Over the past week I have been studying a lot of the writings and theology of John Owen and I came across a few short quotes from Owen on preaching, which I think are well known. My pastor actually quoted the first to me when helping me prepare to preach back in July. The quotes are embedded in a short summary paragraph from Sinclair Ferguson's book, John Owen on the Christian Life:

[The] first responsibility [of the pastor] is to feed the flock of God...This the pastor will do from the word of God, first of all studying and applying its teaching to himself, and then sharing this with his people: 'a man preacheth that sermon only well unto others which preacheth itself in his own soul'; 'If the word do not dwell with power in us, it will not pass with power from us.

It is rumored that Jerry Bridges is the one who coined the phrase "preach the gospel to yourself." If that is so, I wonder if he got that from reading Owen. Whatever the case, they are both right. If you yourself have not been radically and completely transformed by the truths of the gospel (such as those found in Ps. 103:12; 130:3-4; Is. 1:18; 38:17; 43:25; 53:6; Mic. 7:19; Rom. 4:7-8; 8:1; Eph. 1:7; 2:4-9; Col. 2:13-14; Heb. 8:12; 10:17-18), how could you possibly proclaim them as Good News?