Church History

RBC’s Beginning

After many prayer sessions in various homes, a group of God’s inspired believers stepped out on faith to organize a church.  Through the grace of God, these believers organized a new congregation with a renewed spirit to study and evangelize the Word of God.  A strong bond and an intense desire to worship brought the members together.  Our desire to share the good news and the Gospel of Jesus Christ sprouted across Montgomery County, MD for months.  As we continued in prayer, it became clear to everyone present that a new church should be formed to keep the faithful together and continue our walk in the path of righteousness.

An invitation to Brother Ike Leggett’s home in Burtonsville, MD turned out to be more than a social gathering.  It was the service that started the new beginning for our group.  A sermon presented by Rev. Leonard P. Massie, Jr. penetrated the hearts of all who attended.  This group of founding members later opened their homes for weekly prayer and praise services because of their strong desire to worship God.

The prayer and praise services gave the members the spiritual vigor to seek out to a place to worship.  The Mildred H. Pumphrey Recreational Center was the site chosen as our first place of worship.  Our first Sunday morning service in the center was held on October 10, 1993.  The Rev. Louis Cunningham of Philadelphia, PA was the presiding minister.  It was a joyous occasion and many came from near and far to witness the new beginning.

The church was first founded as Baptist Members for Meaningful and Positive Change.  Members were ready to move forward to resurrect the new beginning, a new church.  Committees were organized to assist in preparing for Sunday morning services.  The Spiritual Committee provided invaluable services in selecting ministers to preach every Sunday.  Baptist Members continued to have Sunday morning worship services and eventually started Sunday School classes.  Sunday School became a vital part of service and attracted many youth from the community.

Baptist Members had a number of ministers who took the time to feed our spiritual souls.  They included Reverends Joseph Fobbs, Leon Green, Charles White, Ed Jones, Curtis Ringgold, Archie LeMone, Wilson Wiley, Charles Langhorne, Timothy Tribble, and others.  There were many that labored with us and continued to keep us in their prayers.

Eventually, the Baptist Members of Meaningful and Positive Change outgrew the Pumphrey Center.  Emmanuel Seventh Day Adventist Church gave us the opportunity to worship in one of their sanctuaries in March 1994.  We said our farewells to the center in honor of our beloved friend, Mildred Pumphrey, and moved to Brinklow, MD.  On Sunday, March 6, 1994, we entered the sanctuary of Emmanuel Seventh Day Adventist Church with Rev. Diane Williams serving as the guest minister.

At a regular Church Business Meeting on May 10, 1994, the name Resurrection Baptist Church was chosen by the members and the name was later chartered in the State of Maryland.

After discussions and meetings, we decided to call a man of God to lead us.  Rev. Leonard P. Massie, Jr. became the Interim Pastor of Resurrection Baptist Church in May 1994.  He was subsequently elected Pastor in May 1995, installed in November 1995, and faithfully served until June 2000.

In September 2001, Rev. Don Franklin accepted the pastoral calling of the membership, and served as pastor until May 2004.

In June 2004, we left the sanctuary of Emmamuel Seventh Day Adventist Church and moved to Sherwood High School in Sandy Spring, MD.  Even though our location changed, we were continuing to build on the foundation that had been laid. 

In February 2005, the church selected Minister Austin Maxwell as the Interim Pastor.  We were blessed by the faithfulness of Minister Maxwell, Rev. James Speight and Rev. Doris Poole who shared their spiritual gifts with us during this stage of our journey.

In January 2010, the church continued its growth by again selecting Rev. Leonard Massie, Jr. as our Pastor.  Under his leadership the church ambitiously endeavored to fulfill the mission to "seek to save the lost and equip the saved to serve". On December 18, 2010, God blessed us to move into our new sanctuary located at 900 Ednor Road in Silver Spring, MD. In 2019, Pastor Massie was called to a new assignment. The church began the search for its third Pastor.

In May 2020, the Lord called Reverend Dr. Marcus Jerkins from Texas to serve as Senior Pastor of RBC. Pastor Jerkins led RBC through the Covid-19 pandemic, and under his leadership we experienced strong growth, at home and abroad. Pastor Jerkins aided the church in innovating through creating a strong social media outreach system and strategy for the congregation. New members joined in person and online from many states across the nation. Through virtual outreach, Pastor Jerkins also preached and taught to believers overseas in the Philippines and other countries. During Pastor Jerkins’ tenure, RBC thrived spiritually and numerically, with more members, greater financial resources, an improved physical plant and infrastructure, and a greater reach in the local community and beyond. This includes RBC’s dedication to feeding thousands throughout the time of the pandemic. Under Pastor Jerkins’ leadership, the church continued to thrive as we follow our mission to “Love, Live, and Lead like our Lord.” Our vision is to walk in New L.I.F.E. together (Learn together, be Inspired together, Fellowship together, and Evangelize together).

In December 2023, Pastor Jerkins was called to a new assignment and Resurrection began the search for her fourth pastor. We are blessed and excited for all the Lord has in store for the future!