We believe the gospel of Jesus Christ has the power to change lives. From our children's ministry through our senior adult ministry, you will hear more about Jesus. Visit us this week and find out more about Jesus and how you can be involved. We are excited for you to join us!
- Exalt:
We exalt the Savior because Jesus is God, our Lord, and our Salvation. He alone deserves to be exalted above all else and is exalted by God Himself. (Philippians 2:9) It is only through the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus that we can enter a right relationship with God. (Acts 5:31) - Equip:
Jesus has made it very clear our purpose as the Church is to glorify God by equipping believers for His work. (Ephesians 4:11-13) We desire for every member to be prepared, equipped, and sent out to fulfill the purpose of our Lord Jesus Christ to His glory. - Evangelize:
Knowing Jesus as Lord, and being equipped to do His work, each member of the Church is to fulfill the great commission given to us in Matthew 28:18-20. We must go into the world to share the Gospel! Jesus has lovingly come to seek and to save the lost. Our response ought to be love God and love others. There is no greater way to show your love for others than by telling them about the Jesus who died for them!
In its one hundred plus year history, the church has built five houses of worship and two pastoriums. Four churches and one pastorium stood on the original site in the southwest of town. The congregation moved to its fifth and present church March, 1978. The site of the first four churches and pastorium was purchased on August 29, 1887, from Mrs. S.C. Moore for $25.00. It is believed that Mrs. Moore returned the $25.00 to the church. The property for the second pastorium was given to the church by Mr. and Mrs. Sam Wells. The seven acres of land where the present church stands was donated by Mr. and Mrs. Gerald Cain.
The first three churches were all wooden structures and were built within less than ten years. The very first was a small, 18×30 feet, crude one room edifice with no windows. Only wooden shutters kept out the rain, wind and cold. The congregation soon outgrew this small, uncomfortable building and decided to build a larger and more suitable one. The second one seemed destined for short life from its very early construction, for while it was being built, a storm came and greatly damaged it. The strong winds left the building leaning. It had to be up righted and repaired before it could be put to use. It was completely destroyed by the “Big Tornado of 1896”, the worst storm in the history of High Springs. Shortly thereafter, the third house of worship was built to serve the congregation until 1924.
First Baptist Church of High Springs maintains an affiliation with the Southern Baptist Convention. As Southern Baptists, we believe certain biblical truths. We use those truths as guidelines for membership, fellowship, and as a basis for Christian education. The link below is the statement of beliefs adopted and held by the Southern Baptist Convention. It serves to clarify who we are as Baptists.
The Baptist Faith & Message
Here’s what we believe:
- The Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God’s revelation of Himself to man. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, without any mixture of error for its matter. The Bible is totally true and trustworthy for all matters of faith and practice.
- There is one and only one living true God. The eternal Triune God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence or being.
- Jesus, the Christ, is the incarnation of God. He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin, Mary, and perfectly revealed and obeyed the will of God. His substitutionary death on the cross made provision for the redemption of men from sin through faith and acceptance of Jesus as personal Savior. He was crucified, died, and buried. He rose from the dead, seen by many witnesses, ascended to heaven and will return in power and glory to judge all mankind. There is no other name under heaven whereby people may be saved.
- Salvation is offered to all who accept Jesus, and His redemptive work on the cross. It comes through confession of sin; repentance from sin; accepting/asking Jesus to save us; and a commitment to follow Jesus as Lord. Salvation comes by faith not of work.
- The Church is an autonomous local congregation of baptized believers in Jesus. The New Testament speaks of the church as the Body of Christ with importance and significance ascribed to all members. The Church also includes all of the redeemed of all ages, from every tribe and tongue.
- All people are sinners and are in need of salvation through faith in Jesus Christ.
- The duty and privilege of every believer in Jesus is to help make disciples of all nations. Sharing Jesus is not an option; it is Gods commandment to us. Sharing the Gospel of Jesus at home and around this world is the heartbeat of the church.
- Since God is the source of all blessings, earthly and spiritual, Christians have a binding responsibility of good and faithful stewardship of time, talent, and financial blessings to do the work of God on earth.