Last week, beloved pastor Dr. Voddie Baucham Jr. went to be with his Savior after suffering emergency medical complications. He leaves behind his wife of 36 years, Bridget, their nine children (seven of whom still live at home), and three grandchildren.
Baucham allowed himself to be entirely transformed by the Holy Spirit. The odds were stacked against him; he was the product of a broken family and grew up in a rough part of Los Angeles. By God’s grace, though, Baucham had a mother who helped him stay accountable, went to bat for him, and took him out of a bad neighborhood — the drugs and violence of which later claimed the life of a cousin — and an amazing uncle provided positive male influence during his pivotal years.
Baucham was not raised a Christian. In fact, according to his own testimony from his inspiring book Fault Lines: The Social Justice Movement and Evangelicalism’s Looming Catastrophe, Baucham viewed Christianity in the same way Karl Marx and Malcolm X did — a religion to placate slaves and keep them docile.
Later, however, Baucham came to know Jesus on the campus of New Mexico State University, where he played football as a tight end. By divine appointment, Campus Crusade (now known as Cru) staffer Steve Morgan approached Baucham because he had been misinformed about the football star’s engagement with the Fellowship of Christian Athletes. As Baucham wrote in Fault Lines, “It took [Morgan] about five minutes to learn that 1) he had been misinformed, and 2) I didn’t know Jesus from the Man in the Moon.”
That important meeting turned into a valuable friendship. Morgan took the time to answer all of Baucham’s questions and even taught him how to read the Bible and find the answers to his own questions. Baucham gave his life to Christ on the floor of the locker room at NMSU, and he went on to earn his M.Div at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and his D.Min at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. He also completed postgraduate work at the University of Oxford in England. In other words, he was a highly educated man.
That decision to give his life to Jesus was the defining moment in Baucham’s life and the beginning of his ministry. Throughout his walk with Christ, he wrestled with Afrocentric Christianity — the struggle between what is more important to the black community: being black or being a follower of Christ. His transformative journey is documented in Fault Lines.
What ultimately defined Baucham’s life and teaching was his uncompromising delivery of the Gospel and helping people understand the relevance of the Bible. He became a well-known pastor in Houston, Texas, until God called him to mission work in Lusaka, Zambia, where for a decade he presided as the dean of theology at African Christian University.
I first became aware of Baucham in the wake of the George Floyd riots and the utter confusion of the Christian church to address the false teachings of Critical Race Theory, Black Lives Matter, and now Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion. Baucham’s erudite articulation of both the problems of these ideations and how the Gospel clearly refutes them was a guidepost during a difficult era.
Baucham loved his family, valued education, and fought to advance Christ’s kingdom and minister to the hearts and minds of young men. It was his heart to encourage men to get married, be servant leaders of their families, be fruitful and multiply, educate their children themselves, and submit to the will of God. He was a warrior of the faith.
Baucham returned to the U.S. in 2021 to receive treatment for heart failure and had recently announced that his family was moving to Florida so Baucham could serve as a founding faculty member of Founders Seminary. Please pray for the Baucham family as they navigate their next steps. If you would like to support them, you can do so here.
Baucham is one of several strong Christian voices to be called home this year. They are mourned by many.
Charlie Kirk, Voddie Baucham, John MacArthur, Phil Robertson, James Dobson. God has added some incredible titans to heaven’s roster this year. But, man, what a loss for us
— Allie Beth Stuckey (@conservmillen) September 25, 2025
May we all strive to live with the same devotion to truth and compassion that Voddie Baucham exemplified. He longed for a better home, and now he has entered it. Thank you for your faithfulness, Dr. Baucham. We are all better because of it. pic.twitter.com/1ikvF47a6k
— Alveda C. King, Ph.D. (@AlvedaCKing) September 26, 2025
Voddie Baucham always pointed people back to Christ. In that spirit, I would like to end with a few quotes from this great theologian and apologist:
“I always have hope, because I belong to Christ. The Kingdom of God is undefeated. And not only is the Kingdom of God undefeated, it’s undefeatable.” —Baucham, The Christian Post
“True repentance is the result of an accurate understanding of the significance and gravity of sin, coupled with an overwhelming desire for the remission of that sin through the person and work of Christ and turning from sin and dead works to faith and obedience.” —Baucham, What He Must Be … If He Wants to Marry My Daughter
Well done, good and faithful servant. You will be missed.
