I'm Baptist and I've been wanting a tattoo of a cross for a long time. Just recently I was told getting a tattoo is against the bible and is a sin. Is this true if it is a symbol of your religion and showing your faith? If I were to get it, it would be the only tattoo I would ever want and it would be on my upper arm where nobody could see it unless I had my shirt off.

And if it is a sin, would god forgive me for getting it even though it is permanent?

Although I don't attend church on a regular basis like I should, I prey every night before bed and always ask god for forgiveness for my sins and thank him for a list of things.

All opinions and help are welcome, thanks :)

I'm Lutheran and a preacher's kid. I would guess Baptists believe by getting a tattoo you are defacing your body, which is the temple of God. I wonder if Baptist women get their ears pierced or get their hair cut or color changed.

To my way of thinking, a cross tattoo would be honoring God by remembering Jesus' sacrifice.

snippy07,

In the OT under the Law the Lord told the Jewish people not to mark on their bodies.
Check out Leviticus 19:28

"'Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the LORD.

This is the verse that someone might use to suggest it is a SIN. BUT we are no longer under the law...we live on this side of the cross under Grace. You will find nothing in the NT to suggest it is a sin.

I think of this verse that Paul wrote in 1 Corinthians 10

"Everything is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is constructive.

Personally I wouldn't have one although I don't think it is a sin. I guess I don't like what tattoo's represent to the world in general.

However ,any tattoo that would be dishonoring to the Lord... such as satanic symbols and sexual stuff.. well I think it goes without saying would be wrong for a Christian to put on their body.

From what I know...

ANY tattoo is a sin.

This is what pastors have told me...

Here is a link that may be helpful to your question: http://christianity.about.com/od/faq...ochristian.htm

Sarah

Mud,

It isn't a sin. I just don't think it is WISE to have one. Mostly because of what they represent to the world... ( that is those without Jesus Christ).

The thing is Christianity isn't a religion with a bunch of rules. There are sins that we know to stay away from that are obvious such as lying, stealing, murder I mean it is a given. This is one of those things that I believr is up to the indivudual believer in Christ and his relationship with the Lord. I have my ears pierced for heaven sakes... and I sure don't think it is wrong nor have I asked for forgiveness for it. I do think MOTIVE should always be in question in anything we do though.

I would personally advise against having one... but I cannot in good conscience say it is a SIN in which the Lord had to die on the cross for. NO WAY. I again refer to this verse that Paul wrote to the CHURCH... ( that means US)

"Everything is permissible"--but not everything is beneficial. "Everything is permissible"--but not everything is constructive.

Also in 1 Corinthians 10:31 it says "So whether you eat or drink or whatever you do, do it all for the glory of God."
Can what you are wanting be done for the glory of the Lord? Will it cause a fellow brother or sister to stumble in sin? Personally, I do not think they are a sin to get on your body. The only reason I don't have one is because I use my money on things like... food lol. But when it can come to causing someone to stumble deeper into their sin then I think you need to approach this prayerfully and seek Gods Will in what you do

Why do you think it is not wise to get a cross tattoo'd if you are a good believer? I respect your opinion, but I'm just curious why you think that. I like all of your input so far along with everybody else :)

I dislike it when thugs get cross tattoos but if you are a true believer I think it's something to respect because the person is proud of the religion and not ashamed.

Snippy07,

This really should be a decision between you and the Lord. The reason I THINK it might not be wise is because of how the world sees tattoos. By the world I am referring to non Christians.

We are told to be 'set apart" from the world. For me Snippy, it would seem wrong. But you are younger than me. You are a different generation . When I was younger even non christians looked down on tattoo's.. that isn't the case anymore.

snippy07,
Having a tattoo on your arm to the glory of God and to show the world that you are lover of Jesus and what he has done for us is OK.
It's not much different than waring a cross or have one as a lapel pin.
Peace and kindness,
Fred (arcura)

The laws of God are the schoolmaster to bring us to Christ and HIS righteousness. We are not justified by the law but by the blood of Christ. We understand this!
HOWEVER, That does not mean we do not learn by the laws of God, or that we make void the laws of God. (Romans 3:31)

Anyone who feels they can sin freely are under the law of sin. They are not following the footsteps of Christ. They instead follow their own old ways, and have not surrendered in doing the WILL of GOD as Christ footsteps have done.

God's wisdom is far greater then our own. God teaches us not to mark the body with print, and I would do HIS WILL.

"What IF" a printed mark upon your body would someday mean what satan (anti-christ) wanted his followers to do? "What IF" that is why God has foretold us not to do it? Is our ONE LORD the truth, the life, and the way? (John 14:6)

Gal 3:24 Wherefore the law was our schoolmaster to bring us unto Christ, that we might be justified by faith.

Christ judges by FAITH, (Mark 2:9 Mark 5:34 Mark 10:54) and the righteousness of God is reveal by FAITH (The just live by FAITH) + (For we walk by FAITH, not by sight)

Romans 6:16 Know ye not, that to whom ye yield yourselves servants to obey, his servants ye are to whom ye obey; whether of sin unto death, or of obedience unto righteousness?

Romans 6:18 Being then made free from sin, ye became the servants of righteousness.

Review this video: http://www.wayofthemaster.com/hbks.shtml

Are you telling me that we can sin as much as we want want and we'll still be under grace?

chocodrip,
That is what some folks wrongly think and believe.
They says that they are saved regardless of how sinful they might be.
Peace and kindness,
Fred

Sure the Bible commands against putting symbols on your body, mind you it also decries shellfish.

If you want the Christian Tradition as opposed to the Biblical tradition think whether it breaks.

1. Love the lord your God with all your heart, soul etc etc
2. Love your neighbor as yourself

I can't see how marking your Body with a symbol of Jesus Christ's suffering and love breaks either of those.

If wider society disagrees (you worry about the reaction of everyone else) F*&@ them. Since when did the Christian pay attention to what other people think?

On the other hand I would advise against symbol tattoos in general. They have fluid meanings likely to change over time and context. Some of the greatest crimes in history have been done under a cross. The Nazi swastika was an eastern symbol of peace before the holocaust. There is no way to know what groups or individuals will use the cross as there calling card in 50 years, or what exactly it will mean then.

Anthony Hillyer,
I do agree with your post on a tattoo cross.
Peace and kindness,
Fred

Thank you Arcura
All the best,
Anthony

How much does this tattoo cost?
In my opinion it would be much wiser use of that money to for instance help Haiti or support a missionary or give to support the poor or homeless. How about feeding a family for a week on that money you will waste decorating your body with something that will fade in 20 years into a blob of colors that no one will recognize? To me that is a much wiser use of available funds. To promote the kingdom of God not the kingdom of some tattoo artist who will blow that money on who knows what.

450donn,
You have made a good point.
Thanks,
Fred

snippy - I appreciate your question but I'd like to expand the discussion a little more.

To get or not to get a tattoo in my opinion is not the question. I mean that when you break down the issues we contend with in this life, what is really important to God is that you love him and love your neighbor as yourself. It's been my experience that sometimes we can make a bigger deal about superficial things rather than the most important things. I know what it is like to major in the minors because I once held that perspective. But I see that there is a bigger picture with God and the less substantive things like getting piercings, tattoos, etc. tend to be merely insignificant in comparison to how I relate to God and others. Let me try to illustrate what I mean.

Take the Pharisees and the confrontations they had with Jesus. They obsessed over things like whether it was lawful for someone to be healed on the Sabbath. They took issue with the disciples taking heads of grain and rubbing them in their hands to eat because they did it on the Sabbath. They complained that the disciples didn't wash their hands before they ate and didn't wash the outside of pots and cups as they drank. The issue is that they made a big deal out of things that were insignificant when they should have paid more attention to their own inwardness. Consider what Jesus had to say:

'And he called the people to him again and said to them, “Hear me, all of you, and understand: There is nothing outside a person that by going into him can defile him, but the things that come out of a person are what defile him.” And when he had entered the house and left the people, his disciples asked him about the parable. And he said to them, “Then are you also without understanding? Do you not see that whatever goes into a person from outside cannot defile him, since it enters not his heart but his stomach, and is expelled?” (Thus he declared all foods clean.) And he said, “What comes out of a person is what defiles him. For from within, out of the heart of man, come evil thoughts, sexual immorality, theft, murder, adultery, coveting, wickedness, deceit, sensuality, envy, slander, pride, foolishness. All these evil things come from within, and they defile a person.”'

Now, I'll admit that Jesus is talking about food and not tattoos. But is it really a stretch to conclude that he could have just as easily mentioned tattoos here? Lots of things that were forbidden for people to do in the Old Testament were mere rules of practice that would have made the Israelites distinct from their neighbors and were ritualistic in nature (meaning as it related to their practice of Judaism): abstaining from eating certain foods, not being tattooed, women being unclean during their menstrual cycles, people being unclean after coming into contact with a dead person, and on and on.

As I see it, those things were meant to make the people distinct and they were commanded to observe those things in the context of their religious system. But what God was truly after from the Israelites and from us today isn't that we obsess over every little law but that we take God seriously enough to try and understand who he is and what he values. Is he more concerned that we not mark our bodies than whether we are selfish, cruel, and mean-spirited towards others? Is he more impressed when we abstain from getting a tattoo than when we forgive someone who has wronged us or admitted our guilt to someone we have wronged? At the end of the day, I think those are the kind of questions that get at the heart of what you are really asking…I hope, anyway.

jakester,
Exceptionally Good Post.
Thanks,
Fred