More people follow Christianity than any other religion in the world. While understanding the complexities of Christianity can seem like a daunting task, Pew Research Center found that in 2015 more than 2.3 billion people chose to adhere to this religion.
What do millions of people find so appealing about Christianity? And why do so many people continue to choose Christianity even though according to the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), Christians are being persecuted at levels nearing genocide in some countries? And why would anyone want to join Christianity since they are the world’s most persecuted religious group in the world?
Let’s face it, if you turn on your television or surf social media, it won’t take long for you to find a television show, meme, or comedian making fun of people who follow Christianity. Yet incredibly, despite the horrific persecution in some countries and the mockery Christians often face in countries like the United States, the number of people following Christianity continues to grow year after year.
Amazingly, depending on where you live, choosing to live as a Christian isn’t even safe; there are many countries around the world where Christianity is outlawed. If you choose to become a Christian in some countries, it could mean the end of your life. In China and most Muslim countries, converting to Christianity—or worse yet, being baptized—is as good as a death sentence for you and your entire family.
However, despite the imminent dangers of conversion, according to The Gospel Coalition, more and more Muslims are converting to Christianity because they are discovering God’s love, they are experiencing love from other Christians, and they are having divine, life-changing dreams about Jesus.
Since mockery, persecution, and even death aren’t preventing people from following Christianity, what makes this religion so appealing to about one-third of the world? As you’ll see in this article, Christianity is very different from the other religions of the world. It’s all about a God who came down to rescue people, give them purpose and hope, and give them the opportunity to know their Creator. It’s about transformation, surrender, and victory. It’s about hope, peace, joy, and love.
In this Guide to Christianity, we will answer many of your questions about the most popular religion in the world as we explore what Christians believe, where Christianity originated, and what it takes to become a Christian. We will discuss its history, why there are so many different denominations, and how it differs from other religions. We will also take a close look at the life, ministry, and mission of Jesus Christ, the one Christianity is centered around.
What are 5 main beliefs of Christianity?
While there are dozens of important beliefs in Christianity, we want to narrow it down to five main points to simplify it as much as possible. Later, we’ll get into more of the specific beliefs, but these are the most important ones:
#1 – The Bible
The Bible is the holy book of Christianity, and it’s made up of two sections: the Old Testament (which Jewish people use as their Holy Scriptures) and the New Testament which tells the story of Jesus and the birth of His church.
As Christians, we base all our beliefs on the Bible because we believe it’s the very word of God. In fact, Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” We don’t discount the Old Testament; we see it as the foundation for the New Testament and all our beliefs.
#2 – Jesus, the Jewish Messiah
Contrary to what most Jewish people believe, we believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Jewish Messiah (the Christ). In the Old Testament, God promised to send someone to deliver the Jewish nation, rule the world, and establish God’s Kingdom on earth. Jewish people eagerly await their Messiah while we Christians believe that He’s already come.
When you look at the numbers, CBN (Christian Broadcast Network) points out that there’s only a one in a ka-trillion-billion chance that one person could fulfill all 300 of the Messianic prophecies! (And, no, that’s not a real number for all you mathematicians out there, but you get the point, right?) But get this: Jesus fulfilled all 300 prophecies! ALL of them!
#3 – Jesus, the Son of God
We believe that Jesus is the Son of God. He was born of a virgin (one of those 300 prophecies) and lived a perfect life both as God and as man. He was the sinless God-man who became the perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus’ blood purifies us so we can have a relationship with a holy, sinless God.
#4 – Jesus’ Death, Resurrection, and Return
We also believe that Jesus didn’t just die an excruciating death on the cross because of His incredible love for us, but He also physically rose from the dead three days later. He’s alive today! And He will return to earth to fully establish God’s Kingdom, rid earth of all evil, pain, and fear, and reign forever. In the meantime, we share the good news (the “gospel”) of God’s love and forgiveness with as many people as we can and invite them to follow Jesus Christ too.
#5 – The Trinity
Here’s where things can get a little sticky and where other religion accuse Christians of believing in multiple gods. Although the word “Trinity” doesn’t appear anywhere in the Bible, it’s a term that refers to God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit.
We believe there are three distinct persons in one God. Christians point to several places in both the Old and New Testaments to explain this apparent contradiction. For example, in Matthew 3:16-17 when Jesus is being baptized in a river, all three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) are distinctly visible.
I like to think of it like this: consider an egg. It has a shell, yoke, and white. While each part is different from the others, all together, they make up the composition of the egg. Separately, they wouldn’t be an egg; only together they are considered a whole egg. It’s similar with the idea of the Trinity.
History of Christianity
Now that you have a better understanding of the basic beliefs of Christianity, let’s take a brief look at the history of Christianity.
After Jesus died and rose from the dead, He appeared to hundreds of people over the course of 40 days. (Read all about this in the New Testament book of Acts.) He charged His disciples with going into all the world, preaching the gospel, baptizing people, and making disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). After Jesus returned to heaven, His disciples did just that. As a result, many of them were martyred and tortured for their relentless preaching. Many Jewish people became believers in Jesus as their Messiah as did many non-Jewish people.
Over the next 2000 years, Christianity spread throughout the surrounding regions and around the world. Various leaders of the movement included Martin Luther and John Calvin to more recently Billy Graham and Francis Chan. These leaders strived to teach believers about Christian doctrines and to guide them toward more devotion in their faith.
Yes, of course, there were the Crusades from the 11th to the 13th centuries, the Protestant Reformation in the 1500’s, and the Great Awakenings of the 1700’s, but we don’t have the space or time to dig into all these time periods here. Suffice it to say, the Christianity we have today has gone through a lot of transitions along the way. For a more in depth view of the history of Christianity, take a look at this article from New World Encyclopedia.
What are the different branches of Christianity and how do they differ?
Believe it or not, the different branches of Christianity have a lot more in common than they have differences. They believe that God created earth and everything in it, Jesus is God’s Son who came to earth to give Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, and He will return one day to establish God’s Kingdom on earth. They agree that baptism and communion are important spiritual practices, and that the Bible is God’s Word.
The different branches of Christianity are called denominations, and here’s where the differences begin. Basically, a church is considered either Catholic or Protestant. Let’s take a look at the Catholic Church first.
The Catholic Church
Unlike Protestant believers, Catholics believe that they can pray to Mary the mother of Jesus, angels, and saints (Jesus’ apostles and other holy people). They use a rosary (beaded necklace) to help them count how many chants or prayers they are saying, and the Catholic Bible has a few more books in it than the Protestant Bible.
Catholic believers have specific rituals, songs, and prayers that they repeat. Their weekly gathering is called “mass.” During mass they teach scriptures, recite prayers, and participate in communion (Eucharist) which consists of eating bread and drinking wine to obey Jesus’ command to remember Him in Luke 22:7-20. They contend that these elements literally become Jesus’ body and blood thereby giving them strength when they partake of them. The collection of Catholic teachings is called The Catechism of the Catholic Church. Based on James 5:16, Catholics privately confess their sins to a priest rather than to God.
Finally, Catholics believe that they belong to the “true church” and that Protestants do not.
Protestant Churches
Now let’s look at Protestant churches. Unlike the Catholic Church, Protestant churches teach Christians to only pray to God (not to Mary or other human beings). They too have songs, say prayers, and teach scripture, but it’s much less “scripted.” Christians in Protestant churches often focus more on cultivating a relationship with God.
Protestant believers follow Jesus’ command to be baptized and participate in communion. Unlike Catholic believers, Protestants confess their sins directly to Jesus, not to a human priest, because they believe that Jesus is the priest between them and God (Hebrews 4:14). Some Protestant churches are more traditional in nature with fairly structured services while other are less traditional and structured. Some Protestant churches believe in speaking in tongues while others don’t. Some believe that homosexual relationships are okay while others don’t.
The bottom line: there are a lot of variations among Protestant churches.
The Life of Jesus
The entire religion of Christianity rests on the person of Jesus Christ—His virgin birth, His sinless life, His horrific death on a cross, and His resurrection from the dead. Let’s take a closer look at what we know about Jesus’ life.
Jesus’ Birth
It was predicted that the Jewish Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, and that’s exactly where Jesus was born due to a required census by the Roman government. His mother, Mary, was a virgin who was told by an angel that she would carry and give birth to God’s Son. Since Mary was engaged at the time, this news distressed her family and future husband, Joseph. Then an angel appeared to Joseph, and he was convinced too that her baby was God’s Son.
We traditionally celebrate Jesus’ birth on December 25 as Christmas, but it’s unlikely this was the exact date of His birth. Historians divided B.C. from A.D. based on the approximate date of Jesus’ birth. Based on clues in the biblical text compared with historical documents of the era, Jesus was born within a few years (give or take) of the year 0.
Did Jesus have brothers and sisters?
Yes. After Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph were married and had many children. Matthew 13:55-56 specifically mentions Jesus’ half-brothers and half-sisters. According to John 7:3-5, Jesus’ brothers didn’t believe in Him and even mocked Him for His ministry. Family is always a tough crowd, right?
How did Jesus spend His time?
By trade Jesus was a carpenter like his human father. Once He reached age 30, He started His ministry. First, He was baptized by John the Baptist (who happens to be his cousin), and then He spent 40 days in the wilderness being tempted by Satan. Jesus fought off every temptation by quoting Old Testament scriptures.
After successfully defeating temptation, He began declaring that the Kingdom of God had arrived. He healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead, and impressed everyone who heard His teachings. He called twelve ordinary men to be his disciples, and they assisted Him in His ministry.
But those in religious authority weren’t fans of Jesus; in fact, they hated Him because He called them out on their sin and the crowds loved Him. They saw Him as a threat and wanted Him dead.
Jesus’ Death
Fulfilling another Messianic prophecy, one of Jesus’ own disciples (Judas Iscariot) took payment from religious leaders to betray Him. They accused Jesus of breaking Jewish religious laws (which Rome couldn’t care less about). Then they accused Jesus of declaring Himself King of the Jews; this got Rome’s attention. Rome wouldn’t put up with anyone claiming to be king over Caesar.
Jesus was put to death on a cross, one of the most humiliating and excruciating ways to die. (No one knew how to torture people better than Rome.) Even Jesus’ death fulfilled Messianic prophecies in many ways. Check out this video from The Fuel Project to learn more about the prophecies Jesus fulfilled during His time on earth.
Jesus’ Resurrection
Jesus promised that He would rise from the dead 3 days after He was put to death, and miraculously, He did just that. We believe that according to Romans 8:34 that Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father interceding for us today. And one day, He will return to establish His righteous and holy kingdom. Christians around the world celebrate Jesus’ resurrection as Easter or Resurrection Day during March or April each year.
Why do Christians believe Jesus had to die?
We believe that sin (the wrong things we do) causes a separation between us and a holy God, and we can do nothing to earn God’s acceptance. Only a perfect, sinless sacrifice could cleanse us from our sins and make us acceptable to God. In the Old Testament, the Jewish people sacrificed animals for this purpose, but because of His love for us, God gave the perfect, final sacrifice for our forgiveness when He sent His Son Jesus Christ (John 3:16). You can learn more about why Jesus had to die from Answers in Genesis.
What is Christian Salvation?
We believe that Jesus is the only way to God. Jesus Himself said He was the way, the truth, and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). Salvation encompasses many things including forgiveness of sins, peace, hope, joy, love, healing, freedom, and much more.
We believe that we can do nothing to earn our own salvation to be right with God; that’s why Jesus came—to rescue us from our sin, shame, guilt, addictions, and mistakes—and to show us a better way to live.
What Do Christians believe about the Virgin Mary?
Catholics believe that Mary was not only the mother of God but the mother of the Church. They believe that she was conceived without sin and kept sinless so she could bare God’s Holy Son. They also ask Mary to pray for them.
Protestant Christians don’t believe these things about Mary; they believe she was given the honor to carry God’s Son, and she selflessly obeyed God. They honor her but do not worship or pray to her or believe she was sinless.
What about Children?
Some churches practice infant baptism while others don’t. The churches that don’t baptize children contend that baptism is something a person does when he or she chooses to follow Jesus Christ; this isn’t something an infant can choose to do. Therefore, they dedicate children instead just like Jesus’ parents dedicated Him (Luke 2:22-24).
What is the Lord’s Supper?
This is something we celebrate to remember the last meal Jesus shared with His disciples before He was betrayed and crucified. As Jesus ate with His disciples, He told them that the bread was His body that would be broken for them, and the wine was His blood that would be spilled for their sins. He called it the “New Covenant,” thereby nullifying the Old Covenant of animal sacrifice needing to be done for forgiveness of sins.
In the Catholic Church it’s called the Eucharist, and it’s celebrated during every gathering. It’s called Communion in Protestant churches and takes place once a month or once every few months depending on the church.
What is Baptism?
Jesus Himself was baptized by John the Baptist in Matthew 3 and Mark 1. He did this to be an example for us. Baptism is when we symbolically die and are raised to new life in Christ. Many Christians get baptized in a river, swimming pool, or tub in a church sanctuary.
Generally, a minister will get into the water with the child or adult being baptized and stand next to them. Then the minister will say something like, “Upon the confession of your faith in Jesus Christ, I now baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Then the minister helps the person lean back into the water until they are completely submerged (symbolizing the death of the old, sinful person) and then helps them come up out of the water (symbolizing the life of the new, regenerated person).
Catholics baptize infants to initiate them into the religion and to free them from their born sinfulness by pouring a small amount of water over the crown of their heads. Catholic adults are rarely baptized and see no need for it if they were baptized as children. Lutherans also pour or sprinkle water over infants’ heads in baptism. They believe that baptizing infants brings them salvation until they are able to decide for themselves if they will follow Christianity.
Some churches believe that baptism is absolutely necessary for salvation, but not all believe this. To learn more about water baptism, check out this article from Christianity.com.
Is Baptist a form of Christianity?
Yes. The Baptist Church is one of the denominations of the Protestant churches. Others include Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed, and Pentecostal, just to name a few. Interestingly, one of the most popular and growing denominations in most countries is non-denominational churches. These are churches that don’t affiliate with any specific group or denomination.
How is Judaism different from Christianity?
Judaism is the religion most Jewish people follow. They read the Old Testament as their holy scriptures and still believe God will send a Messiah to rescue and help them.
Christianity has its roots in Judaism, and we believe Jesus is the fulfillment of the Jewish Messiah. Some Jews (called Messianic Jews) also believe that Jesus is their Messiah, but most don’t. In Judaism, they attend synagogue (their “church”) and adhere to the customary beliefs and traditions of that faith.
Why did Christianity split from Judaism?
After Jesus returned to heaven, some Jews accepted Him as their Messiah but still felt they needed to adhere to their traditional Jewish customs. They wanted Christians to also adhere to Jewish customs even though they weren’t Jewish. Non-Jewish Christians felt they didn’t need to follow Jewish traditions because salvation through Jesus was through faith, not works. There were many disagreements about this which caused division.
Who do Christians pray to and why?
We pray to God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Catholic believers also pray to Mary the mother of Jesus, saints, and angels.
We pray to God for many things—for help, strength, healing, provision, guidance, and much, much more. We trust that God is always with us and is there to help us if we ask and believe.
What do Christians believe about evil?
The Bible teaches that Satan was an archangel in heaven before he proudly opposed God and led a rebellion against Him. God kicked Satan and his followers (fallen angels, now demons) out of heaven and placed them on earth. To get back at God, Satan deceived Adam and Eve and unleashed evil on the once perfect planet.
We believe that there is good and evil and that the devil still tempts us today to go against God’s will and plan, but we can overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21).
We believe that we all have a sinful nature that must be submitted to God and that with God’s grace and strength, we can resist temptation just like Jesus did.
Heaven and Hell
Most churches believe that Christian believers will spend eternity in heaven while unbelievers will spend eternity in hell (which was originally created for Satan and his demons). However, some churches are revising their beliefs about a physical place of torment for nonbelievers.
Final Thoughts about Christianity
We’ve only scratched the surface of what Christianity is all about—there’s so much more to understand, but we hope this has given you a good overview.
You probably already know that the purpose of most religions is to find God. So what makes Christianity different from other religions? While this can be a very complex issue, here are some basic points:
How Salvation is Achieved. Most religions teach that you have to do certain things or not do certain things in order to find salvation, happiness, or heaven. But in Christianity, Jesus did what needed to be done for our salvation.
For us, being made right with God and knowing Him is based on what Jesus did, not on what we do or don’t do. This sure takes the pressure off! We don’t have to constantly worry or try to do everything just right to “make God happy.” All we have to do is accept Jesus’ love and forgiveness, surrender to His will and ways, and receive His grace to follow Him.
Relationship with God. In most religions, God is feared and unapproachable, but in Christianity, we can be known by God and know Him because Jesus cleared the way for us. Sin no longer separates us from God. We believe that God loves us as His children and He only has good for us. When we encounter difficulties because we live in a sinful world, He’s right there beside us to help and strengthen us.
Good Behavior. Since we believe that we can do nothing to be “good enough” for God, can we act however we want? No. Instead, we want to do the right things to honor God for all He’s done for us. We want to follow His teachings and do what pleases Him out of our appreciation for His love, mercy, and grace in our lives.
Does it sound like Christianity is too good to be true? Does it seem unbelievable that finding God doesn’t depend on you or what you do? Exactly! Maybe that’s why it’s called the gospel—the “good news!”
It’s good news that you don’t have to work at being perfect for God to accept you (because that would never happen for any of us). It’s good news that God loves you so much that He sent His only Son to take the punishment for your sins so you could be made right with God. It’s good news that once you decide to follow Jesus, God’s Holy Spirit lives inside you and helps you obey His Word. It’s good news that you don’t have to try to live life on your own—God walks with you guiding and helping you no matter what you face.
Are you ready to become a Christian?
Becoming a Christian costs you nothing, but at the same time, it costs you everything. Jesus died for you, but He expects you to live for Him. Living for Jesus means He gets to call the shots, not you. Living for Jesus means putting your own desires, habits, and plans aside for His.
But I promise you, His ways and plans are better than yours, and the joy, peace, and hope you’ll experience will be totally worth anything you give up to follow Him. Check out this great article from All About God to find out more about putting your faith in Jesus.
What Do Christians Believe – A Guide To Christianity
More people follow Christianity than any other religion in the world. While understanding the complexities of Christianity can seem like a daunting task, Pew Research Center found that in 2015 more than 2.3 billion people chose to adhere to this religion.
What do millions of people find so appealing about Christianity? And why do so many people continue to choose Christianity even though according to the BBC (British Broadcasting Corporation), Christians are being persecuted at levels nearing genocide in some countries? And why would anyone want to join Christianity since they are the world’s most persecuted religious group in the world?
Let’s face it, if you turn on your television or surf social media, it won’t take long for you to find a television show, meme, or comedian making fun of people who follow Christianity. Yet incredibly, despite the horrific persecution in some countries and the mockery Christians often face in countries like the United States, the number of people following Christianity continues to grow year after year.
Amazingly, depending on where you live, choosing to live as a Christian isn’t even safe; there are many countries around the world where Christianity is outlawed. If you choose to become a Christian in some countries, it could mean the end of your life. In China and most Muslim countries, converting to Christianity—or worse yet, being baptized—is as good as a death sentence for you and your entire family.
However, despite the imminent dangers of conversion, according to The Gospel Coalition, more and more Muslims are converting to Christianity because they are discovering God’s love, they are experiencing love from other Christians, and they are having divine, life-changing dreams about Jesus.
Since mockery, persecution, and even death aren’t preventing people from following Christianity, what makes this religion so appealing to about one-third of the world? As you’ll see in this article, Christianity is very different from the other religions of the world. It’s all about a God who came down to rescue people, give them purpose and hope, and give them the opportunity to know their Creator. It’s about transformation, surrender, and victory. It’s about hope, peace, joy, and love.
In this Guide to Christianity, we will answer many of your questions about the most popular religion in the world as we explore what Christians believe, where Christianity originated, and what it takes to become a Christian. We will discuss its history, why there are so many different denominations, and how it differs from other religions. We will also take a close look at the life, ministry, and mission of Jesus Christ, the one Christianity is centered around.
What are 5 main beliefs of Christianity?
While there are dozens of important beliefs in Christianity, we want to narrow it down to five main points to simplify it as much as possible. Later, we’ll get into more of the specific beliefs, but these are the most important ones:
#1 – The Bible
The Bible is the holy book of Christianity, and it’s made up of two sections: the Old Testament (which Jewish people use as their Holy Scriptures) and the New Testament which tells the story of Jesus and the birth of His church.
As Christians, we base all our beliefs on the Bible because we believe it’s the very word of God. In fact, Second Timothy 3:16 says, “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness.” We don’t discount the Old Testament; we see it as the foundation for the New Testament and all our beliefs.
#2 – Jesus, the Jewish Messiah
Contrary to what most Jewish people believe, we believe that Jesus of Nazareth was the Jewish Messiah (the Christ). In the Old Testament, God promised to send someone to deliver the Jewish nation, rule the world, and establish God’s Kingdom on earth. Jewish people eagerly await their Messiah while we Christians believe that He’s already come.
When you look at the numbers, CBN (Christian Broadcast Network) points out that there’s only a one in a ka-trillion-billion chance that one person could fulfill all 300 of the Messianic prophecies! (And, no, that’s not a real number for all you mathematicians out there, but you get the point, right?) But get this: Jesus fulfilled all 300 prophecies! ALL of them!
#3 – Jesus, the Son of God
We believe that Jesus is the Son of God. He was born of a virgin (one of those 300 prophecies) and lived a perfect life both as God and as man. He was the sinless God-man who became the perfect sacrifice to pay the penalty for our sins. Jesus’ blood purifies us so we can have a relationship with a holy, sinless God.
#4 – Jesus’ Death, Resurrection, and Return
We also believe that Jesus didn’t just die an excruciating death on the cross because of His incredible love for us, but He also physically rose from the dead three days later. He’s alive today! And He will return to earth to fully establish God’s Kingdom, rid earth of all evil, pain, and fear, and reign forever. In the meantime, we share the good news (the “gospel”) of God’s love and forgiveness with as many people as we can and invite them to follow Jesus Christ too.
#5 – The Trinity
Here’s where things can get a little sticky and where other religion accuse Christians of believing in multiple gods. Although the word “Trinity” doesn’t appear anywhere in the Bible, it’s a term that refers to God the Father, God the Son (Jesus Christ), and God the Holy Spirit.
We believe there are three distinct persons in one God. Christians point to several places in both the Old and New Testaments to explain this apparent contradiction. For example, in Matthew 3:16-17 when Jesus is being baptized in a river, all three persons (Father, Son, and Holy Spirit) are distinctly visible.
I like to think of it like this: consider an egg. It has a shell, yoke, and white. While each part is different from the others, all together, they make up the composition of the egg. Separately, they wouldn’t be an egg; only together they are considered a whole egg. It’s similar with the idea of the Trinity.
History of Christianity
Now that you have a better understanding of the basic beliefs of Christianity, let’s take a brief look at the history of Christianity.
After Jesus died and rose from the dead, He appeared to hundreds of people over the course of 40 days. (Read all about this in the New Testament book of Acts.) He charged His disciples with going into all the world, preaching the gospel, baptizing people, and making disciples (Matthew 28:19-20). After Jesus returned to heaven, His disciples did just that. As a result, many of them were martyred and tortured for their relentless preaching. Many Jewish people became believers in Jesus as their Messiah as did many non-Jewish people.
Over the next 2000 years, Christianity spread throughout the surrounding regions and around the world. Various leaders of the movement included Martin Luther and John Calvin to more recently Billy Graham and Francis Chan. These leaders strived to teach believers about Christian doctrines and to guide them toward more devotion in their faith.
Yes, of course, there were the Crusades from the 11th to the 13th centuries, the Protestant Reformation in the 1500’s, and the Great Awakenings of the 1700’s, but we don’t have the space or time to dig into all these time periods here. Suffice it to say, the Christianity we have today has gone through a lot of transitions along the way. For a more in depth view of the history of Christianity, take a look at this article from New World Encyclopedia.
What are the different branches of Christianity and how do they differ?
Believe it or not, the different branches of Christianity have a lot more in common than they have differences. They believe that God created earth and everything in it, Jesus is God’s Son who came to earth to give Himself as a sacrifice for our sins, and He will return one day to establish God’s Kingdom on earth. They agree that baptism and communion are important spiritual practices, and that the Bible is God’s Word.
The different branches of Christianity are called denominations, and here’s where the differences begin. Basically, a church is considered either Catholic or Protestant. Let’s take a look at the Catholic Church first.
The Catholic Church
Unlike Protestant believers, Catholics believe that they can pray to Mary the mother of Jesus, angels, and saints (Jesus’ apostles and other holy people). They use a rosary (beaded necklace) to help them count how many chants or prayers they are saying, and the Catholic Bible has a few more books in it than the Protestant Bible.
Catholic believers have specific rituals, songs, and prayers that they repeat. Their weekly gathering is called “mass.” During mass they teach scriptures, recite prayers, and participate in communion (Eucharist) which consists of eating bread and drinking wine to obey Jesus’ command to remember Him in Luke 22:7-20. They contend that these elements literally become Jesus’ body and blood thereby giving them strength when they partake of them. The collection of Catholic teachings is called The Catechism of the Catholic Church. Based on James 5:16, Catholics privately confess their sins to a priest rather than to God.
Finally, Catholics believe that they belong to the “true church” and that Protestants do not.
Protestant Churches
Now let’s look at Protestant churches. Unlike the Catholic Church, Protestant churches teach Christians to only pray to God (not to Mary or other human beings). They too have songs, say prayers, and teach scripture, but it’s much less “scripted.” Christians in Protestant churches often focus more on cultivating a relationship with God.
Protestant believers follow Jesus’ command to be baptized and participate in communion. Unlike Catholic believers, Protestants confess their sins directly to Jesus, not to a human priest, because they believe that Jesus is the priest between them and God (Hebrews 4:14). Some Protestant churches are more traditional in nature with fairly structured services while other are less traditional and structured. Some Protestant churches believe in speaking in tongues while others don’t. Some believe that homosexual relationships are okay while others don’t.
The bottom line: there are a lot of variations among Protestant churches.
The Life of Jesus
The entire religion of Christianity rests on the person of Jesus Christ—His virgin birth, His sinless life, His horrific death on a cross, and His resurrection from the dead. Let’s take a closer look at what we know about Jesus’ life.
Jesus’ Birth
It was predicted that the Jewish Messiah would be born in Bethlehem, and that’s exactly where Jesus was born due to a required census by the Roman government. His mother, Mary, was a virgin who was told by an angel that she would carry and give birth to God’s Son. Since Mary was engaged at the time, this news distressed her family and future husband, Joseph. Then an angel appeared to Joseph, and he was convinced too that her baby was God’s Son.
We traditionally celebrate Jesus’ birth on December 25 as Christmas, but it’s unlikely this was the exact date of His birth. Historians divided B.C. from A.D. based on the approximate date of Jesus’ birth. Based on clues in the biblical text compared with historical documents of the era, Jesus was born within a few years (give or take) of the year 0.
Did Jesus have brothers and sisters?
Yes. After Jesus was born, Mary and Joseph were married and had many children. Matthew 13:55-56 specifically mentions Jesus’ half-brothers and half-sisters. According to John 7:3-5, Jesus’ brothers didn’t believe in Him and even mocked Him for His ministry. Family is always a tough crowd, right?
How did Jesus spend His time?
By trade Jesus was a carpenter like his human father. Once He reached age 30, He started His ministry. First, He was baptized by John the Baptist (who happens to be his cousin), and then He spent 40 days in the wilderness being tempted by Satan. Jesus fought off every temptation by quoting Old Testament scriptures.
After successfully defeating temptation, He began declaring that the Kingdom of God had arrived. He healed the sick, cast out demons, raised the dead, and impressed everyone who heard His teachings. He called twelve ordinary men to be his disciples, and they assisted Him in His ministry.
But those in religious authority weren’t fans of Jesus; in fact, they hated Him because He called them out on their sin and the crowds loved Him. They saw Him as a threat and wanted Him dead.
Jesus’ Death
Fulfilling another Messianic prophecy, one of Jesus’ own disciples (Judas Iscariot) took payment from religious leaders to betray Him. They accused Jesus of breaking Jewish religious laws (which Rome couldn’t care less about). Then they accused Jesus of declaring Himself King of the Jews; this got Rome’s attention. Rome wouldn’t put up with anyone claiming to be king over Caesar.
Jesus was put to death on a cross, one of the most humiliating and excruciating ways to die. (No one knew how to torture people better than Rome.) Even Jesus’ death fulfilled Messianic prophecies in many ways. Check out this video from The Fuel Project to learn more about the prophecies Jesus fulfilled during His time on earth.
Jesus’ Resurrection
Jesus promised that He would rise from the dead 3 days after He was put to death, and miraculously, He did just that. We believe that according to Romans 8:34 that Jesus sits at the right hand of God the Father interceding for us today. And one day, He will return to establish His righteous and holy kingdom. Christians around the world celebrate Jesus’ resurrection as Easter or Resurrection Day during March or April each year.
Why do Christians believe Jesus had to die?
We believe that sin (the wrong things we do) causes a separation between us and a holy God, and we can do nothing to earn God’s acceptance. Only a perfect, sinless sacrifice could cleanse us from our sins and make us acceptable to God. In the Old Testament, the Jewish people sacrificed animals for this purpose, but because of His love for us, God gave the perfect, final sacrifice for our forgiveness when He sent His Son Jesus Christ (John 3:16). You can learn more about why Jesus had to die from Answers in Genesis.
What is Christian Salvation?
We believe that Jesus is the only way to God. Jesus Himself said He was the way, the truth, and the life and that no one comes to the Father except through Him (John 14:6). Salvation encompasses many things including forgiveness of sins, peace, hope, joy, love, healing, freedom, and much more.
We believe that we can do nothing to earn our own salvation to be right with God; that’s why Jesus came—to rescue us from our sin, shame, guilt, addictions, and mistakes—and to show us a better way to live.
What Do Christians believe about the Virgin Mary?
Catholics believe that Mary was not only the mother of God but the mother of the Church. They believe that she was conceived without sin and kept sinless so she could bare God’s Holy Son. They also ask Mary to pray for them.
Protestant Christians don’t believe these things about Mary; they believe she was given the honor to carry God’s Son, and she selflessly obeyed God. They honor her but do not worship or pray to her or believe she was sinless.
What about Children?
Some churches practice infant baptism while others don’t. The churches that don’t baptize children contend that baptism is something a person does when he or she chooses to follow Jesus Christ; this isn’t something an infant can choose to do. Therefore, they dedicate children instead just like Jesus’ parents dedicated Him (Luke 2:22-24).
What is the Lord’s Supper?
This is something we celebrate to remember the last meal Jesus shared with His disciples before He was betrayed and crucified. As Jesus ate with His disciples, He told them that the bread was His body that would be broken for them, and the wine was His blood that would be spilled for their sins. He called it the “New Covenant,” thereby nullifying the Old Covenant of animal sacrifice needing to be done for forgiveness of sins.
In the Catholic Church it’s called the Eucharist, and it’s celebrated during every gathering. It’s called Communion in Protestant churches and takes place once a month or once every few months depending on the church.
What is Baptism?
Jesus Himself was baptized by John the Baptist in Matthew 3 and Mark 1. He did this to be an example for us. Baptism is when we symbolically die and are raised to new life in Christ. Many Christians get baptized in a river, swimming pool, or tub in a church sanctuary.
Generally, a minister will get into the water with the child or adult being baptized and stand next to them. Then the minister will say something like, “Upon the confession of your faith in Jesus Christ, I now baptize you in the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit.” Then the minister helps the person lean back into the water until they are completely submerged (symbolizing the death of the old, sinful person) and then helps them come up out of the water (symbolizing the life of the new, regenerated person).
Catholics baptize infants to initiate them into the religion and to free them from their born sinfulness by pouring a small amount of water over the crown of their heads. Catholic adults are rarely baptized and see no need for it if they were baptized as children. Lutherans also pour or sprinkle water over infants’ heads in baptism. They believe that baptizing infants brings them salvation until they are able to decide for themselves if they will follow Christianity.
Some churches believe that baptism is absolutely necessary for salvation, but not all believe this. To learn more about water baptism, check out this article from Christianity.com.
Is Baptist a form of Christianity?
Yes. The Baptist Church is one of the denominations of the Protestant churches. Others include Lutheran, Methodist, Presbyterian, Reformed, and Pentecostal, just to name a few. Interestingly, one of the most popular and growing denominations in most countries is non-denominational churches. These are churches that don’t affiliate with any specific group or denomination.
How is Judaism different from Christianity?
Judaism is the religion most Jewish people follow. They read the Old Testament as their holy scriptures and still believe God will send a Messiah to rescue and help them.
Christianity has its roots in Judaism, and we believe Jesus is the fulfillment of the Jewish Messiah. Some Jews (called Messianic Jews) also believe that Jesus is their Messiah, but most don’t. In Judaism, they attend synagogue (their “church”) and adhere to the customary beliefs and traditions of that faith.
Why did Christianity split from Judaism?
After Jesus returned to heaven, some Jews accepted Him as their Messiah but still felt they needed to adhere to their traditional Jewish customs. They wanted Christians to also adhere to Jewish customs even though they weren’t Jewish. Non-Jewish Christians felt they didn’t need to follow Jewish traditions because salvation through Jesus was through faith, not works. There were many disagreements about this which caused division.
Who do Christians pray to and why?
We pray to God the Father, Jesus Christ, and the Holy Spirit. Catholic believers also pray to Mary the mother of Jesus, saints, and angels.
We pray to God for many things—for help, strength, healing, provision, guidance, and much, much more. We trust that God is always with us and is there to help us if we ask and believe.
What do Christians believe about evil?
The Bible teaches that Satan was an archangel in heaven before he proudly opposed God and led a rebellion against Him. God kicked Satan and his followers (fallen angels, now demons) out of heaven and placed them on earth. To get back at God, Satan deceived Adam and Eve and unleashed evil on the once perfect planet.
We believe that there is good and evil and that the devil still tempts us today to go against God’s will and plan, but we can overcome evil with good (Romans 12:21).
We believe that we all have a sinful nature that must be submitted to God and that with God’s grace and strength, we can resist temptation just like Jesus did.
Heaven and Hell
Most churches believe that Christian believers will spend eternity in heaven while unbelievers will spend eternity in hell (which was originally created for Satan and his demons). However, some churches are revising their beliefs about a physical place of torment for nonbelievers.
Final Thoughts about Christianity
We’ve only scratched the surface of what Christianity is all about—there’s so much more to understand, but we hope this has given you a good overview.
You probably already know that the purpose of most religions is to find God. So what makes Christianity different from other religions? While this can be a very complex issue, here are some basic points:
For us, being made right with God and knowing Him is based on what Jesus did, not on what we do or don’t do. This sure takes the pressure off! We don’t have to constantly worry or try to do everything just right to “make God happy.” All we have to do is accept Jesus’ love and forgiveness, surrender to His will and ways, and receive His grace to follow Him.
Does it sound like Christianity is too good to be true? Does it seem unbelievable that finding God doesn’t depend on you or what you do? Exactly! Maybe that’s why it’s called the gospel—the “good news!”
It’s good news that you don’t have to work at being perfect for God to accept you (because that would never happen for any of us). It’s good news that God loves you so much that He sent His only Son to take the punishment for your sins so you could be made right with God. It’s good news that once you decide to follow Jesus, God’s Holy Spirit lives inside you and helps you obey His Word. It’s good news that you don’t have to try to live life on your own—God walks with you guiding and helping you no matter what you face.
Are you ready to become a Christian?
Becoming a Christian costs you nothing, but at the same time, it costs you everything. Jesus died for you, but He expects you to live for Him. Living for Jesus means He gets to call the shots, not you. Living for Jesus means putting your own desires, habits, and plans aside for His.
But I promise you, His ways and plans are better than yours, and the joy, peace, and hope you’ll experience will be totally worth anything you give up to follow Him. Check out this great article from All About God to find out more about putting your faith in Jesus.
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