Just shortly after 6:00 p.m. on Friday night, Dallas firefighters responded to a three-alarm fire that was happening at First Baptist Dallas‘ (FBD) historic chapel. FBD is a Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) megachurch in downtown Dallas led by senior pastor Robert Jeffress.
According to news reports, the Dallas Fire Department arrived on the scene to heavy smoke and fire at approximately 6:09 p.m. At 6:20 p.m. a second alarm was requested, followed by a third alarm around 7:30 p.m.
FBD was founded in 1868 and is the only downtown Dallas church still located on its original site. Today the church is attended by over 13,000 people.
Despite never living in Dallas, world-renowned evangelist Billy Graham was a member of FBD for over 50 years until he moved his membership to First Baptist Church in Spartanburg, South Carolina, when he was 90 years old.
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No injuries have been reported at this time.
An emotional Jeffress told Fox 4 News that he had just left FBD before the fire started in its historic sanctuary: “This sanctuary has been around since 1890 [and] was the home for our church for a long time until we moved to our new worship center about 12 years ago.”
“This historic sanctuary was the site of many personal events, including my own,” he added. “I was baptized there when I was six. I was ordained for the ministry when I was 21. It holds a lot of memories. But we thank God that nobody has been hurt.”
The pastor shared that FBD had just concluded its vacation Bible school which was attended by over 2,000 kids. Jeffress praised God for his protection and that all the kids were all gone before the fire started.
“I’m grateful that the church is not bricks and mortar or wood, it’s people,” Jeffress said. “The people of God will endure. First Baptist Dallas will endure, and we thank so many of our friends around the country who are praying for us right now.”
FBD also released a statement through social media that asked people to “please pray for our church. We have experienced a fire in the Historic Sanctuary.”
“To our knowledge, no one is hurt or injured, and we thank God for His protection. He is sovereign even in the most difficult times,” the church added.
They then quoted Romans 8:28: “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God, to those who are called according to his purpose.”
The statement ended with FBD saying, “We will keep you updated as we prepare to come together to worship.”
Church Leaders and Influencers Respond
Many church leaders and Christian influencers encouraged their followers to pray for FBD and shared videos of the sanctuary being engulfed in flames.
O.S. Hawkins, FBD’s former senior pastor and current chancellor at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, posted a video of FBD’s historic sanctuary on fire. “So many memories in that over 125 yr old building. Please join us in prayer,” Hawkins said.
The editor-in-chief of Outreach magazine and dean of Talbot School of Theology at Biola University, Dr. Ed Stetzer, shared, “First Baptist Dallas’ historic sanctuary is on fire. I hope you will join me in praying for them!”
