If there were a Presbyterian Church in America hall of fame, James McKenzie Baird would have to be included. He was a part of the PCA from its inception, even before its founding as a new denomination to offset the tide of liberalism among Presbyterians.
Baird was among leaders speaking at 1969 rally in Atlanta calling for church leaders and congregations to return to biblical standards and prepare to form a separate denomination. He also was part of 12-man steering committee appointed in 1971 to lead reform, calling for a reaffirmation of the primacy of the Scriptures and the central mission of the Church, resulting in the formation of the PCA.
Then, in anticipation of the new denomination, he was appointed co-chair of the overseas missions subcommittee. He was serving as pastor of First Presbyterian Church, Macon, Ga., during this transition period into the PCA.
Baird, of Brandon, Mississippi, concluded his long and faithful career of service when the Lord called him home on January 31. He was 91.
He graduated from Maryville College in 1950; Columbia Theological Seminary in 1957 with a bachelor’s in theology. Baird was licensed by the Cherokee Presbytery in 1956 and ordained in 1957 by the Central Mississippi Presbytery.
“He was an excellent preacher and a really good leader. … Jim was committed to the cause and extremely wise in the ways he led. He served as a great example for me as a leader, as a pastor and as a preacher.” Frank Barker
He served as pastor and teaching elder for numerous churches during his career, including Salus Presbyterian in Clinton, Mississippi (1957-1960); First Presbyterian in Brewton, Alabama (1960-64); First Presbyterian in Gadsden, Alabama (1964-72); First Presbyterian in Macon, Georgia (1972-80); Granada Presbyterian in Coral Gables, Florida. (1980-83); and was senior pastor of First Presbyterian in Jackson, Mississippi from 1983 to 1995, retiring that year. Partly in appreciation of his leadership role in the early days of the PCA, Baird was elected Moderator for the 12th PCA General Assembly in 1984, in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.
While vice chairman of Presbyterian Churchmen United, one of the groups that fought the battle against liberal theology and served as a catalyst in the movement that led to the founding of the PCA, Baird met and became friends with Dr. Kennedy Smartt.
Smartt commented on the impact Baird had on young men in his congregations, encouraging them to pursue pulpit ministry, missions work, or parachurch ministries like Campus Crusade.
“He always inspired in me a desire to recruit young men for full-time ministry and missions,” he said. “He had a tremendous ability to reach young men. I watched how effectively he accomplished that, and while I did not have the same spiritual gifts he had, I always felt challenged by him.”
To facilitate the process for building financial and prayer support for these aspiring servants, Baird developed a system of “swapping missionaries,” according to Smartt, building a network among PCA congregations so the men could connect with them, present their callings, and seek their aid.
Randy Pope, founding pastor of Perimeter Church, was one of those young men. Baird had been his pastor at First Presbyterian in Gadsden, Alabama, and Pope served at Baird’s church in Macon after his college years, along with a clinical year between his last two semesters in seminary.
“I actually lived in the Baird’s home one summer and learned a lot from him about marriage and parenting, watching how he managed their family life,” he said. “And as I observed him in his pastoral role, I learned a lot about strong but humble leadership, how he handled his church responsibilities.
“In session meetings, some of the men would argue for things Dr. Baird disagreed with, but he handled this with a kind, gracious smile, and was loving yet firm, never being defensive or trying to manipulate. He simply stayed the course, standing for what he believed in.”
Dr. Frank Barker, another fellow PCA teaching elder and longtime friend, commented, “Jim really was a key in getting the PCA started. The Presbyterian Journal had been a leader in fighting liberalism in the church, and a key issue was the impending merger of the northern and southern Presbyterian denominations. Our congregations would have lost all voice if we had been part of that merger.”
Barker and Baird were on the original committee of 40 that was founded to restructure the presbyteries and explore starting a new denomination. As vice chairman of the committee, Baird asked Barker to host the first PCA General Assembly at Barker’s church, Briarwood Presbyterian.
Baird, who had served in the military and also as a high school football coach, used his strong leadership qualities to guide church leaders and their congregations through the time of transition.
“He was an excellent preacher and a really good leader,” Barker said. “He provided great guidance and direction. Jim was committed to the cause and extremely wise in the ways he led, gathering men around him. He served as a great example for me as a leader, as a pastor and as a preacher.”
Barker agreed Baird’s leadership was balanced with a sincere sense of humility, “always seeking others’ ideas and direction, making sure everyone understood his thinking without forcing his ideas on others.”
Smartt agreed, noting Baird “ran a very tight ship. His elders always knew where he was going, and he had a lot of support. There was tremendous esprit de corps among the leadership of his congregations – and his influence made that true across the denomination as well.”
Baird’s strong preaching abilities, according to Smartt, made him “one of the most credible spokesmen for the movement that we had. Jim had grown up in the North, and there was not an ounce of discrimination in him. He was determined that the PCA would not be a Southern, segregationist denomination. In his personal practice and preaching, his goal was to reach the entire spectrum of the community, and he did it well.”
One other memorable quality Baird exhibited was his commitment to prayer, seeking God’s guidance and intervention at pivotal moments of the denomination.
“I remember when Jim was serving as moderator at the 12th General Assembly. All though the proceedings, he would take time to stop us to pray, or sing a hymn, especially when things were getting tense.
“We all felt revived by the nature of his leadership that year, and I think he will be remembered more for that time than any other. When things became contentious, or the atmosphere was becoming hot and tight, he knew when to ask the men to grab a hymnbook and sing, or request that one of the men pray before we proceeded.
“I would always preach better sermons when I got back home, having experienced prayer with people like Jim Baird.”
Baird rose to leadership once again at the 2015 General Assembly. As the Assembly debated a personal resolution put forward by Dr. Sean Lucas and Dr. Ligon Duncan calling on the Assembly to confess its sins of complicity and involvement in the racial injustice of the Civil Rights era, Baird rose to the microphone.
“And I confess, that in 1973, the only thing I understood was that we were starting a new denomination, which we did. And I confess that I did not raise a finger for civil rights. … I’m not confessing the sin of my fathers, I’m confessing my sin, and of those twelve men. Were we racists? No. But we did not do anything to help our black brethren.”
Baird’s speech was met with applause, and it triggered a flood of emotion.
“As he continued to speak and confess his, and indeed our sin, many of the men in the room began to weep. It was as if a great weight was being lifted off of us. We were finally beginning to be honest about our past and to confess it so that healing can come,” wrote Tim Lecroy.
While the Assembly eventually voted to refer the matter to the 2016 Assembly, Baird’s example opened the floodgates for elders to confess their sins of racism publicly at the microphones and privately to each other.
Baird preached his last homily at age 91 at The Orchard, a retirement home where he shared monthly duties for the last five years.
Surviving Baird are his wife of 67 years, Jane, and their four sons, Jim Baird III (Susan), Knox Baird (Debra), David Baird (Pat) and Mark Baird (Rhonda); and his 11 grandchildren Megan, Andrew (Anna), and Grayson Baird; Alexandria, Knox and Hannah Jane Baird; Grace and Mac Baird; Macey B. Benton (Matt), Betsy B. Gardner (Seth), and Richard Baird. He was preceded in death by his parents, James and Christina Baird, his older sister, Ina Arnold, and his infant son Daniel.
A private family burial will be followed by a Memorial Service at 6:00 p.m., at First Presbyterian Church, Jackson, Mississippi, on Tuesday, February 4. There will be no formal visitation. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorials be sent to African Bible Colleges, Belhaven University, French Camp Academy, and Reformed Theological Seminary.