It is the church for the Høyjord parish which is part of the Sandefjord prosti (deanery) in the Diocese of Tunsberg.

[3][4] It is also Norway's southernmost stave church that still looks like its original form.

The medieval nave and the chancel's main structural components are preserved.

About 100 years later, in 1275, a much larger Gothic-style nave was built to the west of the original building.

At that time, a historical investigation took place to see how much of the old medieval stave church construction actually remained in the building.

After World War II, a major reconstruction took place from 1948-1953, led by Otto L. Scheen.

It was found that the main structure of the nave and choir were mostly authentic so they were kept, but all of the timber-framed parts of the church were removed.

[5][9][10] During the 1948-53 restorations, five preserved skeletons of a man, two children, and two women were retrieved from under a thin layer of soil beneath the chancel floor.