This is one of the best, if not the best, churches I've had the pleasure of visiting. Pastor Darrin's love for the Lord and the people he shepherds is readily apparent when you hear his carefully prepared, biblically rich messages. He has a series entitled Leaders Worth Following, and he is very much a leader worth following. His wife is a treasure, as well as the many kind members and elders. If you are curious about a church committed to truth, check out First Baptist Church of Wheeling. read more

I had the pleasure of visiting First Baptist a little over a year ago. I felt very welcome and at home there. Glad I visited and hope to do so again in the near future. Very loving and considerate Pastor and congregation! read more

I was shocked to see my church rated only one star by someone on here. When I saw why, however, I was proud of my pastor and my church and is exactly why I'm a member. It is one thing to let people stay at a church or provide for the needs of others. No problem. It is another to provide a place for two unmarried people to sleep together, which is not only unwise but against the very truth we are entrusted as believers to preach and obey. That may be hard for many, but a church cannot preach to its congregation God's design and commands for marriage and relationships and then hypocritically look the other way by paving the way for those very commands to be violated. The image being communicated at that point would be hypocrisy. Not all Baptists and not all churches take God's Word seriously and sometimes it means the making the hard decision of saying no because it is right, God honoring and in the best interest of those seeking. Sometimes it requires asking hard questions, but it is out of sincere love. Anyone who cannot understand the importance of consistency, even if they don't agree, has not made an honest attempt to understand in the first place. Truly, First Baptist Church in Wheeling became my church because of their faithfulness to Christ as our only Lord and Savior by faith alone, faithfulness to preaching God's Word as it is written, their community of support and disciple-making work, and both the leadership and the congregation's love and labor to point those to Christ who do not know Him as the Way, the Truth and the Life and present those who do know Christ as fully mature before Him - by faith and through God's grace. To leave a one star review without any knowledge about having actually attended the church itself nor make an honest attempt to understand the church's position is ignorant at best and at worst out of retaliation or anger for not getting one's way or not being able to manipulate God's people by taking verses from the Bible out of the context of the whole. Jesus Christ did indeed help those in need and command us to help those in need, but He also turned many away because they wanted to use Him to get what they wanted while rejecting Him as Lord and Savior, along with His commands. God will honor a truly seeking heart because He is the very source and prompter of the truly seeking heart. read more

I am currently cycling across country to raise awareness on mental health. My partner and I have asked some churches along our route if we can camp in church yards. We would get a "yes" and have also been invited to some events. We have also received "no" responses from churches due to children being around or "upholding an image" when asked if we're married. We understand those two reasons for getting a no. But when we spoke to someone driving into First Baptist Church Wheeling if we could meet the pastor, he said the pastor is unavailable and he'd ask someone inside. When he got out of the car, he asked us so many questions of what we are doing THEN asked if we're married, said no and explained "we have an image to uphold and we wouldn't say yes even if it was for cancer". Our time was wasted, we felt interrogated, and when I said "I'm surprised at your response because my family is baptist," he replied "all Baptists are different". Romans 12:13, Matthew 25:35-40 (not that we needed food or water but the concept of helping people who seek assistance). Thankfully a church nearby was more welcoming and when I asked if we could do anything (in return for letting us pitch our tent for one night) such as buy dinner, the pastor said to just pray for him as he will for us. read more