weekly sermon
5-11-08
Just For The Pure
This past week there have been many discussions among friends and family and
myself about what the Bible considers to be pure in terms of our physical
bodies.
Let me give you a little background about the reasons for the discussions. There
are several, including myself, that have a tattoo somewhere on their bodies, and
there were others that were thinking of getting one when the discussion arose as
to whether this was considered defiling the temple, or body, that belonged to
God.
There were also discussions concerning things such as, the types of foods we
eat, alcohol consumption, or various other things that could be considered as
defiling the body.
First I would like to give a scripture that, in some way, deals with the tattoo
issue. We will discuss that particular scripture. We will then look at a few
other scriptures, of which I truly believe pertain to this discussion.
Turn with me if you will to Leviticus 19:28, "Ye shall not make any cuttings in
your flesh for the dead, nor print any marks upon you: I [am] the LORD."
The first thing we notice is that we are not to make any cuts on our flesh. Back
in the day and time of this scripture, and in some areas still practiced today,
many folks were violent in both death and worshipping of idols. They would tear
their hair out, scratch their skins, and even cut their flesh in profession of
their mourning period, or in their profession to whatever particular idol they
worshipped.
Next we see that it says we are not to print any marks on our flesh. This is the
part of the verse that deals with tattoos. Remember we are still talking back in
this day and time. Tattoos were, for the most part, only practiced in various
pagan nations and countries. These markings that were printed upon the body
were, at this time, supposedly directly connected with superstitions and
beliefs. It was considered that if you received a tattoo then you had disfigured
the body and angered God, the one that had created this body originally.
Well needless to say, time progressed. Am I saying that time changes God's laws?
Not at all. In this progression of time, a man like no other man was born, grew,
taught many things to the people, and eventually went on to become the Saviour
of all mankind. Of course I am talking about Jesus Christ.
Let us take a look at what Jesus had to say about defiling the body. Go back in
time with me for a minute to about nineteen hundred and seventy five years ago.
Yes I know that is a long time ago, but that is about the time that Jesus was
approached by the scribes and Pharisees. Their concern was why the disciples had
not washed their hands before they ate. This in that day and time was considered
to have defiled the body. They believe that you were putting something dirty
into your body, which in turn was defiling your body.
How did Jesus answer them? Turn with me to Matthew 15:11, "Not that which goeth
into the mouth defileth a man; but that which cometh out of the mouth, this
defileth a man." Then mark your spot and turn with me to Mark 7:15, "There is
nothing from without a man, that entering into him can defile him: but the
things which come out of him, those are they that defile the man."
Both of these verses, written by two different authors, I believe shows us that
our worldly minds really do try to convince us of things that are not of God. If
we look at what Jesus had to say here, we see that a mans place with God comes
from within and not from without. This by no means gives us the right to go out
and do things that would go against God. What I mean by this is, if we do
something to our bodies, or even put something in our bodies that is ungodly,
then that would be against God.
So, in closing, I will say something that will probably upset a few theologians
and religious figures, but I honestly feel to be the truth. Should you have a
respectable tattoo, that is not for the purpose of drawing attention to yourself
for self gratification, or if you have a glass of wine with diner, or even an
alcoholic beverage, this is not defiling the body. Our minds have to be
responsible enough to realize the difference in being respectable and
non-respectable. All things, just as it says in the Bible, must be done in
moderation. Some that will be upset with my last statement will argue that if
you have a drink then you are not portraying yourself in a Godly manner. We are
supposed to represent God, and walk in the shoes of Jesus, and be like Jesus in
all things. If we are having a drink or are marking our skin with tattoos, is
this really walking in the shoes of Jesus? I truly believe that what is in our
hearts is how we show our Godly outward appearance. If your convictions tell you
that you should not have a tattoo, or that you should not have a glass of wine,
then by all means stick to your convictions. But I firmly believe that having a
tattoo will in no way keep any of us from entering the gates of Heaven to spend
eternity with our everlasting Father.
Let us remember one thing, this worldly body is nothing more than a vessel to
house our souls until the time comes that we should spend eternity in our final
resting place. When we descend to our final place, this body will remain as the
dust from whence it came. Our souls will be the things that go to meet our
maker. Our souls will be forever alive and not our physical bodies. If we were
to defile our souls, then I believe we would never be able to stand before God
with the kind of soul we were meant to have in His eyes.
Do you know where your soul will spend eternity? Do you wonder where your soul
will spend eternity? If for some reason you have any doubt whatsoever, then all
you would need to do is say a simple prayer with me.
Dear Lord, take over my life and forgive me of my sins, and give me the gift of
everlasting life. Amen.
If you have said this simple prayer, then we believe that you have received
salvation. We would love to rejoice with you, so please drop us a note, in our
link, to let us know and confess Jesus before man, so that we may send you a few
things that we hope will help you in your new Christian walk.
With Love in Christ,
Pastor Stone