Jess Moody

Jess C. Moody, former pastor of the First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach (now Family Church), and founder of Palm Beach Atlantic University, passed away quietly from this life to be with his Lord and Savior Jesus Christ on Friday evening, December 7th, 2018. He was 93-years-old.

Born in Paducah, Texas, on August 19th, 1925, Moody’s ministry spanned over seven decades of service and leadership for the cause of Christ. Throughout his life, Moody was recognized as innovator in church leadership, preaching and evangelism.

Moody was called to preach at age 17 in a clover field in Wharton, Texas. As an undergraduate student at Baylor University, he flew a Piper Cub airplane to lead evangelistic meetings all over the Southwest and Midwest, leaving school on Fridays after class and returning on Sunday nights after the last service. At age 22, he preached to thousands of students who gathered across the Southwest as a founding member of the Youth for Christ movement.

In 1946, he was asked to take an evangelistic team to war-torn Europe. Moody was in charge of the team going to Northern Europe and Billy Graham led the team assigned to Southern Europe.

In the early 1950s, Moody earned his Masters of Divinity degree (MDIV) from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky. In 1956, he was called to be the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Owensboro, Kentucky, where he served for nearly five years.

In 1961, he was called to be the pastor of the First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach, where he served until 1976. In those years, the congregation grew and was recognized as one of the fastest growing churches in the United States. In five short years, from 1963-1968, the church expanded and built the Chapel by the Lake, a beautiful outdoor amphitheater on the Intracoastal waterway, and new church sanctuary was built on Flagler Drive. In 1968, God gave Moody the vision to found a new Christian school of higher education called Palm Beach Atlantic College which is now Palm Beach Atlantic University. He served as PBA’s first president from 1968-1972, earning $1 a year as salary.

In 1976, God called Moody to be the pastor of the First Baptist Church of Van Nuys, California, where he served until he retired in 1995. The church grew, and he led the congregation to move to Porter Ranch, the last large parcel of raw land in the San Fernando Valley, where the church changed its name to Shepherd of the Hills Church. Today, the church has more than 10,000 members at four locations across the greater Los Angeles area.

Moody served as president of the Southern Baptist Pastors’ Conference in 1965. He was the author of six books and left 25 unpublished manuscripts. Gospel Films made a movie of his life in 1967 called Riding the Pulpit. He taught Homiletics in the early days of PBA, and Church Growth at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary in Ft. Worth, Texas. During his life he led thousands to a saving knowledge of Jesus Christ, while encouraging tens of thousands.

He loved to sail in the Atlantic and in the Intracoastal on his old sailboat aptly named Sailbad the Sinner. Moody loved the game of football, especially following his beloved Baylor Bears.

He is preceded in death by his beautiful bride of 64 years, Doris. He is survived by a sister (Jeanie Short of Little Rock, Arkansas) a son Patrick Moody ( Amelia), Palm Beach Gardens, a daughter Martha Moody of Villanueva, New Mexico, and three grandchildren; Christopher Moody (Cristina), Sean Moody and Jessica Bruce (Dan).

Services for Moody will be held at the sanctuary of Family Church Downtown (formerly First Baptist Church of West Palm Beach), located at 1101 South Flagler Dr., on Saturday, December 15th at 10 AM. A family and guest reception will follow in the fellowship hall of the church. There will be a private interment later for the family. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the Jess and Doris Moody Ministerial Scholarship Fund, Palm Beach Atlantic University, 901 South Flagler Dr., West Palm Beach, FL 33401.