We look to God in prayer for a renewed vision for our future.  It is our desire that Bible Baptist Church continue to bring families together, and pass on a godly legacy to our children and to our children’s children. We are laying a foundation for the future ministry and outreach of Bible Baptist Church. The following is a brief history of the foundation of Bible Baptist Church for the past eighty-five years.  

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Our History

Bible Baptist Church was founded by a group of five ladies during the early part of the 1920’s. They gathered together at the home of Mr. and Mrs. William Clarke of Sixth Street in Wood-Ridge, as well as in other homes, for weekly prayer and fellowship. Soon, other ladies of the town began to ask if they could join the group. It was not long before it became evident that their group would outgrow a home meeting place. The first official move toward an organized body of the church was September 27, 1928, when a document was drafted and acted upon. This document stated their belief and purpose and on October 8, 1928, the church was officially named First Baptist Church of Wood-Ridge, New Jersey.

 

First Baptist Church held its first service on November 4, 1928, when a bungalow at 499 Highland Avenue, Wood-Ridge served as a meeting place. Due to the steady growth of First Baptist Church, an addition was built onto the original building in 1941.  In time, they realized the need for even more room. 31 Passaic Avenue was presented to the congregation for their consideration after a lengthy search. It was approved and in June 1954, the papers were signed. Construction was started after they met a financial goal in October of 1956 ($40,000). The new building was completed in April of 1957, and in May, First Baptist Church changed its name to Bible Baptist Church.

 

Reverend Peter Vander Vliet was called to be the first pastor. It took three years for Sunday School to become an active program. Mr. and Mrs. Lees served as leaders of Sunday School from 1933 to 1945. In 1943, Jasper Meyer was pastor for 18 months, followed by Rev. Kenneth Wilcox from 1946-1952. In August of 1952, Rev. Donald C. Hafler became Pastor and he and his wife Marie served until 1983 when Pastor Hafler went home to be with the Lord.  In December of 1984, Pastor Robert Cateau was called as pastor having come off the Mission Field in Aruba. He remained until his resignation in 1988. He will be remembered for helping to start our Faith Promise ​Giving Program.  

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A “Pastoral Search Committee” was formed and the members of this committee were resolved that they needed a pastor who would have a very strong evangelical approach, with a definite heart for preaching and teaching, and an ability to truly meet the needs of the community.   Reverend William Hegedus visited twice in the Fall and Winter of 1988. The committee sought the will of God and the membership. In February 1989, Pastor Bill Hegedus, his wife Diane and their seven children came to Bible Baptist Church.  The members and congregation welcomed Pastor Hegedus at his installation service on February 26, 1989.  

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Pastor Bill retired on October 2013. Pastor Bill serving together with his family, for 25 years, were very influential in many areas of growth, in our church especially through the Jesus Story for 25 years which was a dramatization of the life, death and resurrection of Jesus Christ. 

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In 2013, a “Pastoral Search Committee” was formed consisting of the Elder Board, Chairman of the Deacon Board, a Deacon and 2 members.  After reviewing countless applications, Pastor Eric Dammann was asked to come to an interview with the Search Committee. After much prayerful consideration, Pastor Eric was invited to come and share a message on Sunday morning for both services. To get a better picture of Him and his family he was invited to our annual Church picnic. Shortly thereafter a meeting of the members of the church was held. By a large majority of the votes he was asked to become Pastor of Bible Baptist church. 

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Our Vision

The vision of our church ministry is in keeping with the original charter documents, stated in October 8, 1928, and continues to be our purpose today.  These being:

                   1.       Discipleship (2 Timothy 2:15) 

                   2.       Evangelism (Matthew 28:18-20)

                   3.       Worship (John 4:23)

                   4.       Fellowship (Acts 2:42)

                   5.       Ministry (Ephesians 4:12)

 

Bible Baptist Church is a family-focused body of multi-cultural believers with 212 members, who gather with the purpose to both glorify God and to inform the world about the work of Christ as Redeemer.   

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We have approximately 150 men, women and children who gather weekly for corporate worship and Sunday School.  The greatest number of attendees reside within a seven mile radius encircling more than 10 townships. Our church is located in a suburban area.  Its attendees are mostly lower middle-class.  The Hasbrouck Heights/Wood-Ridge area is mainly a middle class population that is mostly Catholic.

 

The Structure

Some building blocks in that foundation have been and continue to be:

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 A.   Elder Board Leadership

Bible Baptist Church is led through an Elder Board, which is a shared leadership structure of gifted leaders complimenting one another in the responsibilities of shepherding the church. Shared pastoral  leadership helps lighten the load and allows each Elder to function primarily according to their     personal giftedness. From among the Elders there must be a first among leaders, who is a highly gifted leader and           teacher of the Word.  This person acts as the spokesperson for the group and leads the church in its vision and preaching. This is the position of the Head Pastor/Elder.  1 Timothy 5:17

         

 B.   Membership Covenant

After  an  individual has  received  Jesus  Christ  as  Lord and Savior and  has  been  baptized,  attended membership classes and is in agreement with the doctrinal stand and  policies  as  stated in the Bible Baptist Church Constitution, they commit to God and to the members to do the following:

1.     I will protect my church.

2.     I will share the responsibility of my church.

3.     I will serve the ministry of my church.

4.     I will support the testimony of my church.

 

C. Weekly Worship Services

Presently we have two Sunday services. One service at 10:30 am and one Sunday evening service at 6:00 pm.  The Sr. Pastor gives a message at the morning service. Then one of the other Elders will give the message at the 6 pm service.

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D. Sunday School

 Sunday School is from 9:15 am to 10:15 am.

 Classes are offered for Nursery to Pre-K, 1st to 6th grade, Adults which average approximately 70 people total.

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E.  Foundational Ministry Programs

1.  Children’s Ministries - include:  Kids Church, Kids-4-Truth, and VBS. These are available for children in Pre-K to 6th grade.

2.  Rooted in Christ - is our Junior/Senior High School Ministry, which meets on Wednesdays at 7:00 pm.

3.  Young Adults - is a ministry for anyone 18-30 year old. 

4.  Men's Ministry - meets on  t first and third Saturday of each month. 

​5. Women's Ministry - meets on Tuesday mornings and scheduled fellowship events.

6. Midweek Bible Study - meets on Wednesday nights at 7:00 pm and led by the Sr. Pastor.

7. Small Groups - are various small groups which meet at the church and in private homes. Opportunities for people to study the Bible, discover their gifts and fellowship.

8. Couples for Christ - meets on the third Saturday at 7:00 pm and scheduled fellowship events.

9. Senior Saints - is a group for those over 60 years of age, who meet monthly for a devotional and fellowship.

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F.  Outreach Ministries

1. K-4-T: children ages Pre-k to 5th grade with the gospel. We have book time, games and theme nights.

2. MomLife: is an outreach ministry which ministers to mothers of preschoolers in our community and surrounding areas, many of whom do not know Christ.

3. VBS: vacation Bible School:  happens for one week during the summer. Pre-K & Elementary age kids. Book time, skits, music & games. 

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G.  Foreign Missions

Bible Baptist Church supports missionaries serving cross-culturally with a long-term commitment in countries across the world.

We have also had several groups commissioned and sent out from our church which have traveled to other countries (China, St. Lucia, Romania, and West Africa, Ghana, Poland, Russia) as short-term missionaries to minister to their physical and spiritual needs.

We also support individuals from our church that do short term mission trips.