Aaron Simms's Blog, page 24

Perfection

Recently, during Bible study one Sunday morning the topic of perfection came up. We had been going through Matthew’s Gospel and found ourselves at Jesus’ Sermon on the Mount, particularly these verses:

“Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. For truly, I say to you, until heaven and earth pass away, not an iota, not a dot, will pass from the Law until all is accomplished. Therefore whoever relaxes one of the least...

Struggles

St. Paul is an apostle of the Lord, called by the Lord himself to be his messenger and witness to the nations. Yet, in Paul’s letter to the Romans he says that he struggles with sin (Romans 7:14-25a).

This man whom we look up to as a pillar of the New Testament Church still struggled with sin in his life. In Romans 7, Paul says that he knows the right thing to do, but he has trouble doing it. And he knows the wrong things to do, but he has trouble not doing them. He says that he is at war wit...

Let not your hearts be troubled

Have you ever gotten to the point in your life where you feel you just can’t go on? I think we all have times like this. Maybe someone has hurt you. Maybe the pressures of life and work and family are starting to get to you. Maybe you’re bearing the burden of some particular sin. We all have been in situations like this.

Jesus’disciples in chapters 13 and 14 ofJohn’s Gospel are undergoing a similar issue. They’ve been with Jesus for three years, and nowJesus is telling them that he’s going to...

The Christian Story

My new book is now available from Amazon, Barnes and Noble, and other retailers.

The synopsis:

What if there was an all-encompassing narrative which links the books of the Bible around a common message? What if it were possible to step back and get a “big picture” view of what God is saying and doing in the Scriptures?

Well, there is an all-encompassing narrative, and it is possible to get a “big picture” view! This is the “Christian Story,” the message of what God is doing for His creation thro...

He is risen!

On Good Friday Jesus was crucified between two criminals, brought down from the cross before nightfall, and placed dead in the tomb of Joseph of Arimathea. He rested in the tomb on Saturday, the Sabbath. Then, on Sunday, the first day of the week, he rose from the dead and lives. He is risen!

All this was foretold from the beginning. It begins in Genesis 3:15 after the fall of Adam and Eve into sin. Their sin brought separation among humanity, between humanity and God, and between humanity and...

Good Friday

The Apostle John records:

“When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, ‘It is finished’, and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit” (John 19:30).

Prior to the intrusion of sin into the world, God had walked in the garden of Eden with Adam and Eve and gave them a way to respond to His love through worship. For He gave Adam and Eve dominion over all the earth and allowed them to eat of the fruit of the tree of life in the midst of the garden, but instructed them not to eat of the tree of...

The Passover Lamb

On Maundy (i.e. Holy) Thursday, the day before Jesus was crucified, he sat down to eat the Passover meal with his disciples. This is popularly known as “The Last Supper” and is depicted in art and popular culture. There is a great significance in this meal.

The Passover had been instituted by the Lord and is described in the book of Exodus. On the night before the Lord led His people Israel up out of captivity in Egypt, He had His people take the blood of a lamb and sprinkle it on the side fra...

Glory

The Gospel reading for Palm Sunday is most of John chapter 12. This text recounts the entry of Jesus into Jerusalem for the final week leading up to his crucifixion. There’s a lot that can be said about this chapter, but one thing I want to key in on is John’s quotations from Isaiah later in the chapter. John notes that many people did not believe in Jesus as the Christ, even though he had done many signs. John notes that this was “so that the word spoken by the prophet Isaiah might be fulfil...

Thinking Theologically

Recently, my daughter has been coming home from school with various questions that pop up concerning what her class has been studying. We most recently had a discussion about forms of government, and she asked me what communism is.

I simplified my explanation by just saying that it’s basically where the government takes money from some people and gives it to others. She made the comment that “That sounds nice.” I responded by saying, “Yes, it’s nice when a person wants to give to others to hel...

New book coming

I’ve been working on a new book called “The Christian Story” that attempts to provide context to the Old Testament in terms of how Christ came to fulfill God’s promise of a Savior who would restore all creation. Thus, the entire Bible is the “Christian story,” because it is centered around Jesus Christ.

I hope to have it out in the next few months. The draft book description and cover page are below.

Thanks!

Book Description

This is the account of God’s actions in creating and then redeeming His...