The Church of Eleven22 is a non-denominational Christian church based in Jacksonville, Florida.
Founded by Joby and Gretchen Martin in 2012, it grew from a single Sunday launch of more than 3,000 people into one of the fastest-growing and largest churches in the United States, now spanning 14 locations across Florida and Georgia.
Today, under the continued leadership of lead pastor Joby Martin, the church is known for its expository Bible teaching, its come-as-you-are culture, and outreach ministries like Hope’s Closet and its South Georgia Retreat Center.
The Church of Eleven22 at a Glance
| Overview | |
|---|---|
| Name | The Church of Eleven22 |
| Location | Jacksonville, Florida, USA (San Pablo campus, headquarters), with additional campuses across Northeast Florida and one in Jesup, Georgia |
| Founded | 2012 |
| Founders | Joby Martin and Gretchen Martin |
| Denomination | Non-denominational; affiliated with the Acts 29 church planting network |
| Lead Pastor | Joby Martin |
| Campuses | 14 locations, including Arlington, Baymeadows, Fleming Island, Mandarin, North Jacksonville, Orange Park, Ponte Vedra, San Pablo, and St. Johns in Florida; Jesup, Georgia; and three prison campuses |
| Weekly attendance | Approximately 21,600, among the 20 largest churches in the United States |
| Notable ministries | Hope’s Closet Thrift; The Retreat Center; Eleven22 Worship |
| Website | coe22.com |
Church History
Founding and the Story Behind the Name
Joby Martin and his wife, Gretchen, launched The Church of Eleven22 in Jacksonville, Florida, on September 23, 2012, holding their first service in a renovated former Walmart building at the intersection of Beach Boulevard and San Pablo Road.
More than 3,000 people showed up for that first Sunday, an unusually large launch for a brand-new church plant.
The church’s name traces back to Martin’s earlier ministry role at Beach United Methodist Church, where the service he led started at 11:22 a.m. When the Martins launched their own congregation, the “Eleven22” name stuck, and they connected it to Mark 11:22, where Jesus tells his disciples to “have faith in God.”
Martin has said the name was never meant to be complicated. It simply carried forward a detail from where the church’s story began.
Early Years
Before striking out on their own, Joby and Gretchen Martin had already built a worship team at Beach United Methodist Church starting around 2010, a group that would eventually become Eleven22 Worship.
That existing community of musicians and volunteers gave the new church a running start most first-year church plants do not have, and it showed in the size of that first Sunday crowd.
The church’s original building carried an initial cost of around $2 million. Growth did not slow down from there. By 2015, the church was already appearing on Outreach Magazine’s list of the fastest-growing churches in America, drawing over 5,700 people weekly from just two locations.
Growth and Development
The Church of Eleven22 has posted some of the steepest sustained growth of any American church in the past decade. By 2019, the pace of that growth prompted a $15 million expansion of the original San Pablo facility, adding roughly 1,000 additional seats just seven years after the church’s founding.
That growth has continued into the 2020s. In-person attendance rose 24.5 percent from January to December 2023, then climbed another 24 percent from 2023 to 2024.
As part of its Vision 2025 initiative, the church set a goal of helping plant 1,000 new churches through its network partnerships, extending its growth strategy well beyond its own campuses.
Campus Expansion
What started as a single Jacksonville location has grown into a 14-campus network. By the end of 2023, the church operated 10 locations, including community campuses in Arlington, Fleming Island, Mandarin, North Jacksonville, Orange Park, San Pablo, and Baymeadows, an out-of-state site in Jesup, Georgia, and three prison campuses inside Columbia Correctional Institution, Union Correctional Institution, and the Duval Women’s Correctional Facility.
Ponte Vedra and St. Johns joined the network shortly after, bringing the total to 14 locations by 2026.
Leadership
Joby Martin serves as founder and lead pastor of The Church of Eleven22, a role he has held since the church’s 2012 launch.
He holds a Master of Divinity from New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary and has described his own theology as shaped by a serious commitment to expository, book-by-book Bible teaching.
Gretchen Martin, his wife of more than 20 years, co-founded the church alongside him and continues to lead Eleven22 Worship as a primary vocalist and songwriter.
Ben Williams serves as the church’s Culture and Creative Arts Pastor, overseeing the worship ministry’s musical direction alongside Gretchen, a role he has held since the band’s earliest days at Beach United Methodist Church.
Each of the church’s 14 campuses operates under its own campus pastor, supporting Martin’s centralized teaching ministry with local, on-the-ground leadership.
Beliefs and Doctrine
The Church of Eleven22 holds to a conservative evangelical statement of faith, affirming the Trinity, the full authority of Scripture, and salvation through faith in Jesus Christ alone.
The church teaches that humanity’s sin nature is total and pervasive, that Christ’s death on the cross serves as a substitutionary sacrifice satisfying God’s justice, and that the Holy Spirit’s gifts remain active in the church today.
Theologically, Martin has described himself as a “happy Calvinist,” reflecting Reformed convictions about God’s sovereignty in salvation, a perspective common among churches affiliated with the Acts 29 Network, the church-planting organization Eleven22 partners with.
The church’s four stated core values are biblical integrity, Spirit-led courage, Christ-like character, and sacrificial love.
Worship and Church Life
Sunday services at The Church of Eleven22 center on extended expository preaching, often working through a single book of the Bible over many weeks, paired with contemporary worship led by Eleven22 Worship.
Martin has described the church’s approach as intentionally low on polish and high on substance, telling one interviewer that first-time visitors are sometimes underwhelmed by the production value, even as the church continues to grow rapidly.
The church places a heavy emphasis on next steps after a Sunday visit, encouraging attendees toward baptism, small disciple groups, and its Growth Track program, a structured pathway meant to move new believers from initial decision to active discipleship and service.
Ministries and Outreach
Hope’s Closet
Hope’s Closet is a thrift store ministry operating next to the church’s San Pablo campus, accepting donated furniture, clothing, and household goods and reselling them to the public.
Proceeds fund the church’s community transformation programs and support both local and global ministry partners, and the store also supplies furniture used in campus renovation projects across the church’s network.
The Retreat Center
The Eleven22 Retreat Center sits on a South Georgia property historically known as Cabin Bluff, a hunting and fishing lodge first established in 1928.
The Nature Conservancy purchased the broader property in 2018 to protect its rare plant and animal life, and in 2020, Eleven22 partnered with several individuals and organizations to purchase the retreat center portion of the land at a significantly discounted price.
The property had already played an informal role in the church’s life for years before that purchase, hosting prayer retreats and leadership gatherings going back to before the church’s 2012 launch.
Today it hosts the church’s Encounters, focused retreat weekends for specific age groups, including its 1825 Encounter for young adults ages 18 to 25.
Additional Ministries
Beyond Hope’s Closet and the Retreat Center, the church runs a full slate of ministries including children’s and student ministry at every campus, men’s and women’s Bible studies, a Mission Ambassador program connecting members to local and global outreach opportunities, and a multi-tier School of Ministry offering leadership development programs ranging from 10-week discovery courses to two-year full-time ministry training tracks.
The church’s three prison campuses represent one of its more distinctive outreach commitments, extending weekly services directly into Florida correctional facilities.
Media and Resources
The Church of Eleven22 streams every weekend service online and archives sermons through its website, podcast feed, and YouTube channel.
Eleven22 Worship, the church’s in-house worship band, has released multiple independently produced studio albums, including a 2025 album titled Hymns that blends traditional hymn arrangements with contemporary worship elements.
Joby Martin has authored multiple books on faith and personal growth and hosts a podcast reaching listeners well beyond Jacksonville.
The church also offers devotionals, a Bible reading plan, and access to RightNow Media, a video-based discipleship resource library, through its app and website.
Impact and Influence
The Church of Eleven22 has appeared on Outreach Magazine’s Outreach 100 list nearly every year since 2015, ranking among both the fastest-growing and largest churches in the country, reaching as high as third place for fastest growth in 2024.
Its partnership with the Acts 29 Network extends the church’s influence into church planting, supporting new congregations built on the same expository, gospel-centered model Eleven22 was founded on.
The church has built a reputation, reflected in outside coverage from outlets like Outreach Magazine, for welcoming people other congregations have turned away, including individuals coming out of addiction and difficult personal histories, a “come as you are” ethos its leadership has repeated consistently since the church’s earliest years.
Facilities and Campuses
The church’s flagship San Pablo campus in Jacksonville remains its largest facility, expanded in 2019 through a $15 million renovation that added roughly 1,000 seats.
The broader campus network spans Arlington, Baymeadows, Fleming Island, Mandarin, North Jacksonville, Orange Park, Ponte Vedra, and St. Johns in the greater Jacksonville area, plus an out-of-state campus in Jesup, Georgia, and three campuses operating inside Florida correctional facilities.
Criticism and Controversies
As one of the largest and fastest-growing churches in the country, The Church of Eleven22 has drawn public scrutiny alongside its rapid growth.
Much of the criticism circulating on social media, including claims about Martin’s personal net worth and allegations regarding the church’s community outreach practices, comes from unverified social media posts rather than documented reporting, and Flicxa does not repeat specific unproven claims as established fact.
The church has also drawn public criticism, including from local commentators, over its pastoral team’s public statements on abortion legislation and its traditional biblical position on marriage and sexuality, positions consistent with the church’s stated evangelical doctrine but which have generated disagreement in Jacksonville’s broader public conversation.
Separately, some outside observers have raised questions about a Jacksonville Beach church-affiliated effort to acquire local liquor licenses, though the scope and outcome of that specific activity has not been independently confirmed through primary reporting.
Financial Information
The Church of Eleven22 operates as a registered nonprofit religious organization, funded primarily through congregational tithing and giving.
The church has not published detailed independently audited financial statements for public review, and no verified figure exists for Joby Martin’s personal net worth.
Public estimates for his net worth vary widely, from roughly $3 million to $24 million, depending on the source, none of which are independently confirmed. Flicxa treats these figures as unverified rather than factual.
Awards and Recognition
- Ranked on Outreach Magazine’s Outreach 100 list nearly every year since 2015, for both fastest-growing and largest churches in America
- Reached as high as #3 on the Outreach 100 Fastest-Growing Churches list in 2024
- Ranked #14 on the Outreach 100 Largest Churches list in 2025, with weekly attendance of roughly 21,600
Interesting Facts About The Church of Eleven22
- The church’s name comes from an old service time, 11:22 a.m., at the Methodist church where Joby Martin previously served
- Its first Sunday in 2012 drew more than 3,000 people to a converted former Walmart building
- The Retreat Center sits on land once known as Cabin Bluff, a hunting and fishing lodge dating back to 1928
- The church operates three campuses inside Florida correctional facilities, extending regular services directly into prisons
- Its in-house worship band, Eleven22 Worship, formed two years before the church itself, at Beach United Methodist Church in 2010
Timeline of Key Events
- 2010: A worship team later known as Eleven22 Worship forms at Beach United Methodist Church
- September 23, 2012: The Church of Eleven22 holds its first service in a renovated former Walmart, drawing over 3,000 people
- 2015: The church appears on Outreach Magazine’s Outreach 100 list with 5,720 weekly attendees across two locations
- 2016: The church opens a Mandarin campus in Jacksonville
- 2019: A $15 million expansion adds roughly 1,000 seats to the San Pablo campus
- 2020: Eleven22 partners with other organizations to purchase the South Georgia land that becomes The Retreat Center
- 2023: The church operates 10 campuses, including three prison locations
- 2024: Ponte Vedra becomes the church’s 13th campus; the church ranks #3 on Outreach Magazine’s fastest-growing churches list
- 2025: Eleven22 Worship releases the album Hymns
- 2026: The church operates 14 locations with roughly 21,600 weekly attendees
Frequently Asked Questions
Why is it called The Church of Eleven22?
The name comes from the 11:22 a.m. service time Joby Martin led at Beach United Methodist Church before founding his own congregation. After launching independently, the Martins connected the name to Mark 11:22, where Jesus tells his disciples to have faith in God.
What denomination is The Church of Eleven22?
The Church of Eleven22 is non-denominational. It is affiliated with the Acts 29 church planting network and holds to Reformed, evangelical theology, though it does not belong to a formal denomination.
Where are The Church of Eleven22’s locations?
The church operates 14 campuses, including Arlington, Baymeadows, Fleming Island, Mandarin, North Jacksonville, Orange Park, Ponte Vedra, San Pablo, and St. Johns in the Jacksonville, Florida area, one campus in Jesup, Georgia, and three campuses inside Florida correctional facilities.
What is Hope’s Closet?
Hope’s Closet is a thrift store ministry operated by The Church of Eleven22 near its San Pablo campus. It sells donated furniture, clothing, and household goods, with proceeds funding the church’s community outreach programs.
What is the Eleven22 Retreat Center?
The Retreat Center is a property in South Georgia, formerly known as Cabin Bluff, that Eleven22 helped purchase in 2020. The church uses it to host retreats and Encounters for members of different age groups throughout the year.
What is Joby Martin’s net worth?
There is no independently verified net worth figure for Joby Martin. Public estimates range widely, from around $3 million to $24 million, depending on the source, none of which are confirmed through public financial disclosure.
Is there a dress code at The Church of Eleven22?
No. The church describes itself as a come-as-you-are congregation and does not enforce a formal dress code. Most attendees dress casually, consistent with the informal, low-pretense culture Martin has emphasized since the church’s founding.
Where can I find The Church of Eleven22’s staff directory?
The church does not publish a full public staff directory. Campus pastors and central leadership, including Joby Martin, Gretchen Martin, and Ben Williams, are listed on the church’s official website, coe22.com, along with individual campus contact information.
