Varvarka, one of the oldest streets in Moscow, got its name from the local church. The Varvarka street is mentioned as early as the 15th century with a wooden church of St. Barbara. In the early 16th century, the wooden church was dismantled, and in its place, according to the design of the Italian Alevis Novy, who also created the Archangel Cathedral in the Kremlin, a stone building was constructed. Of all the churches he built, only the Cathedral of Peter the Metropolitan in the High-Petrovsky Monastery has survived to this day in its original form.

The stone church on Varvarka, built in 1514, had the shape of an "eight-leaf" with one powerful dome. Its construction was financed by merchants Vasily Bobr, Fyodor Vepr, and Yushka Urvikhvostov from Zaryadye. The church stood almost unchanged until the end of the 18th century when it was dismantled due to dilapidation. A new church of St. Barbara was built with the funds of Major Ivan Baryshnikov and merchant Nikolai Samgin. Construction began in 1796, and the consecration took place in 1804.

It is believed that the architect of the church of St. Barbara was Rodion Kazakov, a master of classicism. The building has a cross-shaped form, topped with a dome and a small cupola, and is adorned with four-column porticos to the north and south, with a three-tiered bell tower to the west. The church stands on a high pedestal, which is not visible from Varvarka due to the height difference.

In 1812, the church was damaged by French soldiers and fire, but it was completely restored in the 1820s. After the revolution, in 1932, the church was closed, and the street was renamed in honor of Stepan Razin. The temple lost its dome and the upper tier of the bell tower, its interior space was divided into floors for storage and offices, but the building endured.

In the 1960s, alongside the construction of the "Russia" hotel in Zaryadye, the historical monuments of Varvarka, including the church of St. Barbara, were restored. Its dome and part of the bell tower were restored. Inside, the Council of the Moscow Regional Branch of the All-Union Society for the Protection of Historical and Cultural Monuments was located.

In 1991, the temple was handed over to the community of believers, and soon services resumed. In 1993, the street was renamed Varvarka again. In 2007, archaeological excavations under the temple uncovered the foundation of a 16th-century church, confirming its similarity to the cathedral in the High-Petrovsky Monastery.

The restoration of 2014-2015 restored the appearance of the temple to that of the 1880s. The facades and decorative elements were restored, and lost details were recreated. The facades were painted a warm pink color, and the stucco decor has a tobacco shade with gilding. The central door opening on the northern portico was revealed, and metal doors and a white stone staircase were installed. Modern grilles were replaced with historical samples. The completion of the bell tower and crosses were recreated.

In 2016, the temple became a laureate of the "Moscow Restoration" competition in the nomination "For the Best Organization of Repair and Restoration Works."