U.S. evangelicals confused on gospel truths, Ligonier finds

Researchers with Ligonier Ministries found that responses to its annual survey showed a lack of understanding of God’s holiness and the sinfulness of man as explained in the Bible. Over 60% of evangelical Christian respondents to Ligonier’s 2025 State of Theology survey said they believe everyone is born innocent in the eyes of God, and 53% believe everyone sins a little but most people are good by nature. These are erroneous beliefs on foundational topics of theology, according to Ligioner. Romans 3:23 says all have sinned and fallen short of the glory of God, and Ecclesiastes 7:20 says no one on earth is righteous and without sin. More than half of evangelical respondents said they believe the Holy Spirit is a force, not a personal being, despite key texts like Acts 13:2, according to Ligonier.

Ligonier, a discipleship ministry founded by Reformed theologian R.C. Sproul in 1971, published the findings Friday. Researchers surveyed 3,001 Americans, including 637 evangelicals, from Jan. 6-15 this year. The ministry said the survey findings revealed instability in modern evangelicalism that has arisen because some churches prioritize unity over sound doctrine.

What were some of the other findings? Nearly half of evangelicals said they believe God accepts the worship of all religions, including Christianity, Judaism, and Islam. Almost all of the evangelicals said that God loves all people the same way. However, 41% agreed that God chose the people He would save before He created the world, a doctrine called predestination, but 14% were unsure. Among all respondents, including non-evangelicals, only 27% said God chose the people He would save before He created the world.

Almost all evangelicals agreed that God designed marriage to be between one man and one woman, while just 65% of the entire surveyed group agreed. About half of all respondents said sex outside of a traditional marriage is a sin, and nearly half agreed that abortion is a sin.

What about Biblical responses? The vast majority of evangelical respondents agreed that there is one true God in three persons, that He is perfect and cannot make mistakes, and that the Biblical accounts of Jesus’ resurrection are completely accurate. Nearly all of the evangelical participants also agreed that the Bible is the highest authority and that only Jesus’ sacrifice could secure salvation, not human works. 

Dig deeper: Read my report about another study that showed the declining rate of Christians in America may have leveled off.