Aaron Simms's Blog, page 18

Merry Christmas!

Merry Christmas!

This weekend wecelebrate the arrival of God’s Son, Jesus the Christ, in the flesh.

Leading up to Christmas, we tend to createlists of what we want for Christmas. We ask forthings like toys, games, electronics, and various other things we want (I’m the worst; my list could practically be my son’s!). But, we don’t often put down things we need, like clothing necessities or food. I know that when I was growing up I never really appreciated the gifts of clothing that I was given,...

“God With Us”

This Sundayis Christmas when we celebrate the coming of God’s Son in the flesh. Christians throughout the world will be celebrating the coming of the one promised to us for so long. It began in Genesis 3:15 when God promised the “seed of the woman” who would defeat sin, death, and the devil. This promise was reconfirmed to Abraham and David and carried throughout the Old Testament, borne in the hearts of the faithful of the Church Israel.

The Lord promised Abraham that through his offspring a...

O Come Immanuel

Poor Joseph must have been quite confused when he discovered that his bride-to-be was pregnant. I’m sure he was very upset and sad to see that Mary was pregnant and that he was not the father. Yet, he did not want “to put her to shame” (Matthew 1:19), so he decided to quietly divorce her. In the culture there at the time, to be engaged was a legal contract which was similar to marriage. If Joseph had wanted to be vindictive, he could have had her stoned for adultery. But, in his mercy, he dec...

The Present Advent of Christ

This is the season of Advent within the Church year where we anticipate Christ’s coming. Even though we tend to focus on Christ’s birth, in reality there are three Advents of Christ.

In his First Advent, which we celebrate at Christmas (and for which we are currently frantically shopping), Christ came in the flesh asa humble baby in a manger in order to ultimately die for our sins and then rise to defeat death and to justify us before our Heavenly Father. Jesus came to reconcile us with God b...

“Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?”

In chapter 11 of Matthew’s Gospel, we readthat John the Baptist sends messengers to Jesus to inquire, “Are you the one who is to come, or shall we look for another?” John seems to be wondering whether or not Jesus really is the Messiah, the Christ, who was promised so long ago.

Well, that seems odd, doesn’t it? For John was the one who previously pointed people to Jesus, saying, “Behold, the Lamb of God, who takes away the sin of the world!” (John 1:29). But, now he seems confused – is Jesus...

Of First Importance – The Rise of the Apostles Creed

In St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 15:1-28), he reminds the congregationthat he had delivered to them what he himself had received and that this message was of “first importance.” He tells them: “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,” and that he appeared to many, including Paul. Paul’s message of first importance is that Christ died and rose in accordance...

Of First Importance

In St. Paul’s letter to the Corinthians (1 Corinthians 15:1-28), he reminds the congregationthat he had delivered to them what he himself had received and that this message was of “first importance.” He tells them: “that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures,” and that he appeared to many, including Paul. Paul’s message of first importance is that Christ died and rose in accordance...

“The Kingdom of Heaven is at hand”

Chapter 3 ofMatthew’s Gospel begins with John the Baptist. “In those days, John the Baptist came preaching in the wilderness of Judea,” saying, “Repent, for the kingdom of heaven is at hand.” Matthew explains that John is the one of whom the prophet Isaiah spoke (Matthew 3:3); he is the one who would prepare the way of the Lord’s coming. That is, John is sent out ahead of the Lord Jesus Christ to call people to repentance and to look to Christ for salvation.

This is John’s purpose. As a proph...

“The people who walked in darkness have seen a great light”

As we approach December the world has gotten darker and darker. There is less daylight each day and more darkness, and the sky has turned a dull gray. When I was in college, I used to go hiking and camping a lot in North Georgia in the mountains north of Ellijay. The trail head was about a 30 minute drive up a mountain off a gravel road. From the trail head it was about 5 miles to where I camped, which was a small spot of level ground just off the Conasauga River. In the Spring and Summer, i...

Into the Light – Awaiting Christ’s Return

I want to tell you about a guy I know of. I don’t know him personally; I know of him. But, it’s a true story.

This man was from a good, respectable middle-class family. His mother was a Christian, his father was not; this seems to be a fairly common pattern in our time. Often one or the other parent is part of the Church, while their kids grow up with little attachment to it. Now this particular father wanted his son to be successful, so he made sure to save up enough money to send him to law...