Five Points on Boonville's Main Street
Main Street GBC - 5 Point sits at 623 East Main Street in Boonville, Indiana, a small Ohio River town in Warrick County. The "GBC" stands for General Baptist Church, and the "5 Point" is not a geographic marker. It is a statement of identity. Everything the church does flows out of two Bible passages and is organized around five purposes: Glorify God, Go with the Great News, Grow in Christ, Give ourselves to serve, and Together as God's family.
That five-point framework shapes the church's ministry calendar, its budget, and the way it talks about itself. The Sunday worship service, the 22-year-old pre-school, the partnerships with local ministries, and the mission work overseas are all expressions of those five purposes.
The Five Points in Their Own Words
The two passages that anchor the five points are well known. The first is Matthew 22:37-40, where Jesus answers the question about the greatest of the commandments: "Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your mind. This is the first and greatest commandment. The second is like it, 'Love your neighbor as yourself.' All the Law and the Prophets hang on these two commandments." The second is Matthew 28:19-20, the Great Commission: "Go and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, and teaching them to obey everything I have commanded you. And surely I am with you always, to the very end of the age."
From those verses the church draws its five points of purpose:
- Glorify God.
- Go with the Great News.
- Grow in Christ.
- Give ourselves to serve.
- Together as God's family.
Those five points are how the church organizes its life. Glorify God is the reason everything exists. Go with the Great News is the call to take the gospel to neighbors and nations. Grow in Christ is the work of discipleship. Give ourselves to serve is the local and global mission of the body. Together as God's family is the Sunday gathering and the smaller communities within it.
What Main Street GBC Believes
The church's statement of faith is short and direct. It holds to one true, living God who exists eternally as Father, Son, and Spirit. The Bible is the Word of God and the only completely reliable guide for life, faith, and salvation. Human beings were created in God's image to glorify Him and enjoy Him forever, but all have rebelled against His purpose. Salvation is found only in the person and work of Jesus Christ, received by turning from sin to Jesus for forgiveness.
Believers are taught that those who remain in the faith until the end will be saved. A Christian life is one lived in a local body of believers, growing more like Jesus day by day through Bible reading, prayer, and community. The Church itself is the worldwide community of believers, made up of local churches of different traditions and styles. The church also looks for the return of Jesus to judge the living and the dead and to rescue His people.
Sunday Worship and a Teaching Pulpit
Worship services are held weekly on Sundays. The preaching is steady and expository. Sermon archives run back several years and are organized into series that walk through books of the Bible: "Brighter Day" through 1 Thessalonians, a long journey through Romans ("The Gospel Is...", "The Courtroom", "Alive", "Christian, You're Going to Make It"), a series through 1 Corinthians called "Corinthian Confusion", the "Lean In" series in John, studies in Haggai and Psalms, and the long-running "Love Revealed: The Revelation of Jesus Christ to John."
The church also preaches topical series. "Loneliness" worked through a cultural moment and a biblical response. "The Church Is _____" filled in the blank across multiple New Testament passages. "The Cast of Christmas" walked through the nativity texts in Luke and 1 Peter. And an apologetics series called "Burning Questions" tackled titles like "Is It Important to Come to Church Every Week?", "If God Is Good, Why Does He Allow Suffering?", "How Could a Loving God Allow Hell?", "Can I Trust the Bible?", and "Is It Arrogant to Claim Truth?"
Senior Pastor Rodney Sloan is the regular preacher. Pastor Eric Franz is part of the teaching team as well and preached several messages in the Revelation series. Other teachers who appear in the archive include Kyle Whitten and guest speakers Scott Strouse, Dr. Jim Jenison, Matt Jones, and Stacey Embry.
Sermons Online and a Livestream on YouTube
The church livestreams on its YouTube channel, Main Street GBC - 5 Point. The stream began in March 2020, when the congregation could not meet in person, with a message through Revelation 3:1-6, and has continued as a regular part of the church's ministry for those at home or out of town.
Past sermons are archived with audio downloads and, for many messages, video. Each sermon page lists the date, the Bible passage, the series, and the speaker. Several of the Revelation messages also include downloadable discussion guides for small groups or personal study.
Kiddie Garden Pre-School: 22 Years in the Church Building
The Kiddie Garden Pre-School is one of the most established ministries of the church. The pre-school is celebrating 22 years at Main Street GBC - 5 Point and operates in the church building with separate classrooms for each age group.
The pre-school is led by Director Amanda Retter, who also teaches the Pre-K class. Carla Ripperdan teaches Pre-K as well. Tammy Whitman and Amber Shigley teach the Early Pre-K classes. The school runs three programs:
- Pre-K Class (ages 4 to 5, must be 4 by August 1): four mornings a week, Monday through Thursday, 8:15 to 11:15 a.m. Tuition is $165 per month.
- Early Pre-School Class (ages 3 to 4, must be 3 by August 1): three mornings a week, Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday, 8:30 to 11:00 a.m. Tuition is $130 per month.
- Mom's Morning Out (ages 2 and up): Thursday only, 8:30 to 10:45 a.m. Tuition is $60 per month.
A non-refundable $60 registration fee is due with the registration form. Checks are made payable to Kiddie Garden. Information packets are mailed to families each July, and classes begin in mid-August, with a Meet the Teacher night the week before school starts.
Bread of Life: A Practical Partnership in the Community
Main Street GBC - 5 Point partners with Bread of Life, a Boonville-area ministry that provides food and clothing to people in need. Bread of Life distributes aid both directly from its facility and through a network of 208 charitable agencies that benefit from its work. In 2008, Bread of Life served more than one million people with food and clothing.
For the church, the partnership is one of the ways it lives out the call to "give ourselves to serve" and to love its neighbors.
Camp Brosend: A Retreat Partnership on 40 Acres
Down the road in Newburgh, Indiana, the church has a long-running relationship with Camp Brosend, a 40-acre retreat center whose purpose is to create an environment where people can glorify God. The camp hosts church groups, retreat groups, and scout groups and offers a wide range of facilities and outdoor activities. Main Street GBC - 5 Point uses the camp annually for its own retreats and programs and has partnered with Camp Brosend for many years.
Going Beyond Boonville: Global Missions
The church's missions work opens with a John Piper line that sets the philosophy: "Missions exists because worship doesn't." The church supports missionaries, helps plant new churches, and takes Matthew 28:19 - "go, and make disciples of all nations" - as a working charge. Recent sermon titles reflect where the church has been: a July 2019 message titled "Dream Big Honduras" followed a mission trip to Honduras, and other series speak to the church's commitment to sending people and resources beyond Boonville.
Leadership on East Main Street
Rodney Sloan serves as Senior Pastor. Pastor Eric Franz is also part of the preaching team. Sonya Franz serves as the church's Administrative Assistant. The Kiddie Garden Pre-School is led by Director Amanda Retter, along with Carla Ripperdan (Pre-K), Tammy Whitman (Early Pre-K), and Amber Shigley (Early Pre-K).
Visiting, Giving, and Staying Connected
The church office can be reached by phone at (812) 897-5123. Pastor Rodney Sloan can be reached by email. Online giving is available through Tithe.ly, with a "Make a Donation" link from the giving page. The weekly sermon is posted on the YouTube channel Main Street GBC - 5 Point, where it can be watched live or replayed later. The church is located at 623 East Main Street, Boonville, Indiana 47601.