Jesus Tattoo

Hey guys! I haven't written for a really long time. I've been going through a spiritual dry season and I don't think it's right for me to share about Christ when I'm not really into it; reminds me of the Pharisees in the Bible. Thank God though, He's always a deliverer and now I'm good to go (:

Anyway! Today I wanted to do a sort of response post to the video "Jesus Tattoo", set up by a Christian outreach group that's called (drum roll, please...) Jesus Tattoo. There's been a lot of controversy surrounding the video (I'm a little slow; this campaign video was up in late September this year) because it features Jesus running a shady-looking tattoo business. Here is the video!

I actually really like this video (until the sermonette part. I think the visuals there were a bit weird, and close-ups of a guy who isn't Jesus seemed a bit unnecessary.) because I think it's a perfect metaphor for... everything.

For people who complain that tattoos have a negative connotation in our society, I think that's exactly the point. Come on. Jesus was a carpenter. There is little to no prestige in being a carpenter. People in Jesus' day would've looked at the profession in a similar way we look at tattoo artists.

"Church is a hospital for sinners, not a museum for saints."

God didn't send Jesus down to hang with the righteous and sit in the thrones of kings. He came down to dine with prostitutes and outcasts. I think the video does a very good job of capturing that picture of Christ in an environment He clearly doesn't deserve to be in.

But the biggest qualm for most people is the whole tattoo issue.

"Do not cut your bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on yourselves. I am the Lord." - Leviticus 19:29

I've actually done a post about this before. You can read it here.

But just in case you don't really want to read all of that, I'll sum it up.

Most Christians have been angry at the video/the organisation, and have been liberally using this verse against them, because it seems pretty self-explanatory: "do not cut your bodies" and "put tattoo marks on yourselves". Doesn't get more straightforward than that, right?

Wrong.

This particular verse is just one of a number of rules set out in this chapter. Other such rules are "do not wear clothing woven of two kinds of material" (verse 19) and "do not eat any meat with the blood still in it" (verse 26) and "do not cut the hair at the sides of your head or clip off the edges of your beard" (verse 27).

In gist, this chapter doesn't just say "don't get tattoos", it also says "don't shop at Topshop" and "don't eat non-kosher meat" and "don't shave your beards". Crazy, right?

Not really. This is before Jesus' coming and so some things were really different. I'm not saying they're not applicable. They are. But in a different sort of way. Verses like these ask us to reflect on the meaning behind things.

First off, why weren't God's people allowed to cross-breed animals and plants and clothing material? Because in that time, cross-breeding wasn't an agricultural deal. It was a cult practice. The Canaanites would mix animal breeds, plant types and even clothing materials because this was a symbolic representation of the idea of "marrying", and they thought that if they did this, the gods would give them bountiful harvest the coming harvest season. Evidently, that community and practice died out long ago. But it's perhaps today's equivalent of Christians wearing daisy dukes or using vulgarities freely. It's got very, very, very secular connotations that we don't endorse.

And people didn't eat pork for their safety. Back then, pigs carried the most diseases, so eating them just wasn't safe. It's like how you wouldn't eat expired food.

People didn't shave their beards for any old reason because shaving was a display of mourning. People shaved when they were grieving. So it's a lesson not about facial hair, but about the whole "crying wolf" thing. Don't exhibit sad behaviour gratuitously, don't con other people. Be honest to yourself and those around you. That sort of thing.

So, jumping back to the whole tattoos thing, perhaps the meaning behind it is way more important. Why are we getting these tattoos, what do they mean to us and everyone else?

And that's precisely why this video works. The tattoos of the people walking into Jesus' tattoo parlor are derogatory, they're impulse tattoos that will leave their mark. It takes courage for people to walk into a shady tattoo parlor like that. But Jesus is always there waiting, ready to heal.

It's the whole idea of how Jesus took all our sins and died with them on the cross.

Okay. And then there are people saying that the video represents an idea of Christianity that is "too easy", that it's not as simple as dumping all our problems on Christ and walking out.

I guess the thing is that this video isn't a representation of Christianity. It's a representation of Christ. After all, we never see what happens to the people after they walk out of that tattoo parlor, with Christ's art emblazoned on their bodies. We don't see the impact they have on people around them, or what people say about their tattoos.

What we do see is that Christ is willing to take the pain of every single one of our sins and every label ever given to us. That's what the video is trying to say. This is a God who loves you unconditionally. This is a God who will tolerate you when nobody else can. This is a God who doesn't care who you are or what you did. This is a loving, patient, caring God.

And then there are the people who say that this video employs "fear tactics" to scare people into believing.

I don't know, man. I'm not seeing it. Anyway, this is just one example of an argument that this video is "bullying" people into Christianity. Maybe there is something valid in here? I don't fully understand, maybe you will.

I do think there are many sides of this argument, and this is just where I stand. I'm a little sad, though. Christianity isn't meant to be a war of logic. It's not meant to be a bunch of people insulting each other and putting each other down just to be heard. It's not about dropping bombs on anybody who doesn't think the same way you think.

In fact, in this same chapter, the Bible says something pretty important.

"When a foreigner resides among you in your land, do not mistreat them. The foreigner residing among you must be treated as your native-born. Love them as yourself, for you were foreigners in Egypt. I am the Lord your God." - Leviticus 19:33-34

I was just saying to my dad the other day, that Christianity is unique in that it's a religion that isn't about the religion. It's possibly the only faith where your focus is on the relationships you have with the people around you, not just your relationship with God.

I'd like to change that in my own life; I'd like to start focusing more on people, more on what they could be and what's great about each and every one of them. I'd like to stop judging, stop gossiping, stop assuming.

And that's where I'm gonna leave you guys today. (Don't we all love awkward blog endings? Ha ha ha.) Thanks for reading, and have a blessed week ahead!