Michael Franco Smit

Managing Editor · South Africa

Michael is a South African husband, father, educator, and elder at Evangelical Community Church in Abu Dhabi. He serves as Managing Editor of The Gospel Network, which he joined in January 2023, and as one of the chief editors of DEW Arabia Magazine. Michael came to faith in Christ at the age of twenty-seven after moving to the United Arab Emirates. Conversations about Christianity led him to recognise that he had never truly understood the gospel. He had understood Christianity as a system of personal merit and religious works rather than salvation by grace through faith in Christ. Through Scripture, he was enabled to see Jesus Christ more clearly and to understand that even his religious zeal to earn salvation stood opposed to the finished work of Christ on the cross. From the beginning of his Christian life, Michael desired to share the good news he had received and became actively involved in the life of his local church. The preaching and pastoral ministry of John Folmar, together with years of fellowship and study among faithful men in the church, profoundly shaped his convictions. He completed a ministry internship at Evangelical Community Church of Dubai in 2019–2020 and later served for a season on the staff of Evangelical Community Church in Abu Dhabi. His path to eldership grew through faithful membership, discipleship, teaching, and ordinary service long before he held formal office. Michael's theological convictions are Protestant, Reformed Baptist, and deeply church-centred. His interests include biblical exposition, systematic and biblical theology, soteriology, church history, pastoral ministry, editorial ministry, family discipleship, and the theological needs of the Church. Second Corinthians 5:21, Hebrews 1:1–2, and Jude 3 continue to shape his ministry. He is married to Claudia, and they have two children.

Published work

Publications by Michael Franco Smit

26 total

Article · July 4, 2026

Publications by Michael Franco Smit

Ordo Salutis: Adoption

Ordo Salutis: Justification

What Did the Early Church Have Before the New Testament?

Ordo Salutis: Conversion

The Liturgy of Idolatry

John Wycliffe

Sovereign and Free: Understanding Compatibilism

Munus Triplex: Christ the Cosmic King

Munus Triplex: Christ the Definitive Prophet

Munus Triplex: Christ the Great High Priest

Foundational Christian Doctrines

The Providence and Will of God

The Sequence of Events That Transpired at Easter

Brotherly Love

The Depravity of Man

The Supremacy of Christ

Obedience to Christ at Work

Ordo Salutis: Regeneration

Ordo Salutis: Effectual Call

Ordo Salutis: Election

Great White Throne Judgment

Christian Unity Through Triage

On the Trinity: Demonstrations of Irenaeus

On the Incarnation: The Deposit of Faith

The Trinity Before Constantine

The Family Album