| Number of Members | 300,000 | 77,000,000[1] |
|---|
| How does one get saved? | Sola fide: Repent of your sins and believe in Jesus Christ's death and resurrection alone to save you.[2][3] | Repent of your sins, believe in Jesus Christ's death and resurrection, and be baptized. |
|---|
| Who gets saved? | Anyone who chooses by his own free will to believe and accept God's gift of grace will be saved.[4][5] | Those who God chooses to call and who don't resist Him will be saved and no one else. |
|---|
| Can one lose his salvation? | Eternal security: No, once a Christian is saved, he is always saved.[6] | Yes, a Christian can lose his salvation by apostasy. |
|---|
| Who gets baptized and why? | Saved people get baptized as a public demonstration of their new lives.[7] | The unsaved, typically as infants, get baptized as the first sacrament of Christian initiation, cleansing them of all sins. |
|---|
| How should baptism be done? | Baptism should be by immersion.[7] | Baptism should be by pouring water on the head. |
|---|
| When does one receive the Holy Spirit? | The Holy Spirit is received at the moment of salvation.[2][3] | The Holy Spirit is received at the moment of salvation. |
|---|
| What is the trinity? | The Trinity is God existing as one god in three equal, eternal, cosubstantial persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit.[2][3] | The Trinity is God existing as one god in three equal, eternal, cosubstantial persons: God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit. |
|---|
| What is the human nature? | Total depravity: Human nature is corrupt, naturally inclined to evil, and incapable of choosing God on his own.[8] | Bondage of the will: Human nature is corrupt, naturally inclined to evil, and incapable of choosing God on his own. |
|---|
| Are we guilty of Adam's original sin? | | Federalism: Yes, Adam represented all of the human race, and all are guilty of his sin. |
|---|
| Are Christians required to keep the Old Testament ceremonial laws? | No, the ceremonial laws of Judaism were fulfilled and done away with by Jesus. | No, the ceremonial laws of Judaism were fulfilled and done away with by Jesus. |
|---|
| Can Christians become sinless in this earthly life? | No, although Christians can and should sin less, they can never become sinless in this life.[9] | No, although Christians can and should sin less, they can never become sinless in this life. |
|---|
| Do the elements of communion become the body and blood of Christ? | No, the elements merely symbolically represent the body and blood of Christ. | Sacramental union: No, the elements do not become the body and blood of Christ, but Christ's body and blood are non-physically joined to the elements. |
|---|
| Can one be baptized of behalf of someone who has died? | No, the dead cannot be baptized. | No, the dead cannot be baptized. |
|---|
| What happens if a saved person dies without being perfect? | Once Christians leave their sinful bodies, nothing else is needed to receive glorified, sinless bodies.[10][11] | Once Christians leave their sinful bodies, nothing else is needed to receive glorified, sinless bodies.[12][13][14] |
|---|
| Did Mary ever sin? | Yes, Mary sinned like all other humans except Jesus. | Most believe that, yes, Mary sinned like all other humans except Jesus. |
|---|
| What spiritual gifts are available today? | Continuationism: All spiritual gifts are still available to believers.[15] | Most believe cessationism: Spiritual gifts used for serving are available today, while gifts used as signs have ceased.[16] |
|---|
| What framework has God used in dealing with man? | Dispensationalism: God acts differently with humanity in seven different periods of history. | |
|---|
| What is the gift of tongues? | Speaking in tongues is sometimes unintelligible and sometimes foreign human languages.[17] | The gift of tongues is the ability to speak foreign human languages without knowing how.[18][19] |
|---|
| What are the requirements for clergy? | | Varies widely |
|---|
| How many church ordinances/sacraments are there? | The church has two ordinances: Baptism and Holy Communion. | The church has two sacraments: Baptism and Holy Communion. |
|---|
| To whom do Christians need to confess their sins? | Confession should be made directly to God, but confession to another believer is beneficial for some sins.[20] | General sinfulness should be confessed to a priest. This is usually done as a group during a service. |
|---|
| How should a church be structured? | | Varies widely |
|---|
| What day of the week should Christians worship? | Christians worship on Sunday. | Christians worship on Sunday. |
|---|
| How does God's revelation come to us today? | Sola scriptura: The Bible is the only infallible source of God's revelation, sufficient for all faith and practice.[21] | Sola scriptura: The Bible is the only infallible source of God's revelation, sufficient for all faith and practice. |
|---|
| How was the Bible written? | Verbal plenary inspiration: The Bible was written by men who had every word supernaturaly inspired by God.[22][23][2][3] | Varies widely[24][25] |
|---|
| How many books are in the Bible? | There are 66 canonical books of the Bible: 39 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books. | There are 66 canonical books of the Bible: 39 Old Testament books and 27 New Testament books. |
|---|
| Was the Bible written inerrantly? | Yes, the Bible was written without any error.[22][23][2][3] | Varies widely[26][27] |
|---|
| Who can speak with God's authority today? | Nobody today can speak for God. | The church as a whole speaks with God's authority at ecumenical councils.[28] |
|---|
| How was the earth created? | Creationism: The earth was spoken into existence by God. | Varies widely |
|---|
| What is marriage? | Marriage is a covenant before God between one man and one woman.[29][30] | Varies widely[31][32][33] |
|---|
| Is sex permissible outside marriage? | No, sex outside of marriage is not permissible.[34] | No, sex outside of marriage is not permissible.[35][36] |
|---|
| When is divorce permissible? | Divorce is permissible for adultery or desertion.[37][30] | Divorce is permissible for adultery or desertion.[38][39] |
|---|
| May a Christian remarry while his former spouse is still alive? | Yes, a Christian may freely remarry after divorce.[30] | The innocent party to the adultery may remarry. |
|---|
| When does a fetus become human? | Humanity begins at conception.[40] | Most have no established doctrine. The Lutheran Church–Missouri Synod believes life begins at conception.[41][42][43] |
|---|
| Is contraception permissible? | Yes, contraceptives are permissible.[44] | Yes, contraceptives are permissible.[35][45] |
|---|
| Are blood transfusions permissible? | Yes, blood transfusions are permissible. | Yes, blood transfusions are permissible. |
|---|
| Should women cover their heads? | No, head coverings are no longer required due to cultural changes.[46][47] | No, head coverings are no longer required due to cultural changes.[48][49][50] |
|---|
| Should Christians drink alcohol? | Yes, drinking alcohol is fine as long as one does not get drunk.[51][52] | Yes, drinking alcohol is fine as long as one does not get drunk. |
|---|
| Should Christians fight in wars? | Yes, Christians can fight in just wars. | Yes, Christians should fight in just wars.[53][54] |
|---|
| How should Christians musically worship God? | Any style of worship music is acceptable. | |
|---|
| Whom does the Holy Spirit come from? | | The Holy Spirit proceeds from the Father and the Son.[55][56] |
|---|
| Who can be demon-possessed? | Demons can possess unbelievers but not Christians. | |
|---|
| Do icons glorify God? | No, icons violate the Second Commandment against graven images. | |
|---|
| Where does a Christian's soul go after death? | Christians immediately go to heaven when they die.[57] | Christians immediately go to heaven when they die.[12] |
|---|
| When does the Tribulation happen? | Futurism: The Tribulation will happen at a time in the future which no man knows the time of.[58] | |
|---|
| When will the church be raptured? | Pretribulationism rapture: The church will be raptured sometime before the Tribulation.[58] | |
|---|
| When is the millennial reign of Christ happen? | Premillennialism: The millennial reign of Christ will be the 1,000 years immediately after the Tribulation.[59] | |
|---|