Since 1858 we have been First Baptist Church of Preston, Lincoln (1866) and Whitehall (1876). 

As time passes words and phrases often shift in their association or perception and sometimes even their meaning.  It is our belief that Baptist as a church name has undergone this shift.

Simply, the term “Baptist” has shifted in perception and no longer communicates a theological position, but often a ministry style, associated political viewpoints, or a ministry/cultural position.

We will be changing our name, but as such, we believe it is necessary to explain that we are not departing from our theological statement of faith or ministry practice.

We value our Baptist heritage which emphasizes a high value of the Bible as God’s word, the ordinances of baptism and communion, evangelism and world missions, the autonomy of the local church, and religious freedom.  However, the name Baptist is used by so many different groups and it no longer carries the distinct and clear meaning it did.  In addition, the name does not have the solid reputation in many parts of our culture it once enjoyed. 

We recognize that a name change alone does not transform our ministry into the future.    We do think a name change allows us to stand on the shoulders of those who have been here before us and create a context for moving toward the future. 

We want to be known as a Bible teaching, Gospel centered, disciple making church in our community.  We believe that evangelism is one of our reasons for existence and we believe our current name does not communicate that to people who don’t know us, or know our God, as clearly as we would like. 

Once again, we wish to emphasize that this is not a departure from our current statement of faith, but instead, a statement of commitment that we are a church seeking to trust God and His divine revelation in the Bible for guidance in life and faith. 

Our new name will be announced in the fall of 2025.

Following Jesus, but not alone,

Pastor Rob Buhl