Pastor Arthur A. Sutton, a native of Jackson, Mississippi, is the youngest child of the late Rev. Jesse Sutton Jr. and the late Missionary Evangelist Della K. Sutton. Pastor Sutton comes from a direct line of ministers, following his great grandfather, grandfather, and father.
Pastor Sutton is a powerful preacher, a man with extraordinary vision and leadership ability, totally committed to the work of God. He started his ministry in March 1994 as an Associate Minister at New McRaven Hill Baptist Church in Jackson, Mississippi, under the leadership of his father, the late Rev. Jesse Sutton, Jr. He pastored at St. Matthew M. B. Church in Flowood, MS and New Concord M. B. Church near Bentonia, MS, prior to accepting his calling as Pastor of Progressive Missionary Baptist Church in Jackson, MS in May 1999. Under his leadership Progressive Missionary Baptist Church has reached new heights and has become a solid pillar in the Georgetown Community through service and ministry. Progressive Missionary Baptist church continues to prosper under Pastor Sutton’s leadership.
Pastor Sutton’s vision and leadership abilities expand beyond Progressive Missionary Baptist Church. He has held and continues to hold positions at the state level as well as at the national level of the National Baptist Convention, USA, INC. For more than seventeen years, he served as the Executive Director for the General Missionary Baptist State Convention (GMBSC) Young People’s Department. Currently, he serves as a board member of the GMBSC and the Southwest Regional Young People’s Department; is newly appointed to the Board of Directors of the National Baptist Convention USA, INC; is financial treasurer for the Jackson District Association; is Vice President at Large for the Youth and Young Adult Auxiliary of the National Baptist Convention, USA, INC.; and is the Director General of the Congress of Christian Education for the General Missionary State Baptist Convention. Pastor Sutton has engaged in classes through the National Baptist Convention USA, INC Jackson Area C.O.P.P. Program, the National Baptist Congress, and the National Baptist Convention and is a certified teacher of the Jackson District Congress of Christian Education and lecturer for the National Baptist Young People’s Department and the Southwest Region.
Active in community and civic organizations, Pastor Sutton is on the Board of Pioneer Ministries in Pearl Mississippi, is a member of the NAACP, SCLC, One Hundred Concerned Clergy, the Hinds County Women’s Institute, the Hinds County Adjoining Institute of Hinds and Madison counties, and a former member of the Jackson Civil Service Commission. He is also a member of Phi Beta Sigma Fraternity, Inc. Pastor Sutton received community recognition with the Gospel Music Pastor of the Year Award and the Phi Beta Sigma Religious Leader of the Year Award.
Pastor Sutton is a graduate of Forest Hill in Jackson, Mississippi. He continued his education at Jackson State University in Jackson, Mississippi, where he earned a Bachelor of Arts Degree in Criminal Justice and played on the football team. In addition to pastoring, he serves as the Drop-out Prevention and Transition Coordinator with Jackson Public School System. Pastor Sutton is a member of Fairfield Baptist Church under the leadership of his brother, Rev. Frank L. Sutton.
Pastor Sutton is married to the former Vonnie R. Gentry of Jackson, Mississippi. They are the proud parents of three beautiful daughters: Brittani Shavon Keaton, Ashli Nicole Sutton, and Courtni Artrice Sutton; one grandson, Kohen Brice Keaton and one son-in-law, Coach Teddy Keaton.
Pastor Sutton believes that all his accomplishments are possible by trusting in the Lord. One of his favorite scriptures is “Trust in the Lord with all thine heart and lean not to thine own understanding. In all thy ways acknowledge Him and He shall direct thy path” (Proverbs 3: 5-6).
