Hearts...and, Tattoos

Where-ever you stand on the issue of tattoos, they have become a mainstay of the youth culture today.

 

Over the weekend, we went to the Planet Wisdom Student Conference in Santa Ana, CA and it was AWESOME!  I sincerely wish all of our youth, adults and parents would have gone...it was THAT good.  In the days to come, I'll recap some of the heart-piercing points taught (he.he.he...I just crack myself up sometime).

 

So, are you wondering what my position is on tattoos?  Keep in mind, this is my opinion.  As always, you should talk with your parents and get their input/approval BEFORE you take that leap and ink your blemish-free, clear and beautiful skin (maybe that is a clue into my opinion).

 

Frank and I had lunch with one of Frank's friends from work a few months ago.  He has several tattoos.  As we were talking about his tattoos, he made the comment, "I feel really guilty cause God is probably mad at me for getting all these tattoos."  This comment intrigued me.  So, I asked him, "Based on what do you feel God is "mad" at you?"  And, he said, "cause the Bible says you aren't supposed to get tattoos."  "Really?" I asked him.  "Does the Bible really say that?"  So, he looked at me curiously and said that somewhere God said in the Old Testament that you aren't supposed to get tattoos.  Ahhh...another passage of scripture taken out of context!  So, we had a great discussion on what God REALLY said, who He said it to and what does that mean for us today.

 

So the passage he was referring to is found in Leviticus 19.  It starts off in verses 1-2 saying, "Then the LORD spoke to Moses, saying: "Speak to all the congregation of the sons of Israel and say to them, 'You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy."  Then, further down in verse 28 it says, "'You shall not make any cuts in your body for the dead nor make any tattoo marks on yourselves: I am the LORD."

One could argue that these commandments were written to the nation of Israel and applies to them alone.   But, is that really the case?  Are there truths to be gleaned from this passage that apply to us, even today?  Certainly!  At the beginning of the chapther, God says "You shall be holy, for I the LORD your God am holy."  Then, God proceeds to explains how the nation of Israel can be holy.  He wants them to be "set apart" and distinctly different.  In a sense, to be able to pick them out of a crowd, different.  He didn't want them to look like all the heathen nations around them who practice all sorts of things in honor of their cultures, gods and religious ceremonies.

 

So, does this REALLY apply to us today?  Well, let's let the Bible answer that question.

Therefore, prepare your minds for action, keep sober in spirit, fix your hope completely on the grace to be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the former lusts which were yours in your ignorance, but like the Holy One who called you, be holy yourselves also in all your behavior; because it is written, "YOU SHALL BE HOLY, FOR I AM HOLY."  (1 Peter 1:13-16)

Yep, even Christians today are commanded to be holy, set apart.  Notice Peter says, "be holy yourselves also in all your behavior."  God wants us to reflect Him.  If we are reflecting Him, we will stand out in a crowd.  We won't look, smell, talk, walk or sound like the world around us...we'll sound like the Father.

You can argue we are now under grace.  And you'd be correct.  You can also argue that we are now under the New Covenant: Jesus Christ.  And you'd be correct.  I believe you may be free to get a tattoo. 

So, my question to you would be: Would a tattoo make you more like God or more like the world?  I've heard so many people say it is a "personal" choice and one not made lightly. I disagree. If you belong to Jesus, you don't belong to yourself anymore.  I Corinthians 6:20 says, "For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body."

At a leaders' meeting this weekend while at Planet Wisdom, a gal leader sat in front of me.  She was dressed in such a way that I could clearly see a beautiful cross inked over her right shoulderblade.  Hanging on the cross was a banner and the verse address: Romans 8:38-39.  I do find it interesting it was those verses, and not 8:28-29.  You can check out the verses and comparisons.

To be honest, this young woman's tattoo offended me.  It distracted me from what the speaker was trying to say and I found it hard not to look at her tattoo.  I can tell you this tattoo was done very well and the shading on the beams of the cross almost gave it a 3-d relief look.  Eventually, I forced myself to look away and focus on what was being instructed.

Frank's dad has several tattoos.  When Frank talked to him about getting a tattoo...his dad's response was, "all tattoos are good for are identifying body parts."

Personally, I don't believe it is wise for a Christian to get a tattoo.  Our purpose, while on this earth, is to point others to Christ, not ourselves.  I think we need to keep a balance and take care of ourselves so we aren't distracting people away from Christ and onto ourselves.  This holds true with all areas in our lives: what we wear, what we say, how we act, etc.

You'll find, what I wrote today has a loose connection with today's PW Devotional.  My hope, if you are considering getting a tattoo...is that you'd spend more time agonizing over what is tattooed on your heart and less time on what you want to tattoo on your body.

PlanetWisdom.com Devotionals

Heart Tattoos Posted: 20 Mar 2009 08:43 AM PDT "These commandments that I give you today are to be upon your hearts." (Deuteronomy 6:6) Someone getting a tattoo — especially for the first time — will spend months, sometimes years agonizing over what to get, how big to get it, and where to have it inked. And why not? It can be a lifetime decision, right? Most of us are way less careful about what to put on our hearts. In fact, a lot of us just hold our hearts up in the air, waiting for something or someone to come along to hand it over to. We're ready to cover our hearts with the names of boy/girlfriends, bands, philosophies, sports teams, whatever ignites a little passion. Solomon warned us to guard our hearts (Proverbs 4:23), because we have just the one life. And here, God gives us something worth inking on our hearts: His commands. It's one of the ways we love Him with all of us. Think: Have you every put something on your heart too easily? Have you ever given your mind, will, and emotions over to something that turned out to be a waste of time (or, worse, really hurtful)? How can you put God's commands on your heart? Pray: Ask God to help you to put His commands for you on your heart. Do: Make a quick list of the top 5 things on your heart today. Visit PlanetWisdom.com for more great resources!