Lutheran, Reformed, Methodist & Baptist: What's the Difference?

I grew up Free Will Baptist (extremely conservative) and my grandmother taught me what that means and how we were different from other denominations. Everything she told me is accurate to these videos, and she did not have the internet to research. I am impressed with her even more now.

I have an atheist friend who says she hates organized religion. I told her that we Christians, are hardly... "organized." ;)

I’ve said it before and I will say it again. Joshua, you do such a tremendous service to the Kingdom of God with your content by simply presenting denominations and their beliefs and letting us engage with the ideas as they are. It’s a tremendous gift to possess that kind of objectivity.

I had almost an hour-long discussion with someone, I thought, about Martin Luther. She was quite a mature woman, and said she was a student of history, so I thought we were on the same page. Finally, she asked “why do you drop the King?” She had never heard of poor old Marin Luther! Then, she asked “why did they name him after some religious guy?”. So, I gave up.

Very informative video! I'm Catholic and this is the first comprehensive video I've been able to find on the major Protestant denominations that gives a comparison of their beliefs. Thank you!

"Lutheranism begins with Martin Luther" (*shows Martin Luther King Jr.) I darn near choked on my water laughing so hard.

A Catholic boy and a Baptist boy were asking each other about their beliefs. The Baptist boy asked the Catholic boy, "If you sin, who do confess to?" The Catholic boy replied, "Well, we confess to the Deacons." Then the Baptist boy asked, "Well, if the Deacon's sin, who do they confess to?" The Catholic boy replied, "Well. they confess to the parish Priest." Then the Baptist boy asked, ""Well, if the Priest sins, who does he confess to?" The Catholic boy replied, "Well the Priests confess to the Bishop of the Diocese." Then the Baptist boy asked him, "Well if the Bishops' sin, whom do they confess to?" The Catholic boy replied, "They confess to the Archbishops." Then the Baptist boy asked, "What of the Archbishop sins? To whom does he confess?" The Catholic boy replied, "Well, the Archbishops confess to the Cardinals." Then the Baptist boy asked, "If the Cardinals sin, to whom do they confess?" The Catholic boy replied, " Well, they confess to the Pope." Then the Baptist boy asked, "Well, what if the Pope sins, who does he confess to?" The Catholic boy scratched his head and replied, "Well, he goes directly to God!" Then the Baptist boy replied, "Oh! I didn't know the Pope was Baptist!"😁

I was reading the Bible intensively for almost 2 years, learning as much as I can from God's word, and I wondered under which denomination I'd fall if comparing them to my Bible readings, and I guess I'm straight-up baptist. Some of these are very strange, but thank God for revealing Himself in Christ Jesus for us all and for the hope of one day coming to the knowledge of His full truth!

Thank you for this, you’ve made it pretty straight forward but i also love the fact that you emphasized so much that all of these views vary tremendously. It’s a hard thing to try and explain with that being the case

One of the common comments I get on this video is that Lutherans don’t have confession/absolution or don’t view it as a sacrament. I did warn in the video that many Lutherans today don’t do it, but if you think that no Lutherans do, you’re wrong! Here’s some more information: 1. In the Book of Concord, the Defense/Apology of the Augsburg Confession says: But with respect to the time, certainly most men in our churches use the Sacraments, absolution and the Lord's Supper, frequently in a year. bookofconcord.org/defense_9_confession.php 2. The Lutheran Church – Missouri Synod Website recognizes that some Lutherans believe in three sacraments when they say: Roman Catholics speak of seven Sacraments while Lutherans tend to speak of only two (or three). www.lcms.org/about/beliefs/faqs/denominations 3. Here’s another Lutheran Church claiming that there may be three sacraments: The two (or three) Sacraments in the Lutheran church are: Holy Baptism, Holy Communion, and Holy Absolution. Actually, Lutherans do not get all caught up in the numbers. We let the Scripture do the talking here. www.stpaulsmilaca.org/beliefs/ 4. Here’s a great article by a Lutheran on the controversy, titled "The Half Sacrament of Absolution" pastoralmeanderings.blogspot.com/2014/06/the-half-… 5. This is a really interesting article from Concordia Theological Seminary on “Private Confession and Absolution in the Lutheran Church: A Doctrinal, Historical, and Critical Study” I am providing a short quote below but I highly recommend reading the whole thing. "Since the Lutheran Church regards the absolution as the chief thing in private confession, she also accepts it as a sacrament if one omits from the defrnition of the word "sacrament" the necessity (as has now become customary in Lutheranism) of a divinely ordained visible element. Confession is man's work. But the absolution is God's work..." www.ctsfw.net/media/pdfs/langconfessionandabsoluti… 6. Here also, for further study, is a Lutheran Pastor's book on "The Sacrament of Holy Absolution." He addresses in the book the controversy over its acceptance. unite-production.s3.amazonaws.com/tenants/stjohnsw…

This was very informative. As someone who was raised Christian reformed, spent time in a Lutheran environment for music, went to Calvin College, had a Methodist GF at Calvin, and then later married a wife raised as a Presbyterian it was great to learn the differences.

What a fantastic overview. Informative without casting opinion nor dispersion. Thanks.

This was a really good video. As a Baptist with Reformed leanings I appreciate your fairness here. Good work 👍🏿

I've watched a few of your videos so far and really impressed with how you describe these Christian variations. You stick to the facts and appear well informed about what you're describing.

As a Baptist, I say "Well done". Lots of great information presented clearly. The fact that none of these groups (and most any religion) are NOT monolithic in their expressions of a common faith is a big thing we all need to keep in mind as we deal with individuals. Stereotypes won't get us very far. Again, very clear and accurate. Kudos. The organized anarchy of Baptists has often caused my friends of other denominations to have to hold their head to keep it from spinning.

There is more helpful information in these videos than in the course I took in college on Protestant Theology. Thanks for explaining these things in a very informative manner.

This was a great video. Great content with a great summary of the distinctive differences of belief and practice.

Wonderful video. You did a great job breaking down the origins of the mentioned denominations. ¡Aplauso!

This was well researched and spot on. There always seems to be some confusion over what reformed baptists believe but you nailed it. Good job

Your videos bless me every day. Thank you.