The Bible forbids the tattoos!

[MorningGlory]

If you think that cutting or marking your body is good for your living testimony, pleasing to God, or somehow glorifying to God - go do it. Put a bone in your nose while you're at it.

[MorningGlory]

This is an absolutely lame argument......there is no commandment from the Lord concerning tattoos, not one word. Personally, I would never get one because they don't reflect who I am (AND I'm a complete coward when it comes to needles) but they are NOT forbidden by God. I believe He is more concerned with the heart and soul than the cosmetic artifices of His creations.

Tattoos are not mentioned specifically, what we are trying to convey here is that we should not desecrate our bodies that are supposed to be temples for Christ to dwell in.

I don't believe that tattoos are desecration at all; they are cosmetic in nature and don't alter who a person is.....to the Lord. He told us not to murder, lie, commit adultery, bear false witness, covet others possessions, dishonor our parents, worship other 'gods' and three more things which slip my mind right now ( ) but He did NOT command us not to get tattoos.

[winsomebulldog]

The scriptural basis for forbidding tattoos aside (I commented on that earlier), where does the notion that only spiritually bankrupt people would get a tattoo come from? Oh, I've seen some pretty bad skin art, even on the bodies of some who professed to be Christians. For the most part, the offensive tattoos that I have seen on the bodies of Christians were things they acquired BEFORE they were saved. Now, I know some would have them removed. But I know others who use them as part of their testimony, meaning it is an indication of where they were before they were saved and just how far God has brought them since. Seriously, some of the most powerful testimonies I have ever heard came from people who'd been what us "good" Christians would consider the very dregs of society, yet had been redeemed by the Lord and now serve Him faithfully. I'm not saying all of them had any tattoos at all, much less tattoos that would be seen as offensive. I'm just saying, that sometimes, despite what has been suggested by some here, tattoos do not directly correlate to a "bad" testimony. Unless, of course, you happen to be the kind of Christian who takes one look at someone else and makes a snap judgment about how "Holy" they are.

I am in no way trying to suggest that the only "good" Christians that have tattoos are those who had them before they were saved. I personally know one young man who recently got a tattoo of a fairly simple cross on his upper arm. Without getting into some kind of list of his "good" qualities, I'll just say that he is a faithful Christian, a young man that displays every good trait that any parent would want from their child. I simply cannot fathom how this tattoo that he chose to get, which represents his faith and trust in Christ, is somehow "defiling" his body.

I've also heard it argued that tattoos are bad because they are somehow indicating that a person is not satisfied with the way God made them, that they are somehow trying to improve upon God's creation. I find this an odd notion. Honestly (and with sincere curiosity) do those of you who believe that apply the same thinking to every single thing that in any way alters our bodies. For example, are you equally offended by women who get their ear lobes pierced? Or, do you object to coloring or perming, or for that matter, even cutting one's hair - since this does, indeed, alter the natural state in which God created us. How about makeup for women? Or what about cosmetic surgery, even in the case of those who have been born with deformities that are surgically reparable?

I have a series of tattoos. They aren't colorful or pretty. In fact, no one would know they were there, if I did not directly point them out. Which I'm not going to be doing, due to their locations. They were given to me by my radiology technicians prior to the start of my treatment for cancer. They are very small dots, no larger than a freckle, used as markers for lining up the lasers for treatment. Am I now defiled? Do the eight or nine tiny dots that are now a permanent part of my skin somehow destroy my testimony or make me "unclean?" I don't think so. And I defy anyone to tell me that they in any way changed my relationship to God.

These are the only tattoos I personally have. They hurt quite enough to keep me from wanting to get something larger. Not to mention the fact that my tastes are so fickle that I'm afraid I'd dislike anything I got within a few weeks or months of getting it.

The point is, I simply do no see any scriptural basis for declaring that all tattoos are against God.

[Guest shiloh357]

The Bible doesn't teach serving God by the tattoos, so tattooing is against the will of God.

Which is a nonargument. The Bible does not talk about alot of things in connection with serving God. That cannot be used to infer that it is forbidden in Scripture.

The restrictino against getting a tattoo was only to the priesthood. It was so that they would not imitate the practice of the priests of teh surrounding nations who would tattoo the image of their pagan gods onto their bodies. It was part of their worship of those gods. The Lord God of Israel did not want to be worshipped in that way.

That is the specific nature of the restriction. If someone gets a butterfly tattoo on their ankle or something, it is not going to hurt their walk with God or cause another person to stumble.

I don't have any tattoos and I personally think they are ugly most of the time, but if a person chooses to get one, it is their business.

On a more practical level, I would advise anyone getting tattoos to use discretion if they are not independently wealthy and are planning on working in a corporate environment as they normally opt for a more conservative look, and in the corporate world, appearance is everything. So keep that in mind before you have a spider's web tattooed around your neck or something. Otherwise, you may find your employment future connected to a mop and bucket.

[winsomebulldog]

On a more practical level, I would advise anyone getting tattoos to use discretion if they are not independently wealthy and are planning on working in a corporate environment as they normally opt for a more conservative look, and in the corporate world, appearance is everything. So keep that in mind before you have a spider's web tattooed around your neck or something. Otherwise, you may find your employment future connected to a mop and bucket.

Good point!

[Fez]

What one does or doesn't do with their body DOES speak to personal testimony, pleasing or displeasing God, and glorifying or humiliating God. There's nothing legalistic about this - it's just reality. If your children want tattoos, I would hope you have an attack of common sense. If not, encourage them to do whatever they want to. After all, it just doesn't matter according to many of you, and it would be legalistic for you to say NO. It's also reality that what your children do or don't do has a reflection on you as parents. Many of you may face this challenge soon. My children have been raised and out on their own for a long time, so I don't have to worry about this any longer. I might add they are tattoo free and hold the same values as my wife and I. Go back to the first sentence. You're on your own, and I have nothing further to say about this except: As Christians, our bodies are the temple of God, and we should treat it as such. I'm really not interested in any arguments, and you have the last word on this.

Well people have proved that from a scriptural basis, the scripture you quoted was out of context.

Secondly, this is Worthy. If you are not interested in arguments I would suggest you don't post

Or at the very least study the subject thoroughly before you do

[ayin jade]

On a more practical level, I would advise anyone getting tattoos to use discretion if they are not independently wealthy and are planning on working in a corporate environment as they normally opt for a more conservative look, and in the corporate world, appearance is everything. So keep that in mind before you have a spider's web tattooed around your neck or something. Otherwise, you may find your employment future connected to a mop and bucket.

There is a controversy in Phoenix at this time. Apparently the police have been told to cover up their tattoos when they work. It is "unprofessional" to their image to have tattoos.

[Guest]

On a more practical level, I would advise anyone getting tattoos to use discretion if they are not independently wealthy and are planning on working in a corporate environment as they normally opt for a more conservative look, and in the corporate world, appearance is everything. So keep that in mind before you have a spider's web tattooed around your neck or something. Otherwise, you may find your employment future connected to a mop and bucket.

Great point! I've got a couple of others, too.

1. It costs a whole lot more to get a tattoo removed than it costs to get one. Our tastes, beliefs, and so forth tend to change as we get older -- and that independently wealthy thing could come in handy.

2. What's that tattoo going to look like in, say, 20 years when the colors fade and things start to sag a bit with the weight of years?

[Gerioke]

Does the New Covenant forbid taking of the tattoos? I believe that forbids, and I give you these verses.

2 Pe 1:

1 ¶ Simon Peter, a servant and legate of Jesus the Messiah,—to those who have obtained equally precious faith with us, through the righteousness of our lord and Redeemer, Jesus the Messiah;—

2 may grace and peace abound to you through the recognition of our lord Jesus the Messiah,

3 as the giver to us of all things that be of the power of god, unto life and the fear of god, through the recognition of him who hath called us unto his own glory and moral excellence:

4 wherein he hath given you very great and precious promises; that by them ye might become partakers of the nature of god, while ye flee from the corruptions of the lusts that are in the world.

The New Testament shows us that how we must serve and believe in God. God has given to us the Holy Spirit as the power and aid that we can understand what the Bible teaches.

If we could believe in God by taking the tattoo, in which is Bible verses or reads the Lord Jesus and so on, so this kind of command should be in the Bible. Tattooing was very common in the world where apostles lived. If the will of God would have been to make "Biblical" tattoos, so God would have said that you must make those kinds of tattoos. However, in the New Testament is not a command to make tattoos. For this reason, I don't believe that it is the will of God to take the tattoos.

Some people have said, for example, that the Bible doesn't speak anything about the bicycle, so you can't use the bicycle. The bicycle is harmless and useful vehicle to move from place to place. Of course you can do good and useful things, although they are not mentioned in the Bible, if they are not against the will of God. Making Bible verses as the tattoo is the question showing the faith, which one has. Riding by bicycle is not showing and living by faith, but ordinary deed. Riding a bicycle and taking a tattoo cannot compare with each other when we understand before mentioned example, and the fact that when it is a question about how we must believe in God, so it must be found in the Bible. Riding by bicycle is not a matter of faith, but just an ordinary everyday thing.

The Bible teaches us that serving of God is not the outward issue, but inward. Believer testimony and faith must be the inward issue by the Holy Spirit accordance with the word of God. God said by the prophet Jeremiah that in the New Covenant, God puts His law to inwards parts and writes His law to the hearts of His people. Biblical faith must be written to inner man to his heart and not outwardly to his skin.

Ro 10:10 For with the heart man believeth unto righteousness; and with the mouth confession is made unto salvation.

The Bible doesn't teach serving God by the tattoos, so tattooing is against the will of God.

The whole article is here: http://koti.phnet.fi...andtattoos.html

Yet another thread dedicated to putting people into bondage. Why don't we find the uplifting things that the bible says about sinners. After all, we're all sinners.

[glennagail]

Basically, what I've always beleived is that when we recieve Jesus Christ, our bodies become a temple for Him to live in, and we should not desecrate or defile it with markings and tattoos.

You may be right, Shiloh, but there is no Scripture forbidding tattoos.

True, but is there scripture commanding us not to defile our bodies in general?

I thinkl there is but right now I can't think of it off the top of my head. The problem is that many people who have tattoos do not think of them as a thing that defiles the body. They see them as a thing of beauty. There are christian I know with crosses or things like that who believe they are express thier faith. No different than wearing a tshirt that says I love Jesus. I have no desire to have a tattoos I just think that there are more important things in our walk that we need to look at.