Do people have free will? Why Calvinism falls short, Provisionism with Dr. Leighton Flowers. If you struggle to understand how God saves a person and have questions such as Does a person have free will? Is God is truly sovereign? In this episode, we discuss why we think Calvinism is flawed and Provisionism is a more biblical approach to understanding a person’s salvation. Included are websites for more resources and ways to support the ministry of Dr. Leighton Flowers and Slaveck Moraru
Dr. Leighton Flowers was named the Director of Evangelism and Apologetics for Texas Baptists in 2018. In addition to preaching on a wide range of biblical subjects, Leighton regularly travels to churches of all sizes to conduct seminars that specialize on evangelism and apologetics. He has participated in debates with leading apologists and led training conferences for the Annual Convention, Conclave, Apologetic Conferences, and the SBC Annual Convention.
Previously, he served as the Director of Youth Evangelism for Texas Baptists for 13 years. In this position he oversaw the statewide youth leadership training camp called Super Summer and the Youth Evangelism Conferences impacting thousands of teenagers with evangelistic messages, missions mobilization and discipleship training. Leighton has also assisted in the oversight of such ministries as See You At The Pole, a worldwide prayer movement (began by his father, Chuck Flowers) which is impacting people not only in Texas but all around our world.
Leighton earned a Bachelor’s Degree in Applied Theology from Hardin-Simmons University (1997); a Masters of Divinity with Biblical Languages from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary (2000); and completed his Doctorate at New Orleans Baptist Theological Seminary (2016).
Leighton and his wife Laura, a Licensed Therapist in Richardson, have four children (Colson, Cooper, Esther and Caden) and live in North Garland just outside of Dallas where he also serves as an Adjunct Professor of Theology for Trinity Seminary. Prior to coming on staff with Texas Baptists, Leighton served as a pastor in the local church for over 10 years. He and his family are active members of First Baptist Richardson.
Connect with Dr. Leighton Flowers: All links
This book makes a strong biblical case for the loving character of a God who treats His creation in a recognizably good way; a God who does not arbitrarily play favorites or show biased partiality; a God who makes Himself known in a clear and believable way; a God who is not most glorified at the expense of His creation, but at the expense of Himself for the sake of His creation; a God who demonstrates His love by providing the means of salvation for every individual. This book will address questions such as: What about those who never hear about Jesus? How can we say God is good when he seems to be so harsh in some of the stories within Scripture? What does it mean to call God good if we do not actually recognize Him as good?
A former Calvinistic Reformed Baptist minister and now Director of Apologetics and Professor of Theology, recounts his theological journey in and out of Calvinism. In so doing, Dr. Flowers’ sets out to help his readers understand a non-Calvinistic “Traditional” Southern Baptist interpretation of the most quoted and relied upon chapters for defending Calvinistic soteriology: Romans 8-9; Ephesians 1 and John 6.
“In The Potter’s Promise, Dr. Leighton Flowers reveals, by means of a refreshingly clear and persuasive writing style, the theological and philosophical arguments that compelled him to abandon his previously held Calvinistic convictions. While some Traditionalists have a tendency to avoid certain Bible verses, Dr. Flowers tackles them fearlessly, placing them in their proper context in a manner consistent with the entirety of God’s Word. Calvinists have sometimes been known to object to Traditional writers and thinkers by making the claim, “You just don’t understand Calvinism.” Any such charge leveled against Dr. Flowers rings hollow. Having heard all the arguments Calvinism has to offer, he nevertheless disaffirms it. Every Calvinist needs to read this book to challenge their thinking and consider the other side. Every Traditionalist needs to read this book to become better equipped in defending their own view of salvation doctrine.” -Dr. Rick Patrick, Executive Director of Connect 316 and Senior Pastor
“Confused by the issues surrounding Calvinism? Does Romans 9 teach unconditional predestination? Want to cut through some of the red tape? Then read Leighton’s book. He is charitable but gets right to the point, making a strong, biblical case for a God who is glorified by sacrificing Himself for creation and not by sacrificing creation for Himself. He makes a strong case for the God of Jesus Christ.” – Austin Fischer, Pastor and Author of Young, Restless, No Longer Reformed.
“Some passages (especially Romans 9) appear to support Calvinism, but does God really predestine particular persons for heaven or hell? And where is the knowledgeable expositor who also possesses an irenic disposition to answer such critical questions? Leighton Flowers nobly meets these qualifications and approaches the Scripture with a passion for the original language and context. We are all deeply in his debt for teaching us to hear God’s Word so much better than we did before this book was written. Highly recommended.” -Dr. Malcolm B. Yarnell III, Research Professor of Systematic Theology, Author of God the Trinity: Biblical Portraits and Royal Priesthood in the English Reformation and The Formation of Christian Doctrine
“The Potter’s Promise is the fascinating pilgrimage of Leighton Flowers, Director of Apologetics and Youth Evangelism in the Baptist General Convention of Texas. Chronicled here is his journey out of Calvinism and into a New Testament faith through the saving grace of our Lord. This may well be the most important volume published this year for the reading of every young servant of Christ. Do you have the courage to read it?” –Dr. Paige Patterson, President of Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary
“Having vacated theological Geneva after years as one of its finest citizens, Dr. Leighton Flowers is well aware of how to reason like a Calvinist. His masterful treatment of the biblical text, and his philosophically consistent reasoning, is sure to satisfy the pallet of the academically interested. Yet, his accessible writing leads to a rare accomplishment. Lay readers will have no difficulty understanding the Calvinist positions and the best responses to them. Any related bibliography that does not include Dr. Flowers masterful work will, henceforth, surely look odd.” – Dr. Braxton Hunter, President of Trinity Seminary.
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