Episode Title: Death for Life (Genesis 3:20–24)
Speaker: Ben Smith, Sr.

Episode Notes:
In this sermon, Pastor Ben Smith, Sr. examines the first act of redemption in Genesis 3:20–24. When Adam named his wife Eve and God clothed them with garments of sacrifice, He revealed that true redemption comes not by ignoring sin, but through the death of a righteous substitute.

This message explores the doctrine of penal substitutionary atonement and teaches three principles of redemption:

Redemption requires faith.

Redemption requires a righteous sacrifice.

Redemption is a gift of grace.

Listeners will gain insight into God’s grace, justice, and redemptive plan from Eden to the cross, and learn how the death of Christ brings new life for all who believe.

Scripture: Genesis 3:20–24

“Redemption and new life in Christ do not come through ignoring or excusing sin, but through death and the substitutionary atonement of a righteous sacrifice.”

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 10/12/2025.

Episode Title: “Created Male and Female: A Biblical View of Gender from Genesis
Scripture: Genesis 1:27–31; 2:18–25

Episode Notes:
In this message, Pastor Ben Smith explores what it means to see gender through a biblical lens—rooted not in culture or emotion, but in the timeless truth of God’s Word.

From the very first chapters of Genesis, God reveals that humanity was created male and female—by His design, for His glory, and for our good. Yet in today’s world, that truth is often rejected or redefined. This sermon offers clarity and compassion for a confused culture, reminding believers that God’s design is perfect and His Word is unchanging.

Key Themes:

· Gender is by divine design—God made us male and female on purpose.

· Gender is God declared—your identity is not self-chosen but Creator-given.

· You are called to celebrate the goodness of God’s creation rather than redefine it.

Pastor Ben challenges listeners to hold fast to God’s truth, speak with grace, and live as testimonies of His perfect design. Even in a culture that celebrates confusion, Christians are called to reflect the light of creation’s goodness and declare, “What God has made is very good.”

Listen and be encouraged to see God’s wisdom, goodness, and sovereignty in the way He created you.

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on October 4, 2015, at Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

In this sermon, Pastor Ben Smith preaches from Genesis 3:8-19 on “The Curse of Sin.” He explains how Adam and Eve’s disobedience in the Garden of Eden shattered God’s good creation and brought devastating consequences. Sin, at its core, is rebellion against God’s will, and it disrupts every part of life.

The sermon highlights three main truths:

Sin breaks fellowship — separating people from God, straining relationships with others, and even causing inner conflict within ourselves.

Sin breaks cooperation — creation itself became hostile, relationships were disordered, and work and family life became filled with pain and conflict.

Sin breaks purpose — humanity’s God-given calling is now marked by hardship, and the ultimate curse of sin is death.

Yet even in the midst of judgment, God offers hope. In Genesis 3:15, He promises that one day the offspring of the woman would crush the serpent’s head — a prophecy fulfilled in Jesus Christ. The sermon closes with the assurance that through Christ’s death and resurrection, believers have victory over sin, Satan, and death.

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 9/28/2025.

The Fall of Man (Genesis 2:25–3:7)

Genesis 3 is a pivotal moment in Scripture when Adam and Eve chose to believe the lies of Satan rather than trust the will of God. Satan's work has always been to draw us away from God—through doubt, half-truths, and deception. Adam and Eve's choice in the garden was not just their story; it's ours too. As Romans 3:23 reminds us, "all have sinned and fall short of the glory of God."

To understand our own sin, we must first understand the first sin. What does their rebellion teach us about the danger of Satan's lies? At the heart of every temptation is an invitation to reject God and trust the deceiver instead of the Creator. This text teaches three vital lessons: the need to trust God's wisdom, trust His word, and trust His design.

This sermon explains from Genesis 2:25–3:7, the pivotal scripture detailing the Fall of Man and the origin of sin. It explores the theological foundations of this passage, how Satan's lies led Adam and Eve to rebellion, and the profound consequences that changed the human condition forever. Understanding this first sin is crucial for understanding one's own sin and God's work of redemption.

Sermon Outline: Three Ways We Must Trust God

I. Trust God's Wisdom (Genesis 3:1-3)

II. Trust God's Word (Genesis 3:4-5)

III. Trust God's Design (Genesis 3:6-7)

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben's sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 9/21/2025.

Today, marriage is under attack. It is under attack by those who hate God. It is under attack by those who are living in rebellious sin. And it has even suffered friendly fire from those in the church who do not fully grasp the significance and biblical foundation of marriage.

Genesis 2:18-25 is the most fundamental scripture for understanding the Bible’s view of marriage. The Bible will say much more about what marriage is and how Christians are to function as husbands and wives; however, all these other scriptures rest on the foundation of Genesis 2:18-25.

Because marriage is so familiar, you may be tempted to think that having a biblical view of marriage is automatic and assumed, but the truth is that for many today, their view of marriage is more informed by Hollywood, secular pragmatism, and politics.

How then are you to understand marriage from a biblical worldview? This testimony of God’s creation of Eve and ordaining marriage teaches three elements of a biblical worldview of marriage: that it is a good union (18-23), an exclusive union (24a), and a holy union (24b-25).

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 9/14/2025.

All for the Kingdom Podcast – Episode #232: "Breath of Life, Genesis 2:4-17" Subtitle: Man's unique creative purpose to glorify God, dwell with God, and love God.

Join Pastor Ben in this insightful expository sermon as he delves into Genesis Chapter 2:4-17, exploring the profound theological depths of man's unique creation, his intended purpose, and the transformative power of Christ's redemption. This sermon unpacks fundamental truths about man's relationship with God, addressing both the goodness of creation and the pervasive impact of sin.

Key Scripture: Genesis 2:4-17

Episode Highlights:

• Man's Unique Creation: Discover how man was distinctly made in God's image, possessing both a physical nature (formed from dust) and a spiritual nature (God's breath of life). This uniqueness sets humanity apart from all other creation, designed specifically for a relationship with God. The sermon contrasts this with false teachings that deny man's uniqueness or spiritual nature.

• Man's Purpose: To Glorify, Dwell, and Love God:

◦ Glorify God: Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever, a core doctrinal truth emphasized by historical catechisms. This involves both reflecting God's glory and finding soul satisfaction in rejoicing in it.

◦ Dwell with God: God created man to dwell with Him, a principle element of the Garden of Eden and recurring throughout scripture, from Noah to Abraham, Israel, and ultimately for the redeemed in the New Jerusalem (heaven). Dwelling with God requires being a people of God, in a place of God, receiving the provision of God.

◦ Love God: Man was created with the freedom to choose God or to sin. This includes the ability to eat from the tree of the knowledge of good and evil, which gave the ability to distinguish between good and evil. Death results from the desire for evil that stems from this knowledge and the choice to disobey.

• The Garden of Eden: A Real Place of Provision: The Garden is not a metaphor, but a real, physical place of God's perfect provision and blessing. Man was placed there "to work it and to keep it," indicating that labor was part of God's good design before the Fall. In the Garden, desire and good were in perfect unity.

• The Corruption of Sin: Since Genesis 3, sin has corrupted man's heart, leading to a desire for things that don't glorify God and causing man to hide from God's presence out of shame. The sermon touches on the profound impact of Adam's sin, which brought death into the world (Romans 5:12).

• Redemption Through Christ: Only through the redemptive work of Jesus Christ are people made able to fulfill their purpose of glorifying and rejoicing in God. Jesus, unlike Adam, knew the distinction between good and evil but lived a sinless life, offering salvation through his perfect obedience (Romans 5:19, Hebrews 4). The good news of the gospel is not man's free choice of God, but God's sovereign grace in choosing to so love the world that He gave His only Son that whoever believes in Him would not perish but have eternal life.

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 9/7/2025.

Work and rest are both good and part of God’s created order. Rest is inseparably related to work, as is work to rest, and must be understood and enjoyed according to God’s design.

Work is often perceived negatively as a requirement, and not something good, desirable, or pleasant. This, of course, is the consequence of sin that caused work to become a burden and rest to be a snare. Likewise, though rest seems more desirable than work, it too is corrupted by sin. In sin, rest is often disconnected from work and purpose, and it becomes a sinfully lazy habit.

God resting after his labor on the seventh day and declaring it holy is a testimony both to the purpose and goodness of labor and the purpose and goodness of rest. Genesis 2:1-3 calls the church to honor God with both your work as unto the Lord and rest as a response of obedience.

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

This sermon was originally preached on 8/31/2025.

Man’s nature and purpose are not according to the autonomous will of man but determined, ordained, and commanded by the sovereignty of God. A biblical worldview affirms the sovereignty of God over all of creation, including man, but the world claims that each person has total autonomy, independent of any authority.

Genesis 1:26-31 testifies to the creation of man and man’s nature and purpose.

In the sermon from Genesis 1:26-31, Pastor Ben explains that God’s creation of man demands that you honor every human life as God’s image bearer, be a good steward of God’s creation, and submit to God’s authority to create and command.

Find Out More:

Ben Smith is the pastor of Central Baptist Church, Waycross, GA.

Additional podcasts, books, and downloadable PDFs of Pastor Ben’s sermon outlines and manuscripts are available at http://bensmithsr.org.

You can find information about Central Baptist Church at cbcwaycross.org.

Special thanks to David Carnes for his beautiful rendition of This Is My Father’s World from the album Journey… a Praise Offering. You can explore this recording and more of his music at Apple Music.

This sermon was originally preached on 8/24/2025.