I am reminded of my own children and their struggles with the English language. What is being described is a store. It might be an office building, a house, a bank or a garage, but it cannot be a store. Obviously, then, the greater the number of characteristics and attributes held in common, the greater the similarity. The characteristics of commonality may be endless, but if there is one characteristic which is not equivalent, the two cannot be called the same.
Similarity works on a sliding scale of contrasting and comparing.
Both statements deal with similarity. Sameness is identity. There is no sliding scale of comparison. Either the items, persons or ideas are equal, equivalent, and identical or they are not. For this reason, it is assumed the reader has a Christian understanding of God, his attributes, his character and his revelation.