Tattoos and Jesus

I am not the most eloquent writer that you will come across, but I will attempt to explain the purpose of including a tattoo in our Easter celebrations at church this past weekend in the best way I know how.  I know that many conservative Christians have been taught for decades, probably centuries, that tattooing anything onto your body was a sin.  Some denominations and Christian sects also teach that short hair and jewelry should be forbidden for women.  They teach that women should only let their hair down for their husbands, and women should not dress like a man.  By that they mean that women should only dress in modest skirts or dresses. 

I understand where these beliefs come from, but I don't really think that Jesus cares too much about them.  I think that He looks at our hearts and the truth that is living there.  I obviously attend a church that believes this as well.

The premise of the publicity involved in our Easter service was to bring non-believers into the church for our Easter celebration.  People wear crosses around their necks, on their clothing, and they tattoo them on their bodies.  Many of the people that do so have no idea what the actual significance of the cross is.  This event gave us the opportunity to tell some of these curious people about the truth of the Gospel and that Jesus loves them exactly as they are.

In total, three brave (I say brave because I am too much of a wimp to ever get a tattoo) souls received cross tattoos at our church services this past weekend.  They went through an application process and were chosen to participate in this way.  Their testimonies as to why they desired for the cross to be permenantly tattooed onto their body was shared with everyone in attendance.  It was phenomenal.   In the future when someone sees their tattoo and asks where they got it, how incredible will it be for them to tell where and why they have that tattoo on their arm?  It excites me to know what a great witnessing tool this will be to the world.

I'm sure that I have readers who disagree with this approach to spreading the Gospel.  I believe that Jesus wants us to deliver His message in the most current way possible still holding true to the teachings of the scriptures.  Our church is conservative in doctrine, but we believe that the method has to change if we are going to reach people.  The old methods aren't working anymore.  There is an urgency for the church to reach these people, and if doing the same old thing isn't working, then you have to find something new.  I can tell you that this something new worked.  I am glad to have been a part of it.

Check out more about our church, Crosslink Community Church, by clicking HERE.  You can also see the front page newspaper article from Monday's Columbus Dispatch by clicking HERE.  I hope this gives you a new perspective, and I'd love to hear what you have to say about this.