History - Established in 1841

Although the early records of the Philippi Baptist Church were destroyed by fire, the church covenant of June 15, 1841, is recorded. At that time the ten charter members recorded were Jane Jones, A.P.H. Jordan, Malissa Jordan, Sara Jordan, Daniel Ramsey, John Ramsey, Martha Ramsey, Stacy A. Ramsey, T.L.R. Ramsey, and Celio Stewart.

The early congregation met only once a month for worship in a log cabin on Squire Bean's farm. During this time, the church held elections for a pastor almost every year. In 1862, the church disbanded because of the Civil War; but in 1866 a church and school was erected which was used for worship by several denominations.

A Sunday School was organized in February 1878. Since the constitution adopted in 1841 was lost, a committee was appointed to submit a revised constitution which was adopted in January 1879. By 1887, the congregation was meeting in their new church building on a lot donated by John C. Poindexter. The location of this new church was approximately one mile from the present church building on Harrison Pike.

In November 1938, the church paid their pastor eight dollars per service for the two Sundays each month they were meeting. Raymond Elmore was elected music director in 1943 and served faithfully in that capacity as well as others until his death in 1980. The total membership in the church year 1944-45 was 170. Rev. M.L. Howard became the pastor in 1946 and the following year became the first full-time pastor with a salary of thirty-five dollars per week.

The congregation enlarged their Sunday School facilities at the Poindexter site in 1950; but due to growth the church constructed a two-story building on Old Harrison Pike in 1960. Since the church did not have a baptistry, the baptismal ceremonies were conducted in nearby streams, lakes, or in sister churches. This practice continued until 1968 at which time a new sanctuary with a baptistry was added to the existing building.

Missions education has been a vital part of the church. The Woman's Missionary Union was organized on May 12, 1957, with Mrs. Lee Griggs elected as president. The organization has grown to include Mission Friends, Girls in Action, Acteens, and Women on Mission. The church approved a Brotherhood organization along with three officers on April 1, 1964. The men's organization now includes the Royal Ambassadors for boys.

The church sanctuary was damaged by fire in April 1986 and required the congregation to meet in the old sanctuary, which is now the educational building, until repairs were completed in September 1986. Five classrooms, four bathrooms, a kitchen, and fellowship hall were added to the educational building in 1993.

Rev. Sam Hooker, who became the pastor in October 1988, led the way for members to receive training to be witnesses and win the lost to Jesus. A number of members have taken the thirteen week Continuous Witness Training which was begun in 1997 and is offered one or two times a year.

As the congregation continued to grow, members began to pray about building a larger sanctuary to accommodate the larger attendance. They purchased approximately four acres of property adjacent to the church and voted to begin a building fund in January 1998.

As the building fund increased, the church voted on August 11, 1999 to give the deacons authority to meet with architect and builders for plans and prices of new auditorium. The pastor urged members to pray earnestly before going into a building program. The church voted to purchase the Wright property adjacent to the church on February 20, 2000.

The church continued to grow, and for a period of time, were having two morning services to accommodate the larger attendance. On July 11, 2001, the church voted to build a new auditorium at approximate cost of $722,000. The building fund was at $282,486, and the congregation voted to borrow $450,000. A building committee, sound committee, and instrument committee were appointed. Sound equipment and instruments would need to be upgraded for the larger auditorium. Within a few weeks, construction was underway.

Although restrooms and nurseries were not completely finished, members were able to worship for the first time in the new sanctuary on February 10, 2002, with Rev. James Watson bringing the Sunday morning message. Dedication of the new building was held on March 3, 2002 with three hundred in attendance. The old fellowship hall was converted into classrooms, and the old sanctuary was converted into a fellowship hall by 2003.

The foundation was laid for the Awana program as leaders participated in training on October 2, 2004. The Bible-centered youth organization began in January 2005 under the leadership of the youth ministers, Nathan Sneed and Andrew Hicks, with sixty-three students registered. The acronym Awana comes from the first letters of the phrase “Approved workmen are not ashamed” (2 Timothy 2:15). In September 2006 eighty-two students registered in the Awana program.

In 2006 a storage building was built large enough to accommodate two vans, and metal racks were installed to store items neatly. In the same year improvements were made to the house formerly owned by Kate Wright. Burst pipes were repaired and vinyl siding installed.

• 2017 – An Outdoor Pavilion was built inside the fenced area, beside the fellowship hall. The pavilion has electricity with concrete tables and seats for members to enjoy their time outdoors. The church also installed a Security System with cameras and door alarms securing the entire church property.

• 2020 – A Digital Sign was added after the previous sign had suffered catastrophic hail damage in 2017.

• 2020 – As the COVID-19 pandemic hit the United States in 2020, church life changed tremendously. All in person events were canceled at Philippi. For a period of time, members sat in their vehicles in the parking lot and tuned into the radio station 100.5 FM to listen as Sammy preached. A short time later, members were able to meet in the gym which was sanitized and social distanced, before ultimately returning to the sanctuary in the spring of 2021.

• 2021 – Pastor Sammy Hooker retired effective October 31, 2021 after serving the church faithfully for 33 years.
• A farewell service was held to honor Sammy and Debbie, on Sunday, October 31, 2021.
• A Pulpit Committee was appointed to search for the pastor God has for Philippi.
• Nathan Sneed preached Sunday morning and nights with different speakers on Wednesday evenings through the end of the year.

• 2022 – Interim Pastor Richard (Dick) Sisk began preaching Sunday morning January 17, 2022.
• The Pulpit Committee continued to meet throughout the year and share periodic updates.

• 2023 – Dick Sisk began serving as full time Pastor on February 1, 2023. • At Dick’s request, the Pulpit Committee has remained intact and continues to seek a pastor.
• 2023 – Our Nursery was remodeled and expanded by almost 40% to accommodate the growth of our families with babies and toddlers.

• 2024 – Joshua Stock became our full-time pastor.

To God be the glory for all He has done at Philippi.