb early on the first day of the week, they do so motivated by love.  Even when the circumstances become so frightening that the Roman guards pass out as dead men, the love of Mary Magdalene and Mary drive them forward to the tomb where they discover there is not a dead body present for them to finish burial preparations.  When we follow Jesus in a fullness of life, we discover a time for love which overcomes all fear. 

• Insight:  Matthew 28:5-10

  • The life of Jesus continually gave insight into the kingdom of God through everything that was being said and done.  His resurrection gives us an insight into the wonderful teaching Jesus would share about Him being the resurrection and the life.  As the women encountered an angel at the tomb, they were given insight into what they were experiencing being just as Jesus said it would be.  When we follow Jesus in the fullness of life, we find that He gives us greater insight into His Word as His Spirit helps us to both understand and practice the truth of all its commands and instructions.

• Faith:  Matthew 28:11-15

  • The Bible makes it clear that without faith it is impossible to please God.  As Jesus lived among mankind, He consistently called His followers to grow in faith as they would choose to believe in the unseen.  Because it would mean disaster for the religious leaders to admit Jesus had indeed resurrected from the dead, they used their influence and money to spread a story about the body of Jesus being stolen.  While this story spread and gained popularity among the Jews, those who had not personally seen the resurrected person of Jesus would have to believe by faith that He indeed was alive.  When we follow Jesus in the fullness of life, we must do so by a living faith which trusts that the Word of God is true and that Jesus not only rose from the dead but that He has ascended back into heaven to prepare a place for all who would put their faith in Him.

• Expansion:  Matthew 28:16-20

  • Much of the life of Jesus was spent proclaiming the kingdom of God to be near and calling people everywhere to believe and be saved.  In Biblical context, belief is more than just agreeing that something is true — it is an obedient response to that which is true and a response which is reflected in our actions.  It was the death, burial, and resurrection of Jesus which opened wide the invitation for all who are thirsty to come and drink of the living water.  The expansion of the kingdom of God was at hand and Jesus calls all who would follow Him to be involved in taking the good news of the resurrection everywhere they went.  When we follow Jesus in the fullness of life, we are called by Him to join in the expansion of the kingdom as we go and make disciples according to His instructions.

Today, how will you live a risen LIFE?

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This is the audio from the April 18, 2025 Good Friday sermon, “Following Jesus: A Time To DIE!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the West Side Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 27:22-54

• Decide:  Matthew 27:22-26

  • The time to die was a time to decide for Jesus long before the cross.  He made the decision while in heaven with His Father to humble himself and become obedient even to death on a  cross.  Our time to die is also a time for us to decide whether we choose Barabbas (sin) or Jesus. 

• Invite:  Matthew 27:32-43, Luke 23:39-43

  • Jesus used His time to die as a time to invite a thief to join Him in paradise.  But it wasn’t only a thief who confessed the appropriateness of his own punishment who has been invited by Jesus — His invitation is to all who would agree with Him about our sin and choose to call upon His name in obedience.  When we choose to die to sin and self, we also find a time to invite all who would come to experience the goodness of Jesus that we know.

• Exclaim:  Matthew 27:45-54

  • For Jesus, the time to die was a time to exclaim to the world that His work was finished.  The seed of the gospel was about to fall into the ground only to germinate and burst forth three days later.  Even the soldiers on duty at the crucifixion couldn’t help but to exclaim that this surely was the Son of God.  It it through joining with Christ in His death that our life is able to exclaim to the world that Jesus is indeed Lord and Savior.

“What shall we say, then? Shall we go on sinning so that grace may increase?  By no means! We died to sin; how can we live in it any longer?  Or don’t you know that all of us who were baptized into Christ Jesus were baptized into his death?  We were therefore buried with him through baptism into death in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, we too may live a new life.  If we have been united with him like this in his death, we will certainly also be united with him in his resurrection.  For we know that our old self was crucified with him so that the body of sin might be done away with, that we should no longer be slaves to sin —  because anyone who has died has been freed from sin.”
Romans 6:1-7

Today, how will you choose to DIE?

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This is the audio from the April 13, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: A Time To SHOUT!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 21:1-17

• Seek:  Matthew 21:1-3

  • Jesus sent two of the disciples out to seek something He knew they would find.  When the Bible tells us to seek the Lord while He may be found, it is doing so with the understanding that Jesus will make a triumphal entry into any life which earnestly seeks Him with a whole heart.  We shout the arrival of Jesus when we learn to seek Him from wherever we are. 

• Honor:  Matthew 21:4-5

  • As Jesus made His way into Jerusalem on a borrowed donkey, He did so as One who was well received and honored.  While He was not riding a horse of battle or victory, He did come in a way which fulfilled prophesy about the Messiah who would come and save His people.  Even when understanding was incomplete, the people honored the arrival of this King of Peace.  We shout the arrival of Jesus when we choose to honor Him with our life.

• Obey:  Matthew 21:6-11

  • The honor given to Jesus was made known not only by words, but by an obedience to doing what He asked.  The disciples who were sent to seek the donkey and its colt did so regardless of how they felt about the likelihood of success.  We shout the arrival of Jesus in our life when we choose to obey all that He has taught and commanded.

• Undo:  Matthew 21:12-13

  • As Jesus made His way into the temple courts He encountered life choices which people needed to undo in order to be right with Him.  People had turned what should have been a house of prayer into a “den of robbers”.  When we welcome Jesus into our life, we become His dwelling as His Spirit lives within us.  When we live as the temple of God, we must learn to undo the deeds of the flesh so that we would live by the Spirit and become the house of prayer we are called to be.  We shout the arrival of Jesus when we undo our “den of robbers” through our repentance.

• Tell:  Matthew 21:14-17

  • As Jesus encountered criticism for not silencing the children who were shouting His praises, He makes it clear that they were designed to tell about Him.  As Jesus enters our life, it ought to be a normal and natural thing to tell people about all that He is doing in our life.  We tell by the words we use and we tell by the life we live.  We shout the arrival of Jesus when “we cannot help but to tell all we have seen and heard” about Jesus.  

Today, how will you SHOUT?

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This is the audio from the March 30, 2025 sermon, “Following Jesus: The One Who Is LORD!”, shared by Tom Lemler at the Deer Run Church of Christ.

Text: Matthew 12

• Law:  Matthew 12:1-14

  • We live life surrounded by rules, regulations, and laws of many kinds and from many sources.  The religious leaders in the days of Jesus were experts in their interpretation of God’s laws, but they often failed in their understanding of God’s purpose for the law.  As the One who was the Word in the beginning, who was with God, and who was God, Jesus declares Himself to be Lord of law.  While the religious leaders had made the law of God very complicated, Jesus reveals that all of the law can be summed up in loving God and loving your neighbor.  When Jesus is Lord of your life, He is the law of your life. 

• Obeyed:  Matthew 12:22-37

  • The very nature of someone being lord is that they are in charge, and thus obeyed.  When questioned about the authority by which He casts out demons, Jesus makes it clear that they submit not because He is one of them, but because He is Lord of all things.  The Bible asks the question of all of us, “Why do you call me Lord, Lord and not do what I say?”.  Knowing Jesus as Lord is revealed not by your words, but by your eagerness to obey..

• Resurrected:  Matthew 12:38-45

  • While the people wanted a miraculous sign from Jesus (never mind that He had already performed many miracles), Jesus declares that His resurrection will be the crowning sign that He is indeed both Lord and God.  Not only does Jesus declare His Lordship through His resurrection from the dead, He is declared Lord every time a person is resurrected from the death of sin by choosing to be united with Christ.  Knowing Jesus as Lord reveals in us the power of His resurrection which lifts us from the grave of sin.

• Deity:  Matthew 12:46-50

  • When the people pressed Jesus with the presence of His family, He made it clear that His family wasn’t limited by the physical constraints of the flesh.  We have the joy of being in God’s family, not by the privilege of being born in the flesh but by the power of being born of the Spirit.  As Lord, Jesus has the fullness of the deity of God and uses that deity to declare all who do the will of His Father to be His family.  Knowing Jesus as Lord requires that we see Him as more than a good person, great teacher, or any other platitude we may bestow upon Him — we must embrace His deity as the One who is God.  

Today, how will you respond to the One who is LORD?