Was I Born as a Christian?

Some are under the impression that people are born into a religion; that is to say that we are born as Christians, as Muslims, as Buddhists, as Jews, as atheists, etc. It’s quite easy to think in those terms, but the more correct understanding is that we are born into families (Christian families, Muslim families, etc.). No one is born into a particular religion. No one is born as a believer or as nonbeliever. Though one may be born into a family that thinks and believes a certain way, we are not obligated to continue in that thought or belief. Take the Israelites for example. When they had conquered the Promised Land, Joshua assembled all the people together and told them that they had to make choice of whom to serve. Joshua encouraged the people to put away their idols, but ultimately he left it up to them who they would serve – the gods of their fathers, the gods of the Amorites or Jehovah (24:14-15). That choice still has to be made today. Remember that Jesus said that the one who would be saved is not the one born to believing parents, but rather the one who believes and is baptized (Mark 16:16).