Dr. J. Michael Barnett, Pastor

Dr. J. Michael Barnett has been our pastor for since January 1, 2001. He came to First Baptist Church from West Monroe, Louisiana. He is a native Texan from the small south Texas town of Bishop.  He and his wife Traci have two children - Natalie and Wesley.  His schedule is very simple: in the mornings he is in his study and in the afternoon and evenings he is available to anybody who needs him.  We call him “Dr. Mike” here at First Baptist Ocean Springs.

On any given Sunday service you will hear Dr. Mike preach an expository message from a book of the Bible. He believes that the pastor’s main responsibility is to obey II Timothy 4.1-5, "I charge thee therefore before God, and the Lord Jesus Christ, who shall judge the quick and the dead at his appearing and his kingdom; Preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort with all longsuffering and doctrine. For the time will come when they will not endure sound doctrine; but after their own lusts shall they heap to themselves teachers, having itching ears; And they shall turn away their ears from the truth, and shall be turned unto fables. But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry."

His philosophy of ministry is summed up in Philippians 1:5-11:

For your fellowship in the gospel from the first day until now; Being confident of this very thing, that he which hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ: Even as it is meet for me to think this of you all, because I have you in my heart; inasmuch as both in my bonds, and in the defence and confirmation of the gospel, ye all are partakers of my grace. For God is my record, how greatly I long after you all in the bowels of Jesus Christ. And this I pray, that your love may abound yet more and more in knowledge and in all judgment; That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offence till the day of Christ; Being filled with the fruits of righteousness, which are by Jesus Christ, unto the glory and praise of God.

Namely: to labor with people as God does (vs. 5), to look at people as God does (vs. 6), to love people as God does (vs. 7), and to long for people as God does (vs. 8-11).

You are invited to come worship and hear the Word of God delivered faithfully from our pastor.