A Church That Helps Every Generation Take Their Next Step
First Baptist Matthews sits on South Trade Street in the heart of Matthews, North Carolina, a short drive from Charlotte. The church's purpose statement hangs above everything it does: We exist to glorify God and make disciples by helping every generation take their next step with Jesus. From a weekday preschool that walks alongside families during their earliest years, to a vibrant student ministry on Sunday and Wednesday nights, to senior adults still opening their Bibles together in small groups, the congregation organizes nearly every part of its life around that single aim.
Sunday Morning: Small Groups and a Unified Worship Gathering
Sunday is structured around two simple landmarks. At 9:00 AM the campus fills with small groups for every age, preschool through adult, meeting in classes across the building. Adults study Scripture book by book in mixed and gender-specific groups, while middle and high school students gather separately to dig into passages that apply directly to their lives.
At 10:30 AM the whole church comes together for one unified Worship Gathering in the sanctuary. The service celebrates Jesus Christ as Redeemer and King, and is livestreamed on Vimeo for those who cannot attend in person. First-time guests are invited to stop by Guest Central in the sanctuary lobby, where a hospitality team offers a small welcome gift and answers questions about the church. Past messages are available to watch and to listen to as a podcast through the church's message library.
Wednesday Nights Around the Table
Wednesday is the busiest night of the week at First Baptist Matthews, and the rhythm begins at the dinner table. From 5:00 to 6:00 PM the church serves a Wednesday Night Dinner that families can reserve through Church Center. After dinner, the building splits into several programs running at the same time.
Awana takes over the children's wing from 6:00 to 7:15 PM, mixing high-energy large group time of music, games and Bible stories with small group work centered on Scripture memorization. The program welcomes children from infants through fifth grade and runs during the school year. At the same hour, middle and high school students gather in the Student Center for Bible teaching, prayer and missions learning, then move to the gym at 7:00 PM for recreation until 7:45. Adults have their own EQUIP Groups, themed Bible studies that aim to build lifetime disciples. Choir rehearsal is held in the Music Suite (Room 231) for anyone who wants to join the worship team.
The Depot and Sunday Morning for Kids
Children's ministry is built around two flagship environments. During the 9:00 AM small group hour, the Fellowship Hall is transformed into The Depot, a learning environment designed for first through fifth graders where the gospel is taught in an engaging, age-appropriate way alongside worship. Preschoolers meet in their own Sunday school classes at the same hour.
During the 10:30 Worship Gathering, infant through kindergarten care is offered as Worship Care, while school-age children are encouraged to sit with their families. Safety is taken seriously: each child receives a matching security tag with a four-digit code, parents keep the matching stub, and every Kids Ministry volunteer has been through an application, interview, background check and personal reference process. Parents checking in multiple children can do so at one station.
Students in Middle and High School
Student Ministry at First Baptist Matthews meets students in three places. Sunday morning small groups at 9:00 AM are divided by middle school and high school and usually wrap by 10:15. Sunday night groups at 6:00 PM split students into four gender- and age-based Bible studies, all on campus, and run during the school year. Wednesday nights add the Student Center gathering with teaching, missions, prayer and recreation in the gym.
The ministry describes its purpose plainly: to teach the Word of God for the purpose of creating obedient disciples of Jesus Christ, and a Student Handbook is published each year to help families keep up with the schedule and themes.
The Weekday Preschool on Campus
Sharing the First Baptist Matthews property is a Weekday Preschool that the church calls an extension of its ministry to and beyond the Matthews community. The Christian faith-based program prepares preschool-aged children for elementary school through a blend of Bible story time, the Wee Learn Curriculum and the Handwriting Without Tears program for older preschoolers.
The school runs Monday through Thursday from September through May, following the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools calendar. Families can choose a half-day schedule, either 9:00 AM to 1:00 PM or 9:15 AM to 1:15 PM, and are grouped into age-appropriate classrooms for one-year-olds through Transitional-Kindergarten. Tuition for the 2026-2027 school year ranges from $240 per month for a one-day-a-week one-year-old class to $430 per month for a four-day-a-week Transitional-Kindergarten class, with a $125 non-refundable registration fee per child. Director Jeana Stewart personally greets families at the car line each morning and walks children back to their vehicles in the afternoon.
Women's, Men's and Senior Adult Ministry
The Women of First Baptist Matthews are encouraged, equipped and connected through Sunday morning small groups, special events such as the annual Women's Retreat at Ridgecrest in the North Carolina mountains, and a Monday night ZUMBA fitness group in the church gym that draws every age and stage of life.
The Men's Ministry gathers around Proverbs 27:17 - iron sharpens iron - with Sunday morning small groups that move through Scripture book by book, and a Monday night Bible Study Fellowship group on the FBCM campus that offers a deeper structured study with weekly discussion and teaching. Men also find service opportunities through the church's local mission partners.
The Senior Adults Ministry exists to make disciples who reach up to God, in to the church, and out to the world. Seniors from the Matthews community, not only the congregation, are invited to participate in age-appropriate small groups and seasonal events, with Guest Central as a starting point for newcomers.
From Matthews to the Ends of the Earth
Missions shape a major part of the church's identity and are organized into three lanes. Local Missions, the church's Jerusalem, neighbors in Matthews and the surrounding communities through ministries such as Christian Adoption Services, the Car Care Ministry for widows and single mothers, Agape Dental Ministry for low-income residents of Mecklenburg County, a weekly after-school Bible Club and tutoring at Matthews Elementary, NC Med Assist, Help Pregnancy Center in Union County, and Bless Every Home outreach. Local Missions Director Tim Spain oversees these partnerships.
National Missions, called the church's Judea and Samaria, focuses on disaster relief training and deployment coordinated by Ray Graham, and a Men's Prison Ministry led by Patsy Knight that sends teams into three different men's prisons on alternating Sundays. The church works alongside the North American Mission Board and the North Carolina State Convention.
International Missions takes the gospel further out. Since 2006 First Baptist Matthews has partnered with New Life Church in Kiev, Ukraine, supporting their ministries in schools, hospitals, refugee camps and orphanages; team trips are currently suspended because of the war, but prayer and financial support continue. The church also packs Operation Christmas Child shoeboxes and partners with the International Missions Board, as well as several missionaries serving through Cru, ABWE (Live Global), JAARS/Wycliffe, Great Commission Ministries and E3 Partners, including work in Honduras, South Carolina college campuses, and among unreached people groups overseas.
What the Church Believes
First Baptist Matthews affirms the Southern Baptist Convention's Baptist Faith & Message as its doctrinal statement. The church teaches that the Bible is the divinely inspired, inerrant revelation of God with Christ at its center; that there is one true God revealed as Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; that Jesus Christ is the eternal Son who was born of the virgin Mary, died on the cross as a substitute for sinners, rose again, ascended to the right hand of God, and will return. Salvation is offered freely to all who trust in Christ as Lord and Savior, and believers are preserved by the Holy Spirit to the end.
The church practices two ordinances: believer's baptism by immersion and the Lord's Supper. Baptism is described as an act of obedience that follows a personal decision to follow Jesus, an outward identification with Christ's death, burial and resurrection. Membership in the church follows a clear pathway: a personal decision to trust Christ, baptism by immersion, completion of an information packet, attendance at a First Family Membership Class, a meeting with pastoral staff, signing the Church Covenant, and an affirmation vote by the Church Council.
Pastoral Care and Getting Connected
Walking with people through hospitalization, grief and the harder seasons of life is the calling of the Care Ministry at First Baptist Matthews. The pastoral team is available for prayer, counseling and connection, and welcomes contact through the church office.
First-time visitors can expect a low-pressure introduction. The Welcome page encourages guests to come to a Sunday morning Worship Gathering and stop by Guest Central. A free Bible can be mailed to anyone who does not yet own one. The Church Center mobile app handles everything from kids' check-in to small group sign-ups, event registration and recurring online giving, and there is a podcast of the weekly message for those who want to follow along throughout the week. The address is 185 South Trade Street, Matthews, NC 28105, and the church office can be reached at 704-847-9150 or contact@fbcmatthews.org.