“But test everything; hold fast what is good.” (1 Thess. 5:21 ESV)

A lifelong LCMS Lutheran, I’ve found that scrutiny of trusted Lutheran publications can also be worthwhile. LSB 555, for example, says, “The Law is but a mirror bright,” whereas we actually recognize three uses of the Law. And LSB 596 says that we were born “condemned and lost with all the earth,” whereas God already chose us “before the foundation of the world”. (Eph. 1:4)

It helps to read even Luther’s own works critically. For example, Luther’s seven marks of the Church omits a mark that Jesus himself emphasized: love for one another. (John 13:35) And the Large Catechism (Fourth Commandment) says that God does not command us to honor “brothers, sisters, and our neighbors in general,” whereas the Bible exhorts us plainly, “Honor everyone.” (1 Peter 2:17 ESV)

“Send out your light and your truth; let them lead me.” (Ps. 43:2 ESV)