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A SHORT HISTORY OF FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH
In 1812, the founding pastor of First Baptist Church in Barnesville, John Milner, was baptized by Jesse Mercer at the Sardis Baptist Church in Wilkes County, Georgia. Milner came to "Barnes Store" as a result of the Land Lottery of 1821 and founded the Sardis Baptist Church in Barnesville, naming it after the church in which he was baptized. Records of the Flint River Baptist Association demonstrate that Sardis Baptist Church was admitted to membership in that association in 1825 with a total church membership of 21.
By 1828, Sardis Baptist Church reported to the Flint River Baptist Association a membership of 100 members with most coming by baptism, a remarkable growth in only three years. Through our history, First Baptist has continued to grow. Today, membership stands at almost 1,400 with nearly 500 attending Bible Study ministries each week.
First Baptist has been an unusually unified church. We have had thirty-four pastors without a single termination. What’s more, our church has started two other congregations in our community, but has never had a split throughout our long history.
As our church has had three different names – Sardis BC, Barnesville BC, and First Baptist Church – so our church has also occupied 3 different sanctuaries. Our present worship center was built in 1883, and we have three worship services and two Sunday Schools each Sunday morning.
First Baptist has always been ready to build when space constraints limited the growth of the congregation. A Sunday School Annex (now a chapel with Sunday School space) was built in 1912. An educational building was built in 1951. Our Christian Family Life Center, complete with gymnasium, kitchen and classrooms, was built in 1984. In 2007, we completed and dedicated our new 2-story preschool/children's wing that consists of state-of-the-art preschool space downstairs, children’s space upstairs, an elevator to access all of our second floor space, a two-story lobby connector and a renovated kitchen.
But properties are never an end in themselves, only a means to fulfilling our purpose of reaching people and helping them grow in their relationship with Christ. We welcome you to come join us as we grow together!
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FBC job application forms are now available on this website in the .pdf format. Just click on the icons at right. They are due in to the church secretary by June 30th. Both forms must be completed!
