Still Standing...but not Standing Still: Fairview Baptist Church, Chesapeake, Va.

Still Standing...but not Standing Still

We Still Have Lot’s of STILLs!

There was a day that moonshine-stills covered the region…in the swamps…in the woods…along the back roads…everywhere you went the stills stood. But time changed the region. The revenuers helped, too! One day an old moonshiner returned to the region and lamented the disappearance of the stills. "Where’d all the stills go?" he queried. There used to be so many in these parts. Now a body can hardly find a place to get a drink!"

Well, we can’t say much in favor of the moonshiners, but what the moonshiner said has certainly become true of many local churches today. Where are the churches that once stood for something? Remember when churches weren’t concerned with being politically correct, just biblically correct? Remember when you could look at a person’s dress and grooming and tell that they were church-folk? Remember when the church would still stand for the Lord and His Word? Today, "we ain’t got many ‘stills’ left!" Fairview Baptist Church is not the only church standing in the old-fashioned Bible-believing Baptist tradition. But we do have some "stills!"

STILL STANDING…but not STANDING STILL

Fairview Baptist Church is STILL an old-fashioned Baptist Church.

Our Sundays still begin with a graded Sunday School hour in which every member of the family can take part in a meaningful study of the Bible. Our Sunday morning worship services are still reverent and exalting in the presence of a Holy God. Our music still sounds like "church music." We still stand to our feet for the reading of the Scriptures. Our pulpit is still filled with the powerful preaching of yesteryear. "Amen" is still a good thing to say during good preaching. Sin is still called sin, and grace is still free to all who will come to Jesus. We still go down to an old-fashioned altar when the Lord speaks to our hearts.

We still hold Sunday night services. We still sing with spirit and we still enjoy the fellowship of the brethren. We still are evangelistic in our preaching and edifying in our teaching.

We still gather in the church-house on Wednesday nights to spend time in the Word. We still fall to our knees as a church in prayer.

We still preach from the King James Version of the Bible. We still give God the tithe through our church. We still immerse new-born believers and we still disciple our new babes in Christ.. We still worship in the church-house and witness in the community. We still lead souls to Christ. We still honor and respect men called of God to preach and teach the Word. We still send missionaries around the world. Our sign still says "Baptist Church."

We still take a hard stand against sin and worldliness, but we still love the sinner and the wayward. We still believe in contenting for the faith without being contentious. We still practice church discipline for the disobedient, and we still seek the restoration of the fallen. We still believe in separation without isolation. We still believe in standing firm with a spirit of graciousness.

We still believe that Christians are a "peculiar people and a new creation." We still raise our children to be respectful, responsible, and righteous. Honesty, humility, hard work, and moral purity are still virtues.

We still believe that Dad is the head of the home, but not the dictator. We still believe that Mom is the help-meet for Dad and the keeper at home. We still believe that children are to honor their parents. We still believe that marriage is the holy union of one man to one woman for life. We still believe that life is sacred and abortion is sin. We still believe that homosexuality is sin and not style.

We still wave the American flag with pride and gratitude. We still pray for our country and our leaders. We still believe that as much as is possible we are to live peaceably with all men. And we still believe that there are some things worth fighting for. We still place conviction above convenience.

We are STILL an old-fashioned Baptist church!

Therefore, brethren, stand fast, and hold the traditions which ye have been taught, whether by word, or our epistle.
II Thessalonians 2:15

We Still Have Lot’s of STILLs!

There was a day that moonshine-stills covered the region…in the swamps…in the woods…along the back roads…everywhere you went the stills stood. But time changed the region. The revenuers helped, too! One day an old moonshiner returned to the region and lamented the disappearance of the stills. "Where’d all the stills go?" he queried. There used to be so many in these parts. Now a body can hardly find a place to get a drink!"

Well, we can’t say much in favor of the moonshiners, but what the moonshiner said has certainly become true of many local churches today. Where are the churches that once stood for something? Remember when churches weren’t concerned with being politically correct, just biblically correct? Remember when you could look at a person’s dress and grooming and tell that they were church-folk? Remember when the church would still stand for the Lord and His Word? Today, "we ain’t got many ‘stills’ left!" Fairview Baptist Church is not the only church standing in the old-fashioned Bible-believing Baptist tradition. But we do have some "stills!"

STILL STANDING…but not STANDING STILL

Fairview Baptist Church is STILL an old-fashioned Baptist Church.

Our Sundays still begin with a graded Sunday School hour in which every member of the family can take part in a meaningful study of the Bible. Our Sunday morning worship services are still reverent and exalting in the presence of a Holy God. Our music still sounds like "church music." We still stand to our feet for the reading of the Scriptures. Our pulpit is still filled with the powerful preaching of yesteryear. "Amen" is still a good thing to say during good preaching. Sin is still called sin, and grace is still free to all who will come to Jesus. We still go down to an old-fashioned altar when the Lord speaks to our hearts.

We still hold Sunday night services. We still sing with spirit and we still enjoy the fellowship of the brethren. We still are evangelistic in our preaching and edifying in our teaching.

We still gather in the church-house on Wednesday nights to spend time in the Word. We still fall to our knees as a church in prayer.

We still preach from the King James Version of the Bible. We still give God the tithe through our church. We still immerse new-born believers and we still disciple our new babes in Christ.. We still worship in the church-house and witness in the community. We still lead souls to Christ. We still honor and respect men called of God to preach and teach the Word. We still send missionaries around the world. Our sign still says "Baptist Church."

We still take a hard stand against sin and worldliness, but we still love the sinner and the wayward. We still believe in contenting for the faith without being contentious. We still practice church discipline for the disobedient, and we still seek the restoration of the fallen. We still believe in separation without isolation. We still believe in standing firm with a spirit of graciousness.

We still believe that Christians are a "peculiar people and a new creation." We still raise our children to be respectful, responsible, and righteous. Honesty, humility, hard work, and moral purity are still virtues.

We still believe that Dad is the head of the home, but not the dictator. We still believe that Mom is the help-meet for Dad and the keeper at home. We still believe that children are to honor their parents. We still believe that marriage is the holy union of one man to one woman for life. We still believe that life is sacred and abortion is sin. We still believe that homosexuality is sin and not style.

We still wave the American flag with pride and gratitude. We still pray for our country and our leaders. We still believe that as much as is possible we are to live peaceably with all men. And we still believe that there are some things worth fighting for. We still place conviction above convenience.

We are STILL an old-fashioned Baptist church!