OUR HISTORY:
First Baptist Church of Indian Trail was organized in April of 1951 with twenty- nine founding members. Four acres of land were purchased on Indian Trail-Fairview Road for $100 per acre. The first buildings were two donated army barracks. Rev. C. W. Boatwright was the founding pastor. Other early pastors were Rev. Lloyd Walters and Rev. Melvin Helms.
In 1958, Rev. Earl Sossamon became pastor of the small church. He served First Baptist faithfully as Pastor for twenty-four years. Under his leadership, the church grew steadily, and built buildings to accommodate the growth, including the auditorium that today is the Earl Sossamon Chapel. When he retired in 1982, the church had grown to 446 members.
Rev. Michael T. Whitson became the new pastor of FBCIT on April 1, 1983. During his tenure as pastor, the church has seen phenomenal growth. Today, First Baptist is blessed to serve over 5,000 members, and is a vital part of this growing community. Several building programs have taken place under Rev. Whitson’s leadership, including the current worship center, which opened in1993, and the Family Life Center and the beautiful new Children and Preschool Building, which were completed in 2005.
First Baptist began Metrolina Christian Academy in 1992, with the first graduating class completing their high school education in May of 2000. Today MCA serves about 1,000 students.
The East Campus of First Baptist was begun in 1998. Both the Indian Trail Campus and the East Campus are in multiple worship services and Sunday Schools to reach more people for the cause of Christ. First Baptist Church of Indian Trail remains committed today to do whatever is necessary to reach our world for Christ.
OUR PURPOSE:
The purpose statement of FBCIT is to “Worship the Father, Witness for the Son, and Walk in the Spirit.”
“Worship the Father” – Exciting worship services are a vital element of First Baptist. With great music and dynamic preaching, the worship experience is one that will touch and challenge your life as we worship together. It will also lead you to develop a life style of worship and praise to our Heavenly Father.
“Witness for the Son” – There is no greater challenge for a church than to spread the Gospel of Christ. First Baptist Church of Indian Trail teaches and promotes sharing our faith in our community, and around the world. Local outreach is done on a weekly basis. Mission teams go around the world to share their faith.
“Walk in the Spirit” – Every area of the discipleship program is designed to assist people in strengthening their daily walk with Christ. Whether in Life Groups, Discipleship Training, or other Bible Study groups, the purpose is to teach a daily walk with God. Only through Him can we effectively cope with the challenges of life.
HOW TO BECOME A MEMBER AT FIRST BAPTIST CHURCH OF INDIAN TRAIL:
All applicants for membership must complete a Discovery session for new members which is led by our Minister of Member Involvement and Senior Adults, Rev. Irvin Reynolds. In Discovery we explain First Baptist's purpose, vision, and how you can be a part of what God is doing through this ministry.
First Baptist accepts candidates for membership in the following ways:
OUR CORE BELIEFS:
We believe that the Bible is the Word of God, supernaturally inspired, so that it is inerrant in the original manuscripts and preserved by God in its verbal, plenary inspiration, so that it is a Divinely authoritative standard for every age and every life.
We believe that the Godhead exists eternally in three persons - Father, Son, and Holy Spirit - that these three are one God.
We believe in God as absolute and sole Creator of the Universe, and that creation was by Divine action, not through evolutionary process.
We believe that God, by His sovereign choice and out of love for men, sent Christ into the world to save sinners.
We believe that Jesus Christ in the flesh was both God and man; that He was born of a virgin and that He lived a sinless life, in which He taught and performed mighty works and wonders and signs exactly as revealed in the four Gospels; that He was crucified, died as a penalty for our sins and was bodily raised from the dead on the third day. Later, He ascended to the Father’s right hand where He is the head of the church and intercedes for believers, and from where He is coming again, personally, bodily, and visibly to this earth to set up His millennial kingdom.
We believe that in His death, by His shed blood, the Lord Jesus Christ made a perfect atonement for sin, redeeming us from the curse of the law by becoming a sacrifice for sin. Men are therefore saved and justified on the simple and single ground of the shed blood.
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