Riverdale Baptist Church — Church Directory

Quick Facts

Pastor — the shepherd God holds accountable Rev. Brian C. Mentzer (Senior Pastor)

Founded Unknown

Denomination Independent Baptist (BBFI)

Service Times See website (livestream available)

Men's Ministry No

Kids Ministry Yes

Website www.riverdalebaptist.org/

Pastor Credentials Verify

10-Point Theological Scorecard

Christology

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

Independent Baptist affiliated with BBFI — orthodox Trinitarian Christology per standard IFB SOF tradition.

Strong

Scripture

Inerrancy affirmed? Final authority?

IFB heritage; 'What We Believe' page links suggest KJV-preference consistent with BBFI tradition (specific inerrancy wording not loaded from homepage).

Strong

Men's Discipleship

Intentional formation for men?

Men's Ministry listed under 'Ministries' on site — specific programs/retreats not detailed on homepage.

Caution

Soteriology

Faith alone? How is salvation presented?

Baptist soteriology: grace through faith, believer's immersion baptism.

Strong

Gender / Biblical Design

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

IFB tradition — male pastors/deacons, traditional family structure retained.

Patriarchal — male pastors/deacons, traditional family structure

Strong

Leadership Structure

Male elders/pastors? Accountability?

Pastor Brian Mentzer leads with a male deacon board per independent Baptist polity; specific elder plurality not publicly detailed.

Strong

Preaching Style

Expository or topical/therapeutic?

IFB tradition is expositional-leaning; preaching methodology not detailed on homepage — verify in person.

Caution

Mission Clarity

Great Commission central?

BBFI (Baptist Bible Fellowship International) missions emphasis is central; BBFI funds one of the largest IFB mission networks.

Strong

Cultural Alignment

DEI/CRT language? Social justice crowding out gospel?

Conservative IFB context; no DEI/CRT/Side-B language found on available pages.

Caution

Accountability Structure

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

HELD YELLOW. Live homepage at 1177 Largo Road (note: input lists 1133 Largo — verify suite/address) confirms What-We-Believe, Staff, men's and women's ministry sections in nav. Pastor name, BBFI affiliation, KJV stance not surfaced on home itself; substantive content lives behind nav links not crawled this pass.

Caution

Assessment

Long-established independent Baptist church and attached school in the DC-Maryland-Virginia suburbs, affiliated with Baptist Bible Fellowship International. Pastor Mentzer leads a multi-ministry congregation including Riverdale Baptist School. Solid BBFI-stream IFB option for the DMV.

#independent-baptist#ifb#upper-marlboro-md#dmv#verified-2026

MOOP Engagement Tracker

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

✓ Researched church website

Sources & Evidence

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 riverdalebaptist.org

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.