The temple complex included a two-story single-domed church with a four-pitched roof. On the first floor was the church dedicated to the holy martyr and Archdeacon Lawrence, while the second floor had two altars: the Ascension of the Lord and the Nativity of Christ. The church was surrounded by covered galleries on the south, west, and north. The galleries on the south and north turned at right angles and ended with small towers. The western gallery connected the church with the bell tower, and the southern one, through a tower with the archbishop's chambers.

The lower church was the first stone structure on the territory of the Lawrence Monastery, built in 1650. It was re-consecrated in 1790 after the installation of a new iconostasis, and in 1855 it was consecrated for the third time and renamed in honor of the holy righteous Lawrence, the fool for Christ's sake, the Miracle Worker. L. Kavelin described the lower church as follows: "Upon entering the temple, one feels the atmosphere of an ancient Sanctuary. The barrel vaults, mysterious twilight, a solitary lamp, all create a sense of peace and simplicity. Under the canopy is a coffin, adorned with copper-silvered leaves, with an ancient image of Saint Lawrence in a silver frame."

From the mid-17th to the first half of the 18th century, the second floor of the church was wooden and housed the Christmas church, which was destroyed by fire. After that, the upper church was rebuilt from brick. The exact time of the construction of the stone upper church is not established. L. Kavelin points to 1739, referring to a decree from the Moscow Synodal Administration. P. Lyametri in the "Memorial Book of Kaluga Province for 1861" indicates 1780. L. Kavelin notes that the consecration of the church took place in 1780 under Archimandrite Nikodim. Documents regarding construction expenses relate the erection of the Christmas church to 1776, but there was no separate stone Christmas church in the monastery. It is likely that this refers to the construction of the Christmas altar of the upper church.

The Christmas altar is mentioned in documents long before 1776. In the last third of the 18th century, a storeroom was added to the lower church, serving as a foundation for the more extensive upper church. 500 rubles were allocated for the construction of the new church, and 516 rubles were spent on the repair of the Christmas altar from 1768 to 1773.

Thus, in 1776, the Christmas altar was not newly built but reconstructed, which changed the appearance of the church. According to the memories of the old-timers, the lower church was used for services on weekdays, while the upper one was used on holidays when many people came to the monastery. The reconstruction of 1776 eliminated the inconveniences associated with the small volume of the upper church.

The external appearance of the upper church can be judged by photographs and testimonies of contemporaries: "The two-altar church, built over the lower church and decorated in the Rococo style, is a decoration of the monastery. The church is majestic from the outside, high, bright, and spacious inside."

During the Bolshevik era, the church was destroyed to the ground, and currently, the process of its restoration is underway.