Our Story
In the summer of 1944, a group of 16 people heard God calling them to start a church in the Arlington area of Jacksonville, Florida. What was then known as The First Baptist Church of Arlington was organized on July 9, 1944. They met in a small concrete building on the corner of Arlington Road and Easter Street. As the Arlington neighborhood began to grow and the Matthews Bridge opened, the church continued with her purpose of reaching people for Jesus. As a result, the First Baptist Church of Arlington outgrew their location and moved to the corner of Arlington Road and Cesery Boulevard around April of 1956. It was about this same time that the name was changed to Arlington Baptist Church. It has long been the belief of Arlington Baptist Church that the church is not a building or location but a group of people called by God with one purpose and one mission. The mission was stated at the First Baptist Church of Arlington in November of 1950 as, “knowing the value of supporting our Lord’s work, at home and abroad”, Today the mission is – “making disciples from the home to the nations”…Things change, but the mission remains the same.
