I Cor. 7:34 says "The unmarried woman cares for the things of the Lord,
that she may be holy both in body and in spirit."
What does this mean to you? I have my opinion of course but I want to know what you think. I run into so many young people today who say piercings, tattoos, clothing etc. are not really that important. We live in a day of grace and God looks on the heart, not the outward appearance.
So - does God care about these things or not?
Thank you for indulging me with your opinion.
12 comments:
Ok, I'm going to try to word this how I have it in my head. Hope I don't mess it up.
I'm sure God cares because first off he loves us but secondly he created man in his own image. So as I am taught. && i'm pretty sure God doesn't have tattoos and piercings and provocative clothes.
But I have piercings, tattoos(Zak's name and a cross in a fish) and I dress appropriate I think.
I have those things but I'm saved and I know I'm going to heaven and i'll teach my babies to follow and love the Lord.
Ok, I tried to get exactly what was in my head down. lol
I don't think this is talking about tattoos, and clothing etc. Why would the verse start "There is difference [also] between a wife and a virgin." with your line of thinking wives can't get tattoos, but virgins can, or vice versa. Both, wives and virgins need to be modest, so this is more talking about; my body is my wife's and hers is mine. I can't force her to fast, or abstain, if it is not her conviction. And isn't it amazing that the Bible calls married couples; one flesh!
As to your question, I don't think God cares about these things but, he cares about the attitude. Is someone getting a tattoo in rebellion to their parents? Then they just gave an outward SIGN of their disobedience. Having a tattoo or a piercing won't keep you out of heaven. The OT rituals of the surrounding religions, marked (or literally cut) themselves in devotion to their false gods. Our God doesn't require self mutilation for his worship.
As a side note, think of the servant who loved his master and/or his family, who pierced his ear to show his love and devotion to his master and wanted to remain with his family, that his master had given him.
Ahhhh Miss Marti! Tricky little question you pose here. My immediate response was "Man looks on the outward appearance, but God looks on the Heart." (1 Sam. 16:7) Of course it is true that some times our outward appearance can paint a pretty clear picture of the state of our hearts. For example I do not have any tattoos, my only piercings are my earlobes, and I dress in a manner that would be defined by most as conservative. However ... I have a life long weight issue that speaks volumes of a failure to fully surrender my physical appetites (food) to the control of the Spirit. I have my hair colored every couple of months because I'm not yet ready to surrender to the encroaching gray hairs. I've never been one to wear make up but most women do so and while it is temporary rather than permanent ... is there any real difference other than longevity between painting one's face and painting his/her bicep? Sorry ... I tend to be wordy. I think we as people like rules and restrictions and standards to keep others within out own comfort zones. Tattoos and piercings stereotypically indicate rebellion and that makes us uncomfortable so we want to classify it as wrong. And if it is done in rebellion it is wrong but that goes back to it being a matter of the heart! I have really struggled with this whole issue as much of my "religious" background is works based. And as God and I wrestled through who He is and who I am in Him, He finally got it through my head, and heart, that He wants my heart! And once He has that the right actions will follow! If He doesn't have that ... then it doesn't matter what I do ... I cannot be pleasing to Him.
It's probably typical of me that my answer is longer than your question. :)
Nice to "see" you again!
One more comment ... Paul's comment reminded me.
I LOVE Bible Gateway, www.biblegateway.com , for a lot of reasons but especially because it allows me to quickly look at a verse in context and in a variety of translations. I looked this verse up in several translations and ultimately the one that spoke most clearly to me was The Message. (I know. I know.)
"I want you to live as free of complications as possible. When you're unmarried, you're free to concentrate on simply pleasing the Master. Marriage involves you in all the nuts and bolts of domestic life and in wanting to please your spouse, leading to so many more demands on your attention. The time and energy that married people spend on caring for and nurturing each other, the unmarried can spend in becoming whole and holy instruments of God. I'm trying to be helpful and make it as easy as possible for you, not make things harder. All I want is for you to be able to develop a way of life in which you can spend plenty of time together with the Master without a lot of distractions." 1 Cor. 7:32 - 35, The Message
Yep ... He wants our hearts!
1 Timothy 2:9 seems to be more specific in how women ought to dress - proper clothing, modest, discreet, etc. (nothing about tattoos or piercings)
I, personally, don't like the look of tattoos and gobs of piercings. I wonder why anyone would want to do all that stuff to their body. Do they really think it looks good? It's beyond me. :) Laura
I'll call you about it =)
Ok - I think that you are all misunderstanding my question maybe based on preconceived ideas, actions or ?? I simply want to know if God is concerned about what we do with our bodies.
Obviously he wants our hearts, no doubt about it.
Here are some more verses about the body. Does it bring anything different to mind?
1 Corinthians 6:20 For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.
1 Corinthians 9:27 But I discipline my body and bring it into subjection, lest, when I have preached to others, I myself should become disqualified.
2 Corinthians 5:10 For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, that each one may receive the things done in the body, according to what he has done, whether good or bad.
1 Thessalonians 5:23 Now may the God of peace Himself sanctify you completely; and may your whole spirit, soul, and body be preserved blameless at the coming of our Lord Jesus Christ.
Brookee - I would say amen to the need to teach your babies to follow and love the Lord. To know Him is essential above all. Thanks for sharing your thoughts.
Paul - we'll talk more when we come in a few weeks! ;-)
Beth - yea! I love hearing from you dear one. Thanks for your thoughts, any more?
Blessings
I have days when I am a downright prolific writer. Trying, at the moment, to get those written thoughts back on higher things after a few months of fretting over physical ailments. (Of course the fretting didn't accomplish a thing except for a probable rise in my blood pressure!) Anyway ... I would love to share some more thoughts with you but the clock is creeping towards 11:00 and I must not only be at work but awake enough to participate in a staff meeting at 8:00 in the morning. Maybe I'll find some free moments during the day tomorrow.
I think I understand your question. Not sure my answer will be quite as straightforward. :)
First of all our bodies are a dwelling place of the Holy Spirit. Do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit, who is in you, whom you have received from God? You are not your own; 1 Cor. 6:19, NIV Our lives and bodies are not our own. They are gifts on loan from God while we are here on earth. We are called to wise stewardship of our bodies even as we are called to wise use of our minds, our talents, and our money. And because God is the owner and we are simply the "tenant" He should get to decide how the dwelling (our bodies) will be used and decorated. :)
I believe that God does care about every aspect of our lives and we are clearly called to treat our bodies with modesty and respect. Does that mean that tattoos and piercings are wrong? I don't think it does. I think tattoos and piercings fall into the permissible though not necessarily profitable (1 Cor. 10:23) category. I may have a personal conviction that tattoos are sinful. If God has brought me to that conviction then for me it is wrong to get a tattoo. That does not however mean that I have a right, or obligation, to force that standard on others. Conversely ... if I do not have that conviction but know that you do ... then it would be wrong for me to try to talk you into getting a tattoo. Or even to ask you to accompany me to the tattoo parlor or to admire my tattoos.
I do not personally have a conviction that tattoos and piercings (beyond earlobes) are wrong (sinful) although I do find them unattractive and my experience with most of those who aggressively display those things is that they tend to have a spirit of rebellion that is clearly not of God. However I am convicted of the fact that I do have a tendency towards judgment that I would assume a rebellious spirit (based on appearance alone) that may not be at all accurate!
I also think 1 Cor 19 - 23 could apply here. 19Though I am free and belong to no man, I make myself a slave to everyone, to win as many as possible. 20To the Jews I became like a Jew, to win the Jews. To those under the law I became like one under the law (though I myself am not under the law), so as to win those under the law. 21To those not having the law I became like one not having the law (though I am not free from God's law but am under Christ's law), so as to win those not having the law. 22To the weak I became weak, to win the weak. I have become all things to all men so that by all possible means I might save some. 23I do all this for the sake of the gospel, that I may share in its blessings. I hope God does not call me to witness to the lost in tattoo parlors and biker bars but if He should ever do so I might find that I am better able to share Christ while sitting in the tattoo chair than I ever could while hiding in my safe church pew.
Sorry you asked me for more thoughts yet? LOL!
Does God care? YES! He has numbered every hair on my head ... and undoubtedly knows what color they are! He cares about every aspect of our lives. But what He wants is to draw us closer to Him and for us to share Him with the hurting world around us. And He loves the heavily tattooed, over pierced Goth child every bit as much as He does me! And He does not want me sitting in judgment on that child's exterior. He wants me loving him / her and leading them into the presence of a Father who loves them and wants to heal their hurts! (I know you know that.)
My main point is that whatever I do or wear that points TO Jesus is fine. Anything that leads away from Him is not!
Shutting up now. :)
Thanks for your comments again Beth. You are very wordy! lol I mean that in fun!
I mearly wanted to cause people to think beyond pleasing themselves. He does say, "Be not conformed to this world but be transformed by the renewing of your minds." Yes, I believe that God is concerned about our bodies, after all He is our Creator!
His goal is to conform us, spirit, soul and body. There is coming a day when we will one day stand before Him as a bride, spotless and beautiful, conformed to His image.
Let's ( all who read this) not take lightly the actions we take. Can one say, "I got a tattoo for the glory of God?" I really don't know. But what I do know is that He is glorified when I weigh my heart, my life, my all before Him.
There are many things that even Christians do that grieve me. But am I God - no. I know that He is often more gracious than I. I am not the Holy Spirit either. It is not my place or job to convict another. It is my place though to provoke "unto love and good works".
Ok - enough said. Thanks everyone for sharing.
Laura - you too! I really enjoyed our visit today. Thanks for calling.
Blessings,
Soooo - I think I am the only unmarried person posting on this : ) But as a single lady, I have come to see more and more how God wants our hearts in the right place and IF our hearts are in the right place, then our actions should show it.
The verse strikes a chord with me because as a married person...you are not your own, your spouse has claim over you as well as the Lord. But being single means God (and God alone!) has full ownership over that single persons body and spirit. It puts fear into me because so often I have wrongfully thought, "Well - I'm single, it no big deal. I'm not accountable to anyone." BUT I AM!!! I am accountable to the God of all the Universe for my actions - and how could I wrongfully hurt my body (whether it be sexually, piercing...etc.) knowing that I am accountable to such a Person?
Well - so many single girls these days do what they want to do, sleep with whomever they want to sleep with, move into apartments with their boyfriend (and I'm talking Christians here!) because we have lost our fear of God. I pray this is on track and I am not hurting anyone's feelings - but I just see such a lack of fear for God, a lack of desire for holiness and an unwillingness to be "different" in this world if that is what God requires of us. And that IS what God requires of us. Why should we strive after for that which WILL fade away? Or, on a different note, why do we forget that "Christ has made us free, so be not entangled again with a yoke of bondage." Why should we put ourselves under sin when Christ has called us to freedom and a continual fellowship with Him in the Spirit? "Walk in the Spirit and you will not fulfill the lusts of the flesh."
*sigh* This was a good poll Marti, but it makes me sad...especially after my opportunity to speak this summer at THRBC because so many single girls that say they are Christians have no desire to be like Christ.
Would, like I said, the lack of fear of God be the problem to this all?
Is the pride of life truly choking up what God wants us to be?
Hey, so a random fad of mine recently has been hitting the "Next blog" button at the top and seeing and learning random things about random people. I know its crazy, but I hope it doesn't freak you out.
I am a Christian, so I thought I would leave you a comment. :)
My first instinct here is that the phrase "in body and in spirit" implies that we have to show our holiness through whom we are and what we do. We must be ever present. We must be ever holy through our actions and our thoughts.
As far as the piercings and tattoos and clothing go, the Bible has enough scriptures in it that one can argue both ways through the night (is it right? is it wrong? does the Lord condemn it? does he encourage it?) Believe it or not, I have heard scriptures mixed w/ opinions that proved all of those. Here is my own opinion, avoid the appearance of evil and only do that which brings honor and glory to the Lord. Before permanently changing the being that is in the Lord's image, His gift to you, you must ask yourself, Does this please the Lord? and Why am I doing it? Am I doing this to please the Lord? I challenge you to not only apply those questions to getting a tattoo or a piercing, or even buying a new pair of jeans, but to everything in your life. Start tomorrow when you wake up...Why am I doing this certain thing? Am I doing this to please the Lord? if you catch yourself in the middle of something ask Does this please the Lord? If it does then you are doing the right thing. If it is questionable, change something so it isn't. If it’s not pleasing the Lord, STOP! Stop instantaneously. Ask for forgiveness. Change your ways. then Become friends with the Lord again.
Thanks for your poll, I enjoyed answering honestly :)
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