In November of 1969, a young preacher named Bill Monroe and his wife, Norma, moved back to South Carolina with a simple dream: plant a Bible-preaching church that would win souls to Christ and make disciples for His glory. They rented an old World War II theater building near the airport in Florence and held their first service with just 18 people.

Those early days were humble. The building was hot in the summer, cold in the winter, and infested with “critters.” But God honored simple faith, hard work, and a passion for soul-winning. The church began to grow. Bus ministry, Sunday School, and personal evangelism became the heartbeat of Florence Baptist Temple.

Through the 1970s and 80s, FBT built new facilities, launched Florence Christian School, and sent missionaries around the world. The church has remained committed to expository Bible preaching, evangelism, and discipleship—“making disciples through reaching, growing, and serving."

In 1979, the church added a new outreach: The Baptist Temple Hour, a weekly television broadcast designed to share the morning service with those who could not attend in person. That broadcast continues today across the Pee Dee and Grand Strand regions and into parts of North Carolina, and now reaches even farther through online streaming and this sermon archive.

More than fifty years later, Pastor Monroe is still preaching the Gospel from Florence Baptist Temple. The facilities are different. The tools are more advanced. But the message is the same: Jesus Christ saves, the Bible is God’s Word, and the church exists to glorify God by reaching people and growing them in Christ.

WHAT WE BELIEVE

• The Bible is God’s inspired, inerrant Word and the final authority for faith and life.
• There is one God, eternally existing in three persons—Father, Son, and Holy Spirit.
• Jesus Christ is God’s Son, born of a virgin, who lived a sinless life, died for our sins, rose again, and will come again.
• Salvation is by grace through faith in Jesus Christ alone, not by works.
• Every believer is eternally secure in Christ and called to live a holy, obedient life.

For the full statement of faith, please visit: [What We Believe at Florence Baptist Temple]