On October 12, 1985, a group of Christian soldiers met at the First Church of the Nazarene on 13th and F streets in Sparks, Nevada. A new missionary church was established and dedicated to the Lord. The late Rev. Johnny T. Collins, Sr. was selected as pastor. The name New Jerusalem Missionary Baptist Church was selected and on October 26, 1985 New Jerusalem was officially organized with the assistance of Rev. W.C. Webb, the late Rev. David B. Meadows, the late Rev. Onie Cooper, and the late Rev. E. M. Howard. Under the leadership of the late Pastor Johnny T. Collins, two ministers, Rev. John C. Smith and Rev. Clifton Smith, accepted their call and were licensed to preach. Also, during that time, the Lord  blessed  by adding many members to the church family and blessed New Jerusalem to be a light in the community.

In June of 1987, the late Pastor Johnny T. Collins, along with his family, was called to a new ministry in Edmonton Alberta, Canada and we were blessed to have Rev. John C. Smith serve as the interim pastor for several months.

In April of 1988, Rev. Billy G. Williams was called to pastor New Jerusalem and Bro. David Gamble was ordained as a Deacon. In May of 1989 the late Rev. David A. Lyons was called to serve as interim pastor.

From 1991 to 1993, Rev. Donald L. Walker served as the under shepherd at New Jerusalem. During his tenure, Rev. Clifton Smith and Rev. Irving Gray were ordained as preachers and Bro. Duane Vaden was ordained as a Deacon. Also Rev. Keith Barmore and the late Rev. James Williams accepted their call to the ministry.

On December 11, 1993, the late Rev. J. Vincent Shelton was called to pastor New Jerusalem. During his leadership, Bro. Jerry Dobbins, Sr. and Bro. Herb Thomas, Sr. were ordained as Deacons. In 1997 the church mortgage was burned. In 1999, Bro. Vincent Terry, Sr. was ordained as a Deacon and in 2004 Deacons Stanley Madison and George Graham united with our church.

From May 2005 through June 2006 during a season of reflection and change, we sought Gods’ guidance and direction and we were blessed by many ministers who fed us spiritually as God continued to lead us.

In July of 2006, Jerry Decell McAlister accepted the call to be the pastor of New Jerusalem and is doing an awesome work in building the kingdom of God. With the guidance of the Holy Spirit Pastor McAlister established our church mission statement which reads, “We provide a safe haven, teaching faith, restoring hope and showing love through the power, guidance and aid of the Holy Spirit.”

Many ministries have been added to New Jerusalem. In 2010/2011, we were blessed to have Minister Bruce Gogo and Minister Marcus Moore serve as Associate Ministers at New Jerusalem. During their time of service, they established Outreach Programs and Educational Training for the church and the community.

During Vacation Bible School 2016, it was a blessing to partner with the organization, Think Kindness. Our church family and friends collected hundreds of shoes to send to kids in Kenya affording them the ability to attend school.

The members of the Ministerial Staff of New Jerusalem are Ministers Clifton Smith and  Vincent Terry, Sr.  They are in position to help build the Kingdom alongside Pastor McAlister.

As a body of believers, we strive to put our mission statement into action each day and believe that the Lord has called us “To Worship in the Spirit of Excellence” (Psalm 148:13-14), which is our church theme.

Great things continue to take place at New Jerusalem both spiritually, financially and with a kingdom focus in mind and we will continue to be blessed with a purpose, which is to glorify God!