Emmanuel Baptist Church is the hub of ministry in Cojutepeque, El Salvador. It was started in 2009 with a strong foundation, went through a few transitions, and is now thriving because of the preaching and teaching of the Word of God. God is working in the lives of people through salvation, obedience in baptism, and then discipleship leading to changed lives of praise and service to our Saviour.

There is joy, learning and love in the midst of a group of sinners trying to grow together through the Word of God.

In 1963, the doors of Colegio Emanuel opened and a Christian school was started and funded by a Christian businessman, Efrain Galdamez, for the purpose of providing quality education to the local poor children of Cojutepeque, El Salvador. There have been thousands of children that have passed through the school from K-4 through 9th grade.

Many years later, the ministry of this Christian school was passed off to Brother Efrain’s nephew with the goal of continuing the work. His nephew went to Lancaster Baptist Church and began growing in the Lord there. He learned from the Bible the great need to have the local church as the authority over a ministry like a Christian school. He shared with Pastor Chappell about the Christian school in Cojutepeque and pleaded for him to pray for someone to go and start a church on the existing facilities of the school. The Lord laid on this man’s heart to turn the care of this Christian school over to Lancaster Baptist Church to ensure that the school would always have oversight and guidance from a church and pastor with sound, Biblical doctrine.

Through the years there have been good times and difficult times; however, the school has been strong and has thousands of alumni throughout El Salvador and around the world.

Our vision is to be the school best known for its heart for God. Through a highly qualified team, we want to touch the lives of children and young people with the Word of God and equip them spiritually and academically to serve Him for the rest of their lives, anywhere in the world. 

Emanuel Baptist Theological Seminary began in March of 2012 with its first class. Professors come from the West Coast Baptist College in Lancaster, California to teach intensive classes five to six times a year. They teach in English and it is translated into Spanish with all the quizzes, tests, and projects. It is a four year program with yearly certificates to gain a degree in Bible and ministry.

It is not just for young people, but national pastors who did not have a solid Bible education. There are students coming from all over El Salvador and Honduras right now, and we are hoping that will expand throughout Central America in the future.

Emanuel Baptist Theological Seminary is committed to developing leaders with a heart for God, committed to the Word, compassionate toward the unsaved, and compelled to change communities for

Christ through the Gospel.

STBE's mission is to provide a balanced Christian education that equips Central American leaders with a practical knowledge of Bible study, preaching and knowledge of biblical doctrine, a defense of their Christ-centered faith, skills in sharing the truths in Christian education, the practice of family ministry, counseling, organizing, church planting, Sunday school, music, and much more. 

We believe that the missionary is always subject to the local church that commissioned and sent him. Our purpose is to help the missionary and the local churches that want to support him to reach as soon as possible the field where God has called him and to help him stay there. 

We believe that the Bible teaches us that missionary work is to evangelize the world by starting new churches throughout the world.