It is the church for the Gjerstad parish which is part of the Aust-Nedenes prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Agder og Telemark.

During the 1760s, several repairs were carried out on the building, including work on the bell tower.

[6][7] By the mid-1800s, the municipal council looked at the fact that there were over 2000 residents in the parish and seats for only 389 people in the church, so it was far too small.

They wanted to nearby double the size of the church, so after standing for nearly 150 years, plans were begun to replace the building.

The new church was consecrated on 23 January 1848 by the Bishop Jacob von der Lippe and it wasn't put into regular use until mid-1849.