First Baptist Church of Atlanta is located on North Peachtree Road, Atlanta, GA.
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Dr. Charles Stanley is the pastor of the 15,000-member First Baptist Church of Atlanta, GA (FBA) and a New York Times best-selling author. Always practical, Dr. Stanley ministry is based on his experience in applying scriptural truths to his own life. He often says, feel I cannot honestly tell you how to believe Bible truths and put these truths to work in your life until I have first let God work them into my own life.In 1971, Dr. Stanley became Senior Pastor of FBA and, in 1982, he established In Touch Ministries as an organization independent from the church. As both pastor of FBA and president of In Touch, Dr. Stanley is able to fulfill his heart greatest desire: to get the Gospel to many people as possible, as quickly as possible in the power of the Holy Spirit and to the glory of God. In 2002, Dr. Stanley goal of bringing believers into a mature, growing relationship with Christ took on a new form in the establishment of the Charles Stanley Institute for Christian Living. Enrolling more than 68,000 students in its first few years of operation, the online Institute delivers the powerful preaching ministry of Dr. Stanley to an even broader base of worldwide disciples.
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First Baptist Church Atlanta, Georgia, is a megachurch located at 4400 North Peachtree Road at Interstate 285 in Dunwoody, Georgia. It is commonly known as First Baptist Atlanta. It is an evangelical, Christian church, and is a member of the Southern Baptist Convention. Dr. Charles F. Stanley, former President of the Southern Baptist Convention, has been Senior Pastor of the church since 1971.
History
First Baptist was originally located in the downtown of Atlanta, Georgia, in Fulton County, Georgia. In the late 20th century, a commercial facility was purchased on Atlanta's Interstate 285 and the church relocated to the larger, more accessible, property in Dekalb County. The trend of churches relocating adjacent to a major interstates and highways is not uncommon in commuter-oriented cities such as Atlanta.
The history of First Baptist Church Atlanta:
1848: David Gonto Daniell was sent by the Baptist State Convention to the tiny railroad town now known as Atlanta. He gathered 16 other men and women together and First Baptist Church was born. They met where they could find space, usually in a small one-room schoolhouse. In June, they dedicated their first church building on the corner of Walton and Forsyth in downtown Atlanta. Unfortunately, during the Civil War the building was heavily damaged and many members were wounded or killed. Even still, the members trusted in God to provide a new building.
1869: God was faithful and they dedicated a new building on the same lot debt-free.
1903: At this point, the church had grown and was in need of a new building. Because of Atlanta’s growth, they were now surrounded by the business district and wanted to move to the suburbs north of Atlanta. They sold the Walton and Forsyth site for $81,000 and purchased a lot in the residential area across the street from the Governor’s Mansion on the corner of Peachtree and Cain streets. The sale was to the U.S. government which built the new post office on the site (the building is now a court of appeals), and they used $40,000 of the proceeds to purchase the new site.
1906: The new building opened for worship on June 3.
1920: By this time, once again, the church had outgrown the building and was surrounded by the business district. Sunday school had grown so much that parents were having to send their children to neighborhood churches because there was no room for them at First Baptist. When the site was bought it was in the residential area, but now the business area was closing in again, leaving them no room to grow. To accommodate the current membership and provide room for growth, an entire city block was purchased in the new residential area north of the business district at Peachtree and Fifth streets. Again the church did very well with the transaction: Edward C. Peters traded the block that his father Richard Peters' home stood for $325,00 in cash plus the corner of Cain and Peachtree. While waiting for the new building to be erected worship was in the Lullwater building at W. Peachtree and Grant Place (now occupied by Crawford Long Hospital).
1930: The sanctuary was completed. Many people thought the building would take care of the needs of the church forever.
1971: Dr. Charles F. Stanley was called to be the senior pastor of First Baptist Atlanta. The church continued to experience tremendous growth under his teaching and leadership. By 1988, the membership had outgrown the available space again.
1989: First Baptist Atlanta purchased 55 acres (220,000 m2) from the Avon Corporation in the Dunwoody area with plans to renovate the building to meet its expanded needs as a congregation.
1997: The congregation moved to its current location in April.