Our Mission & Vision

“…You are a member of God’s very own family…and you belong in
God’s household with every other Christian.”
Ephesians 2:19 (LB)

Mission Statement: Calvary Baptist Church exists to glorify God by seeking to win people, mend them, build them up, and send them out.

Vision Statement: Calvary Baptist Church will glorify God by enabling believers to become fully devoted followers of Jesus Christ, empowered by the Holy Spirit, who out of the overflow of their spiritual passion and growing maturity in Christ, are empowered to reach their community and the world for Christ.

A Few Basics: Calvary Baptist Church, located in the heart of California’s central San Joaquin Valley, has been in existence since 1910. Calvary Baptist Church is associated with the Baptist General Conference, and as a part of that affiliation, a member of the Northern California Baptist Conference district. We are committed to mutual ministry with other evangelical churches. Our commitment to the shared ministries of global church planting and church enrichment is more effectively accomplished by working with these sister churches. Click here for details on our Sunday services. A smaller sized group of adults participate in an informal evening worship service. Our church has different ministries to minister to a variety of people. Check out our Ministries page for more information! Our congregational age group make-up is balanced. No one age group significantly outnumbers any other. We have a small number of college/career adults, and a good number of younger-aged families, middle-aged adults, and senior citizens.

Leadership Team: Our leadership team recognizes the authority of God, and realizes that we are shepherds who serve under the Chief Shepherd, Jesus Christ. We desire to devote ourselves to prayer and to the ministry of the Word. Our passion and goal is to equip the believers for the work of the ministry until we all attain maturity in the fullness of Christ.

Pastor Russell “Rusty” Lyon, Lead Pastor, brings a personal and biblically balanced approach to ministry. You can’t help but notice his desire to serve God above all and love those around him. Pastor Rusty started his ministry in January of 2001 after having been the Senior Pastor at First Baptist of Kingsburg for 15 years. His primary spiritual gifts center around relational evangelism, preaching, and leadership. Pastor Rusty is spearheading a congregational commitment to availability and visibility in the community, which he believes is the basis for effective evangelism. Contact Pastor Rusty at spiritcoach@sbcglobal.net

Pastor Luther Englund is our Congregational Care Pastor, and comes to us after a long career of serving the Lord. He truly has a heart for people, caring for those who may not be able to participate in our regular gathering on Sunday mornings.
Contact Pastor Luther at lmenglund@sbcglobal.net

Pastor Jim Schultz is our Associate Pastor of Family and Student Ministries and the newest member of our pastoral staff.  He began serving at Calvary Baptist Church in August of 2008. He and his family moved here from Michigan where he was a youth pastor at the same church for 19 years! He has a heart for youth and it is evident through his enthusiasm to teach and befriend each student. Contact Pastor Jim at schultz.james.e@gmail.com