Tattoos?

[Macx]

Three cheers for legalism! We're not bound to the Mosaic Law, as that was specifically put forth for the Jews in the land of Canaan. Should we go back to executing people for working on the Sabbath? Should we exile people for having sex during a woman's menstruation? Should we kick people out of our churches for eating shrimp or pork or for wearing clothing made from blended fibers? People who twist the Scriptures to condemn hair coloring, makeup, piercings, tattoos, etc. only do so out of their blind prejudice against the practice(s).

I miss my nostril piercing (never healed properly), but I love my tattoos and plan on getting more. I don't care what they'll look like when I'm old and wrinkly. All my friends with tattoos will be equally old and wrinkly along with me.

Well, I was never pretty and never was gonna be . . . I think you are right, plenty of us inked and pierced folk will be getting old about the same time.

 

[TheDag]

VertigoAge that is a fair question.

I believe pierced ears, make up and hair dye are ALL SINFUL.

No Christian man or women should ever allow their bodies to be pierced.

God created our bodies, he doesn't want us to make holes in them!

God made our hair colour a certain way, he is our designer, does he want us changing this with artificial colours? Of course not! His creation is perfect! Are we saying we know better than God? If we change the way he created us, are we improving ourselves?

Make up is also another form of changing ourselves and the way we look. God never made us this way!

Nature itself tell us all these things, piercings, make up and dye are all sinful. How does it tell us this? Well look at the results, do you think piercings are good for your body? No, they are not, and they can cause infections! Is make up or dye good for our bodies? Of course not, in fact we can get rashes and spots due to it. Hair dye often results in loss of hair. Make up makes you wrinklier quicker.

So how does this match up with man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart?

So from what foods do you get your iron and calcium and protein. If you are not a dietry vegan then you are a hypocrite because you can get all kinds of diseases that are deadly from meat and dairy. the chances are actually higher than getting infection from tattoo. just in case you claim its different because eating is essential to survive let me say eating is essential but eating meat is not. One could argue eating meat is a sin as it uses a lot more resources to produce meat than it does other food and we are told to be wise stewards. So wasting all those resources on producing meat is not really being a wise steward.

Your theology is a bit off as well. Where does it say everything God created was perfect? God says it was good. Is that the same as perfect? In any case that is not relevant as since the fall we face the consequence of sin which is death and decay. So even if what God created was perfect we no longer are. We can't ignore the other side of the coin.

And I never mentioned the old testament once did I?

Here is what the new testament tells us:

1 Timothy 2:9-10
I also want women to dress modestly, with decency and propriety, not with braided hair or gold or pearls or expensive clothes, but with good deeds, appropriate for women who profess to worship God.

1 Peter 3:3
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.

Tatoos, make up, piercings and dye all come under this verse. It's there in black and white. All these things are outward adornment!

So if a person gets a tattoo that is not visible it would not come under this rule. Also the passage you are talking about is in regards to worship not general living.

The old testment laws should still be read, we know God doesn't change.

Malachi 3:6
"I the LORD do not change"

This is true. However have you considered that since all scripture is God breathed we should pay attention to all of it. In particular parts in the NT that say we are not under that law anymore.

Ther e are many scholars (and I believe the majority hold this view) who say OT laws are only applicable today if they were repeated in the NT.

We also need to realise many OT laws are what we today would call common sense hygiene.

So let's read them:

Leviticus 19:28
"'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD."

Now everyone who has a tatoo points at this and says this no verse no longer matters because we are not under the old law.

Ok, well if that is the case then read the whole verse! Do not cut your bodies for the dead. So if tatoos are ok, then the rest of the verse MUST be ok.

Tattoos are therefore just as justified in God's eyes as cutting your bodies for the dead. If one is ok then so is the other, if one is not ok then either is the other!

Of course God doesn't want us cutting our bodies! And he doesn't want us putting tattoos on our bodies either. You cannot have one but not the other!

Many versions I read do not mention tattoos as separate. While the version you have quoted does. So which version of the bible do we believe?

however I bet you are a hypocrite. I bet if I came to your house i would find things which are wrong and you quite happily keep them.
I also didn't realise you could come on here from prison. After all that is where you must be if you follow the other laws like this one you say we are not to ignore. I know you didn't bring up the OT in the first place but since you have chosen to state your belief then I hope you are doing your best to live that way.

This is what the bible says about tattoos.
http://www.biblebelievers.com/watkins_tattoos/bible.html

Even more ironic that you could substitute "simply getting a haircut" with "putting a simple decoration on your arm", and the their own argument about the pagan/witchcraft/enchantment context (which is a good one, by the way) defeats their position on tattoos.

yeah I found that rather funny when I read that bit.

 

[finaldavid]

I don't see the problem with tattoos. Looks good, feel good. Rad!

 

[chris_arnet]

I don't see anything wrong with tattoos, I have four of them. My first was a cross on my back with "Psalms 121" in script above it. However, I have some that are purely cosmetic too, and have no meaning behind them, like the red rings around my left forearm, or the black circle on my right bicep. Everybody is just trying to reach their image of beauty. Why do you think people like some clothes over others? They prefer the way they look. I prefer the way I look with tattoos.

 

[J1A1H]

Aw! an' I was going to get rabbits all over my chest 'cause from a distance they look like hairs(hares).

haha nice...

 

[fm107]

I'm not saying we are under the law.

In Leviticus 19:28 it's my opinion that God considered cutting ourselves and putting tattoos on ourselves as two closely related acts.

Now, I agree we are not under the law anymore however I still believe that we can see God's opinion on this matter when we look at how he relates cutting ourselves and putting tattoos on ourselves. It's all in the same sentence after all.

So to make things clear, I too agree we are not under the law however, by looking at scripture like the ones I used in the new testament then looking at the old testament we can quickly see that God doesn't want us doing this sort of thing.

Now, with regards to other things such as what a person eats for example, there were laws against that in the old testament. But when we look at the new testament we can see that we can eat what we like.

I don't want to come across as being legalistic, I just passionately believe that marking our bodies in this way is sinful. Because I believe this, I feel I should be trying to show my brothers and sisters their fault. Likewise, I would expect my brothers and sisters to show me my fault should I be doing anything sinful. I don't meant to come across as being condescending though I think I have come across that way for which I apologize.

Even if you were to ignore the verse in Leviticus I do believe the new testament passages quoted is enough to support my argument against tattoos. But I used Leviticus as a "extra" to support what I was saying.

Many people with tattoos are so quick to wave their hands away at Leviticus, because "we are not under the law." If that is the case then why not rip this book out of the bible? It's because Leviticus should still be read as should the whole bible. These laws, although we are not under them do give a backing for other new testament scriptures in my opinion.

 

[znr]

Here is at least one pretty sane answer to the issue of tatoos.

Tattoos and Christians - Should Christians Have Tattoos?

 

[bsd31]

1 Peter 3:3
Your beauty should not come from outward adornment, such as braided hair and the wearing of gold jewelry and fine clothes.

Tatoos, make up, piercings and dye all come under this verse. It's there in black and white. All these things are outward adornment!

If we do do these things then we are sinning because the bible is God's word, and he tells us right there not to do these things.

It does not say not to have any outward adornment. The Lord God is saying don't allow the outward adornments you wear to be what catches a man's eye. "Instead, it should be that of your inner self, the unfading beauty of a gentle and quiet spirit, which is of great worth in God's sight"

In other words don't attempt to make material items and physical appearance the focal point of yourself. That's a lot different than saying don't have them.

 

[sb81]

I have been wanting to get a tattoo, for your same reasoning as a witnessing tool. The main thing that is holding me back has been the reaction other people may have such as this thread. I find 1 Corinthians 10:23-33 applies here. Paul discusses the question on whether Christians should eat meat sacrificed to idols. Idols are nothing, so there is nothing wrong eating the meat, however, do not cause your brothers to stumble if they are against the idol sacrificed meat.

I personally could get a tattoo honoring Jesus Christ free of guilt to my God given conscience, as I strongly believe any quoted scripture on this subject is taken quite a ways out of context, it makes you wonder if people have even read and studied the relevant scripture in it's entirety.

I am, however, reluctant due to the stumbling block I would potentially be for my Christian Brethren. However, there will always be disagreements amongst Christians, and you cannot please everyone, and if your tattoo acting as a witnessing tool brings even one person to Christ, is it not worth it?

Ultimately, it is between you and God as no one else knows your true intentions for getting the tattoo.

Best of luck in your decision, and may God bless you!

 

[TheDag]

Now, with regards to other things such as what a person eats for example, there were laws against that in the old testament. But when we look at the new testament we can see that we can eat what we like.

So considering that earlier in this thread you quoted the passage that says God never changes care to explain how that works as you have just said here that he does change.

 

[TheDag]

Here is at least one pretty sane answer to the issue of tatoos.

Tattoos and Christians - Should Christians Have Tattoos?

yeah gotta agree. This article does not have a bias that I can see. All other articles have so quickly revealed a bias that I barely got past the second line but this one I read the entire article.

 

[Peripatetic]

There's a big difference between God changing and God introducing some new rule changes according to His timeless plan and purpose. God's people were bound by ceremonial laws, and then they weren't. Paul could not be more clear about that in Galatians, for example. Doesn't mean that God changed, per se. Just that His people were ready to get an adjusted set of rules with new priorities (as introduced by Jesus).

 

[TheDag]

There's a big difference between God changing and God introducing some new rule changes according to His timeless plan and purpose. God's people were bound by ceremonial laws, and then they weren't. Paul could not be more clear about that in Galatians, for example. Doesn't mean that God changed, per se. Just that His people were ready to get an adjusted set of rules with new priorities (as introduced by Jesus).

Hi Vertigo
I actually realise this. However whenever I see that verse quoted it is never meant that way. It is always meant as God never changes therefore the rules don't change.

 

[znr]

Didn't mean to bump this thread. My cat got on my keyboard. Sorry!

 

[TasManOfGod]

Didn't mean to bump this thread. My cat got on my keyboard. Sorry!

Maybe your cat wanted to log into the CAT (Christians Against Tattoos) club

 

[I'ddie4him2]

I found the article very interesting myself.
I've also noticed that MANY articles linked in these types of threads (anti tattoos) show an immediate bias against tattoos by quoting outdated and nonrelevant text.
The polls opened are often intentionally created with bais as well.

yeah gotta agree. This article does not have a bias that I can see. All other articles have so quickly revealed a bias that I barely got past the second line but this one I read the entire article.

 

[SaintJK]

So what is your verdict m0eseph are you going to get a tattoo?

 

[rrderit]

God is deeper than what most people think. God does not judge us by how we look but by what is inside our heart, our motives. if your motive to have a tattoo is to honor God and help advance His kingdom then how can you offend Him. Will your tattoo lead the people who will see it to sin? If the answer is NO then how can you offend God? One caution though. No matter how good you are at lying but you can never fool God so be sure that you truly understand your motive for doing something such as having a tatto...

 

[blessedmomof5]

So then if it is not permissable( tattoos) cutting of the skin, how many have been circumcised? is that not a cutting of the skin. i think this passage needs to be looked at a little closer, and try to see what He is really saying.
I see it as any cutting of the skin..... not just specific cuttings.

 

[Niffer]

I got my first Tattoo this year, (lilac flowers) on my ankle, it has special meaning to me, and I wanted something I would love, was feminine and hide-able if I needed it to be.
Do I feel guilty? Heck no! I love it.
I believe that there's nothing wrong with tattoos and piercings, as long as the heart in the right place.
Eg. I would wonder why that guy got a huge tattoo on his face, and are working on generation 3 horns - does he feel that he needs attention from others? Is this a cry for someone to notice him? etc.

But as a young woman with several piercings (nose/ears/cartilage) etc - I find them beautiful, as does my husband. And they do make for great witnessing tools - I get questions all the time about my tattoo and piercings, esp when they find out I'm Christian.

The real clincher was my husband, if he had a big problem with me getting pierced or tattooed, I wouldn't do it.
Likewise, if you're living with your folks in their house, you are commanded to respect them and follow their rules.
If that means no tats or piercings - then thats what you do.

Peace,
- Niff