Worship Services
When We Gather
Each Sunday morning, we gather at 10:00 AM for corporate worship, celebration, and fellowship. In the afternoon we hold a prayer meeting at 4:00 PM, and Sunday School meets in the Fall and Spring at 9:00 AM.
Our Worship
Our music is a blend of old and new, the doctrinally rich hymns of centuries past alongside faithful songs of the twenty-first century. Worship begins with warm fellowship before the service starts. In the first 20 to 30 minutes, we sing together, read Scripture aloud, and are led in corporate prayer.
Children of all ages join us for this portion of the service, and that is intentional. We believe children grow in faith by participating in the normal life of the church. Before the sermon, children through age 8 may be dismissed for age-appropriate Bible teaching if parents desire.
Our Preaching
Preaching at First Baptist is expositional, meaning each sermon aims to declare the main point of a specific biblical passage and apply it to our lives. Sermons run about 40 minutes and are driven by one goal: unveiling the beauty and wonder of Jesus Christ. Our series regularly alternate between the Old and New Testaments, and every message is anchored in the Gospel, the Bible's good news that God sent Jesus to save sinners through His death and resurrection.
Our Convictions About Church
First Baptist Church is a ministry built around the conviction that the local church is God's primary plan for making and maturing disciples. That conviction shapes everything about how we do church, from our commitment to expositional preaching and biblical theology to how we think about membership, discipline, and discipleship.
A good summary of how we understand is found in the book the Nine Marks of a Healthy Church.
If you'd like to understand more about what First Baptist Church believes and practices, we'd encourage you to visit 9marks.org. Also consider coming and worship with us on Sunday morning!
After the Service
Following the sermon, we respond to God's Word by singing a hymn that reflects the theme of the message, and the service closes with a scriptural blessing over the congregation. After the blessing, we warmly invite everyone to stay and fellowship for as long as you'd like. We mean it, no one is in a rush to get you out the door.
First Baptist Church has proclaimed the gospel of Jesus Christ in Watertown since 1852. We are an older church in the best sense, shaped by generations of faithful believers, and yet our pews are also full of young families and small children. You'll find people dressed in jeans and suits sitting side by side, united not by background or age but by a shared love for Jesus Christ, his Word, and the Holy Spirit.
For families with infants and toddlers, a well-staffed nursery is available from the moment you arrive.