ROBERT SMITH, JR. (Ph.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary; Doctor of Sacred Theology (STD, Honorary Doctorate), Temple Community Bible College, Cincinnati, OH; (2009) Doctor of Divinity Honoris Causa, Newburgh Theological Seminary, Newburgh, Indiana; serves as Professor of Christian Preaching and holds the Charles T. Carter Baptist Chair of Divinity at Beeson Divinity School.

Previously he served as the Carl E. Bates Associate Professor of Christian Preaching at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. Dr. Smith is the 2017 E. K. Bailey Expository Preaching Conference Living Legend and has been chosen to receive the Legacy Legend Award by Truett Seminary of Baylor University on September 28, 2022. A popular teacher and preacher, he received Southern’s 1996 Findley B. Edge Award for Teaching Excellence. An ordained Baptist minister, he served as pastor of the New Mission Missionary Baptist Church in Cincinnati, OH for twenty years. He earned his Ph.D. while serving as pastor.

Dr. Smith is a contributing editor for a study of Christian ministry in the African American church, Preparing for Christian Ministry, and is co-editor of A Mighty Long Journey. Additionally, he has served as an editor of Our Sufficiency Is of God: Essays on Preaching in Honor of Gardner C. Taylor (Mercer University Press, Macon Georgia: 2010) and Worship, Tradition, and Engagement: Essays in Honor of Timothy George (Eugene, OR: Pickwick, 2018). Dr. Smith has written the book, Doctrine That Dances: Bringing Doctrinal Preaching and Teaching to Life (B&H Publishing Group, Nashville: 2008) which was selected as the winner of the 2008 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Preaching Magazine and 2009 Preaching Book of the Year Award by Christianity Today’s preaching.com. In 2010, Preaching Magazine named Doctrine That Dances one of the 25 most influential books in preaching for the last 25 years. He has written The Oasis of God: From Mourning to Morning—Biblical Insights from Psalms 42 and 43 Christ-Centered Exposition Commentary: Exalting Jesus in Joshua by B&H Publishing Group. God blessed Dr. Smith to record the ESV Bible with Crossway which was released in January 2024 as a Chronological Bible Reading podcast and will be released as an audiobook in March 2024.

Dr. Smith has spoken at more than 150 universities, colleges, and seminaries in the United States, Great Britain, Middle East, Africa, Australia, New Zealand, and the Caribbean. He has taught congregations in several countries including Greece, Turkey, Rome, the Holy Land and Switzerland. Dr. Smith brought the closing message of the 22nd Baptist World Congress/Baptist World Alliance scheduled to be held in 2020 in Rio de Janeiro and transformed into a fully virtual event held on July 7-10, 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

His research interests include the place of passion in preaching, the literary history of African American preaching, Christological preaching, and theologies of preaching. Dr. Smith has contributed essays and articles to various books, magazines and commentaries. At Beeson, Dr. Smith teaches Christian Preaching and other electives in homiletics. He received Beeson Divinity School’s “Teacher of the Year Award” in 2005. He and his wife, Dr. Wanda Taylor-Smith, Ph.D., are the parents of four adult children (two in heaven) and eight grandchildren.