OUR CHURCH HISTORY

Our church was founded on February 1, 1977, with thirty-four charter members, and was named The Kempsville Chapel. Our founding pastor was the Reverend Joe Gwynn. He faithfully served as pastor for 30 years. We came from several different denominational backgrounds.  As our conviction deepened that the theology of the Protestant Reformation was the same as that taught by Christ and His Apostles, we were led in 1983-84 to write and adopt our own confession of faith, which we entitled The Hampton Roads Confession of Faith.  It is nearly identical to the 1689 London Confession, but was written in contemporary idiom and with three added chapters.  They are entitled Women and their God, Israel, and The Charismatic Movement.  Being also convinced by Holy Scripture that only confessing believers should be baptized, we became charter members of the Reformed Baptist Mission Services (RBMS) and the Association of Reformed Baptist Churches of America (ARBCA).  Then, in 1998, we voted unanimously to change our name to The Reformed Baptist Church of Virginia Beach to better reflect those distinctives. In 2007, Pastor Joe Gwynn retired from the pastorate and the church called Joe Gilliam to the office of pastor. Our prayer is that the strong foundation in the Word of God that was started in our church over 30 years ago would continue in this day and age.

It goes without saying that for any church to be "reformed" it had to have first drifted away from what it had once been.  Certain of the kings of Judah thus reformed certain aspects of worship in the Old Testament.  Sadly, however, after their death, their successors often undid their reforms.  Jesus Christ, of course, was the ultimate "reformer" of Israel's worship.  Then, following His crucifixion, burial, ressurection, ascension, and glorification, the Holy Spirit was sent from heaven to give birth to His promised Church.  What follows in the New Testament is the record of that Church in its infancy, followed by letters of instruction to various local churches, contrasting correct New Covenant doctrines and practices with that which is false.  When any church's doctrines and practices spring from the traditions of men and not from Holy Scripture, it cannot rightly be called a reformed church.  Such was the condition of The Roman Catholic Church in the days of Martin Luther.  But when a church's doctrines and practices are derived from Holy Scripture, it is a "reformed" church.