A Church on Cherry Road in West Palm Beach
Belvedere Baptist Church sits on a quiet stretch of Cherry Road in West Palm Beach, Florida, just minutes from I-95 and Palm Beach International Airport. On Sunday mornings the doors open at 301 Cherry Road, and people from many ages, cultures, and stages of faith gather to worship Jesus, hear God's Word, and encourage one another with the hope of the gospel. The church has been a steady presence in this city for more than sixty-five years, carrying the rhythm of a family that has stayed rooted through changing seasons.
Belvedere is a Southern Baptist church that partners with the Florida Baptist Convention and other churches across the Southern Baptist Convention to support missions in South Florida and around the world. The church holds to historic Baptist convictions: the authority of Scripture, salvation by grace through faith in Jesus Christ, believer's baptism, and the local church as a family of believers committed to one another. Its mission is simple and direct, to glorify God by making disciples of Jesus in West Palm Beach, building a Christ-centered church family that lives the gospel, loves its neighbors, and sends believers to serve.
The Next Chapter After Thirty Years
For nearly three decades, the church was shepherded by Pastor Dr. Ray Henry, whose steady gospel ministry shaped a generation of believers at Belvedere. He led the congregation through seasons of growth, discipleship, and quiet faithfulness. When Pastor Ray passed away in December 2024, the church entered a season of prayer, grieving, and seeking God's direction for what would come next.
After a careful pastoral search, the congregation joyfully voted in November 2025 to call Rajiv Khatri as the next Senior Pastor. The transition marked a meaningful moment for a church that values both its history and the fresh movement of God in its midst. The posture today is renewal: grateful for the past, alert to what God is doing now, and eager to deepen discipleship and reach the surrounding community in fresh and faithful ways.
Meet Pastor Rajiv Khatri
Pastor Rajiv Khatri's story begins in a Hindu home in India, where he grew up with chants, rituals, and a longing he could not name. A radical encounter with Jesus Christ changed the direction of his life, and that same story of redemption now fuels his preaching and pastoral care.
Rajiv trained through Crosslands Seminary in the United Kingdom and is currently pursuing his Master of Divinity at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He holds executive education from Cornell University and brings more than twelve years of missionary service in India to his leadership, along with pastoral encouragement in Pakistan, parts of Africa, and regions across Asia. He has spoken as a global keynote speaker at events like the National Prayer Breakfast in Japan and has addressed leaders in India and Africa on entrepreneurship, leadership, and faith in the public square. He has visited twenty-seven countries and loves learning from different cultures.
Rajiv's heart for Belvedere is shaped by what he calls a burden: to raise up disciples, develop leaders, equip church planters, and build a church family that is warm, gospel-centered, and outward-focused, meeting people where they are and walking with them toward Christ. He treasures his own family deeply. He and his wife Sarah have four children ranging in age from twenty-one to two, and Sarah serves alongside him in business, ministry, and the everyday work of loving people well.
His preaching style is expository and Bible-rooted. He walks slowly through texts such as the Lord's Prayer and Proverbs, drawing out the heart of the passage, showing how it points to Christ, and pressing the truth into the specific pressures of an ordinary week. Recent series have walked through Matthew 6 line by line, beginning with the words “Our Father in heaven” and moving through each petition of the prayer Jesus taught His disciples.
Sunday Morning at 11 on Cherry Road
Worship services at Belvedere begin every Sunday at 11:00 AM. The pattern is unhurried and clear: Christ-centered singing, prayer, and expository Bible preaching that opens the text in its context and shows how it applies to relationships, families, work, decisions, and struggles. Services usually last about one hour.
Music is meant to help the congregation focus on Christ and respond to God with their whole heart. The worship blends familiar songs and newer ones, all centered on who Jesus is and what He has done. There is no performance pressure and no expectation that visitors must know every word. Many people come in jeans and polo shirts; others wear dresses or jackets. There is no dress code. Arriving ten or fifteen minutes early gives visitors time to park, grab a cup of coffee, and meet a few people before the service begins.
Once the music begins, families worship together for the first portion of the service. After the singing and just before the sermon, children are dismissed by age to their own classes, and parents pick them up after the service has ended. The congregation is welcomed by a greeting team that is genuinely glad you came, and the building is easy to find, located just off Belvedere Road in central West Palm Beach.
Belvedere for the Whole Family
Belvedere takes seriously the call to disciple the next generation. The Kids Ministry exists to help children meet Jesus in a way they can actually understand, through Bible stories told well, songs they can sing, and adults who learn their names and are glad they came.
Rooms are staffed by at least two adults, and every child is released only to the person who dropped them off. If a child needs a parent during the service, a leader will come find you. All Kids Ministry volunteers are background checked and carefully screened, and secure check-in and pick-up procedures are used to keep every child safe.
Age groups include nursery and preschool for the youngest children, and elementary for school-age kids who dig into a Bible story, talk about what it means, and connect it to their week at school, with friends, and at home. The goal is not entertainment for an hour. It is to hand children the gospel in words they can carry. Children are also welcome to remain in the service with their families if that is preferred. For students in middle and high school, the church points them toward the next step in student ministry. The aim is the same in every age group: to help each child know the truth of God's Word in an age-appropriate way and grow in faith alongside caring leaders and other children.
Parents who are planning a first visit are encouraged to let the church know their kids are coming so everything will be ready when they walk in.
Growing Together Through the Week
Real growth happens when God's people open the Word together, pray together, and walk through life side by side. Belvedere offers several weekly rhythms to make that possible.
Sunday Bible Studies meet at 9:45 AM, before the worship service, giving a chance to study Scripture, ask honest questions, and build relationships. On Thursday mornings at 11:00 AM, the Ladies' Bible Study gathers as a welcoming space to grow in God's Word, build friendships, and encourage one another in prayer.
The midweek gathering is the Wednesday Night Deep Dive with Pastor Rajiv, beginning at 6:00 PM. The church shares a light meal together, then moves into an interactive Bible study where the congregation grows deeper in faith and learns to apply God's Word to real life. After the discussion, the group takes time to pray together, bringing personal needs and the needs of the city before the Lord.
Groups are open to everyone. You do not need to be a member to join. People who are brand new to faith and people who have walked with Jesus for decades sit at the same tables, study the same passages, and pray for one another. Group leaders point to the gospel rather than mere moralism, and the church encourages members to join a group, serve on a team, and tell one trusted person where they are vulnerable so that Christian community has real weight in everyday life.
Where Everybody Has a Job
Belvedere's leaders believe that the church is not a show to watch but a family to join and a mission to share. God has uniquely gifted every believer, and there is a place where those gifts can strengthen others and help the church reach the city.
Serving opportunities are available both on Sundays and throughout the week. Some roles are up front; many are behind the scenes. Hospitality, children's ministry, worship, prayer, outreach, production, and behind-the-scenes support are all areas where help is welcomed. People who can serve just once a month still make a real difference and stay connected. Those who have never served before are trained and supported. As members grow, there are opportunities to be trained and equipped to teach and lead, including leading a small group or helping teach in other areas of ministry. Serving is one of the fastest ways to build meaningful relationships and step into the mission God has for you.
The church also encourages members to invite neighbors and friends into the life of the church. Outreach is woven into the culture rather than left to a single program. The desire is for every member to see their workplace, neighborhood, and family as places where the gospel can be lived out in ordinary faithfulness.
What Belvedere Believes
Belvedere's teaching flows from six core values that shape the life of the church. Jesus First means submitting to Christ, treasuring His Word, and depending on the gospel for salvation and growth. Gospel Formed means letting the good news reshape beliefs, loves, habits, work, and relationships. Grace-Centered means welcoming imperfect people and depending on Jesus, not performance. Life Together means pursuing honesty, shared lives, and mutual care. Sent People means expecting God to save the lost through ordinary faithfulness in everyday places. Multiplication means making disciples, raising leaders, and equipping church planters to send the gospel outward.
The church's doctrinal convictions begin with the existence of one God who eternally exists in three equally divine persons: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. He is the Creator and the author of all life, and all history moves toward Him and finds its culmination in His sovereign plan.
Jesus, the Son, was born of a virgin and came to earth because of God's love for humanity. In living a fully human and fully divine life, He is both our example and our victorious King. He inaugurated God's kingdom on earth, died for the sins of His people, rose from the grave, and ascended to the Father where He reigns. He will return one day in power and glory. He is the only Way, the only Truth, and the only Life.
The Holy Spirit is the fully active power of God at work in the world today. He was sent to comfort and to reveal truth, and He equips, enables, and empowers believers to live out the purposes God has ordained for their lives.
Salvation is God's gift of redemption for His Church. It is the free gift of grace received by faith alone in Jesus Christ to all who repent of their sins and believe in His finished work on the cross. Salvation cannot be found outside the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.
The Bible is wholly authentic, inspired, fully trustworthy, and without error in the original writings. Nothing can be added to it or taken from it. It is the revealed Word of God and is useful for teaching, encouraging, and correcting.
The Church is God's chosen instrument to bring His gospel to every man, woman, and child. There is one Church of which Jesus Christ is the head, made up of every person who places their trust in the finished work of Jesus.
Humanity is God's crowning work in creation and has the primary purpose of glorifying God by representing Him on earth and living in relationship with Him and others. All persons are fearfully and wonderfully made in God's image and possess equal value and dignity. All human beings are sinful at birth, but hope and restoration are found in the finished work of Jesus.
The gospel itself is summarized as the good news that God, our righteous King, because of His great love for us, sent Jesus, the Son, to live, die, and be raised in our place for the punishment of our sins, so that through faith we are reconciled to God in order that, by the Spirit, we might live as kingdom citizens in relationship with and in representation of Him.
A Faith That Reaches the City
Belvedere is committed to being a church that serves West Palm Beach, not just one that gathers within it. The vision is to love neighbors, care for people who are hurting, strengthen families, serve local schools and organizations, and share the hope of Jesus through both words and actions.
The church maintains partnerships with the Florida Baptist Convention and other congregations across the Southern Baptist Convention to support missions in South Florida and around the world. Belvedere's prayer is that the gospel would reach this city through ordinary faithfulness: believers telling the truth on the job, refusing to give up on the people everyone else has written off, giving when it costs them, and speaking the gospel when silence would protect their reputation.
Reaching the city also means reaching students. Palm Beach Atlantic University is roughly seven minutes from the church, and Belvedere invites PBA students into the life of the congregation. Sunday pickup is available for those who need a ride, and students can earn Workship hours by joining the worship team, production team, or children's ministry. The church seeks to be a place where college students build real friendships, grow closer to Jesus, and use their gifts to serve others.
Outreach is also personal. The pastoral team regularly visits the sick, walks with families through grief, and offers prayer during hospital stays and hard seasons. Members are encouraged to pray for one another and to bring practical help to those who are struggling. The aim is not to build a brand but to be a steady, faithful presence on Cherry Road and across the city.
A Place for the Hurting and the Curious
Belvedere's ministry is shaped for people at many different points in their spiritual journey. Some who attend have followed Jesus for many years. Others are returning to church after a long time away. Some are still asking questions and trying to understand what they believe. The pastoral team understands that some people carry wounds attached to the word Father, shaped by absent, apathetic, or abusive earthly fathers. The church teaches that a broken picture of fatherhood does not change the reality of the Father revealed in Jesus Christ, who is high enough to help and near enough to hold. People are invited to bring those wounds into the presence of God without pretending they have already healed.
The same posture of honesty applies to doubt, grief, financial pressure, anxiety, or spiritual fatigue. Belvedere's leaders believe God meets people in real life, including the messy, confusing, and painful parts, and calls them into hope and newness. The community is meant to be a family where ordinary faithfulness matters, love stays warm without being naive, and discernment protects what is true. The aim of every ministry, whether a Bible study, a Sunday sermon, or a casual conversation over coffee, is to help people know Jesus, follow Jesus, and make Jesus known.
For those exploring faith for the first time, the church maintains a dedicated page called Who Is Jesus, which explains the gospel in plain language and answers common questions. Visitors are invited to come as they are, with their questions, their struggles, and their need for grace.
Stay Connected Throughout the Week
For those who want to keep growing between Sundays, the church publishes an extensive devotional library at belvederebaptistchurch.com. Recent series have walked slowly through the Lord's Prayer, the book of Galatians, Romans 16, Psalm 107, Psalm 118, and Proverbs, with meditations written by Pastor Rajiv and Sarah Khatri. Each devotional is rooted in the actual text of Scripture, asks honest questions, and ends with a prayer that engages real life. Devotionals are written for people who are still in process, including those new to faith and those who have walked with Jesus for years but feel their faith has plateaued.
Sermons are shared on YouTube, where the church maintains an active channel. Anyone can catch up on teaching they may have missed, watch the full sermon, and listen to recent series from the beginning. Giving is available online through the church's giving page, and an online connection form helps newcomers take a first step toward getting involved. The church is also active on Facebook, Instagram, YouTube, and TikTok, where short video clips from recent teaching extend the gospel conversations beyond Sunday morning.
Belvedere's prayer for West Palm Beach is captured in three words spoken often in the congregation: Revive me. Revive us. Revive this city. The hope is that the same grace which has sustained the church for more than six decades will continue to break into lives, homes, and workplaces across South Florida, until the King returns and finishes the restoration He began.