Dr. Heath Lambert has been preaching at First Baptist Church of Jacksonville, Florida since January of 2016, and became Senior Pastor in September of 2017. Serving First Baptist is the joy of Pastor Heath’s life. He is delighted to serve with the remarkable members and staff at this incredible church. Prior to serving at First Baptist, Pastor Heath served as the Executive Director of the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors (ACBC), and as a professor at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary.

He is the author of several books, including The Biblical Counseling Movement After Adams (Crossway, 2011), Finally Free: Fighting for Purity with the Power of Grace (Zondervan, 2013), Transforming Homosexuality (P&R, 2015), A Theology of Biblical Counseling: The Doctrinal Foundations of Counseling Ministry (Zondervan, 2016), and The Great Love of God (Zondervan, April 2023).

Heath earned a bachelor of arts (B.A.) in biblical and theological studies and political science from Gordon College in 2002, a master of divinity (M.Div.) in Christian Ministry from Southern Seminary in 2005, and a doctorate (Ph.D.) in biblical counseling and systematic theology from Southern Seminary in 2009.

He is married to Lauren and they have three children.