A few years ago I was standing on the front porch of a small church in Orange County CA, where I had been invited to come and speak. A dude walking by stopped to ask me what was the deal with all the Harleys. He was on his way to the liquor store I found out. He told me of the church that he usually went to, but his car was broken…blah-blah-blah – and so I invited him to come to our service. When he asked me about the church I told him that I didn’t know much about it, that I was just the guest speaker. A look of horror and disbelief came over his face that I, a pierced and tattooed biker would be allowed to speak in a church – Remember, HE was the one on the way to a liquor store on Sunday morning. Traditionally, Christians don’t smoke, drink, dance, go to the movies, get tattoos or have their ears pierced (not to mention eyes, lips, tongues, cheeks, wrists…) but boy can Christians eat! Traditionally, Christians would never touch a cigarette but we sure love those “all you can eat” buffets after Sunday morning services – and the last time that I checked, “gluttony” was a sin listed in the Bible and smoking wasn’t (No – I’m not promoting smoking or gluttony). What I am promoting is literacy and common sense. I’m also NOT promoting church traditions, for we have been warned about such in the scriptures (Colossians 2:8, the Gospel of Mark 7:8).
I’ve searched the Bible and very little has been said about tattoos. Those who believe it is wrong for Christians to have tattoos site Leviticus 19:28: "Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.” Those who support the idea take Galatians 6:17 completely out of context and with the aide of a religious tattoo they declare: “I bear on my body the marks of Jesus.” Let me explain why I believe that both of these references are unfair.First of all, the Galatians’ reference is just silly! The writer was saying that he had been whipped just like Jesus and it is those marks he was speaking of – NOT tattoos. (If you want a tattoo, get a tattoo, but don’t look for justification in the scriptures.)
The Old Testament reference of Leviticus 19 is actually a plausible argument - until you read the whole chapter. In the greater context of Leviticus 19 we read that we, as God’s people, are also not to make idols, not to dishonor our parents and not to neglect the Sabbath. We are told to not steal, lie, deceive, swear falsely defraud our neighbors; hold back wages and much more.
ALL of these are good and make sense for today. In fact, the world would be a better place to live if we heeded these commands. The following, however, are commands in Leviticus 19 that Christians universally ignore such as eating rare meat and cutting “the hair at the sides of your head or clipping off the edges of your beard.”While most of us can understand God’s reasoning against things like dishonesty and abuse of people, we must look to the cultural context of things such as haircuts and tattoos. The question is: “What did they mean then and what is the principle application for today?” Fancy haircuts and tattooing in the days of the Old Testament had to do with idolatry and false religions. As for the rare meat, people then just didn’t have the knowledge of refrigeration, sanitation and curing.
Consider a New Testament reference. In 1Peter 3, the writer warns women to not braid their hair and wear jewelry – and yet most Christian women today would think nothing of these. So, “What did they mean then and what is the principle application for today?” Prostitutes wore their hair in braids and were covered in tons of jewelry to attract men and sell their bodies. St. Peter says to Christian women, “Don’t dress up like prostitutes.” And Leviticus 19 says to me today, “Don’t worship false gods by cutting yourselves and getting tattoos.”
There are some reasons that Christians should NOT get tattoos and each of these reasons is substantiated by Christian principles.
Christians should not get a tattoo (or a new set of clothes) or anything else….
• In order to impress others.
• In order to be sexually seductive.
• Before caring for their family first.
• Before paying their others bills.
• Before giving the local church a tithe of their income.
To say that the Bible forbids Christians to get tattoos, however, is simply not true - unless of course you are willing to also say that the Bible forbids haircuts, trimming of the beard and wearing jewelry. And if you’re going to categorically forbid smoking and drinking (not speaking of drunkenness – which is indeed forbidden by scripture), you’d better be ready to treat gluttony and obesity with the same intensity.
Should you get a tattoo? Is it all right to shave your head? What about cigars? What about beer, wine and jumbo size Snicker Bars? The answers are the same for each:
• Surrender everything to Jesus Christ and seek His approval.
• Study the scriptures and seek understanding.
• Listen to the Holy Spirit and yield to His nudging.
• Seek the counsel of many wise, godly people.
• Stay accountable to one or two trusted Christian friends.
• If you’re going to have a tattoo – glorify God with it.
And then love one another and do not judge one another where the scriptures are not completely clear. (NOTE: It is not “judging” a brother or sister who is guilty of drunkenness or sexual promiscuity. The Bible is clear on these and other moral issues for Christians.) Focus on Christ and Him crucified as a sacrifice for our sins. Spread the Good News: God is good and He loves you very much! - Tattoos and all!”
