Hershael York, professor of Christian preaching at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, said he loves to “talk shop” with other preachers, and the act of preaching is never “mystical” or “instantaneous.”

“I always have an overwhelming sense of failure after I preach, and my sermons never equal what I aspire to,” he said. “I encourage myself to know I’m still learning, and next week I have another shot at it!”

York spoke at the fourth in a series of “Intentional Leader” events at the Alabama Baptist State Board of Missions facility in Prattville on July 27. He also serves as pastor of the Buck Run Baptist Church in Frankfort, Kentucky.

York said preaching has three major components: the text, the sermon and the delivery.

“We Southern Baptists have a high view of Scripture, and we believe Paul’s word about it being profitable,” he said. “We study to understand the text and get it right, using proper tools to understand the historical, cultural, religious and geographical context. We also seek to understand the genre of Scripture since there is narrative, poetry and drama in the Bible. We must learn what the authors meant.”

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This article was originally published at TheAlabamaBaptist.org.