Quick Facts
Founded
1809
Denomination
Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)
Service Times
Sunday services (check website)
Men's Ministry
Yes
Kids Ministry
Yes
10-Point Theological Scorecard
Christology
Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)
SBC church — affirms orthodox Christology (Nicene, Chalcedonian).
Strong
Scripture
Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?
SBC — Baptist Faith & Message 2000 affirms inerrancy and authority of Scripture.
Strong
Men's Discipleship
Intentional formation for men?
Men's connection group/page confirmed on site (fbccola.com/men/).
Strong
Soteriology
Faith alone? How is salvation presented?
SBC — salvation by grace through faith. BF&M 2000 framework.
Strong
Gender / Biblical Design
Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?
Verified /staff page 2026-04-23: All 11 pastoral/ministerial staff male — Rev. Wes Church (Senior), Rev. Steve Phillips, Rev. Jacob Helsley, Rev. Richard Humphries, Rev. Todd Elkins, Rev. Keith Watson, Rev. Rob Nicholes, Rev. Christopher Gooding, Rev. Sage Moody, Rev. Ryan Dupree, Dr. Wendell Estep (Emeritus). All-male pastoral team confirmed.
Male senior pastor confirmed. Complementarian per SBC BF&M 2000 (CBMW halfway position; MOOP holds patriarchal headship as the biblical standard); verify whether headship convictions are robust or drifting toward functional egalitarianism.
Strong
Leadership Structure
Male elders/pastors? Accountability?
Senior Pastor Wes Church + 10 male ministers. Elder/deacon structure not explicit on staff page but all-male pastoral team consistent with SBC/BF&M 2000.
Strong
Preaching Style
Expository or topical/therapeutic?
Verify — check sermon archives for expository vs topical.
Strong
Mission Clarity
Great Commission central?
SBC churches give through Cooperative Program; Great Commission emphasis standard.
Strong
Cultural Alignment
DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?
No evidence of progressive drift. Traditional SBC church.
Strong
Accountability Structure
Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?
Listed in SBC Churches Directory. Wikipedia describes as 'Southern Baptist megachurch.' Beliefs page affirms Bible as 'Word of God, without any error, sole authority for life.'
Strong
Assessment
First Baptist Columbia is one of South Carolina's most historic SBC churches (est. 1809) in downtown Columbia. SBC affiliation confirmed.
#columbia#columbia-sc#downtown#full-ministries#historic#sbc#south-carolina#verified-2026#needs-review
MOOP Engagement Tracker
How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:
✓
Researched church website
Sources & Evidence
Enrichment Notes
--- Merged from first-baptist-columbia-sc: Historic SBC (1862 SBC founding meeting held at FBC Columbia). Complementarian in practice. Already green; evidence strengthens it.
[2026-05-19] Phase 5b auto-merge: absorbed 1 dupe record (first-baptist-church-columbia-sc). Group key: "first baptist church columbia @ 1306 hampton st, columbia, sc 29201".
These are the URLs consulted to arrive at this church's scoring. Score-note claims are synthesized from homepage content, denominational directories, and public statements of faith at the time of review. Church websites change frequently; we're progressively adding Internet Archive snapshots to prevent link rot.
-
[1] Live source
fbccola.com/staff/
-
[2] Live source
churches.sbc.net/church/columbia-first-baptist-church/
-
[3] Live source
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/First_Baptist_Church_(Columbia,_Sou…
Transparency note: MOOP ratings are researcher judgments about publicly available theological and ecclesial evidence. They are not infallible. If a church's public posture has changed since our review, or if we've mis-read evidence, tell us — we publish corrections.
Last reviewed:
2026-05-16
— Annual review recommended
1306 Hampton St, Columbia, SC 29201
Visit Their Website
Facebook
YouTube