"I am the vine, you are the branches; he who abides in Me and I him, he bears much fruit, for apart from Me you can do nothing." John 15:5
Who We Are
FBC West is a Christ-centered and biblically-based family of disciples sharing the hope of salvation in our community. Every member is a minister at this church and we are committed to serving the Lord in our homes, our community, and around the world. We have a variety of ministries and service opportunities that provides a place for everyone in your family to participate and serve.
We strive to glorify God because He is worthy of our praise and our service, and because we are eternally grateful to Him for including us in His family.
Leadership Team
Vision
As an integral part of the community, FBC West provides opportunities for spiritual growth, personal ministry, and fellowship, while touching people of all ages with the love of Christ.
Core Values
Our name helps us remember the things most important to us. We are FBC and FBC is:
Family Focused
Bible Based
Christ Centered
Plumb Lines
These are the guidelines that direct everything we do at FBC West.
Worship
Worship is about what we do for God, not what the church does for us.
Excellence
God deserves our best.
Community Impact
The local church should have a positive impact on its community.
Small Groups
We do church best when we do it in small groups.
Church Health
We focus on church health instead of church growth.
What We Believe
FBC West subscribes to the Baptist Faith and Message of 1963.
Read the full statement of beliefs.
Summary of Beliefs
The Scriptures
The Holy Bible was written by men divinely inspired and is God's revelation of Himself to man. It is a perfect treasure of divine instruction. It has God for its author, salvation for its end, and truth, for its matter.
God
There is one and only one living and true God. The eternal God reveals Himself to us as Father, Son and Holy Spirit, with distinct personal attributes, but without division of nature, essence, or being.
God the Father
God as Father reigns with providential care over His universe, His creatures, and the flow of the stream of human history according to the purposes of His grace. God is Father in truth to those who become His children through faith in Jesus Christ.
God the Son
Christ is the eternal Son of God. In His incarnation as Jesus, He was conceived of the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He honored the divine law by His personal obedience, and in His death on the cross, He made provision for the redemption of men from sin.
God the Holy Spirit
The Holy Spirit is the Spirit of God. He exalts Christ. He convicts of sin, of righteousness and of judgment. He enlightens and empowers the believer and the church in worship, evangelism, and service.
Man
Man was created by the special act of God, in His own image, and is the crowning work of His creation. By his free choice man sinned against God and brought sin into the human race. The sacredness of human personality is evident in that God created man in His own image, and in that Christ died for man; therefore every man possesses dignity and is worthy of respect and Christian love.
Salvation
Salvation involves the redemption of the whole man, and is offered freely to all who accept Jesus Christ as Lord and Saviour, who by His own blood obtained eternal redemption for the believer. In its broadest sense salvation includes regeneration, sanctification, and glorification.
God's Purpose of Grace
Election is the gracious purpose of God, according to which He regenerates, sanctifies, and glorifies sinners. All true believers endure to the end. Those whom God has accepted in Christ, and sanctified by His Spirit will never fall away from the state of grace, but shall persevere to the end.
The Church
A New Testament church of the Lord Jesus Christ is a local body of baptized believers who are associated by covenant in the faith and fellowship of the gospel, and seeking to extend the gospel to the ends of the earth. This church is an autonomous body. The New Testament speaks also of the church as the body of Christ, which includes all of the redeemed of all the ages.
Baptism & The Lord's Supper
Christian baptism is the immersion of a believer in water. It is an act of obedience symbolizing the believer's faith in a crucified, buried, and risen Saviour, the believer's death to sin, the burial of the life, and the resurrection to walk in newness of life in Christ Jesus.
The Lord's Supper is a symbolic act of obedience whereby members memorialize the death of the Redeemer and anticipate His second coming.
The Lord's Day
The first day of the week is the Lord's Day. It commemorates the resurrection of Christ from the dead and should be employed in exercises of worship and spiritual devotion.
Last Things
God, in His own time and in His own way, will bring the world to its appropriate end. Jesus Christ will return personally and visibly; the dead will be raised; and Christ will judge all men in righteousness. The unrighteous will be consigned to Hell. The righteous will receive their reward and will dwell forever in Heaven with the Lord.
Evangelism & Missions
It is the duty and privilege of every follower of Christ and every church of the Lord Jesus Christ to endeavor to make disciples of all nations to seek constantly to win the lost to Christ by personal effort.
Stewardship
God is the source of all blessings, temporal and spiritual; all that we have and are we owe to Him. Christians have a spiritual debtorship to the whole world, a holy trusteeship in the gospel, and a binding stewardship in their possessions. They are therefore under obligation to serve Him with their time, talents, and material possessions.
Cooperation
Christ's people should organize such associations and conventions as may best secure cooperation for the great objectives of the Kingdom of God. Such organizations have no authority over one another or over the churches.
Religious Liberty
Church and state should be separate. The state owes to every church protection and full freedom in the pursuit of its spiritual ends. A free church in a free state is the Christian ideal.
Our History
First Baptist Church of West was organized in 1858 as the Bold Springs Baptist Church. The first place of worship, a tiny frame building with none of our present conveniences, was built on a farm about one mile south of West. Grass was plentiful and cattle were roaming at will on the rich fertile soil that promised an abundance of good crops to the settlers who began to arrive in Central Texas in large numbers.
At a time when there were only four other Baptist Churches in McLennan County, FBC West served the local community of West and participated in all aspects of town life and leadership. With the love of the Lord in their hearts and a willingness to work, these pioneers laid the foundation for the congregation in which we now worship. These roots are a heritage that we extend when we join as a church body and live out what we believe in a bold way.
Find Us
West is about 17 miles north of Waco on I-35. The primary exit for West is Exit 353. When you take exit 353, drive east into town on FM 2114, also known as Oak Street. Drive three blocks, turn left onto N. Marable. Our church is three blocks on the left; the address is 501 N. Marable.