farouk

I was thinking of what 1 Corinthians 1.2-3 says: "Unto the church of God which is at Corinth, to them that are sanctified in Christ Jesus, called to be saints, with all that in every place call upon the name of Jesus Christ our Lord, both their's and our's: 3 Grace be unto you, and peace, from God our Father, and from the Lord Jesus Christ."

@Daniel whalen The Epistles are, like you say, addressed to the church.

Similar to the thought in Philippians 1.6: 'He that hath begun a good work in you will perform it until the day of Jesus Christ'.

The JW New World is not properly a translation.

@Daniel whalen Maybe you've heard the saying that for 18 years olds and onward, it's good to want a particularly tattoo for a year and then if the person still wants it, then make the decision? Because age 18 or thereabouts is indeed the time when first tattoos are so widely gotten. FYI: From my last trip everyone got a scripture tattoo..Some meaningful scriptures. One girl said she was so thankful .. realizing she could relate the tattoo to her life..I had that tattoo planned out for nearly a year (11months) .. Maybe next year when I go back (these trips are going to be regular every 4 or so months trips) I will get another. ..One guy decided last minute but everyone literally spent hours on their phone that day looking up verses and verse tattoos ..They are meaningful to them kmrichard christianforums dot com

Hi @Daniel whalen A good verse to remember also is 1 Cor. 10.32, which refers to three groups of ppl in the world: Jews, Gentiles and the church of God. Inevitably each group will have a rather different outlook.

@Your closest friendnt Re. the discussion also on the other thread, it would make one wonder why so many Christians - like Heather, below - would deliberately receive a cross needled into their dermis if it wasn't even based on something factual, right? ............................. I waited 5 years before getting it. .. Reno also has a lot of tattoo places. Carson City has a few. Most people travel to Reno or Las Vegas for it. .. I have 1 tattoo and I got it in Reno. .. I do have a cross tattoo. heather christianityboard dot com ......................................

That verse in Philippians 1.6 is often overlooked............

The JWs claim that the Lord Jesus was impaled, not crucified. The word cross does definitely occur in Philippians 2.

Hi @bdavidc; I think a safeguard can be when preachers relate to truly autonomous congregations and are not thus excessively reliant on denominational committees and large trust funds from outside the local congregation. Indeed, Paul to the Ephesian elders in Acts 20 seems to be addressing an independent body of responsible preachers and teachers.

Thanks, @bdavidc; some good points there, indeed. It's interesting also that in Isaiah 44.5 the KJV has: "One shall say, I am the Lord's; and another shall call himself by the name of Jacob; and another shall subscribe with his hand unto the Lord..." ESV: "This one will say, ‘I am the Lord's,’ another will call on the name of Jacob, and another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord's,..." NASB: "This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’; And that one will call on the name of Jacob; And another will write on his hand, ‘Belonging to the Lord,’ ..." CSB: 'This one will say, ‘I am the Lord’s’; another will use the name of Jacob; still another will write on his hand, ‘The Lord’s,’ and take on the name of Israel.” (I have restricted the quotations to versions which are more formal.) It has been commented: 'Here a tattoo appears to be allowable as a sign of submission, not to a human master but to God.' (biblestudytools dot org) I guess Christians will likely have various personal perspectives on this, right?

@Daniel whalen Sounds like he was a sort of 'full service' artist, and not only among military personnel....

@bdavidc Thanks for participating in the poll vote. (You can see how relevant such a poll can be these days.)

Thanks to all who voted so far in the poll. If you have not yet voted in the poll, please vote now.

Hi @Daniel whalen So were the parlors you frequented in Germany mainly used by Germans? or was it an artist who worked round military bases? (Often parlors are part of a huge 'camp following' around a military base or port.)