Luther neither removed the Apocrypha from the Bible nor discouraged its use. Rather, he received and preserved the ancient distinction inherited from the fathers: the Apocrypha is valuable, edifying, and worthy of reading, but it is not Holy Scripture and therefore cannot serve as the foundation of Christian doctrine.
The confessors at Augsburg remind us that every generation of Christians is called to bear witness to the gospel amid the challenges and pressures of its own age. As they confessed Christ before emperors and kingdoms, so the Church continues to confess Him before the world today.
When Jesus washes you with baptismal water, you can rest assured that the Lion of Judah is on the move.

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The following entries are excerpts from Chad Bird’s upcoming book, Untamed Prayers: 365 Daily Devotions on Christ in the Book of the Psalms (1517 Publishing, 2025), pgs. 32, 52.
God chooses to clothe himself in promises and hides himself in his word.
If you struggle with doubt, take heart: You are not alone.
This is the second article in a special three-part Advent series on how Jesus is our prophet, priest, and king.
Below is an excerpt from the personal devotional included in this year’s 1517 Advent Resources.
The Lord’s provision doesn’t rest on the strength of our gratitude.
The Lord has an answer to your tears, your trouble, your weariness, your enemies, your grief, your shame, your sin.
Below is the Thinking Fellows Essential Reading List with contributions from each of the Thinking Fellows hosts.
“Praying the Bible” sounds odd to the ears of most believers today. That’s unfortunate.
God does not give us an undebatable answer to suffering. Instead, God suffers, too.
It's easy to have courage when things go well.
Jesus continues to do the same for me and for you as he did for his disciples. He still shows up for us. He still speaks his peace to us.