Tattoos-What do ya think?

[Jack Shephard]

Originally Posted by Sept5SavedTeen

I don't know if someone brought this up, but that verse in Leviticus has 2 commands, no cuttings on the body for the dead or making prints on the body. I'd be interested to see if the "print" making referred to here had some pagan connotation in mourning for the dead. Does this mean you can't get a tatoo that says "Grandpa" when your Grandpa dies? I don't know. It would seem that we're not bound by the letter of the law, but when we take into account the principle of caring for the body, and glorifying GOD in our bodies, it seems that tattooes post-conversion are not wise (notice I didn't say damnable here, because I don't know that for sure), but it would seem to be something that a Christian ought not do.

-Bro. Alex

Some one did bring it up and infact more than one someone did. It is contextual mistake. If you read that whole chapter you will see it says to do things that are impossible or doesn't have a bearing on ones salvation. Like make sure the vessels for the dry goods and liquids are accurate on their measurments, etc. So pulling out that verse alone is not even close to a valid argument.

[RandyWayne]

Originally Posted by Esther

I think tattoos are stupid and most wish they didn't have them in later years.

JMO

I disagree with the first part, but agree with the 2nd. I am not against them and would happily get one myself IF I ever found that picture/symbol that jumped out at me.

In this regards I believe the only tattoos that have ANY chance of having lasting meaning would be a memorial one -for a departed loved one.

As far as just getting one because it is "pretty", imagine finding the perfect paint color for your living room, kitchen, bedroom, etc.... Now imagine being told as your applying it, that you will be forced to keep this for the next 40-50 years. I don't think there is ANY paint color or pattern that has THAT sort of staying power.

[theoldpaths]

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

1Co 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

We are the temple of God. What example do we have in the OT concerning the outward appearance of the temple of God? Was the outside ostentatious? Where was the gold? On the inside. The outside was covered with badger skins. Perhaps that is why Paul taught against costly apparel.

We should not defile the temple and what defiles us?...

Mat 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
Mat 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Some of those things are also listed in...

Gal 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal 5:20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Gal 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Are tatoos idols? Are they images that the world highly esteems?

Luk 16:15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

2Co 3:2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:
2Co 3:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

We are living epistles known and read of all men, not because of tatoos but because we are born again of the water and of the Spirit and live in loving obedience to the word of God and those who have the rule over us.

It is our conversation - lifestyle - that should speak to the world, not tatoos, regardless of what they say.

Tatoos are the result of pride and/or ostentation. It is vain. It is a work of the flesh.

1Pe 1:15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
1Pe 1:16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

I wonder if Satan's outward adorning had anything to do with him being lifted up?

Eze 28:13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

[Michael Phelps]

Originally Posted by theoldpaths

1Co 3:16 Know ye not that ye are the temple of God, and that the Spirit of God dwelleth in you?

1Co 3:17 If any man defile the temple of God, him shall God destroy; for the temple of God is holy, which temple ye are.

2Co 6:16 And what agreement hath the temple of God with idols? for ye are the temple of the living God; as God hath said, I will dwell in them, and walk in them; and I will be their God, and they shall be my people.

We are the temple of God. What example do we have in the OT concerning the outward appearance of the temple of God? Was the outside ostentatious? Where was the gold? On the inside. The outside was covered with badger skins. Perhaps that is why Paul taught against costly apparel.

We should not defile the temple and what defiles us?...

Mat 15:18 But those things which proceed out of the mouth come forth from the heart; and they defile the man.
Mat 15:19 For out of the heart proceed evil thoughts, murders, adulteries, fornications, thefts, false witness, blasphemies:
Mat 15:20 These are the things which defile a man: but to eat with unwashen hands defileth not a man.

Some of those things are also listed in...

Gal 5:19 Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness,
Gal 5:20 Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies,
Gal 5:21 Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God.

Are tatoos idols? Are they images that the world highly esteems?

Luk 16:15 And he said unto them, Ye are they which justify yourselves before men; but God knoweth your hearts: for that which is highly esteemed among men is abomination in the sight of God.

2Co 3:2 Ye are our epistle written in our hearts, known and read of all men:
2Co 3:3 Forasmuch as ye are manifestly declared to be the epistle of Christ ministered by us, written not with ink, but with the Spirit of the living God; not in tables of stone, but in fleshy tables of the heart.

We are living epistles known and read of all men, not because of tatoos but because we are born again of the water and of the Spirit and live in loving obedience to the word of God and those who have the rule over us.

It is our conversation - lifestyle - that should speak to the world, not tatoos, regardless of what they say.

Tatoos are the result of pride and/or ostentation. It is vain. It is a work of the flesh.

1Pe 1:15 But as he which hath called you is holy, so be ye holy in all manner of conversation;
1Pe 1:16 Because it is written, Be ye holy; for I am holy.

2Pe 3:11 Seeing then that all these things shall be dissolved, what manner of persons ought ye to be in all holy conversation and godliness,

Heb 12:14 Follow peace with all men, and holiness, without which no man shall see the Lord:

I wonder if Satan's outward adorning had anything to do with him being lifted up?

Eze 28:13 Thou hast been in Eden the garden of God; every precious stone was thy covering, the sardius, topaz, and the diamond, the beryl, the onyx, and the jasper, the sapphire, the emerald, and the carbuncle, and gold: the workmanship of thy tabrets and of thy pipes was prepared in thee in the day that thou wast created.

Eze 28:17 Thine heart was lifted up because of thy beauty, thou hast corrupted thy wisdom by reason of thy brightness: I will cast thee to the ground, I will lay thee before kings, that they may behold thee.

Impressive scripture presentation, but none of them deal with tattoos.

[Tim Rutledge]

The Book says to walk after the Spirit

It says... be ye Full of the Spirit

If these 2 scriptures are fully adhered to..

I'm sure they would lead you to get a tattoo.

No doubt about it. Thus saith.. the flesh.

[OP_Carl]

Originally Posted by Tim Rutledge

Leviticus 19:28: Ye shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I am the LORD.

Originally Posted by JTULLOCK

My point being is if you read that entire chapter it gives directives on certain things. Like if you sleep with another mans women you MUST bring a ram and sacrifice it as you walk in the front door. Also says don't eat meat unless it has been drained of ALL blood (stay away from that Ribeye). It also says not to trim your beards and to make sure all the containers for dry goods and liquids are accurate. So to pull one verse out and say....bingo can't tattoo oneself you must also take ALL of these. It is the OT it was under the law. Context is key and just pulling one verse out to try and prove the point is an inaccurate use of scripture.

Originally Posted by A_PoMo

who are you to decide what is practical? did the hebrews have that choice?
the law is dead, gone, over, kaput. the only parts of the law that are carried into the new covenant are the ones re-stated in the nt. to insist otherwise is to make the mistake that those the books of galatians and hebrews did. the nt authors compared that to returning to your vomit and said it is anti-christ.

Originally Posted by Jeremy

I actually love tattoos and always have. I think it is an interesting medium of expression, and it is always interesting to see what different things mean to various people. ...

I personally never got one, because of the Leviticus verse about marking or cutting yourself, but it was mostly to conform to church standard as I never really felt that verse had any modern contextual application. The reasons have already been debated, so I won't go into those, but I have done a good deal of study on the issue, and there is no way people can honestly use the bible to condemn a person for getting a tattoo.

You can argue the wisdom of such a decision, as you could with any personal choices people make, but there is no Biblical reason a Christian can not have a tattoo....

Originally Posted by Michael Phelps

Impressive scripture presentation, but none of them deal with tattoos.

People can say that the law was abolished. That's true. People can say there is no specific New Testament prohibition about tattoos. That's true. People can say that we have liberty in Christ. That is also true.

But what you cannot say is that the God of the Old Testament was in favor of them.

Did God's personality change at the start of the New Testament?
The things that please and displease God have not changed, as God does not change.

I struggle to understand the mindset of these lawyers of the New Testament. If something appeals to their flesh, they scour the New Testament (and only the New Testament) to make sure it isn't prohibited there, and then do it. Following the letter of the law, but not the spirit, as God's spirit is ALSO defined by the Old Testament. The New Testament can only be understood from the basis of the Old.

I also struggle to understand all the justifications. People are drawn by their flesh to try all the latest worldly (that's carnal and/or evil) trends. Rather than attempt to draw a bead on God's spirit about the topic from the Word and from prayer, they check the NT for specific mention, and then Just Do It! Taking the whole of scripture, how does one derive the principle of giving God our very least?

I don't understand the mindset of wanting to be as much like the world as possible without violating specific NT "rules." We are SPECIFICALLY called to come out of the world and live separate from it.

[Tim Rutledge]

Originally Posted by OP_Carl

I don't understand the mindset of wanting to be as much like the world as possible without violating specific NT "rules." We are SPECIFICALLY called to come out of the world and live separate from it.

I agree. My post was TIC.

[Michael Phelps]

Originally Posted by OP_Carl

People can say that the law was abolished. That's true. People can say there is no specific New Testament prohibition about tattoos. That's true. People can say that we have liberty in Christ. That is also true.

But what you cannot say is that the God of the Old Testament was in favor of them.

Did God's personality change at the start of the New Testament?
The things that please and displease God have not changed, as God does not change.

I struggle to understand the mindset of these lawyers of the New Testament. If something appeals to their flesh, they scour the New Testament (and only the New Testament) to make sure it isn't prohibited there, and then do it. Following the letter of the law, but not the spirit, as God's spirit is ALSO defined by the Old Testament. The New Testament can only be understood from the basis of the Old.

I also struggle to understand all the justifications. People are drawn by their flesh to try all the latest worldly (that's carnal and/or evil) trends. Rather than attempt to draw a bead on God's spirit about the topic from the Word and from prayer, they check the NT for specific mention, and then Just Do It! Taking the whole of scripture, how does one derive the principle of giving God our very least?

I don't understand the mindset of wanting to be as much like the world as possible without violating specific NT "rules." We are SPECIFICALLY called to come out of the world and live separate from it.

I do not argue that point of whether or not God was in favor of them.

God also gave very specific dietary laws in the Old Testament, but how many Christians adhere to them? Why is overeating accepted and even joked about in the ranks of Apostolics, yet other things that "defile the temple" are made into mortal sins? I heard on preacher say, "The Bible says we're the temple of the Holy Ghost, and I'm building a cathedral!" And the congregation laughed!

Wonder how much they would have laughed if the preacher had joked about getting a tattoo?

Poor eating habits and lack of exercise will destroy the temple much more quickly than a tattoo on someone's arm.

I have always contended that our inconsistencies create more distrust than anything else.

People don't mind "standards" that are consistent and make sense, even if there is no specific scripture. What causes people to scratch their heads is when we wink at some things, and excuse worse things.

[Truthseeker]

Unbelievable folks asking about getting a tattoo.

[Michael Phelps]

Originally Posted by Truthseeker

Unbelievable folks asking about getting a tattoo.

So you've said.

Now, why do YOU think it's wrong to have a tattoo?