What do you think of Christians getting tattoos?

[rethinknow]

I was browsing Facebook the other day and noticed a church I follow post an article about a tattoo artist giving airbrushed tattoos to kids sick at a hospital. I think it was a cool idea... Until I read the comments. People were flipping out. Saying how it was a sin, and we should be like the world, etc... 

I'm a Christian, I have tattoos. In fact each of them represent a part of my walk with God. What do you think? Should Christians support tattoos? Does it matter? 

[FresnoJoe]

The Ink

Jesus answered and said unto him, Verily, verily, I say unto thee, Except a man be born again, he cannot see the kingdom of God. John 3:3

Is On The

It is the spirit that quickeneth; the flesh profiteth nothing: the words that I speak unto you, they are spirit, and they are life. John 6:63

Birth Certificate

But as many as received him, to them gave he power to become the sons of God, even to them that believe on his name:
Which were born, not of blood, nor of the will of the flesh, nor of the will of man, but of God.
And the Word was made flesh, and dwelt among us, (and we beheld his glory, the glory as of the only begotten of the Father,) full of grace and truth. John 1:12-14

As I See

Thy words were found, and I did eat them; and thy word was unto me the joy and rejoicing of mine heart: for I am called by thy name, O LORD God of hosts. Jeremiah 15:16

It

Him that overcometh will I make a pillar in the temple of my God, and he shall go no more out: and I will write upon him the name of my God, and the name of the city of my God, which is new Jerusalem, which cometh down out of heaven from my God: and I will write upon him my new name. Revelation 3:12

Love, Your Brother Joe

[missmuffet]

Welcome to Worthy

The NT really does not address if a believer should get a tattoo. If you go by the OT then you are being legalistic. 1 Corinthians 10:31 we need to take a look at this verse. A Christian should pray before getting a tattoo and wait for God's answer. Is it necessary? Why?. Of course it would be better to get a cross or a Christian theme rather than a flaming skeleton.

[kwikphilly]

Blessings rethinknow,,,,,,

        This is the "Seekers Lounge",,,,,,you do say you are a Christian so after you h ave the minimum required posts you will have access to post this in an appropriate forum where you can get faster replies,,,,,here,all replies need moderator approval before they can be posted as this vis the place open for guests,unbelievers & non-Christians who are "seeking",,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,

           I have tattoos also,,,,,,,,,,,,,,I'm FREE in Christ,was never Jewish & am not under the law.................would I get a tattoo now,no,,,,,,,not too smart with all the health hazards it can impose,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,                        With love-in Christ,Kwik

[angels4u]

7 hours ago, rethinknow said:

I was browsing Facebook the other day and noticed a church I follow post an article about a tattoo artist giving airbrushed tattoos to kids sick at a hospital. I think it was a cool idea... Until I read the comments. People were flipping out. Saying how it was a sin, and we should be like the world, etc... 

I'm a Christian, I have tattoos. In fact each of them represent a part of my walk with God. What do you think? Should Christians support tattoos? Does it matter? 

 

Hello Rethink, I forget where it is on Worthy but there is a thread where you can find a lot of replies for this topic ,now and then those questions pop up:)

Hope that helps?

[woundeddog]

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

[GoldenEagle]

7 hours ago, rethinknow said:

I was browsing Facebook the other day and noticed a church I follow post an article about a tattoo artist giving airbrushed tattoos to kids sick at a hospital. I think it was a cool idea... Until I read the comments. People were flipping out. Saying how it was a sin, and we should be like the world, etc... 

I'm a Christian, I have tattoos. In fact each of them represent a part of my walk with God. What do you think? Should Christians support tattoos? Does it matter? 

Hi Rethinkknow! Welcome to the forums.

Some refer to Rev. 19:16 as an example of Jesus possibly having a tattoo on His thigh, “King of kings and Lord of lords.” Some people ask is getting a tattoo a sin? The question is not necessarily “is getting a tattoo a sin?” The question is more “is getting a tattoo a good and necessary thing to do?” 1 Cor. 10:23 declares, “Everything is permissible – but not everything is beneficial. Everything is permissible – but not everything is constructive.” Christian tattoos may be “permissible,” but are they beneficial and constructive?

In 1 Cor. 9:22-23, Paul exclaims, “I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. I do all this for the sake of the gospel.” Becoming all things to save some is perhaps the only good possible reason for getting a Christian tattoo. If having a tattoo genuinely opens doors for evangelism that would otherwise be closed, getting Christian tattoos would likely “qualify” under Paul’s “becoming all things” qualification. At the same time, it is frankly difficult to envision a scenario in which having a tattoo would enable a greater possibility of evangelism. If a person will not listen to you due to a lack of a tattoo, it is highly unlikely that such a person would genuinely listen due to the presence of a tattoo.

This got a bit long so I'm going to post a second post on this topic.

God bless,
GE

[GoldenEagle]

Further, this has been a topic of discussion with my wife lately. I think of these 6 M's when thinking about or discussing with people about getting tattoo's:

Modification - the Bible doesn't explicitly forbid tattoos. Some people do this to look more like animals which I find very strange. Our bodies are God's temple (see 1 Cor. 6:19-20)

Motive - why are you wanting or do you have a tattoo? Our primary goal should be to glorify God (See 1 Cor. 10:31)

Message - what are you trying to say with your tattoo? Also keep in mind they are nearly permanent and will be with you for the remainder of your life.

Marketability - will employers offer you employment based on where you have or want to get a tattoo? Could have ink hurt your chances for gainful employment and promotions?

Maybe according to Salary.com:

The biggest takeaways from our survey include a whopping 76% of respondents feel tattoos and piercings hurt an applicant’s chances of being hired during a job interview. And more than one-third – 39% of those surveyed – believe employees with tattoos and piercings reflect poorly on their employers. Furthermore, 42% feel visible tattoos are always inappropriate at work, with 55% reporting the same thing about body piercings.

Fortunately, only 4% of those with tattoos and piercings report having faced actual discrimination because of their ink and body art.

Money - how much will your tattoo cost or are you putting this on a credit card? Do you have enough to cover your bills? A typical tattoo in the USA costs between $80 to $100 an hour. Few shops work for less than $40 an hour. We are to be good stewards of what God has entrusted to us.

Medical concerns - There have been studies including those done by Mayo Clinic that side effects of tattoos can include allergic reactions, skin infections, other infections, contracting blood borne diseases, and on rare occasions complications with MRI scans.

 

As in all things, we should pray for God to give us wisdom (See James 1:5) and we should attempt to give others grace. Both those who frown on tattoos and those who promote them. Is it a salvation issue? No. Is it an essential doctrine to the faith? No. It's a non-essential not a non-negotiable. I have many friends on both side of the fence on this issue.

I personally do not find them attractive.

As Millennial's and Generation X become managers in the workplace perhaps the stigma about tattoos will change in the workplace. I imagine the same thing will happen as the shift in leadership in Church is affected by generational shifts as well. I think where you live also is a big factor.

God bless,
GE

[angels4u]

3 minutes ago, GoldenEagle said:

Further, this has been a topic of discussion with my wife lately. I think of these 6 M's when thinking about or discussing with people about getting tattoo's:

Modification - the Bible doesn't explicitly forbid tattoos. Some people do this to look more like animals which I find very strange. Our bodies are God's temple (see 1 Cor. 6:19-20)

Motive - why are you wanting or do you have a tattoo? Our primary goal should be to glorify God (See 1 Cor. 10:31)

Message - what are you trying to say with your tattoo? Also keep in mind they are nearly permanent and will be with you for the remainder of your life.

Marketability - will employers offer you employment based on where you have or want to get a tattoo? Could have ink hurt your chances for gainful employment and promotions?

Maybe according to Salary.com:

The biggest takeaways from our survey include a whopping 76% of respondents feel tattoos and piercings hurt an applicant’s chances of being hired during a job interview. And more than one-third – 39% of those surveyed – believe employees with tattoos and piercings reflect poorly on their employers. Furthermore, 42% feel visible tattoos are always inappropriate at work, with 55% reporting the same thing about body piercings.

Fortunately, only 4% of those with tattoos and piercings report having faced actual discrimination because of their ink and body art.

Money - how much will your tattoo cost or are you putting this on a credit card? Do you have enough to cover your bills? A typical tattoo in the USA costs between $80 to $100 an hour. Few shops work for less than $40 an hour. We are to be good stewards of what God has entrusted to us.

Medical concerns - There have been studies including those done by Mayo Clinic that side effects of tattoos can include allergic reactions, skin infections, other infections, contracting blood borne diseases, and on rare occasions complications with MRI scans.

 

As in all things, we should pray for God to give us wisdom (See James 1:5) and we should attempt to give others grace. Both those who frown on tattoos and those who promote them. Is it a salvation issue? No. Is it an essential doctrine to the faith? No. It's a non-essential not a non-negotiable. I have many friends on both side of the fence on this issue.

I personally do not find them attractive.

As Millennial's and Generation X become managers in the workplace perhaps the stigma about tattoos will change in the workplace. I imagine the same thing will happen as the shift in leadership in Church is affected by generational shifts as well. I think where you live also is a big factor.

God bless,
GE

 

So good to see you back here Jonathan

Can you please  post this in general or Biblical topics?

Do you remember where you old one is? It might be in Biblical topics?

This is not the right place , it's the seekers place to post topics   

 

Thanks dear friend :)

[GoldenEagle]

Just now, angels4u said:

So good to see you back here Jonathan

Can you please  post this in general or Biblical topics?

Do you remember where you old one is? It might be in Biblical topics?

This is not the right place , it's the seekers place to post topics   

 

Thanks dear friend :)

Hello sister! I believe the link is here but the video link is no longer working. Sure I'll post in general or Biblical topics.

God bless,
GE