

About Us
Overview
Compelling Word Bible Church is serious about knowing the Scriptures, living according to the Scriptures, and teaching the Scriptures, for they are the infallible, inerrant, inspired Word of God given to humanity. Through the inward illumination by the Holy Spirit, that which is foolishness to the ungodly is a saving knowledge to the people of God. As a result, we boldly and uncompromisingly follow Christ, loving Him as we express a Biblical love toward one another.
We are a church that...
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...is purposefully uncomplicated, focusing on
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Walking through Scripture with teaching and preaching
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Fellowship
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Public reading of Scripture
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Prayer
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Singing Psalms, hymns, and spiritual songs
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The Lord's Supper and Baptism
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...seeks to lead fellow followers of Christ to glorify God in all things.
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...is serious about discipleship
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...makes every effort to ensure every believer comprehends the tenants of the faith, and to defend that with love.
Our Pastor

Pastor D. Jay Forbes
Early Years
Pastor Jay was born and raised in the Baltimore, MD area. He grew up in a home where his parents were serious about attending church and having an active role in furthering local church ministry. As a young boy, he loved drawing maps of the United States by hand and memorizing the population of each state. On some occasions he would forego playing outside so that he could read encyclopedia information about each state. As a young teenager in the late 1980's and early 1990's he had an affinity for working with audio and video. At his church he began working in the sound room where he learned how to wire up mixing boards, speakers, microphones, recorders & players, musical instruments, video cameras, power amps, and many other things. In his exuberance there was never a wire safe when he was around. He eventually began to be the lead for the technical aspects of church services, and whenever his church changed locations he would setup and operate the equipment for services.
In his late teens, Pastor Jay began to develop his skill to play keyboard, piano, and organ. In grade school he played the saxophone very well, but was not interested in playing piano in school because he was used to seeing church musicians "play by ear." His parents bought a keyboard and organ that allowed him, and his younger brother who is now an accomplished musician, to get their start. Later, he and a friend started the first gospel choir at his high school where he played the keyboard and taught the songs. Eventually he was able to play during church services and later became the "Minister of Music" at various churches for many years. After graduating high school where he played football and ran track, he decided not to continue with sports but wanted to further his skill behind the scenes with audio and video. He started out with a major in telecommunications but later switched to computer science where he focused on his passion for software development that he picked up in the 10th grade. In the area of Computer Science he excelled beyond his peers. He eventually was offered job opportunities while still in college during the mid 1990's. He has been in the profession for more than 30 years.
Ministry
At the age of four while sitting with his mom at a bus stop in the late 1970's, Pastor Jay made his first profession of faith in the Lord Jesus Christ. The evidence that it was more than a mere profession was noticed with a change in attitude and behavior that followed not too long afterwards that resulted in a meek and loving behavior towards others. Despite going through some childish rebellious years as a teenager, he was always restrained in his behavior because he knew the Lord was always watching him and he would have to give an account for his actions and thoughts.
In 1999, Pastor Jay was made a licensed minister by his church. During this time he was part of many ministerial training classes to further develop him in church leadership. In 2007, he was ordained as an elder which made his duties and responsibilities to God's sheep increase further. In 2010, he was ordained as a pastor and filled the role of assistant pastor.
"In conversations where he faced push back, he realized the root of the contention: the authority and sufficiency of Scripture. A perceived "word from the Lord" that others claimed to have had was pitted against what the Lord has said in His Word."
Reformed by the Word of God
Despite gaining much experience in church leadership where he taught Bible classes, preached sermons, taught Sunday school, new member classes, held meetings, and did many other things, in 2016 Pastor Jay began to examine what he believed and why he believed it. He grew up in the traditions of his church and did accordingly to how he was taught. Nevertheless, as a work that can only be attributed to the Holy Spirit since there was no other influence, he put all his beliefs and practices about the faith under the illuminating light of God's Word. Having grown up in deliverance ministries and charismatic type of churches, he was aware there was a definite zeal for God, but under the light of Scripture, he realized it was substantially not a zeal according to knowledge.
The first area Pastor Jay questioned was regarding the Scriptural qualifications of a pastor in light of the many women "pastors" that existed. Initially, it was difficult to publicly embrace the fact that, according to Scripture, leadership roles in the church, such as elder/pastor/bishop/overseer, were given by God for only men to occupy. This difficulty was because many of his female family members and friends took on many church leadership roles, and many were instrumental at various points in his life. In conversations where he faced push back, he realized the root of the contention: the authority and sufficiency of Scripture. A perceived "word from the Lord" that others claimed to have had was pitted against what the Lord has said in His Word. After seeing many go into error from being in excess of Scripture and from being in deficiency of Scripture, Pastor Jay realized the only path forward was to embrace God's Word for what It is: the only infallible rule of faith and conduct given to mankind today. Therefore, he used Holy Scripture as the supreme judge for deciding all controversies and assertions in matters of faith and conduct. From that topic onward, he continued to quickly undergo a reformation in his faith. The more he knew the truth according to what God has given humanity in His Word, the more he fell in love with God all over again. His zeal became according to Biblical truth and he could worship God in both spirit and in truth! His desire for teaching was increased, and he sought to help all walk according to Biblical truth while embracing the authority and sufficiency of God's Holy Word.
In various churches Pastor Jay grew up in, "doctrine" related to foundational matters of the faith was avoided during services because unity with other professing believers was of higher importance. "Doctrine" was said to divide instead of unite, and it was seen as an unnecessary emphasis on intellect instead of the Spirit. This quickly changed for Pastor Jay under the illuminating light of God's Word as he began to understand that the "division" doctrine brings, specifically essential doctrine, is necessary because it separates sheep from goat, and truth from lie. He understood that when doctrine is avoided in local churches, many have no grounding in their faith whatsoever, and many eventually end up in some sort of error. Therefore, those he is blessed to disciple get a steady diet of essential truths consistently over time.
In 2016, Pastor Jay in the midst of his reformation began to study God's Word more fervently, spending many hours and whole days in the study of the Scriptures encompassing a study of both Old and New Testaments, the unity of Scripture, various aspects of church history from the second century to the present, New Testament Greek, the intertestamental period, and a host of other topics related to the faith. Although he had went through the Bible several times in the past, going through Scripture while taking very seriously what God had penned, as well as embracing the authority and sufficiency of Scripture has led him to where he is now.
After living in the Baltimore area for more than 45 years, in 2020 Pastor Jay and his wife moved to York County, Pennsylvania to start Compelling Word Bible Church. After holding services for more than four years, on October 6, 2024 Compelling Word Bible Church held services in a public location for the first time!
Pastor Jay and his wife Lequeta, who everyone affectionately calls Q, were married in 2013. It is the first and only marriage either will be in, and both affirm that with joy! They have been living happily ever after since. Q has been a blessing to Compelling Word Bible Church, being the first member and playing an essential role with administrative needs. She has also been a vital help to Pastor Jay, and she represents the role of a Biblical wife and woman very well.
Let Us Serve You!
We want to serve you through the ministry of the Word and prayer!