About Covenant Baptist Church
Our church is made up of people from diverse faith backgrounds. Some have been Baptist all of their lives, some have come from other denominations, and some had no specific faith background before coming here. At Covenant Baptist Church, we welcome all to come together for worship and Bible study, to pray together with and for one another, and to serve the community together as a part of our family of faith. It is our heartfelt desire for all to feel welcome and comfortable here no matter their past church experiences.
Unlike many Christian denominations, Baptist churches are not unified through a central authority, nor do we have an equivalent to the Pope, which means Baptist churches can be very different from each other. But what we do have are four historic Baptist traditions that many churches like ours cherish and keep central to our identity. These historic traditions are:
The Bible is foundational to us as individuals and as a church congregation. Every Christian has the freedom to interpret Scripture as led by the Holy Spirit without interference from any entity or person.
God gives each person the freedom to directly respond to Jesus’ calling in their lives without need for a minister or any other authority to intervene on their behalf. The term “priesthood of all believers” is sometimes used to describe this tradition.
Churches like Covenant Baptist are free to follow Christ’s lead and determine what constitutes church membership, who the leaders of the church can be, what beliefs we hold, and how we practice those beliefs. This has been known as “the autonomy of the local church.”
Everyone should have the freedom to worship as they feel led without unnecessary interference by the government. The separation of church and state provides the assurance of religious freedom for all people.
For more information about the historic Baptist traditions, check out
The Baptist Identity: Four Fragile Freedoms, by Walter Shurden.
Our Core Values
We commit ourselves to these basic principles of faith, striving to reflect the life and ministry of our Lord Jesus Christ.
To seek truth based upon the Bible, God's inspired Word, and to use and teach the Scriptures as the guide for our daily living.
To pursue peace and reconciliation in our community and among all people.
To worship God with reverence, to evangelize and witness with dignity and respect, and to confess our sins and encourage one another to accept God's forgiving grace.
To support missions locally and throughout the world.
To observe the ordinances of Believer's Baptism and the Lord's Supper as taught by the Scriptures, and to affirm the Priesthood of the Believer and the inclusiveness of the Kingdom of God.
To nurture a caring fellowship which is autonomous within the Baptist family and the Christian church.
To encourage all members to follow a call to serve in the Kingdom of God as laypersons and clergypersons, and to practice a careful stewardship of gifts and talents through the ministries of the church.
Our History
On September 11, 1988, sixty-four like-minded believers gathered for lunch to explore the possibilities for the future. This meeting was the first step toward the formation and establishment of Covenant Baptist Church. On that same Sunday, the congregation of Saint Andrews ARP Church at 3131 Erskine Drive in Gastonia conducted their last worship service. God undoubtedly had plans for this place of worship to house another family of believers. Doors were opened that enabled one hundred thirty-six Baptist believers to meet there the following Sunday.
The early years of the church were filled with planning, organization, and change. An Initial Planning Group provided leadership in learning what had to be done to establish a church and in setting up internal structures such as organizations and church-related activities. Open communication was maintained between this group and the congregation.
The Fellowship adopted a Statement of Purpose on November 20, 1988, thus allowing the congregation to be declared a church. One hundred fifty-five signed the Charter on the first day declaring their desire to become members. By the closing of the Charter on January 9, 1989, there were two hundred five Charter Members.
Joe Roberts of Furman University in Greenville, SC accepted the church’s call to become the interim pastor on February 5, 1989. By mid-1989, the Covenant congregation had purchased the facility that they had been leasing from the local Presbytery. On October 1, 1990, the church called Dr. Wayne Wike as its first full-time pastor. During Dr. Wike’s service at Covenant, a major renovation of the narthex and sanctuary, including a baptistry, was completed and dedicated on March 29, 1997. Dr. Wike led the congregation until May 31, 1998.
Dr. Ron Williams of Gardner-Webb University in Boiling Springs, NC became the interim pastor on August 23, 1998. During these years, emphasis was placed on children and youth with the completion of a playground. Reverend Olin S. Byrum, III began his service as the second pastor of Covenant Baptist Church on September 11, 2000 and served the church until August 25, 2016. While under his leadership, missions continued to be a strong aspect of ministry at Covenant Baptist. The completion of a kitchen and fellowship hall was done in March, 2004 and a prayer garden was finished in 2016. Plans were initiated and fundraising began for a new educational building.
On February 26, 2017, a groundbreaking ceremony was held for the new educational building. During this time of transition, the church focused on reorganization and looking to the future. Reverend Dan Freeman began his service as Intentional Interim Pastor on May 14, 2017 and led the church until April 15, 2018. Reverend Freeman, along with a Transition Team, guided the congregation on our hopes for the future. Fellowship, worship, discipleship, ministry, and missions continue to comprise the way we as a body seek to serve Jesus and reach others for Christ. While Reverend Freeman was at Covenant, the construction of the new educational building was completed debt-free and dedicated on September17, 2017.
Covenant Baptist’s third pastor, Reverend Chris Hensley, began his service on May 13, 2018. The next Sunday, the church dedicated a new picnic shelter. Later a basketball court was added. As part of the ongoing ministry to the Gardner Park community, the George Pettigrew Little Free Food Pantry was committed to the glory of God in March, 2019.
March, 2020 brought an unexpected change to Covenant as well as to the rest of the world. The coronavirus (COVID-19) was declared a pandemic and church events were canceled until further notice. The staff worked diligently during this time to have worship services for the congregation by streaming on FaceBook and YouTube and by having drive-in services. Worship services in the sanctuary were resumed in October, 2020, but full church activities did not start back until March, 2021.
Reverend Hensley served the church until August 29, 2021. As the church entered a time of transition, the staff and lay leadership provided support to continue the ongoing activities and ministries. With the beginning of 2022, Reverend Nick Clanton, Youth Minister, began serving as Interim Pastor. He and the staff provided the necessary leadership for Covenant during this interim time. In August, a fire pit was added to the picnic area. Reverend Clanton continued his service as Interim Pastor until Covenant’s fourth pastor, Reverend Jeff Spargo, began on September 25, 2023.
Many important decisions were made in those first years and continue to be made today. From early on, as now, a strong belief in the historical Baptist principles of the “priesthood of the believer” and the “autonomy of the local church” have undergirded the desire to involve this congregation in ministry and decisions. As we look ahead, we will continue to serve the Lord Jesus Christ in the Gardner Park community, Gaston County, and beyond. To God Be the Glory.
