Aaron Simms's Blog, page 22

New Carthage – Cartagena, Spain

My family and I went on vacation in Europe earlier this summer. We began in Barcelona and ended up in Rome. One of the stops was at Cartagena, Spain. It’s a small city on the south-eastern coast on the Mediterranean, across from Algeria. This was a very exciting stop to me, because the city had been very prominent during the 2nd Punic War between Carthage and the Roman Republic (I’m a major “history nerd”).

The city was founded in 228 BC as “Qart Hadasht” or “New City” by the Carthaginians as...

Contending for the Faith

Isn’t it amazing that – without a Facebook page, a Twitter account, a Snapchat account, a LinkedIn profile, a Pinterest page or things like that – that here we are after over 2000 years still talking about Jesus Christ, and in many cases still arguing about him. We have lived to see the truth that he has brought division into the world, because people are divided about Jesus (Luke 12:49-56). Is he just a good man? Is he just a prophet? Is he the Son of God? Is he something else?

Isn’t it amaz...

The Faith of the Church (Hebrews 11)

“Fear not little flock, for it is your Father’s good pleasure to give you the kingdom” (Luke 12:32). These are Jesus’ words to you. You have no need to be anxious, because God your Father has given you the kingdom. He has forgiven you of all your sins, reconciled you to Him and to each other within the Church, and promises you the resurrection of your bodies and life everlasting in a perfect, restored creation. You have no need to worry, then, because He has done all this for you through Jesu...

Christian Apologetics

I’ve started on a project to re-publish some of the apologies of the Christian faith from the period of the early New Testament Church. The first is Tertullian’s Apology, and the second is a new edition of Justin Martyr’s First and Second Apologies.

Both Tertullian and Justin provide a strong defense of the Christian faith in light of Roman persecution. I’ve added my own notes and commentary to these new editions that I hope provide greater context to their times and arguments.

I plan on ad...

"And who is my neighbor?"

“And who is my neighbor?” This is a good question. As we hear of protests, riots, and murders on the news the question arises in our minds of just who is my neighbor, who am I connected to? What does it mean to be a neighbor?

Now, in Luke 10:25-37, this question was asked of Jesus by a lawyer who came to test him. But, the lawyer first asks Jesus a different question. And keep in mind that good lawyers only ask questions which they believe they already know the answer to; that’s why the quest...

“And who is my neighbor?”

“And who is my neighbor?” This is a good question. As we hear of protests, riots, and murders on the news the question arises in our minds of just who is my neighbor, who am I connected to? What does it mean to be a neighbor?

Now, in Luke 10:25-37, this question was asked of Jesus by a lawyer who came to test him. But, the lawyer first asks Jesus a different question. And keep in mind that good lawyers only ask questions which they believe they already know the answer to; that’s why the quest...

The Walking Dead and the Presence of Evil in the World

It is interesting to see the workings of a fallen society within the world of the Walking Dead. There are no more institutions, either civil government or the Church, and therefore people are left to fend for themselves. The series illustrates the veneer that is civil society; remove the societal constraints of government and the Church and people descend back into their fallen natures.

This is illustrated particularly well by the city of Woodbury. It was ruled by the seeminly benevolent “Gov...

The Walking Dead and the Nature of Man

In the Walking Dead series we see humanity at both its best and worst. There are times where people are absolutely brutal and selfish and then other times where people exhibit a sense of self-sacrifice for others. It is interesting to watch the series to see how people react to each other in an environment with no civil government to enforce order; it is like being transported into the “state of nature” postulated by Thomas Hobbes where everyone is at war. In fact, in the series, even the peo...

The Walking Dead and the Role of Government

Since the new Walking Dead episodes are now being aired, it reminded me that I had previously planned to write a series of posts about how the show reveals truths about various topics. In this post, I want to focus on the role of civil government (what Lutherans would call God’s “Left Hand Realm”).

One of the most salient realities in the Walking Dead show is that there is no government left. People are left to fend for themselves. Rick Grimes becomes the natural leader (somewhat reluctantly)...

Christmas

The Bible begins in Genesis by recording: “In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. The earth was without form and void, and darkness was over the face of the deep. And the Spirit of God was hovering over the face of the waters. And God said, ‘Let there be light,’ and there was light. And God saw that the light was good. And God separated the light from the darkness” (Genesis 1:1-4).

This is from Genesis, chapter 1. The beginning of God’s self-revelation to us, where He tells...