Learn About Us

By God's good providence we have been brought into fellowship with one another for Christ and His Gospel. We are a Gospel-formed congregation, meaning that all of us have heard the Gospel, believe it, and seek to live in it every day for the glory of God.

A Sovereign Grace Baptist Church?

Sometimes churches like ours are called Reformed Baptist churches because we hold to the historic doctrines that were reasserted during the Protestant Reformation.  Among those are what is called collectively the “Doctrines of Grace” which promote the understanding and assurance of God’s sovereignty to the place it should be in the church and each of our lives. We know that God governs all things, including our salvation and security in Christ. Do members have to believe exactly the same things about that? No. But we will always proclaim that it is far better to be saved and held by God than to try to grasp and hold on to Him by our own will and strength. In our own strength we will fall. In His grace we stand secure. 

Many Baptists are unaware that this is original Southern Baptist doctrine. The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary Abstract of Principles which was affirmed collectively by Southern Baptists in 1858, affirms these "Doctrines of Grace."

Our Statement of Faith:
The official statement of faith for our church is the Baptist Faith and Message (SBC 2000). For clarity, our church further defines what we believe with two additional documents.

See what We believe >>

We Believe in Meaningful Membership:
Church membership must be meaningful. So we pray that each member consistently benefits from the fellowship and ministry of the congregation at large, and the congregation at large benefits from the gifts and service of each member. Therefore:

• We receive members upon profession of faith in Christ and Baptism by immersion (or statement of Baptism by immersion). 
• We expect that all members remain faithful in attendance, except when hindered by unavoidable circumstances such as sickness, incapacitation, work, infrequent leisure travels, etc. 
• We expect that all members will seek to use their Spirit given gifts to serve the congregation to the extent they are physically able to do so.
• We desire that all members contribute financially to the support of the church’s mission and ministries as they have determined in their hearts by the Holy Spirit (2 Cor 9:6-15). 

Governed by the Congregation and Led by Elders:
Our church is governed by the congregation, led by Elders consisting of the Senior Pastor and select other men who meet the biblical qualifications for Eldership. It is expected that the church will always give appropriate submission and honor to these men as taught in the scriptures. The Elders lead the church in affirmation of most matters, but also have full determination of certain matters.

Meet Our Pastor and Elders >>>

Our Meetings:
The only permanently fixed meetings are our Sunday morning worship service, Wednesday evening Bible study, and monthly members' meeting. Other meetings such as discipleship groups, age-group and family ministries, and other Bible studies, may be established by the Elders.

Worship:
In all things, we pray and expect that our worship is led and empowered by the Spirit of God and founded only upon the truth revealed in God’s Word, (John 4:23-24) so we carefully oversee the music and other elements of our worship services. The music we sing is doctrinally sound and gives praise to God the Father and Son, and instructs, encourages and exhorts believers in faith and life in Christ. 

The Priority of Preaching:
We know that the New Testament prescribes preaching by called and gifted men as the priority for the Lord’s Day gathering of the church, and the faithful church gladly receives it. (Acts 2:42, 6:4, et al) So each Lord’s Day, as part of our worship, we gather to hear our pastor proclaim the Word of God and receive it gladly.

Mission:
We believe that it is the mission of every church and believer in Christ to speak and live the Gospel to and before the persons with whom we interact and encounter.  That's what we mean when we say we are a Gospel-sharing church. The Great Commission is OUR commission. (Matt 28:18-20) It is also our mission to endeavor to grow together in the knowledge of God, in faith, in love, in service, and to equip the saints of God for the work of the ministry.

Age Group Ministries:
Our emphasis is on “Family’ ministry, so we expect that parents to teach and train their children in the Lord. We endeavor to come alongside to help them as their church. In addition to teaching and fellowship by age group, we seek to train parents, and involve the entire family in fellowship, teaching and service.

Affiliation:
In order to facilitate contribution to effective world missions, and enable cooperation with like-minded churches, we are affiliated with the Southern Baptist Convention, The Tennessee Baptist Mission Board, and the Hamilton County Baptist Association