Knowing Jesus & Making Him Known
As Baptized believers we bring glory to God and serve Christ in love through evangelism, fellowship, discipleship and ministry.
We affirm the Holy Bible as the inspired word of God and the basis for our beliefs.
This Church subscribes to the doctrinal statement of the Baptist Faith and Message as adopted by the Southern Baptist Convention in 2000.
We voluntarily band ourselves together as a body of baptized believers in Jesus Christ personally committed to sharing the good news of salvation to lost mankind, teaching new believers to provide spiritual growth opportunities, and ministering to those in need within the fellowship and without.
The ordinances of the church are believer's baptism and the Lord's Supper.
Our History
A group of people interested in organizing a Baptist Church met February 4, 1885.
On May 25, 1885, worshippers elected a moderator and formally organized a church. It was called First Baptist Church of Paragould. Six members were eager to have a church of Bible teachings and use the policy and practice of Southern Baptists. J. K. Pate was elected pastor.
On September 5, 1895, they petitioned Mt. Zion Baptist Association for membership. They reported a membership of twenty-nine.
The church met in the old Opera House until the present church building was erected in 1921-22 when Ben L. Bridges was pastor. The first service in the new church was held May 11, 1924.
In 1965, while D. C. Applegate was pastor, a three-story facility was added on the west side. In 1965, a two story Children's Building was built under the leadership of Pastor Prince Edward Claybrook.
In 2006 the Multi-Ministry Center was completed. The need for space for the Children's AWANA ministry and other youth activities, extra Sunday School rooms and the need for a new kitchen and fellowship hall prompted the church to enter into this courageous building program led by Pastor Scott Neathery.
The cost of the building and equipment was approximately $2.2 million. The MMC building loan was paid off in 2013.
The MMC was used as a Red Cross emergency shelter for the community during the ice storm of 2009. Volunteers from the church and the community fed and housed over 300 people for several days.
