Should A Christian Be Getting Tatoos And Body Piercings?
The Bible tells us our bodies are the temple of the Holy Spirit in 1 Corinthians 6:19. A temple in secular terms is a place that people consider some supernatural being to inhabit. In Asia we see many temples and shrines that have idols or images of different so called ‘gods’ that cannot speak or even hear a human speaking to them. These idols are not living and useless.
The original temple was not a pagan building, tent, or cave. The original temple was the place where the glory of the Almighty God resides. As a believer and follower of Jesus Christ, we are told to take good care of our bodies. This happened when the 30 centimeter curtain that separated the presence of God from the people at ripped at the death of the Jesus. Jesus rose from the dead on the third day and brought us into right standing with Father God. We no longer needed a priest to be a proxy between us and the Holy Father and Creator of the Universe. The supernatural ripping of the curtain from top to bottom is proof to that.
Marked And Owned
Many women have their ears pierced today, it is considered a fashion thing and ends with a couple holes in the ears. However, piercing the ear was something you did to mark your slave in times past. Branding livestock was how owners marked their cows, sheep, goats and other animals and livestock to show that they were property of the owner. In Leviticus 19:28, believers living in the Old Testament are told not to cut, pierce or mark their bodies. Cutting, marking, or piercing our bodies is considered a sign of paganism. In our generation, we see people tend to do these things when they are rebelling against their parents, school, government, or even society.
We no longer live under the Old Testament laws, but there is logic and common sense in these laws. For example, the Children Of Abraham (Jewish people and their families) were commanded not to eat pork. Why? Pork was easily susceptible to spoilage and worms. Even in our day, nutritionists recommend against eating too much, if any, pork as the animal does not thoroughly pass the toxins it takes in like other animals, and those poisons remain in their meat.
The enemy wants to mark you. We are to treat our bodies as the temple of the Holy Spirit and keep them healthy, clean, and honoring to God. We are living in the last days. In Revelation 13:16, we are told that all people will be forced to get a marking on their hand or foreheads. We don’t hear much about piercings but the Bible is very clear that if we dedicate ourselves wholly (that is spirit, soul, and body) then we should cutting, marking, or piercing our body.
Behind The Tattoo
As we mentioned, tattoos are associated with rebellion against authority. Strangely, many of those in rebellion continue to get more and more markings on their bodies, very much like some type of addiction. Is it the same spirit that drives people to alcoholism and drug abuse?
The majority of those who get tattoos regret marking their body with whatever skulls, naked women, names, images or even some so-called Christian theme. They are hard to remove and actually destroy much of the sensitivity of the epidermal skin where the mark is made. The pores can no longer produce the perspiration in that care to help you naturally sweat or perspire.
Even the secular media depicts scary, vile, and villainous people as those with many tattoos and piercings in their videos. Is this what a believer should be associated with?
What Should I Do?
Be marked for Jesus. If you don’t know Him, receive Him now. If you’re considering getting a tattoo, don’t. If could be fashionable at the moment, remember that fashion changes, skin loosens up, tattoos sag, and people’s priorities change. Don’t be marked with a worldly image. Be marked in your spirit by the Holy Spirit as a child of God, a kingdom kid, a royal priesthood, holy and dedicated to the Father.
Consider your body is something you’ve been entrusted to you for the rich and full 120 years you have it. You need to take care of your body and keep it holy, separated to God.
Is Your Body Marked?
If you’ve already got a tattoo but you just came to Jesus, you’re likely reading this because you are wondering what to do. Don’t let the enemy condemn you. it was the old you that got the mark. But it’s the new you that needs to be clean and pure before God. In Ephesians 1:13, we are told as believers that we are marked with the Holy Spirit. This is a spiritual thing. Of course, there are ways to remove tattoos but it’s more about the condition of the heart.
If someone confesses being a follower of Jesus continues to get tattoos or piercings, something is wrong. It’s not time for other believers to condemn them, but clearly there is a need for them to renew their minds (Romans 12:2) in this area and stop marking their bodies.
Be marked for Jesus. Revelation talks about we who believe are sealed for salvation in Revelation 13. Let’s focus on Jesus and treat our temple as holy as Jesus died and rose to make us holy before the Father. It’s okay not to have a tattoo or piercing in strange places, even if people around you do. You are a child of God and not of this world. Keep your temple (your physical body) clear and clean of any signs of the dying world that we have around us and let your spiritual light shiner brighter and tell someone about Jesus.
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