On Friday, January 15, 1988 at 7:30pm Rev. Kluttz Chisholm Wilks, Associate Minister of St. Paul Baptist Church, Rev. George A. Crawley, Jr., Pastor, called a prayer meeting of some friends and family members. The meeting was held at the former Northeast Baptist Church, Rev. Norman Dudley, Pastor, 2301 Mayfield Avenue, Baltimore, Maryland. The meeting was attended by twenty (20) people including Rev. Wilks. After testimonies, prayers and singing, Rev. Wilks announced his calling by God to organize a new church in the city of Baltimore. Of the twenty present at this meeting, fourteen (14) made a commitment to join, two joined as a candidates for baptism.
Our first service was held the following Sunday, January 17, 1988 at 8:15 a.m. at the Northeast Baptist Church. Rev. Wilks’ first sermon was taken from Acts 2:47, the subject was “God’s Church. “Rev. Wilks proposed that God uses his chosen people as instruments in the building of and adding to his church. He said that God does this by revealing to us the need for the church, by giving us the desire to fulfill that need and then by empowering us with that which we need to carry it out. He said that God will add to our church and we won’t concern ourselves with where we’re going or how we’ll get there, we’ll just do it God’s way. The church immediately began to grow.
The next step was to officially incorporate the church. Rev. Wilks prepared all the necessary documents to be submitted and on June 21, 1988 we were confirmed as a non-profit corporation of the state of Maryland. Then, on July 3, 1988, a group of 10 Baptist Pastors were called in for the purpose of recognizing First John Tabernacle as an official Baptist Church. Rev. Wilks prepared the necessary documents required and on August 14, 1990 we were officially declared exempt from federal income tax. The church continued to grow. Choirs and several auxiliaries were organized. Prior to that on February 12, 1989 we moved to the Third English Lutheran Church at 3000 Hillen Road and remained there until the building was sold. Our realtor had found a possible location for sale and we immediately signed papers to purchase the building at 2101 N. Ellamont Street. The loan company was contacted and the loan was approved. On March 3, 1991, we marched into our own building at 2101 N. Ellamont Street.
After eight (8) years, the growth of the church led us to seek a larger facility and on November 8, 2000 we marched into our current location at 1801 East Preston Street. The church continued to grow until the national crisis on 9/11. Members financial situations led to a gross reduction in weekly offerings and the church began to struggle financially. To add to that, on February 5, 2010, a major snow storm caused our chapel roof to collapse and we were forced to move our services to a temporary location.
The Lord has blessed us to return to our church here at 1801 East Preston Street and we have once again began to grow. With the continuing growth of membership, we were able to purchase a church van. God has been good to us through His Grace and His Mercy and with the help of His Holy Spirit we will continue to press on in His Name and for His Glory.
