About Us

Our History

Where We Came From

The story of Lancaster Baptist Church is best described by Psalm 118:23: “This is the LORD’s doing; it is marvelous in our eyes.”

In 1986, the Lancaster Baptist Church consisted of a handful of families that were meeting weekly in a small upstairs classroom of an old downtown building. The church was deeply in debt and getting closer to closing its doors. The building was in foreclosure, and the grounds were in disrepair; yet the spirit of the few remaining families was hopeful. They wanted to see God work in their church and in their valley!

In June of that summer, a young preacher, Paul Chappell, passed through Lancaster as a guest speaker at Lancaster Baptist. He was on a family vacation and looking forward to getting back home to northern California. But God had other plans.

After his message on that hot June evening, the twelve people in attendance voted unanimously to call Paul Chappell to be their pastor. Though the Chappells had no intention of coming to the high desert, they soon began to sense that God was leading them to Lancaster Baptist Church. Within just a few days, they surrendered to that call with no doubt that it was God’s will for their future. They left a comfortable ministry position, packed up their belongings, and invested all of their personal savings into coming to Lancaster even though the church could offer no salary.

During his first week in the Antelope Valley, Pastor Chappell began laboring diligently to get the church back on its feet. He knocked on hundreds of doors every week, repaired the church building, and preached God’s Word with conviction. In a short time, it was clear to see that God was beginning to bless the Chappells’ faith and sacrifice.

Within a year, the church was averaging over 150 in attendance and was growing rapidly. By the third anniversary, there were more than 500 people coming to Lancaster Baptist Church each week, most of them being led to Christ personally by Pastor Chappell or another member of Lancaster Baptist Church.

By 1993, the church family had grown to over 1,500 in attendance and had long since outgrown the downtown property. Souls were coming to Christ and families were added to the church on a weekly basis, and God had provided fifty acres on the east side of Lancaster where the church could grow and develop a spacious new campus. As we meet on this campus today, we thank the Lord for the church He has raised here in Lancaster, California. As we gather to worship the Lord on Sundays, every corner of our facilities is being used to teach and minister to people from all ages and walks of life.

While our church has become one of the largest Baptist churches in the West, the spirit of the church family is the same as it was over three decades ago. We love God and each other, and we genuinely want God to continue blessing and multiplying the cause of Christ through our church.

Today, the Lancaster Baptist Church is a thriving testimony that God is still in the business of changing lives! Words could not describe God’s goodness in this place, and all of the glory belongs to God! The lives changed, the families rescued, and the victories won have all been by God’s amazing grace! To Him be all the glory for His wonderful works at Lancaster Baptist Church!

Services

Worshipping Christ with His People

Our main worship services are Sundays at 8:15 am, 10:45 am, and 5:00 pm. Both morning services are identical with the same Bible message and music program, so choose the one that best fits your schedule. The evening service is a separate service with music and preaching specific for that service. All services are available in person or online at lbclive.tv.

Sundays

Helping you to love God and reach others

Wednesdays

Helping you to grow together

View Past Sermons

Worship is the act of loving and responding to God! Through the heart-warming, conservative music and the clear, Bible teaching and preaching in our services, your heart will be inspired to love and to respond to God. Each week, families are strengthened, encouraged, and drawn closer to Him through these special times together. Each service is carefully planned and prayed over so that God may work in your life!

Pastoral Team

John Williams

Music Worship Leader
john.williams@lancasterbaptist.org

661.466.3658

Jerry Ferrso

Outreach Director
jerry.ferrso@lancasterbaptist.org

661.492.5279

Larry Chappell

Educational Pastor/Student Ministries
larry.chappell@lancasterbaptist.org

661.917.9830

Rick Houk

Counseling
rick.houk@lancasterbaptist.org

661.992.8539

Jerry Collins

Spanish Ministries
jerry.collins@lancasterbaptist.org

661.341.4023

Rick Allen

Deaf Ministries
rick.allen@lancasterbaptist.org

661.212.4810

Jeremy Lofgren

Media and Communications
jeremy.lofgren@lancasterbaptist.org

661.609.5799

Isai Gonzalez

Spanish Ministry
isai.gonzalez@lancasterbaptist.org

661.917.4963

Jacob Fleming

Young Adult Ministry
jacob.fleming@lancasterbaptist.org

661.429.8170

Purpose and Mission

The Purpose of Lancaster Baptist Church

Love God Fervently

Loving God begins in the heart, with a personal relationship with Him. As we gather and participate in Christ-honoring worship services and respond to the preaching of God’s Word, this love flourishes. Mark 12:30 says, “And thou shalt love the Lord thy God with all thy heart, and with all thy soul, and with all thy mind, and with all thy strength: this is the first commandment.”

Grow Together Biblically

We grow together, in Christ, through the study of God’s Word. This occurs in our weekly services, in our smaller Connection Groups, and in one-on-one discipleship.

Reach Others Passionately

We reach others as we find a place of ministry in the local body. We also reach out by sharing the Gospel with those who need the Lord—through witnessing to friends, coworkers, neighbors, and loved ones, as well as in participating in church outreach and giving to missions.

As a church, our mission is to reach the world with the Gospel of Christ. We want to utilize every available biblical means, and we want to disciple and train every member to participate in accomplishing our church’s purpose.

Vision and Core Values

Unchanging, Long-term Vision for Lancaster Baptist Church

LBC exists to develop a thriving community of believers that is passionately reaching the world for Jesus Christ.

Core Values

1. We center all we do on Christ. In all things, we seek to give Christ the preeminence. (Colossians 1:18, Revelation 4:11, 1 Corinthians 10:31)

2. We submit to God’s Word. Above all, we want to please God and stay true to His Word. We would rather be biblical than be popular. (2 Timothy 3:14-17, Acts 5:29, 2 Timothy 1:13)

3. We engage with the gospel. The truths of God’s Word apply equally to every generation and every background. Sharing the life-changing truth of the gospel is the most compassionate and important endeavor in which we can be involved. (Matthew 28:18-20, 1 Timothy 2:3-6)

4. We enjoy serving Jesus. We enjoy church life.Serving God is not simply a duty. It is fun, so we serve together with joy and passion. It is the outflowing of Christ in us. (Psalm 100:2, Nehemiah 8:10)

5. We live by faith. We believe God is able. We strive to be excellent. We sacrifice, believing God will replenish. (Ecclesiastes 9:10, Philippians 3:13-14, Daniel 6:3)

Beliefs

Our Beliefs

The following comprise the Scriptural beliefs of this church and its members.

The Bible

We believe the Bible to be the revealed Word of God, fully and verbally inspired of God. We believe the Scriptures to be the inerrant, infallible Word of God, as found within the 66 books from Genesis to Revelation. We believe that God not only inspired every word, but that He has preserved them through the ages. We believe that the King James Version is the preserved Word of God for the English-speaking people and is the only acceptable translation to be used in this church. (Psalm 12:6–7; 2 Timothy 3:15-17; 1 Peter 1:23-25; 2 Peter 1:19-21)

God

We believe in one God; Who is eternal, self-existent, infinite, and immutable. We believe He has one nature, one essence, and one substance; yet manifests Himself to man in three Persons: the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit. (Deuteronomy 6:4; 1 Timothy 1:17; James 1:17; 1 John 4:4)

Jesus Christ

We believe Jesus Christ to be the one and only Saviour of mankind. We believe Jesus Christ to be eternally God and to possess all the attributes of Deity. We believe that the Lord Jesus Christ was virgin-born, that He was God incarnate, and that the purposes of the incarnation were to reveal God, to redeem men, and to rule over God's kingdom. We believe Jesus Christ never relinquished any attributes of His Deity, but merely veiled them. We believe He lived a perfect, sinless life, at the end of which He was offered for all mankind as a substitutionary sacrifice for man's sin. This sacrifice was a just payment to God for the forgiveness of sin. It was activated by His death through the shedding of His blood on the cross and was accepted by God upon His resurrection. We believe He ascended into Heaven after His resurrection to be seated at the right hand of the Father and is now waiting for the time of receiving His church at the rapture, which is followed by His return seven years later to earth to rule and reign as King for 1,000 years. (Psalm 2:7-9; Isaiah 7:14, 9:6, 43:11; Micah 5:2; Matthew 1:25; Luke 1:26-35; John 1:1, 1:3, 14, 18, 29; Romans 3:19-25; Romans 5:6-15; Philippians 2:5-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Timothy 2:5; 1 Timothy 3:16; Titus 2:10-15; Hebrews 7:26, 9:24-28; 1 Peter 1:19, 2:2; 1 John 1:3; Revelation 20:1-6)

The Holy Spirit

We believe the Holy Spirit of God is a person who has personality and all the attributes of Deity. We believe the Holy Spirit has always been involved in the affairs of mankind; however, we believe He has a special ministry that began at Pentecost and will continue until the rapture. This ministry includes reproving the world of sin, righteousness, and judgment. The Holy Spirit was also sent to regenerate, sanctify, seal, and fill all who have placed their faith in Jesus Christ. (Genesis 1:2; John 3:5-6; John 14:16; Acts 1:5; Acts 11:15; 1 Corinthians 3:16; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20; 1 Corinthians 12:13)

Sin and Salvation

We believe all men were born with an inherited sin nature received from our common ancestor, Adam. We believe that because of his nature, man is a sinner by choice, and he is totally incapable of reforming himself or ceasing from his sin by his own power. We believe the only hope of deliverance for man is a total change of mind concerning his sinful condition and inability to change it, and a turning to Jesus Christ as the only Saviour. We believe that only through the substitutionary sacrifice of Christ on the cross can a man be delivered from his sin. We believe that all those who reject Jesus Christ as their Saviour are already condemned to an eternity in the lake of fire. (Genesis 5:1-5; Acts 4:19; Acts 16:31; Romans 3:10-23; Romans 5:6-12; Romans 6:23; Romans 10:9-10; Ephesians 2:8-9; Titus 3:5-6; Revelation 20:11-14)

The New Testament Church

We believe that the church began with the calling out of the twelve apostles by Jesus Christ and was empowered on the day of Pentecost. We believe the local church is composed of members who have been saved and baptized according to the command of Christ, and have voluntarily united together for the purposes of worship, fellowship, service, and observance of the ordinances of baptism and communion. We believe all true believers will be taken up at the rapture, just prior to the tribulation. (Matthew 16:16-18; Acts 1:15; Acts 2:41-43; Acts 11:15; Acts 20:28; 1 Corinthians 15: 51-58; Ephesians 1:12-14; Ephesians 5:25-30; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Timothy 3:4-15)

The Last Days

We believe in the literal interpretation of the Scriptures in their grammatical and historical context. We believe in the pre-tribulational rapture of the church saints, followed by the seven-year tribulation. We believe in the pre-millennial return of Christ to the earth and His literal rule of 1,000 years. Following this one-thousand-year reign is the Great White Throne judgment and then the new heaven and new earth. (1 Corinthians 15:51-58; 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18; 1 Thessalonians 5:1-9; Revelation 19-22)

Separation

We believe that all the saved should live in such a manner as not to bring reproach upon their Saviour and Lord. God commands His people to separate from all religious apostasy, all worldly and sinful pleasures, practices, and associations; and to refrain from all immodest and immoderate appearances, piercings, and bodily markings. (Romans 12:1-2; 14:13; 2 Corinthians 6:14-7:1; 2 Timothy 3:1-5; 1 John 2:15-17; 2 John 9-11; Leviticus 19:28; 1 Corinthians 6:19-20)

Creation

We believe that God created the universe in six literal, 24-hour periods. We reject evolution, the gap theory, the day-age theory, theistic evolution, and intelligent design not attributed to God as unscriptural theories of origin. (Genesis 1-2; Exodus 20:11)

Civil Government

We believe that God has ordained and created all authority consisting of three basic institutions: 1) the home, 2) the church, and 3) the state. Every person is subject to these authorities, but all (including the authorities themselves) are answerable to God and governed by His Word. God has given each institution specific Biblical responsibilities and balanced these responsibilities with the understanding that no institution has the right to infringe upon the other. The home, the church, and the state are equal and sovereign in their respective Biblically-assigned spheres of responsibility under God. (Romans 13:1-7; Ephesians 5:22-24; Hebrews 13:17; 1 Peter 2:13-14)

Human Sexuality

  1. We believe that God created humanity as distinctly and exclusively either male or female from the beginning, and that He blessed His created design as very good. We believe that every human’s true gender identity is identical to the genetic, biological sex with which they were born. We believe that God blesses submission to and acceptance of His created design. We believe God disapproves of and forbids any and all attempts to alter one’s gender through surgery, medicinal manipulation, appearance, or expression contrary to His created design. (Genesis 1:26-28, 31, 2:23-24; Matthew 19:4-6)
  2. We believe that marriage is a sacred institution ordained by God, given to represent His love for the church, to continue the human race, and to bless humanity. We believe that the only legitimate marriage is the joining of one biological male and one biological female in a covenant commitment before God. (Genesis 2:24; Matthew 19:4-6; Romans 7:2; 1 Corinthians 7:2, 10; Ephesians 5:22-33)
  3. We believe that God has commanded that there should be no intimate sexual activity outside of a marriage between a biological male and a biological female. We believe that any relationships or activities involving homosexuality, lesbianism, bisexuality, transgenderism, pedophilia, bestiality, incest, fornication, adultery, or pornography are sinful perversions of God’s gift of sex. (Genesis 2:24, 19:5, 13; Leviticus 18:1-30; Romans 1:26-32; 1 Corinthians 5:1; 6:9-11; 1 Thessalonians 4:1-8; Hebrews 13:4)
  4. In keeping with our beliefs regarding the purpose of the church and regarding human sexuality, as expressed in this statement of faith, our doctrine necessitates the following:
    1. All people are welcome to attend our regular worship services, for we believe that all people need and deserve to hear the truth of the Gospel.
    2. Those who attend may not display and promote behavior that demonstrates violations of the sinful behaviors listed in this section in church services, on the church grounds, or at church functions.
    3. Church representatives shall enforce the doctrinal position of this church, but shall not display overt disrespect for those who condone or display the sinful behaviors listed in this section.
    4. The pastor of the church will consistently preach against all forms of sinful sexual behavior, as well as other sinful behaviors.

Family Relationships

  1. We believe that men and women are spiritually equal in position before God but that God has ordained distinct and separate spiritual functions for men and women in the home and in the church. The husband is to be the leader of the home, and men are to be the leaders (pastors and deacons) of the church. Accordingly, only men are eligible for licensure and ordination by the church. (Galatians 3:28; Colossians 3:18; 1 Timothy 2:8-15; 3:4-5, 12)
  2. We believe that God has ordained the family as the foundational institution of human society. The husband is to love his wife as Christ loves the church. The wife is to submit herself to the Scriptural leadership of her husband as the church submits to the headship of Christ. Children are an heritage from the Lord. Parents are responsible for teaching their children spiritual and moral values and leading them, through consistent lifestyle example and appropriate discipline, including Scriptural corporal correction. (Genesis 1:26-28; Exodus 20:12; Deuteronomy 6:4-9; Psalm 127:3-5; Proverbs 19:18; 22:15; 23:13-14; Mark 10:6-12; 1 Corinthians 7:1-16; Ephesians 5:21-33; 6:1-4, Colossians 3:18-21; Hebrews 13:4; 1 Peter 3:1-7)

Divorce and Remarriage

We believe that God disapproves of and forbids divorce and intends marriage to last until one of the spouses dies. Although divorced and remarried persons or divorced persons may hold positions of service in the church and be greatly used of God for Christian service, they may not be considered for the offices of pastor or deacon or those administrative positions within the church that would consist of pastoral duties. (Malachi 2:14-17; Matthew 19:3-12; Romans 7:1-3; 1 Timothy 3:2, 12; Titus 1:6)

Abortion

We believe that human life begins at conception and that the unborn child is a living human being. Abortion constitutes the unjustified, unexcused taking of unborn human life. Abortion is murder. We reject any teaching that abortions of pregnancies due to rape, incest, birth defects, gender selection, birth or population control, or the physical or mental well being of the mother are acceptable. (Job 3:16; Psalm 51:5; 139:14-16; Isaiah 44:24; 49:1, 5; Jeremiah 1:5; 20:15-18; Luke 1:44)

Love

We believe that we should demonstrate love for others, not only toward fellow believers, but also toward both those who are not believers and those who oppose us. We are to deal with those who oppose us graciously, gently, patiently, and humbly. God forbids the stirring up of strife, the taking of revenge, or the threat or the use of violence as a means of resolving personal conflict or obtaining personal justice. Although God commands us to abhor sinful actions, we are to love and pray for any person who engages in such sinful actions. (Leviticus 19:18; Matthew 5:44-48; Luke 6:31; John 13:34-35; Romans 12:9-10; 17-21; 13:8-10; Philippians 2:2-4; 2 Timothy 2:24-26; Titus 3:2; 1 John 3:17-18)

Lawsuits between Believers

We believe that Christians are prohibited from bringing civil lawsuits against other Christians or the church to resolve personal disputes. We believe the church possesses all the resources necessary to resolve personal disputes between members. We do believe, however, that a Christian may seek compensation for injuries from another Christian’s insurance company as long as the claim is pursued without malice or slander. (1 Corinthians 6:1-8; Ephesians 4:31-32)

Missions

We believe that God has given the church a great commission to proclaim the Gospel to all nations so that there might be a great multitude from every nation, tribe, ethnic group, and language group who believe on the Lord Jesus Christ. As ambassadors of Christ we must use all available means to go to the foreign nations and not wait for them to come to us. (Matthew 28:19-20; Mark 16:15; Luke 24:46-48; John 20:21; Acts 1:8; 2 Corinthians 5:20)

Giving

We believe that every Christian, as a steward of that portion of God’s wealth entrusted to him, is obligated to support his local church financially. We believe that God has established the tithe as a basis for giving, but that every Christian should also give other offerings sacrificially and cheerfully to the support of the church, the relief of those in need, and the spread of the Gospel. We believe that a Christian relinquishes all rights to direct the use of the tithe or offering once the gift has been made. (Genesis 14:20; Proverbs 3:9-10; Acts 4:34-37; 1 Corinthians 16:2; 2 Corinthians 9:6-7; Galatians 6:6; Ephesians 4:28; 1 Timothy 5:17-18; 1 John 3:17)

Euthanasia

We believe that the direct taking of an innocent human life is a moral evil, regardless of the intention. Life is a gift of God and must be respected from conception until natural death. Thus we believe that an act or omission which, of itself or by intention, causes death in order to eliminate suffering constitutes a murder contrary to the will of God. Discontinuing medical procedures that are extraordinary or disproportionate to the expected outcome can be a legitimate refusal of over-zealous treatment. (Exodus 20:13, 23:7; Matthew 5:21; Acts 17:28)

Contact Us

We are here for you!

Phone and Fax

  • Church Phone • 661.946.4663
  • Church Toll Free • 800.688.6329
  • Church Fax • 661.946.2620
  • School Phone • 661.946.4668
  • College Phone • 661.946.2274
  • College Toll Free • 888.694.9222

Ministry Offices

  • Adult Ministries Office Ext. 2111
  • Outreach Ext. 2133
  • Discipleship Ext. 2174
  • Counseling Needs Ext. 2136
  • Bible Questions Ext. 3123
  • Music Ext. 2150
  • Student Ministries Ext. 2146
  • Media and Communication Ext. 2190
  • Facilities and Maintenance Ext. 2181
  • Children’s Ministries Ext. 2139

Mail, Email, and Internet

4020 E. Lancaster Blvd.
Lancaster, CA 93535
Church Email - info@lancasterbaptist.org
College Email - info@wcbc.edu Contact Us

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