Tattoos for Jesus (August 2002)

Dear Randy,
The discussion of tatoos that depict Christianity has come up more than once, and they wanted me to ask you what you felt the Scriptures actually say. They are divided on this issue , so we would greatly appreciate your insight. Thanks.

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Shalom Sally:

Thanks for your question. Before answering with specific principles of the Word, we should look at the setting of the command to Israel, and then decide what timeless truths and principles await us in the Torah for our life today. I believe your question falls within the "identification principle" of the Torah.

The Hebrew Scriptures offered a number of laws to Israel that were to be regulated by the Levites concerning the appearance of ancient Israelites. The section was to be spoken to the congregation, but especially regulated by the priests (which is why it is found in the book titled "Pertaining to the Levites" or simply "Leviticus" ).

The section we are looking at comes within a large portion called "ANI YHWH" (translated "I am Jehovah!" because God repeats that phrase many times in the text). The point of the whole section could be paraphrased this way:

"Moses, here are ways people will know that you are all My people, and that I am your God".

God apparently separated the commands of Lev. 18 and 19 from those commands before this section (about Sacrifices in 17) and those that come after (about the horror of following the child sacrifices of Molech in ch. 20). The section of 18 and 19 appears to be about two different types of regulation: Sexual relationships (18) and Daily Life Practices (19).

Breaking it down further, the "Daily Life Practices" section of chapter 19 can be divided as follows:

Be HOLY (Separated from those of the land you will enter as MY PEOPLE!):

How?

1. Honor the family structure (3)
2. Honor me as God alone (4)
3. Keep the sacrifices as I prescribed them (5-8)
4. Care for the poor among you (9,10)
5. Don't steal, falsely witness, cheat, or treat the weak badly (11-14)
6. Be careful in judgement and don't slander (15,16)
7. Don't hate, desire revenge, hold grudges (17,18)
8. Don't mix things I have made distinct (19).
9. Don't punish those in bonds by the same standard (20-22)
10. When you enter the land, plant, but don't eat of the harvest for a time
(23-25)
11. Don't eat blood, use incantations, observe pagan holidays (26)
12. Don't look like the pagans (27,28)
13. Don't pimp your daughters (29)
14. Honor Sabbath and the sanctuary (30)
15. Reject spiritism (31)
16. Honor your elders (32)
17. Care for the strangers among you (33-34)
18. Keep your scales fair and balances right (35-36)

"Levites, watch this carefully, because I surely am!" says the Lord (37)

Tucked into the middle of the list is the command that offers us a look at God's heart concerning the "body marks" you asked about. Remember, these laws were offered to the Levites to guide the Israelites as they entered the Promised Land, and were to be strictly enforced as a mark of the dedication of the people to the Lord. We are not Israelites, and we are not living then, so the issue is not simply "DO THIS" because it is in the Bible. The true issue is, if this is part of the "Scripture given by inspiration that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped to do works that please God" (2
Tim. 3:16), then how can I apply truths from these passages written to someone else in another time and situation. The answer is: Squeeze the text for the timeless truths and principles inside them. You will find much that applies to every person that desires to please God in every age. Let's look closer at the problem you presented and look for the principles that will tell us where God's heart is on the subject.

First, God was concerned that His people did not adopt the EATING HABITS of the pagans (eating blood, something God had repeatedly told them they must never do). The principle involved, I believe, is one that may be a bit hard to understand. In the Biblical period, most public observances included
sacrifices, and much of the "public social life" was in the context of marginally religious cultic practices. Some included the eating of certain foods, others included participation in sexual orgies and activities. This was true of Canaan, as well as ancient Egypt, Greece and most of the surrounding cultures. I think the reason the food is linked in verse 26 with incantations and holidays is this very context. I think God warned them to abstain from the public social activities that were used by pagans to draw them into being a part of the society.

Let's restate the principle in this way: "Remain distinctly mine, don't mix into the practices that blur the lines between your allegiance to me and your desire to fit in to society, when the practices violate what I have told you to do and be!"

Immediately, any believer will need to evaluate, "How do I know if I am violating that timeless principle?" Examples are offered in the text, and these are relevant to all of us: What we eat (drink?) when we are with them, what public practices of "sayings" we accept as part of our speech (incantation), what holidays we "celebrate" with them (26), AND how we cut our hair, shave our faces, cut our bodies, or tattoo our bodies (27,28).

It seems the import of the principle has little to do with the style of the hair cited in the text (since that situation changes in each culture and time). I believe it has equally NOTHING to do with what we do to our skin. That misses the principle and tries to make it a law. The point of the principle is, if what I am doing makes me look like the lost people God has called me to remain distinct from, I am missing out on living His truth in my generation. I want to stand out by maintaining standards that do not mark
me as one of them. This principle obviously applies to what I wear, where I go, what I eat, what I say - the passage has quite a range of activities included!

Let me boil it down to this: If you mark your body with a tattoo or not has more to do with what God tells you as you seek Him concerning the identification principle than anything else. Don't paint the landlord's apartment without the landlord's permission. Know this, He has already said that if your purpose is to fit in with those you are called to remain distinct from, you are wrong. You are not wrong because of the 'WHAT' of the symbol, but the 'WHY' of it. If, on the other hand, the reasons are pure,
and the marks do not blend with the world's agenda, the mark is completely acceptable.

If your youth group decided to all get the same haircut so that you could identify each other in the local school, there would be no problem with this (as long as they didn't choose a style that was being used by another group that was supporting an ungodly agenda already - like "skin heads"). We need
to stand up and stand out. We are blended and people can't pick us out. That was what God didn't want from Israel, and I believe His opinion of our blending hasn't changed.

We should consider how much like the world we are becoming to "reach them" even in our ministries. Is that in violation with this identification principle? It may well be in many cases.

Don't forget, this is only ONE PRINCIPLE. What about the principle of "LIMITATION" that needs to be considered. Even if it is ok to mark my skin, or pierce my whatever, what will happen if God calls me in the future to another place. Will it be misundersood? This is worth considering as well as
other principles. Clearly there is a danger to marking in a way that cannot be removed. This could be very offensive if God calls you in the future to a land where this will not be accepted. I would be careful not to limit future ministry by decisions made now if I could. If these issues, when carefully
and prayerfully submitted to God, do not hinder the group, let them get the marks.

Hope this helps! May we seek the Lord for direction on everything we do with these vessels He made!

Dr. Randall Smith
Director