connect. grow. serve.

Since 1852, the First Baptist community's heart has been for downtown Jonesboro, AR. Over the years, we've remained true to a specific calling to serve our city in and through the downtown area by keeping our campus in its original location at 701 S. Main Street. FBC is rich in history and tradition while being distinctive in our ministries and strong in our commitment to our Creator.  


We want to share His love, hope, and healing, to welcome all people openly. Let us help you find your place in God's kingdom and in the church.


we value...

STUDYING scripture because it guides us into a growing relationship with Jesus Christ, equipping us to live out God’s plan for our lives.

 

RESPONDING to Jesus’ movement in our lives with worship. 


SERVING our community by meeting every type of need as a demonstration of His love. 


NURTURING Christ-centered relationships by investing in all stages of family life. 


SEEKING God and His purpose in all things through prayer.


SHARING Christ in our community, nation, and world. 


FULFILLING God’s purpose with our gifts and abilities. 

we believe...

Our church uses the Baptist Faith and Message (1963) as its doctrinal statement.


Here is a summary of some of our key beliefs:


Scripture | We believe the entire Bible is the inspired Word of God and that people were moved by the Holy Spirit to write words of Scripture. Therefore, the Bible is absolutely true.


God | We believe in one God who exists in three distinct persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit). We believe that Jesus Christ is the second member of the Trinity (the Son of God) who became flesh to reveal God to humans and to become the Savior of the lost world.   


People | We believe that people were created in the image of God to have fellowship with Him, but became alienated from that relationship through sinful disobedience. As a result, people are totally incapable of coming back into a right relationship with God by their own effort.


Salvation | We believe that the shed blood of Jesus Christ on the cross provides the sole basis for the forgiveness of sins. Therefore, salvation only occurs when a person places his faith in the death and resurrection of Christ as the sufficient payment for his sin. 


Christian life | We believe that every Christian should live for Christ and not for themselves. By obedience to the Scripture and daily yielding to the Spirit, every believer will mature and become conformed to the image of Christ.


Church | We believe that the church is the body of Christ of which Jesus Christ is the Head. The members are those who have trusted by faith the finished work of Christ. The purpose of the church is to glorify God by loving Him and by making Him known to a lost world.


Baptism | We believe that baptism is an act of obedience to the command of Jesus Christ, fulfilled as a visual testimony by those who have submitted themselves to God’s desire for their lives. Baptism symbolizes the spiritual cleansing through God’s forgiveness and the newness of life experienced, identifying with Christ in death and resurrection by immersion into the water. Baptism provides an opportunity for believers in Jesus Christ to make a formal declaration of their faith before the church. As a standard for being a follower of Christ, baptism by immersion is a prerequisite for being a member of our congregation.


A word concerning infant baptism - In the Bible, we find parents bringing their children to Jesus. He held them and prayed for them and told us to welcome and care for them. But He did not baptize them, and He did not tell anyone else to baptize them. We do have special times of dedication for our infants, praying for them and promising to love them as a church body. But, we believe that baptism is for those who have made a personal decision to trust Christ alone for their salvation. 


Response

to Sexual Harassment

In light of recent revelations regarding the immorality and corruption within the leadership of the Southern Baptist Convention, we, the leaders of First Baptist Church, Jonesboro, AR, condemn the sexual, physical, emotional, mental, and spiritual abuse of the victims and the attempts by those in power to cover it up.  We grieve over the damage done to the victims and their families and call upon the SBC to make amends for the sinful behavior and hypocrisy of church and convention leaders who harassed, abused, threatened, coerced, or manipulated people for their selfish ends and then tried to justify and obfuscate their sin.   Convention leaders need to help local churches not only strengthen processes to report cases of sexual abuse but also develop best practices designed to prevent abuse of women, men, and children in our congregations.


To that end, we are encouraged by the decisions of messengers during the 2022 annual meeting of the convention in Anaheim to begin to follow the recommendations made by Guidepost, creating a national database of abusers and to form a taskforce to help churches deal with the problem of sexual abuse.  We have already taken the initiative to strengthen our protocols for reporting and addressing cases of sexual abuse that may occur in our fellowship, wanting to provide not only a safe environment for our members and guests but also a discrete and effective process to protect the identity of the abused to the extent possible and hold accountable those who abuse others.