Immanuel Baptist Church — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Kyler Smith (Senior Pastor, elected December 7, 2025)

Founded Unknown

Denomination Southern Baptist Convention (SBC)

Service Times Sunday Groups 9:00 AM, Worship 10:30 AM

Men's Ministry Yes

Kids Ministry Yes

Website ibclr.org

Pastor Credentials B.A. Biblical/Theological Studies (John Brown University); M.Div. (The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary); Th.M. and Ph.D. Preaching (Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary)

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

Is Jesus the only way? (John 14:6)

SBC church — affirms orthodox Christology.

Strong

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

Southern Seminary / Midwestern lineage = BF&M 2000 + inerrancy.

Strong

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Men's Ministry confirmed listed under Ministries.

Caution

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

SBC — salvation by grace through faith.

Strong

Gender / Biblical Design

Biblical manhood and womanhood by God's design — patriarchal, complementarian, egalitarian, or affirming gender ideology?

Complementarian — SBC standard. Senior Pastor Kyler Smith (called Dec 2025).

SBC complementarian. In pastoral search.

Strong

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

RED: Steven Smith resigned under pressure related to criticism over response to abuse reports. Church in pastoral search.

WARNING!

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

Smith holds Ph.D. in Preaching from Midwestern — expository-trained.

Strong

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

SBC Cooperative Program.

Strong

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

No progressive indicators but institutional instability.

Strong

Accountability Structure

Denominational home, elder plurality, or external network — is the pastor answerable to anyone?

SBC; new pastor from Clint Pressley/Hickory Grove (SBC-conservative confessional stream).

Strong

Assessment

Immanuel Baptist Little Rock is a significant SBC church currently in pastoral search after Steven Smith's resignation (effective April 7, 2024). Smith faced criticism over his response to abuse reports. Located at 501 N Shackleford Rd. The church's direction will depend heavily on who is called next. Exercise caution during transition.

#abuse-response-controversy#arkansas#historic#little-rock#little-rock-ar#needs-review#pastoral-transition#sbc#verified-2026

MOOP Engagement Tracker

How this church was personally verified by the MOOP directory team:

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

Enrichment Notes

Prior abuse-concealment scandal under Steven Smith; rebuild trajectory positive given Kyler Smith's confessional SBC formation.

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 arkansasonline.com/news/2025/dec/07/immanuel-baptist-sele…
[2] Live source baptistpress.com/resource-library/news/kyler-smith-called…

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.