Wanting a Tattoo

[Exley]

I've wanted a tattoo for quite sometime now but never could really rest on the design I wanted that would stay with me forever, until now.

Now that I have what I want and know that I'll be comfortable with it my only hang up is that I've been unsure of for a while is if it were a sin or against Christ to get a tattoo permanently on my body.

I've done some research on the topic but all that I do leaves me just about as confused if not more so on what the answer to my question is.

I am also stopped a lot by the line in Lev. 19:28 which reads "You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD."

I would appreciate anyone's input on the topic. The tattoo I want is simple and small and would be placed on my ankle where unless I wear shorts (which is rare) it will really never be seen by too much of anyone else. I want the Japanese Kanji symbol for nothing. It's a personal note to myself to remind myself daily and in different situations and scenarios to remain humble, keep my humility in tact and to remind myself that everything I do is not really my own doing but it's God working through me. And that without him, I am nothing.

 

[fm107]

Hi Sister, I urge you not to get a tattoo. You don't need a tattoo to remind you to be humble. That is simply an excuse every Christian uses. As you said, it will be out of sight, if it's out of sight how will it remind you to stay humble? Why are you trying to justify getting one by saying it will be out of sight? Sounds like your hiding something because you know deep down it is wrong. I'm not saying this to be bad to you, I'm just asking these questions to you so that you will ask yourself, why am I really doing this? Satan is very subtle and will make things seem ok to do in your mind but really it's a trick. I hope you will really think about this.

I hope this helps you:

1 Corinthians 6:19-20
Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; you were bought at a price. Therefore honor God with your body.

I wouldn't go putting ink upon the wall of the temple (the skin). If we were to put ink on any other wall, wouldn't that be classed as graffiti?

The fact is our bodies do not belong to us, they belong to Christ who bought them with his own blood. You do not have permission to go any put this stamp on your body.

Are you honouring God by doing this or dishonouring him? Let's think about it. If I were to sculpt a statue and someone came and painted on it, I would be very angry and disappointed. My hard work, dedication and care, ruined because someone else thought their "artwork" was better. Do you think your "artwork" is better than Gods? Isn't what God makes good? Can man improve God's design? No, so leave your body how God intended it to be. This goes for piercing and dying of the hair too. God has made us the way he wanted us to be.

Genesis 1:31
God saw all that he had made, and it was very good.

Psalm 139:13
For you created my inmost being; you knit me together in my mother's womb.

I don't want to offend God by putting a tattoo over his design. I will simply thank God for designing me with good health and a nice body.

Please pray about it sister. Again, I don't want to come across like I'm being bad to you. Just question your own reasoning.

With love, your brother in Christ.

 

[citizenthom]

Personally I find only one Scriptural idea that speaks against tattoos: that Christians should be "above reproach" with regard to worldly standards, that the world would see us as upright even beyond the restrictions of Scripture. So you have to ask yourself: will society see you as "above reproach" despite your tattoo? With visible tattoos the answer is, as far as I can tell, still "no": even foot tattoos and little things like that have a pretty bad rap with some older generations and should still be avoided. And tattoos that only show incidentally, like "tramp stamps," are still seen as trashy even in our own generation.

With tattoos you keep covered? It's a grey area, but practical considerations still counsel against it. Bodies change shape, which means your tattoo will too. Fading will diminish its appearance--and yours--and the possibility of mistakes by the artist is pretty horrifying. And removal is extremely expensive and painful and in many cases leaves bad scarring.

All in all I think a tattoo is a definitive "no."

 

[LWB]

Before you get a tattoo, here is something you should be aware of. I've seen what becomes of tattoos, and it isn't pretty.

Over time, tattoos lose their definition. At the end of a person's life, they are a faded smudge of ill-defined ink, and quite frankly look ugly. The skin cells that initially contain the ink die, so over time the ink becomes displaced from its original location.

So although the actual ink is permanent, the crisp state of a fresh tattoo is temporary. You are only going to have a few years where it is at its best, and by the time you are elderly, it will look downright disgusting. If the design you choose isn't too intricate, it might be repairable to some degree, or be incorporated into a new tattoo.

On a side note, I wonder if the resurrected body will retain tattoos? Christ retained the wounds of his passion. Could a tattoo someone gets in their twenties still have significance a million billion years into the future?

 

[Bella Vita]

This is a highly debated topic among Christians....

Tattoo work has come a long way along with the ink they use now it lasts forever. My next door neighbor owns a tattoo shop and is one of the strongest most awesome Christians I know. I want a tattoo also it is about what you put on your body that matters. I want one for my husband and I as well as my children some day. As long as you aren't getting satanic whatever on your skin that is what matters. At least that is my beliefs on it.

good luck =]

 

[citizenthom]

Tattoo work has come a long way along with the ink they use now it lasts forever.

That is FAR from universal. Check your sources before you ink,

 

[Terene]

I've wanted a tattoo for quite sometime now but never could really rest on the design I wanted that would stay with me forever, until now.

Now that I have what I want and know that I'll be comfortable with it my only hang up is that I've been unsure of for a while is if it were a sin or against Christ to get a tattoo permanently on my body.

I've done some research on the topic but all that I do leaves me just about as confused if not more so on what the answer to my question is.

I am also stopped a lot by the line in Lev. 19:28 which reads "You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD."

I would appreciate anyone's input on the topic. The tattoo I want is simple and small and would be placed on my ankle where unless I wear shorts (which is rare) it will really never be seen by too much of anyone else. I want the Japanese Kanji symbol for nothing. It's a personal note to myself to remind myself daily and in different situations and scenarios to remain humble, keep my humility in tact and to remind myself that everything I do is not really my own doing but it's God working through me. And that without him, I am nothing.

Dear sister,

You yourselves have found God's answer to your desire to have a tattoo. It IS against God's commands and ought NOT to be done. Let us be found in devotion to God and to Christ rather than pursuing our own desires that go against His commands. May our God bless you much!

 

[Terene]

This is a highly debated topic among Christians....

Tattoo work has come a long way along with the ink they use now it lasts forever. My next door neighbor owns a tattoo shop and is one of the strongest most awesome Christians I know. I want a tattoo also it is about what you put on your body that matters. I want one for my husband and I as well as my children some day. As long as you aren't getting satanic whatever on your skin that is what matters. At least that is my beliefs on it.

good luck =]

Again, I see a post condoning something clearly against God's commands. Where is your obedience and your devotion to God and Christ who bought you with His own blood? REPENT and stop this wickedness from going on!

 

[Bella Vita]

That is FAR from universal. Check your sources before you ink,

People should do research before they get a tattoo from the ink to the artist doing the work to the shop they are in.... that is common sense and I don't know about you but any ink on my body is going to be the best especially if it is going to be there forever

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

I don't know if it is sin or not, I personally don't think it is. But I do not think it is something the Lord likes or approves of. Our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit and doing something to the Lord's temple in this way could pose as a stumbling block to a weaker brother or sister in Christ. In the Christian life, if you not sure about something, it's best to stay away.

 

[Bella Vita]

Again, I see a post condoning something clearly against God's commands. Where is your obedience and your devotion to God and Christ who bought you with His own blood? REPENT and stop this wickedness from going on!

You are so overly dramatic it's not even funny I don't like you much...

Anyways I don't see anything wrong with having tattoos that is in the OT, and isn't even relevant to today. Lots of Christians have tattoos it doesn't make them less of a Christian as long as what they are getting isn't evil. My husband has 2 tattoos he is still a Christian with a heart that is on fire for God. Sorry but I refuse to believe that God cares about out personal appearance so much that he is going to send us to hell over a tattoo. He cares about our heart and our relationship with him. I know many many Christians who have tattoos they are some of the strongest Christians I know and again I'm sorry but they are not going to hell for having scripture on their body, or a cross, or a loved one who passed that is just ridiculous.

we are going to have to agree to disagree on this one sorry

 

[arj1981]

Again, I see a post condoning something clearly against God's commands. Where is your obedience and your devotion to God and Christ who bought you with His own blood? REPENT and stop this wickedness from going on!

I wouldn't get a tattoo bc of what it says in scripture. I fear God way to much for all of that.

 

[Terene]

You are so overly dramatic it's not even funny I don't like you much...

Anyways I don't see anything wrong with having tattoos that is in the OT, and isn't even relevant to today. Lots of Christians have tattoos it doesn't make them less of a Christian as long as what they are getting isn't evil. My husband has 2 tattoos he is still a Christian with a heart that is on fire for God. Sorry but I refuse to believe that God cares about out personal appearance so much that he is going to send us to hell over a tattoo. He cares about our heart and our relationship with him. I know many many Christians who have tattoos they are some of the strongest Christians I know and again I'm sorry but they are not going to hell for having scripture on their body, or a cross, or a loved one who passed that is just ridiculous.

we are going to have to agree to disagree on this one sorry

It seems clear to me that you are no longer able to hear the truth and neither do you want to obey the truth. I have indeed spoken in vain to you if you still hold such opinion. I don't mind if you dislike me, but if you truly do not obey the truth, you prove by your deeds that you don't love God either.

You say you have a good standing with God, then show me your fruits that you obey Him. If you do not obey Him, all you say is false and will not justify what you are doing. The OP has clearly pointed out a verse that involves God's commands to His chosen people (at that time Israel) that they are NOT to have tattoo on their bodies. If you say that these commands do not apply to us, you are also saying that those who believe in Christ are not God's chosen people, which is clearly false because in the New Testament, those who have faith in Christ ARE God's chosen, just like Israel was God's chosen in the Old Testament.

God's commandments are applicable to His chosen people, be it in the OT or NT. This has not changed. You have denied the very truth of the Word and are now walking in darkness.

 

[arj1981]

Terene, I think a lot of that is passive aggressive retaliation stemming from the other debate. Please don't take it personal. U know ur stuff. U know what I say, don't hate.

 

[Bella Vita]

I wouldn't get a tattoo bc of what it says in scripture. I fear God way to much for all of that.

In Leviticus, God was talking to His people, telling them not to tattoo as a way of separating them from the larger culture. The entire chapter is a filled with moral and ceremonial laws. Everything from shaving around your head to when you can eat fruit is mentioned in that list of being set apart. The theme is to live a lifestyle of holiness that honors God. Tattoos and piercings were used to mark the dead for pagan burial. Christians need to consider their motivation for wanting a tattoo. If the motivation to get a tattoo is to conform to this world and fit in better, bring attention to self versus glorify God, disobey parents and cause the people around them to stumble, then it is not a good idea. For those who are radically saved and new in Christ, the motivation may be to witness to those who are lost. The bottom line is you have to judge your heart against the Word. God knows your heart and your motives.

In the New Testament, Jesus always brought the issue of the law down to a matter of the heart. As Paul says in I Corinthians 6:12, “I am allowed to do anything"—but not everything is good for you.” The point then isn’t should we or shouldn’t we, but what is in the heart.

Bottom line, quoting a verse in Leviticus does not cut it because that same chapter talks about eating fruit in only the fifth year, cutting the edges of a beard, shaving your hair, etc. These verses are meant to separate God’s people from pagan worship. Review the medical issues involved, such as the permanency of the decision (removal is possible, but expensive, painful, and does not always work). Ask would you want this years from now, if it would be an issue in getting the job you want, and what is motivating the decision. Getting a tattoo is one of many acts that need clear a discussion of heart issues, not legalism.

 

[Terene]

I wouldn't get a tattoo bc of what it says in scripture. I fear God way to much for all of that.

Abide in His Word, dear sister, and do not stray into the way of errors like some here have. It is good to have Godly fear so that we don't become partakers of evil. May our God bless you much!

 

[Incariol]

Perhaps we should all take a deep breath?

 

[SoldierOfSoul]

Perhaps we should all take a deep breath?

"But avoid foolish questions, and genealogies, and contentions, and strivings about the law; for they are unprofitable and vain." (Titus 3:9)

 

[arj1981]

Bella, Terene's correct. Based off everything in this thread and in ur modeling thread, u just have a poor understanding of scripture. That's y I don't want to get into it with u. Get urself together, Sister. Don't hate.

Get urself together, Sister. Don't hate.

Don't try to knock down another Sista that's on her stuff just bc she's beautiful. That's what it means to be an exemplary Christian. One that is above average. In ur other thread, u were striving for that at the beginning. Not so much anymore.

 

[Terene]

In Leviticus, God was talking to His people, telling them not to tattoo as a way of separating them from the larger culture. The entire chapter is a filled with moral and ceremonial laws. Everything from shaving around your head to when you can eat fruit is mentioned in that list of being set apart. The theme is to live a lifestyle of holiness that honors God. Tattoos and piercings were used to mark the dead for pagan burial. Christians need to consider their motivation for wanting a tattoo. If the motivation to get a tattoo is to conform to this world and fit in better, bring attention to self versus glorify God, disobey parents and cause the people around them to stumble, then it is not a good idea. For those who are radically saved and new in Christ, the motivation may be to witness to those who are lost. The bottom line is you have to judge your heart against the Word. God knows your heart and your motives.

In the New Testament, Jesus always brought the issue of the law down to a matter of the heart. As Paul says in I Corinthians 6:12, “I am allowed to do anything"—but not everything is good for you.” The point then isn’t should we or shouldn’t we, but what is in the heart.

Bottom line, quoting a verse in Leviticus does not cut it because that same chapter talks about eating fruit in only the fifth year, cutting the edges of a beard, shaving your hair, etc. These verses are meant to separate God’s people from pagan worship. Review the medical issues involved, such as the permanency of the decision (removal is possible, but expensive, painful, and does not always work). Ask would you want this years from now, if it would be an issue in getting the job you want, and what is motivating the decision. Getting a tattoo is one of many acts that need clear a discussion of heart issues, not legalism.

It is dangerous to misapply Scripture to refute God's commands. You are totally wrong and misunderstanding what Paul is saying:

“I have the right to do anything,” you say—but not everything is beneficial. “I have the right to do anything”—but I will not be mastered by anything. You say, “Food for the stomach and the stomach for food, and God will destroy them both.” The body, however, is not meant for sexual immorality but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body. By his power God raised the Lord from the dead, and he will raise us also. Do you not know that your bodies are members of Christ himself? Shall I then take the members of Christ and unite them with a prostitute? Never!

Paul, in his admonishment towards the church, is quoting what the church people are saying. The church people say they have a right to do anything, but Paul says not everything is beneficial. He is right in this because indeed, many things are not beneficial to our spiritual health and standing with God. It is the church people demanding their right to do anything, NOT PAUL.

I hope that the rest will not be drawn into this grave error to think that Paul says we can indeed do anything against God's commands as long as our heart is right. This in itself is a contradiction because if we do go against God's commands, OUR HEARTS ARE NOT RIGHT AND WE ARE IN REBELLION AGAINST GOD.