Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. – 2 Timothy 2:15   I love the word of God. I love preaching and preachers. And I love the local church. For this reason, I launched the Cutting It Straight Expository Preaching Conference almost five years ago.The goal of Cutting It Straight was and is simple and straightforward:   To train, model, and promote biblical preaching and teaching.   Faithful churches start with faithful pulpits. To that end, this conference seeks to...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In this episode of the podcast, I want to talk to you about how to preach a better sermon next week. We have all had those weeks when we've prayed, "Lord, if you get me through this Sunday, I promise I will do better next week"? How do you keep that promise? Here are seven practical principles to help you preach better this week... Start earlier. Guard your study time. Focus. Strive for clarity. Talk it through with someone. Be content with a B-...

I met Dennis Jones some years ago, as we preached a citywide revival together. We enjoyed one another's company so much, we concluded that we must be cousins! And that is what we have called one another since then. Pastor Dennis Jones is a native of Louisiana. But for the past two decades (since 1998), he has led the Gethsemane Missionary Baptist Church in Houston, Texas. He also leads the foreign missions work for the National Baptist Convention of America. Johns is passionate about gospel of Christ, biblical preaching, and the local church. And he is used of the Lord...

  For the Lord God is a sun and shield; the Lord bestows favor and honor. No good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly. – Psalm 84:11 Psalm 84 is about the heart of a true worshiper. It reads like a Song of Ascent (Psalms 120-134). But it is actually a song of trust. It is a psalm of the Sons of Korah. But we do not know who wrote this psalm. And we do not know the occasion that moved the psalmist to write it. But the message of is clear: Nothing in the world can...

                Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you preach faithfully, clearly, and better. In this episode, I want to talk to you about five neglected tools for sermon preparation. Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth. - 2 Timothy 2:15 Every workman needs tools to accomplish his work, including preachers. Especially preachers. Books are a preacher's tools. Effective preaching requires specialized tools. But no preacher should neglect the most...

B. Lockhart and R. Johnson were members of my father's church, when I was a boy. This brother and sister had relocated to Los Angeles from Little Rock. They loved my dad and faithfully served our congregation. But they constantly talked about their former pastor and church in Arkansas. I didn't understand why, until they gave me a tape of Jerry D. Black. He was preaching his classic sermon, "A Trip to Job's House." I vividly remember the first time I heard Jerry Black preach in person. It was during the National Baptist Convention USA in Los Angeles in 1990....

Jerry Black is the Pastor of the historic Beulah Missionary Baptist Church in Decatur, Georgia, where he has served since 1991.     I had the opportunity to interview Jerry Black about his life and ministry. Enjoy! [embed]https://vimeo.com/279145176[/embed] Did you find this interview helpful?  Join the conversation in the comments section. Related Resources Steve Gaines Interview Donald Parson Interview The Cutting It Straight Expository Preaching Conference will take place September 18-20, 2018, at the Shiloh Church in Jacksonville, Florida.  This conference is designed to train, model, and promote biblical teaching and preaching. Register TODAY!!!!  

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better.  In this episode, I want to offer several answers to the question of how long your sermons should be. Congregations' views on sermon length have changed. Should yours? There was a time when, if I was asked how long my congregation's worship services lasted, I answered, "Until they are over." If asked how long I preached, I answered, "Until I'm finished." Those were bad answers twenty years ago. They are even worse answers now. Time is your members' most important commodity. It is...

Steve Gaines is the Pastor of the historic Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, where he has served since 2005. He has led several congregations over more than thirty years of pastoral ministry. Gaines is also the immediate past President of the Southern Baptist Convention (2016-2018). Steve Gaines is soul-winning pastor, faithful preacher, and prayer-driven leader, whose leadership, counsel, and preaching a sought-after by many. He is also the author of numerous books, including... Pray Like It Matters by Steve Gaines  Share Jesus Like It Matters by Steve Gaines Pray Like This edited by Steve Gaines When God Comes to Church by...

What does the Bible teach about hell? To ask this question is to acknowledge that hell is a biblical teaching. That is an appropriate starting point for considering the doctrine of hell. A discussion about hell is not like a discussion about purgatory. Scripture nowhere states, affirms, or implies purgatory exists. It is a construct of Roman Catholic tradition, not a teaching of scripture. The doctrine of hell, however, is clearly a biblical teaching. You may not like what the Bible says about hell. You may not agree with what the Bible says about hell. You may not believe what...

Welcome to The On Preaching Podcast, the podcast dedicated to helping you to preach faithfully, clearly, and better.  It's good to be back! In this episode of the podcast, I want to you to offer you several tips for effective preaching as an associate minister. The pastor-teacher of a local church is entrusted with a crucial stewardship. He will answer to the Lord about his charge to preach the word in season and out of season (2 Timothy 4:1-2). The associate minister also has a great responsibility. You may not be the main weekly preacher. But you should make the...

  And a leper came to Jesus, imploring him, and kneeling to him said, “If you will, you can make me clean.”– Mark 1:40   The last passage of chapter 1 (verses 40-45), records the miracle of Jesus cleansing a leper. It is also recorded in Matthew 8:1-4 and Luke 5:12-15. Leprosy was the most dreaded disease in the Bible. The term “leprosy” was used to describe anything from a skin rash to Hansen’s Disease (the modern name for leprosy). Luke 5:12 says this man who came to Jesus was “full of leprosy.” This was no skin rash. It was...