American religious leader (1948–2023)Clarence Sexton (1948 - 2023) was an Independent Baptist pastor, a prominent Republican, alongside being the founder and president of the Crown College in Tennessee, which was started in 1991.
Life.
Sexton was born in the state of Alabama, however he spent his childhood in Blount County. Sexton later became a pastor at the Temple Baptist Church at Powell, Tennessee and founded the Independent Baptist Crown College, whose graduates started around 500 churches in the world.
In 1970, when Sexton was only 22 years old, he met Billy Graham, stating that he viewed him very positively. Clarence Sexton worked with the Independent Baptist preacher Lee Roberson.
Sexton had two sons, six children and two great-grandchildren. He died in 2023 after being sick for a long time. His wife, who co-founded the Crown College with him, died a year later in 2024.
Sexton often tried to seek unity within the Independent Baptist movement, creating the Independent Baptist Friends International.
In 2017, the Temple Baptist Church was involved in a lawsuit, after a truck injured a woman. The lawsuit also named the Temple Baptist Church, claiming ownership of the equipment. However, Sexton denied the ownership of the truck by the church and any involvement.
Ruckmanism.
Clarence Sexton was a King James Only Fundamentalist, however he rejected more radical views of King James Onlyism. In 2005, Sexton invited William Grady, a radical proponent of KJV-onlyism, to speak at Temple Baptist Church where he pastored. During his sermon, Grady called for a revival of Ruckmanism and argued for a break from broader fundamentalism, claiming it did not go far enough. Sexton responded to Grady's remarks by canceling a subsequent speaking engagement for him at the church. Later, Grady published a book criticizing KJV-only advocates who accept the Textus Receptus.
Racism allegations.
Sexton has been the subject of controversy over racism, especially on the issue of the inclusion of a statue of the confederate general Nathan Bedford Forrest, and Sexton's opposition to the Black Lives Matter movement, to which allegations the college stated that they had been misrepresented.