In 2 Timothy 4.2, the Apostle Paul exhorts Timothy to preach the Word.

And since the Reformation, Protestants have held up preaching as one of the key marks of the church.

And for centuries, Christians have listened to sermons on Sunday mornings, week in and week out.

And yet, despite how familiar the sermon is to us today,

it nevertheless is often misunderstood. In today's interview, I'm sitting down with Doug O'Donnell

to talk through common questions that lay people and pastors alike have about preaching

and what makes for a good sermon.

Doug has been preaching from God's Word for decades,

has served in local church ministry,

and currently works as the Senior Vice President

of Bible Editorial at Crossway.

He's also the author of a number of books and commentaries,

including The Beauty and Power of Biblical Exposition,

preaching the literary artistry and genres of the Bible,

which he co-authored with Leland Reichen.

Let's get started.

Well, Doug, thank you for joining me today on the Crossway podcast.

It's great to be with you, Matt.

Thanks for inviting me.

So today we're going to talk about

preaching and sermons and all that is entailed within that. Do you remember your first sermon?

I do. It depends what you say my first sermon was. So I was converted when I was 19, and then the

...