Our Constitution

The Name

The name "The First Baptist Church" is derived from the Trust Deed registering the property.

Our Purpose

The purpose of the First Baptist Church is set forth in the Trust Deed of the property and in the Articles of Faith.

Articles of Faith

The ARTICLES OF FAITH are incorporated in the Trust Deed of the property which is dated September 26, 1889, and declares that the property...

"...shall be held for the use of the members of a Regular Baptist Church, which shall be exclusively composed of persons who have been baptized by immersion, on a personal profession of their faith in Christ, and holding the following doctrines, that is to say:
  • the being and unity of God;
  • the existence of three equal persons in the Godhead;
  • the inspiration of the Old and New Testaments;
  • the total depravity of man;
  • election according to the foreknowledge of God;
  • the Divinity of Christ and the all-sufficiency of His atonement;
  • justification by faith alone in the righteousness of Christ;
  • the work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration;
  • perseverance of the saints;
  • the resurrection of the dead;
  • the final judgment;
  • the punishment of the wicked and the blessedness of the righteous, both eternal;
  • the immersion of believers in water in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit, the only baptism;
  • the Lord's Supper, a privilege peculiar to baptized believers;
  • a Church, a company of baptized believers voluntarily associated and meeting in one place on the first day of the week for mutual edification and the mainenance and propagation of these doctrines;
  • the Word of God, a complete and infallible rule of faith and practice;
  • the religious observance of the first day of the week; and
  • the obligation of every intelligent creature to believe the record which God has given of His Son."
Sketch of First Baptist Church