Christianity Oasis Forum

[Moses Lance Scott]

Greetings All,

I am a new member and would like to begin a thread on tattoos. My question is this, do tattoos that are devoted to Christianity glorify GOD or are they a sin?

Thanks for All Contributions!

[mlg]

I can only share the Truth with you my friend, and let you and others be the judge when it comes to your relationship with God.

In the Old Testament...one of the laws given by God is as follows:

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.

With the resurrection of Jesus, we all now live by grace.

Hope I have helped some.

Take care and God Bless you.

[Moses Lance Scott]

Thanks for your offering!

Some think that this verse taken from Leviticus is often taken out of context and requires a deeper investigation of why the LORD was forbidding this act. These verses prohibit eating meat not drained of blood, fortune telling, certain hair cuts related to the priests of false cults, cutting or marking the body for dead relatives and consulting psychics. All these practices would lead God’s beloved people away from Him and toward false gods that were not Gods at all. In the midst of this context we find the word translated “tattoo marks” in verse 28. It is important to note here that the context of this passage is not one of body décor but one of marking one’s self in connection with cultic religious worship.

So to provide an example, would getting a cross or any other image related to GOD and Christianity be considered a sin?

[Lani]

Greetings to you this day, Bro

to

Awesome thread

My question to you is this.... why do ya ask?

As mlg shared.... the Old testament gives law on this topic (up for personal discernment as to how one interprets such) AND through the New Covenant in Christ, we live by Grace. Either side could be argued but the Truth of the matter is God knows All hearts and He alone will judge.

If ya just wished a fun topic to discuss... coolbeans Hope others share as well! buuuuuuut

If you are questioning such because you are unsure and trying to decide this in your own walk... I would suggest reading this COOL Study and allow God some additional time to guide your choice...

http://www.christianityoasis.com/Keywor ... rcings.htm

Hope this helps Welcome to the Oasis Family, lookin forward to seein ya around the site again soon!

Peace n Luv in Christ,
Lani

[Dora]

Hello Brother

Welcome to Oasis.

I just wanted to say I enjoyed this post. Thank you for starting the thread.

I'm interested as well in what is shared here.

I recently got a henna tattoo. You know the India ink that stains deeply but eventually fades. It was a beautiful flower vine. I loved it and want to some day do that again. Yet the way I was treated by fellow believers was amazingly discouraging. The reason for the tattoo was a physical reminder that I am important and need to treat myself with respect. I believe God was behind my choice to do this. He used it to grow me into a stronger person. Yet I began to wish I hadn't of gotten it before it had faded because of the way I was treated. Which is sad. People should allow others to be.

My personal feeling on tattoos is if a person feels led to do so, not pressured or following a group, and the tattoo isn't something that will glorify sin, then they should be free to express themselves and use their body as the canvas.

The henna had a negative effect on my ministry. The people I minister to are not accepting of such things. So for me, I may not even do the henna again. Which is sad cause I really liked it. But He comes first. I guess that's what it's really all about aint it? Him and what He needs from us.

[Gods Sheep]

One of the reasons I don't go to church is because all the churches I have come in contact with around here preach and live so many mixed messages. They are major hypocrites. One minute they are talking about how the flesh is weak and is sinful in nature and that we must not live by the works of the sinful nature of the flesh but then turn around and say don't defile the body for the body is the temple of God and he abides in it.

How can God the only perfect being in existence that cannot be in the presence of sin abide in a sinful temple that is already defiled? Yes I know when Jesus died and we accept him as lord we pass away and are made new but that is speaking of our spirit not our physical flesh. The physical flesh will still die off and pass away. It came from the dirt of the earth and it will go back to the dirt of the earth. God's temple is not the physical body that can bleed and get sick. It is the spirit that is made new and made whole when he is allowed to enter and move in. It is the spirit that will move on to heaven to be with him when the time comes to join him but the flesh that is already defiled will die and go back to the ground.

As far as tattoos I know that God knows your heart and where you heart is when you do what you do and that includes tattoos. If your heart is true to him and your intensions are for glorifying him with what you do then what else matters? As long as your love for Jesus is true. Yes of course if you get a tattoo with the best of intensions you will be judged and scourged because there are many who will see that as an abomination, don't let them discourage you for the Pharisees did the same thing in the day of Christ and they were condemned by Jesus for their hardened hearts.

Pine, don't make your choices of getting the Henna or whatever it is based off of the opinions of others. Watch the story of Desmond Doss; I have talked about him in the chat rooms before. He went into the army in WWII with the conviction of his religion that he would never pick up a firearm and under no circumstances would he ever take a human life not even to save his own. He was persecuted and scourged and ridiculed by his army buddies that treated him totally like dirt for 4 years for his conviction. They didn't want to fight in battle and serve next to a man who would not fight. They felt he was a weak link in the chain and they wanted him gone. Little did they know that ALL of them came home alive and in one piece only because he was there to save them. They were all shot up and wounded and dieing on the field when he brought all of them back to safety and patched them up. He even got blown up by a grenade and shot by a sniper and while on a stretcher being taken back to a medical camp for patching up himself he saw another injured man and he rolled off his stretcher and went to work on the other wounded while he was wounded and gave the stretcher to the other man. He was later awarded the Medal of Honor by the very men who ridiculed and persecuted him for 4 years before.

Don't base your actions off the opinions of those around you. Base your actions off of the love you have for Christ.

[clebit]

DEAR MOSES,
I AM NO EXPERT, BUT I TELL YOU THIS;
I LOST THREE BABIES THAT DID NOT MAKE IT TO TERM,
I HAVE TWO OTHER CHILDREN LIVING,
WHEN SOMEONE WOULD ASK ME HOW MANY CHILDREN I HAD, IT WOULD BRING TEARS TO MY EYES, AND A SQUEEZE TO MY HEART, BECAUSE THAT WOULD BE SOMETHING YOU DON'T REALLY DISCUSS W/ EVERYONE YOU MEET.
BUT ON THE OTHER HAND, IT ALSO HURT TO BE ABLE TO ONLY SAY 2, SO I HAVE A TATTOO ON MY UPPER LEFT ARM WITH MY DAUGHTER'S NAME AND MY SON'S NAME, BESIDE IT ENCLOSED IN A HEART IS THE # 3.
NOW WHEN SOMEONE ASKS, I SAY 2 AND GIVE MY ARM A GENTLE RUB, BECAUSE IN THAT WAY, I HAVEN'T LEFT THEM OUT.
I AM NOT A FAN OF NEEDLES, SO THE TATTO MAN HAD TO WAIT FOR ME TO RAISE BACK UP IN MY CHAIR ON SEVERAL OCCASIONS. I DON'T RECOMMEND GETTING A TATTOO. I JUST SAY, THAT IN MY CASE I FEEL THAT MY SOUL HAD RELEASE, BECAUSE I NOW HAVE SOME WAY TO INCLUDE MY OTHER 3 BABIES. I, NOR ANYONE THAT KNEW ME WOULDA BELIEVED I HAD GOTTEN A TATTOO. AND SOME ALMOST DIDN'T WANT TO HAVE ANYTHING TO DO WITH ME BECAUSE OF IT.
I SAY TALK TO YOUR HEAVENLY FATHER, SEARCH YOUR SOUL AS TO WHY YOU WANT IT. ASK HIM ABOUT IT.
IT'S HIS TEMPLE, HE LIVES THERE WITH YOU. HOW MANY SOULS HAS HE SAVED WEARING ONE?