Sharon Baptist Church is one of the most identifiable churches in Philadelphia, falling under the category of the mega denominations that is seemingly larger than life.

However, Bishop Keith W. Reed Sr. said congregation is just like any other church in its mission. Their purpose is to engage, equip, empower, embrace and evangelize. These are tasks they do not take for granted and the more hands they have to accomplish these means, the better; there is no being just another face in the crowd.

“In the midst of being mega, you have to be micro,” he said. “You have to be small. So, we have small care groups in the church and they meet once a week.”

“You will only be lost in the sauce if you choose to be. You’ll fall in the cracks if you choose but overall, we’re pretty much a welcoming church and a friendly church and our motto is the more the merrier.”

Reed has been the senior past for the past 30 years and has overseen the church grow to 7,000 members.

“It used to make me feel, ‘Wait a minute, this is a too much for a guy from the projects,’” he said.

To his flock, Reed is the symbol of a man who has an unwavering commitment to the proclamation and the people who look to him for spiritual guidance.

“He’s a father to the church and he’s a friend to the community,” Ed Kargbo said. “He’s very down to earth and he relates to people. He understands and he’s easy to talk to.”

Kargbo has been a member of Sharon for the past eight years and is an armor-bearer to Reed.

“Bishop Reed is accessible. If I have a personal problem, I can bring it up to him and he can help me with my personal problem,” he said. “He’s a personable pastor. He listens and he understands.”

Thomas Hopper also shared the belief that Reed was a true follower of Christ. He first came to Sharon a decade ago on the urging of his fiancée. He has since married in the church, taken on the title of multi media director and has grown spiritually in the church.

“Bishop Reed has allowed me to grow in character because there are some things now that I wouldn’t do, maybe I would’ve done back in the day prior going to the church,” Hopper said. “When you come to Sharon, now that we are not a perfect church, but we are a church that is striving towards perfection and we are a family oriented church despite the size of the church you will still feel that family feel.”

Barbara Ash has been a part of the Sharon family for 11 years. She was long ago impressed with how all the members came together as one body.

“My experience at the church has been something I never experienced before,” she said. “The biggest thing that impressed me about the church is that first of all, Bishop Reed was able to get young Black men to join the church.”

She continued about the influence that Reed has demonstrated.

“He makes sure that everyone is part of the church,” Ash said. “I think that’s his draw. He makes everyone feel like they’re most important person in the church.”

The strength in numbers has allowed Sharon to become an integral part of their community. There are various ministries focused on being a help to those in need. Reed said he was the first to ask for assistance.

“I think it’s putting the right people with the right skill sets in the right position and they help you do the work of the ministry. It’s a tragedy when I see churches that are growing and pastors still think they can maintain it by themselves,” he said.

“I think that used to be a mindset back in the day when the pastor was everything.”

Reed continued about the practicalities of recognizing the talents of others rather to reel from intimidation.

“I think that in our day if you’re going to survive and survive well, you have to understand that there are people who have different gifts,” he said.

“I think that keeps it from becoming overwhelming. I think that if we think that we are a one man band then I think it can become very consuming and short lived too; don’t cut your days short on this side.”

Reed said Sharon, with all hands joined together, would continue to uphold the church’s mantra. It was the secret behind his long tenure at the pulpit.

“I think it’s the mandate to just evangelize the lost, edify those that are found and exalt our savior,” he said.

“I think it’s always something that we’re reaching for.”

Contact staff writer Stephanie Guerilus at (215) 893-5725 or This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. .