Ron Smith’s Search for a Faith That Changes Lives

Some books begin with an idea. Ronald Smith’s began with a question he could not leave alone: What if Christians have come to expect less transformation than their faith actually promises?

His author biography describes a believer troubled by the distance between the freedom he encountered in Scripture and the recurring defeat he had learned to accept. His response was to study the New Covenant more closely. That search became A Child of God Does Not Sin: How Gospel Truth Was Buried, and Why It Must Be Restored—a book aimed at readers who want their convictions to shape everyday life.^[1]

A question that stayed with him

In his account of the book’s origins, Smith traces a turning point to a 1993 Promise Keepers gathering in Boulder, Colorado. Afterward, he asked associate pastor Dave Neckers to disciple him. Twelve Wednesday meetings at a Muncie, Indiana, café introduced him to the Wesleyan teaching of Christian perfection and launched an inquiry he says continued for 33 years.^[2]

Smith’s background helps explain his persistence. A journalism graduate of Northern Arizona University, he later built a career in sales and marketing. He describes returning to the manuscript over 18 years, fitting the work around a career, marriage, and six children. The result is a project rooted in a long personal search rather than a passing publishing idea.^[2]

Putting conviction to work

There is a practical side to Smith’s story, too. He and his wife, Nancy, founded Phoenix-based Camelback Fundraising to help conservative candidates and causes build support. The company’s biography connects that venture to their advertising experience, family life, and involvement in public issues.^[3]

Its services include fundraising-event coordination, marketing, and communications support for organizations and political campaigns. For this author profile, the connection is straightforward: Smith’s work extends beyond expressing convictions to helping people organize around them.^[4]

From personal search to a provocative book

That same emphasis on action provides a natural entry into his book. Smith is not simply asking what believers affirm. He is asking what they should expect faith to accomplish.

Book review • Premise & reader fit

A Child of God Does Not Sin

By Ronald Smith
How Gospel Truth Was Buried, and Why It Must Be Restored

A direct challenge to the assumption that repeated spiritual defeat must define Christian living.

The book’s official description centers on 1 John 3:9 and presents holiness, love, and freedom from sin as realities of the New Covenant. Its stated purpose is restoration rather than pressure: encouraging believers to take seriously a transformed identity and the power of God to change their conduct.^[5]

As a reading proposition, that is compelling. The title immediately creates a question worth discussing. Does it describe flawless performance, freedom from habitual disobedience, or something readers have misunderstood? A good book-club conversation begins where easy assumptions stop.

The author’s website positions the work for Christians weary of guilt, students of Scripture, and leaders interested in New Covenant holiness. It also pairs holiness with love—an important distinction for readers concerned that a forceful title might signal a purely punitive message.^[5]

Why it belongs in the conversation

The strongest reason to consider Smith’s book is its central challenge: to examine whether familiar religious language has become a substitute for expecting meaningful change. Readers drawn to serious biblical discussion have a clear starting point here.

The title also raises the standard for the argument inside. Readers should examine how Smith handles passages about confession, human weakness, grace, and obedience alongside his central verse. That is the test to bring to the reading, rather than a conclusion to assume in advance.

For the Beacon Book Club, this is a discussion-driven selection: a chance to open Scripture, compare interpretations, and ask what a faithful life should look like. Smith has put a substantial question on the table. Readers willing to engage it thoughtfully may find that the conversation continues well beyond the final meeting.

Review scope: This feature assesses the book’s stated premise and reader fit using the author’s public materials. It is not a review of the full manuscript. Biographical details are drawn from the author’s and company’s own accounts.