Thank you.
We will now begin the singing of the song of the 200th and 88th.
We will do the single first by singing the song of the 200th and 88th.
I am resolved.
I love you.
I love you
Some through the
fire put on
through the blood
Some through
grace are old
but God gives a
song
In the light
season it all
will be gone
Sometimes on the
ground where the
sun shines so bright
God needs
to free children
of God
Sometimes
in the valley
in darkness of
light God needs
to free children
of God
Some
through the water
some through
the flood
Some through the
fire put on
through the blood
Some through
grace are old
but God gives a
song
In the light season
it all
will be gone
Some through
fathers and saints
without clothes
God needs to free
children of God
We'll
raise the neck
of working people
our foes
God needs
addiction
by another
Some through
the water
some through
the flood
Some through
the fire put on
through the blood
Some through
grace are old
but God gives a
song
In the light season
it all
will be gone
Sometimes on the ground
some through the
light season it all
will be gone
Some through the
fire put on
some through the
blood
Some through
grace are old
but God gives
a song
In the light season
it all
will be gone
Some through
the water
some through
the flood
Some through
grace are old
but God gives a
song
In the light season
it all
will be gone
At this time we're going to the announcements
We need to get followed
We'll be sitting somewhere in the corner
on 166
If you need a bulletin
go ahead and slip up your hand
brother Adam will bring you one
as always we've got the service times listed there
on the left hand side as well as the
on the right hand side as well as the
In my soul I pray from ground to ground,
all hope and life for all my sins.
I obey the Spirit through me,
raising the Lamb in me.
I will praise Him, I will praise Him,
praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
Lord, who waste a chair in their own,
all I did was start to pray.
I will praise Him, I will praise Him,
praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
Thank the Father for the altar,
to love me from the center frame.
I will praise Him, I will praise Him,
praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
Blessed be the Lord,
I will praise Him, I will praise Him,
praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
Blessed be the name of Jesus,
I will praise Him, praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
Glory, glory to the Father,
glory, glory to the Son,
glory, glory to the Spirit,
glory to the free and high.
I will praise Him, I will praise Him,
praise the Lamb who saved me.
Give Him glory, all ye people,
for His love may rush away each day.
At this time, we'll pass the open plate.
As the plate goes to wrap, let's turn our bodies
to Deuteronomy chapter 14.
That's Deuteronomy chapter 14.
As always, we'll read the entire chapter.
Please follow along silently.
It's going to be a little bit explicit.
Deuteronomy chapter 14.
So obviously, you know, cutting is not something we're supposed to be doing, okay?
And I'm starting, you know, with this cutting, I'm talking about the literal cutting, okay?
And we've kind of talked about that.
And that's probably not something that was going to apply so much to us at the most.
It's probably going to be because we run into, know, or will know somebody in the future that has, either have known or we do know or whatever.
So it's somebody that's in our sphere of influence that's into us.
It's not us ourselves here tonight.
You know, I trust, I pray that we're not into that.
And I'm sure that's the case.
But, you know, this next part about, this next take on cutting, and if you would go to Leviticus 19.
This is something that I know that many of us here tonight have already done.
And this is something that could be a temptation to some of us in the future.
Because this is something that's very in fashion right now.
This is something that if you partake in this form of cutting, you're not going to be viewed as demonic.
You're going to be cool.
You're going to be hip.
You're going to be with it, right?
You're going to be, you know, you're going to be praised.
It's going to be talked about, okay?
And what I'm talking about tonight is tattoos.
That's the next take on cutting because tattooing, you know, is a form of cutting when you think about it.
Or it's a printing of marks on your body.
And let me just start by saying that if you have tattoos, you know, I'm not mad at you.
I'm not against you.
That's in the past.
You confess that.
You forsake that.
You know, and anybody who's right with God and has tattoos would want this preached.
Because they would want others to not do that.
And most people who have tattoos, you know, would rather not have them.
And usually if you talk to them about it, you know, they got it early on in life, you know, before they were saved.
And they were just doing it because this is what everyone does.
And look, tattoos are incredibly popular today.
It seems like everybody has tattoos.
They're everywhere.
And that's why I'm going to preach on it.
Because the Bible condemns it.
The Bible condemns printing marks on your body, okay?
You're in Leviticus 19, but in 21, it says they, meaning the Levites, shall not make baldness upon their heads.
Neither shall they shave off the corner of the beard, nor make any cuttings in their flesh.
You know, and I believe, you know, obviously there's the literal cutting that we talked about.
The straight up just lacerating yourself.
But, you know, when you're poking yourself repeatedly with a high speed needle to print a mark on yourself.
Which is specifically condemned, as we'll see in a minute.
You are also, in a way, cutting yourself.
It's just not as deep, and it's not as, you know, as traumatic to your body.
But it is still a form of cutting.
Look at Leviticus 19 verse 26, it says, you shall not eat anything with the blood.
Neither shall ye use enchantments, nor observe times.
You shall not round the corners of your heads.
Neither shall thou mar the corners of thy beard.
You shall not make any cuttings in your flesh for the dead.
Okay, that's one thing we talked about.
Nor print any marks upon you.
I am the Lord.
You know, that's, you know, that's a pretty clear command.
Not to print any marks upon you.
And that's literally what the word tattoo means.
If you go back to the origin of tattoo, I'm not sure in what language, I can't remember, I think I have it written down here.
Yes, tattooing in its etymology stands for marking oneself.
The word itself originated from the Tahitian word, well I don't know how to say it, tau tau, I guess, which means mark.
So the Tahitians, they started this practice, what they called what they were doing was, in their language, marking themselves.
Which is exactly what the Bible says.
Thou shall not print any what marks upon yourself.
He's talking about tattoos, folks.
You know, and this wasn't something that, it was British explorers, really, in the 18th century who kind of brought this practice back home.
You know, tattoos were reserved for, you know, these heathen nations and basically, you know, sailors in the 18th century.
You know, and sailors were also known for a lot of other things, especially back then.
You know, which were not things that, you know, the mainlanders would want to practice.
It was a very different lifestyle, it was not a godly lifestyle, so this was something that they got into.
I mean, they're on a boat, sailing around, they're bored, they're running into these, you know, these heathen hordes and they're just, you know, hey, yeah, sure, give me one, I'll take two, you know.
And they're getting I love mom or whatever else on their shoulder, right, they're getting the anchor.
But, you know, that's for the longest time, that's kind of who tattoos were reserved for.
You know, sailors and barbarians, heathens.
But now, today, you see everyone with them and it's just lifted up.
I mean, I see police officers with full sleeves all the way down on both arms.
And it's just like you're a public servant and this is the message that you're sending, this is who's here to protect and serve apparently.
You know, people who are, you know, housewives, you know, mothers, soccer moms, have multiple tattoos today.
And they're getting more and they're just talking about it at work, it's crazy.
It's how, in fashion, so you can see why this is something, this part of cutting yourself applies more specifically today, doesn't it?
About not printing any marks upon you on the Lord.
And look at verse 29.
Do not prostitute thy daughter to cause her to be a whore, lest the land fall to whoredom, and the land become full of wickedness.
Like, I don't know if those two are related, but isn't it interesting that as we see, you know, the popularity of tattoos on the rise in our country,
we also see our land being a land given over to whoredom?
You know, maybe I'm drawing some conjecture there, but you know, it's literally the next verse.
So he's talking about tattoos here.
And again, this is something that might apply more.
For hundreds of years, tattooing has one of the main ways of self-expression, expression of status in society, a showcase of one's history and experience.
So, you know, notice, this is off of a pro-tattoo website, the History of Tattooing or something like that.
And notice what they're saying, it's about self-expression.
It's about telling your story.
It's a history of you and your experience.
So tattooing is what? It's just about self, isn't it?
It's just about, look at me, it's just about, here's what I've done, it's just about promoting you.
It's really just a way to promote yourself and to draw attention to you.
So even if we were to take away Leviticus, chapter 19, you know, we could then come around and take the angle of, well, it's immodest.
Because it's all about drawing attention to yourself.
I mean, why do people go to Great Lakes that have such intricate and, you know, bright colors tattooed on them?
Or specific things, it's because they want other people to know this about them or to notice them.
I mean, you see some people, I mean, they go, there's people out there that are tattooed literally head to toe.
And then you get, now we're getting really weird where it's gone into this whole body augmentation thing.
Where people are getting, like, ball bearings put under their scalp and they're filing their teeth and, you know, making themselves to look like leopards and clefting their own and putting whiskers in.
I mean, it sounds crazy, but it's out there. People are really into this.
Nowadays, tattoos are the main media of body art across the world's cultures achieving mainstream status.
You know, and then he goes on, but that's not how it started out. It was sailors and Tahitians.
You know, and apparently back in Moses' day, you know, it was a problem back then.
God's like, hey, you're not going to be like these heathen people that you're going to go and expel from the land.
Don't pick up after their customs and start turning yourself into a walking sketch pad.
Okay, you know, and that's essentially what you are. Think about it.
When people that are just letting somebody else scribble on them.
I mean, I don't know else to say it, you know, and I'm not trying to pick on anybody, but I mean, that's really what it is.
That same person who might be a very good artist might be able to draw, it's like, well, why don't you just give them a piece of paper?
You know, let them pay to draw on something that you're not going to have to walk around and hopefully they don't mess up.
And I used to scratch my head and sit here and think, you ever notice how many tattoo parlors there are?
I mean, they're everywhere. I mean, I just couldn't, I mean, they're just like everywhere these days.
Every time I see them, I'm like, how in the world can you afford to pay rent in a building, utilities, all of that, run a business drawing on people?
But, you know, we're going to see here in a minute that it's actually very popular in America.
I'm like, oh, well, that makes sense. A lot of people are doing it.
You know, and I had, like I said, I had friends growing up that were really into this. I had a friend who owned a tattoo parlor.
I mean, I wouldn't really even call this guy a friend. It's just kind of somebody I knew.
And I did have a friend that, you know, that was really into it, who coincidentally was, you know, in the maritime services.
You know, and his father, I'll never forget him saying to him, you know what you're going to look like when you're 80?
You're going to look like a box of melted crayons.
That's what he said. Oh, you look good now for everything starting to droop and wrinkle and everything else, as is the way of life.
You know, that's the path we're all on. You know, it's like, you better think about that.
You know, enjoy that while you can, because when you turn 80, you're just going to look like just a box of melted Crayola crayons.
As soon as he said that, I could never get that image out of my mind.
I didn't know I was going to be a preacher back then, but something instinctual is like, save that.
You're going to use that someday. That's a good one. So, thank you for that.
But, you know, that's the thing. People in their youth, they make decisions without thinking.
And they go out and get these ridiculous tattoos, for example, for like a one-off joke.
I mean, you want to find some entertainment. You know, I don't suggest you do this.
You know, be careful where you look. But if you just Google, you know, tattoos gone wrong, bad tattoos.
I mean, if you're not shaking your head and pitying these people, you're laughing out loud, because some of them are ridiculous.
And some of them are ridiculous not just because they turned out bad, but because people are just, you just see how short-sighted they are.
To just get a gag out of somebody, just to get a laugh, just to get a reaction that's only going to last one time.
I saw a guy, he got a giraffe tattooed all the way up his arm, like the head was up here, and then he had the legs down here, so he could go like this.
And it looked like a giraffe walking around on his arm. You know, that was probably cool the first time his buddy saw it.
And then like the 10th, 15th time he's doing it at a party, he's like, will you knock it off? We've all seen that one.
Oh, I guess I've got to get a different tattoo. You know, or, you know, the guy that gets the eyeballs printed right here, I've seen that.
So he could pull his knit hat down, and it still looks like his eyes are there looking at you.
But when he's not doing that, he's got four eyeballs looking at you.
You know, the guy gets no limit tattooed on his forehead, or face tattoos.
You know, we were talking about the one over there, the chick who got an onion tattooed on her armpit.
Explain that one to your kids later in life, your grandchildren. What is that? It's an onion!
Why did you get an onion in your armpit? I don't know. It seemed like a good idea.
When she's taking the pictures, you just...
Let's see you when you're 80. When you sober up. You know, and see how cool that is.
You know, the... Anyway, I don't want to go out on the tattoos that are out there. You've seen them, right?
No, uh, uh...
Regret Nohing on the forum. Regret Nohing. N-O-H-I-N-G.
Regret Nohing. What's Nohing? I don't know, but I don't regret it.
You regret Nohing, for sure, at that point.
You get that, and you want to regret nothing, and you walk out with regret Nohing.
Let me tell you something. You're regretting Nohing.
You're looking at Nohing going, I regret this.
I regret Nohing. It's like, that is an accurate statement.
In that picture, they're just like...
There's no smile. This is not a giraffe. This isn't clever.
Or the guy that had a little bit of hair right here left, and he got it kind of like a bowl cut.
And then he literally tattooed the clippings, like someone took scissors like that.
And then it looks like the hair falling off from getting cut.
Like, that's funny the first time, and I admit it, it's kind of clever.
That's funny. Next.
You know, but I'm not going to hire that guy to...
That guy shows up wanting to date my daughter, and it's going to be like, sorry.
I can't see you. I can't look at that every Thanksgiving.
I don't care how nice he is.
You hear me, girls?
If face tattoos, run away.
Now look, I know plenty of good, godly people who have a lot of tattoos.
And tattoos up to the neck.
And they're good, godly people.
And you know what? Those same people, if they were here in the sermon tonight,
they would be glad that I'm preaching this.
Because they don't want to have those things.
And they go to great lengths.
Well, I've known people, good godly Christians, who earlier in life didn't know any better,
were just kind of going with the flow.
Because again, it's only with our crowd really today that these things would be looked down upon.
The world would be like, great, get another one. Good job.
They want to show off the fresh ink and get inked.
You know, it's like a cool term.
But they go to great lengths to get it removed.
And look, those things don't come off.
You say, you know, I'll get one if I don't want it later. I'll get it with lasers.
The lasers are more painful. I have no people who have done it.
It's more painful than the tattoo itself.
And it's never completely gone.
They're permanent.
And it's expensive. It costs more to get it removed.
And it's like literally burning your skin to the point where it blisters and bubbles.
It's like at that point you might as well just live with it.
But the real solution is to just not get it at all.
To never do it in the first place.
And there's a lot of people who probably wouldn't have done it if they had heard a sermon like this.
If they had heard preaching like this.
They said, you know what, I didn't realize at the time.
I mean the guy I knew that was warned about looking like a box of melted Coriolis in his old age.
He was the same guy who claimed to be a Christian and told me, oh the Bible's for it.
The Bible says that it's good to get tattoos.
There's a Bible about tattoos that says it's good.
I'm like, name a verse.
Couldn't name one. Because there isn't one.
But we're looking at scripture that specifically condemns it.
You know, another guy's a Christian.
I mean people who get this long haired hippie Catholic Jesus tattooed on their forearm.
It's like first of all, you're a Protestant.
Why are you getting a Catholic Jesus on your forearm?
And second of all, that doesn't make you godly.
I mean that's what people want.
They want this cheap spirituality.
I'm so spiritual because I got Jesus tattooed on my forearm or something.
It's ridiculous.
But look, tattooing is very, very popular today.
More than 145 million Americans have a tattoo.
Those are some big numbers.
Look, if I could sell 145 million of anything, I'd be a very wealthy man.
I mean even if I could just sell it for $1, I just made $145 million.
So this is a very big industry.
I mean don't they have just whole reality shows dedicated to tattooing now?
I remember seeing advertisements for that where they have these shows where it's just following tattoo artists.
Isn't that a big thing? I don't know if it's still out there.
It's very mainstream.
And you say 145 million, that's a big number.
Let me break it down.
That's 43% of the approximate 330 million people that live in the United States.
43% of people in the United States have at least one tattoo.
That's almost half the nation.
And so why is it? It's because people aren't preaching this.
And even Christians today are just glossing over that.
Oh, that's just the Old Testament.
Well, you know there's some other laws in the Old Testament that aren't reiterated in the New Testament.
Do you want to get rid of those too?
Well, let's bring back incest.
Well, it's the Old Testament. Let's just throw it out.
You know, bestiality. That's just mentioned in the Old Testament. Let's throw that out too.
That's a very dumb way to approach the word of God.
And the Bible very clearly condemns it.
And now you even have Christians today, churches, they're not just not condemning it, they're promoting it.
Come to church and get a tattoo.
That's out there. Up in Tempe, whatever that bozos church is. I can't remember it.
I didn't want to mention it. Even if I didn't remember it, I wouldn't say it.
Because I don't want anyone to even hear about it and think about, oh, I can go get a tattoo at that church?
Go get tattooed at church.
I mean, that's...
I mean, I could see if that was like if you were in prison.
Like if you came out of prison with some tattoos, I would be like, well at least that makes sense.
I mean, that's kind of what they do in prison.
But if you're coming out of church with a tattoo, you know, something ain't right.
Something wrong somewhere.
Of the tattooed, of the 43% of Americans, 59% are women and 41% are men.
So this is more prevalent among women.
Which just goes to show you that this is about, this is a fashionable thing.
That's what it's about. It's about, it's very fashionable.
Look, they're all doing it.
You see it everywhere. Go to Dutch Bros.
You know, they all got the black and white little flower and the butterfly.
I mean, it's pretty. I can see why. You have taste.
You know, but you could have done that on a wall.
You could have just bought the painting and hung it.
You know, and then when you got tired of it, you could just get a new one.
But it's like, but that's permanent.
You know, you're going to be looking at that after it gets liver spots and strange hairs start to grow out of it.
And it's all wavy.
And it goes from looking like a butterfly to looking like just butter.
Like melted butter.
But it's everywhere. We all see it.
You know, and that just tells you why it's so popular because it's a very fashionable, trendy thing.
And look, even in God's house, even amongst God's people, we can start to let the things of the world,
the fashions, the customs of the world, the things that are popular in the world,
can start to creep into God's house to the point where we say, well, maybe it's not that bad.
Look, the Bible's very clear that you're not to put any prints or marks upon you. Period.
And the thing about tattooing is if I could just sell $145 million for a buck, you know, I could retire.
Not that I would.
Of the tattooed, you know, it's more than just one tattoo.
Of the 70% of people that are tattooed have more than one tattoo.
So 70% of the people that get a tattoo, they end up going out and getting another one.
So now I'm starting to go, oh, well that makes sense why there's just tattoo parlors all over.
And 20% have more than five.
You know, and a lot of people who get these things, they'll start to report it almost becomes like an addiction.
And, you know, tattooing is a very painful thing.
I mean, you're having just a needle just like stab you.
Just imagine taking a needle and just poking yourself at a high rate of speed for hours.
But people, they actually get addicted to that sensation.
You know, it kind of goes back to what we were talking about earlier.
You know, people who cut themselves, they actually derive pleasure from that pain.
It's very, very odd.
You know, and I'm just going to throw this out there.
Hopefully I don't really have to make my point too much more.
Go over to 1 Corinthians chapter 6, I'll close.
1 Corinthians chapter 6, but think about the fact that, you know, and people can disagree with me on this.
And this isn't something I'm fully convinced of.
But when it comes to the mark of the beast, it's a mark.
And we're being told we should not print any marks on our body.
And a lot of people have different ideas about what the mark of the beast is.
And you know what, they very well might be right.
Maybe it's that little, you know, microchip that's going to go in your hand.
But you know, a mark, a tattoo is technically in your skin.
It's piercing, you know, several layers of skin and injecting the dye.
So in a sense, it is in your body.
You know, it very well could be that the mark of the beast is just simply a tattoo.
That you have to show a certain design or a pattern on your hand.
Or it doesn't have to be some electronic device.
Although it very well could be. I'm just throwing that out there.
Because it kind of preaches well with this sermon.
And I think that that's a possibility. I'm not just saying that taking liberties with the scriptures.
I believe that is a possibility.
That it could end up just being as simple as a tattoo in your hand or your forehead.
Because that is technically in.
That's what he said, you should not print any marks upon you.
And then in Ezekiel, when they went out and marked those that sighed and cried.
It says that they set a mark upon their foreheads.
So you can see how a mark could be something that's in you.
It could be something that's upon you.
So, you know, that's something to think about.
In any case, even at its root, at its origins, tattooing is heathen.
And it's condemned in scripture.
And I mean, that alone makes it satanic.
I hope that I'm right about that. That would really validate my sermon tonight.
If it turned out to be a tattoo, I'd be like, yes, I got one.
I was right about the mark. But, you know what, I'm probably not.
And I want to address just one thing here in closing.
Because whenever you preach on the subject, this is something that comes up.
And it's the topic of piercings.
And you're in 1 Corinthians chapter 6.
Piercings, to me, is a gray area.
When it comes to girls, to ladies.
If ladies want to get piercings, I don't think that anyone has any clear scripture where they can say,
you shouldn't do it, because they'll say, well, you know, you shouldn't make any cuttings in your flesh.
I get that, but if you're going to say that piercing yourself with a needle is a cutting,
if that's what you're going to go with, then, you know what, no more IVs, no more getting blood drawn.
Then you can't stick any needles in your body whatsoever.
And you say, well, you're extrapolating. No, I'm just following your logic.
That's the same logic that people are using. I'm just taking it to the next step.
I'm just following that logic through.
That's not conjecture. I mean, it is conjecture, but it's the conjecture that that crowd starts.
So I don't think that you can say, well, it's a form of cutting yourself, therefore you shouldn't do it.
I think it's a gray area at best, but, you know, for my household, and I'm not against anybody that does this,
if people can make their own rules for their own house, you know, I just err on the side of better safe than sorry.
And I've told my daughters, no piercings.
Now, when they get out of my house and they're married off,
and they want to just make themselves look like they got in a fight with a BB gun and lost,
if they want to just make themselves look like they fell face first into a tackle box,
at that point it's between you, your husband, and God.
But until then, you're under my rules, and these are the rules for my house.
And these aren't rules for other people's houses. People can do whatever they want.
Because, again, I don't think you can condemn it through Scripture.
But at the same time, I don't think you can also say, well, it's absolutely for it, too.
But I don't think it's something that is condemned in Scripture.
But at the very least, I will point out this, is that wherever you fall in that area,
is that modesty has to be observed, just like in any other instance.
You know, and there's several Scriptures that we could go to on modesty.
You know, that women are to adorn themselves with modest apparel, not with broided hair or gold or pearls or costly array.
That they should let that adorning be the inward man, right?
And not the outward, you know, with putting on apparel and trying to draw the attention to themselves.
And you decide where that line is.
And you decide where you feel like, you know, if you're putting in the giant hoops or something,
and you're going, everyone's going to notice this, you've probably crossed that line.
You know, and some people are just going to want to make themselves look a little nicer,
and just put that in, and it's just something that they like to do, that's fine.
You know, I'm not here to be the arbiter of modesty.
And even if I did think somebody was going beyond the line of what's proper,
I certainly wouldn't just go up to them and say so.
You know, that's something that they're going to have to work out in their own heart.
So I don't think that that's something you can, you know, 100% say it's sinful.
But I will say this, on men, it's effeminate.
In fact, on men, it used to just be a way to signal that you were a fag.
You know, but now today, fags are just so out in the open, they can just come out and say,
hey, I'm a fag, and they can go to their fag bar and meet all the other fags out in the open.
Because, you know, society has just been so welcoming and loving and perverted at the same time.
It's just so ironic.
You know, so at the very least, on men, you know, and you can say that's your personal opinion,
yeah, it is, and I'll preach it as loud as I can.
Putting jewelry on as a man is effeminate, period.
It's an effeminate trait.
And it should not be done.
Now, I will say this when it comes to piercings on women.
And again, this is my own opinion, but I feel like this is one that is shared in this room.
And I might say something if you ever come in with this piercing.
If you pierce your nose.
And even the one up here, like the little, just the, what do they call it, the stud?
Is that what it's called, the stud?
That I don't, I would never approve of, and I don't like.
I'll let it pass.
I probably wouldn't say anything.
But if you come in with that hoop, right here, I'm not going to be able to look at you.
Because I can't, you know, you go to the Dutch Bros.
How you doing?
Hey, how you doing today?
And I'm just like, ugh, just give me my coffee.
They got this big, I can't look at you and not see an image of like a water buffalo.
With like a big hoop.
Or the pig.
You know, say, well, you preach the Bible.
The Bible says, as a jewel of gold and a swine snout, so is a fair woman, which is about discretion.
As a jewel of gold and a swine snout, so is a fair woman, which is about discretion.
You say, look, a beautiful or a fair woman who has no discretion, you know, it doesn't matter how pretty you make her look.
It's like you're putting a piece of gold in a swine snout.
You know, it might look nice, but the rest of it isn't so attractive.
You know, and that's what I see.
So there's your Bible for you on the topic.
Let's get back to my opinion.
You know, when I see that, I just think of some big, dumb animal that has to be, you know, they would do that to lead you around.
So they could control the bull, they could control the ox, they could keep the pig from rooting in the dirt and digging up, you know, flowers and other things.
That's why they do that.
It's a form of control.
And really when you think about it, when you see these women, and please not men, oh man, you have to see a man do it.
I'm sure it's out there, I don't want to see it.
But when I see them with that, I'm just like, you're like that dumb animal and it's just, it's culture that's just hooked you.
I'm like, oh, over here now, now do this to your body.
Now go over here and do this to your body.
And you just wonder what else, what else, what other things do they let the, you know, the culture and our society just have liberties with them when it comes to their body.
I mean, we could start talking about abortion at that point.
Because it's their body, their choice, they can do whatever they want with their body.
That's, that's, you know, the world's philosophy.
Just do whatever you want with your body, your body is yours to treat it however you want.
Draw all over it, let's, pay somebody else to do it, I hope they do a good job.
Paint, you know, drawing the portrait of your newborn on your shoulder and it doesn't turn out looking like the Elephant Man or something.
Like the portraits that go wrong, like they got, the droopy eye looks nothing like the original photo, they hold them upside, it's just like, oh man, I hope you got your money back.
But you know, it's your body, do whatever you want with it, right?
That's the philosophy out there.
Punch holes in it, put steel in it, you know, clip it, do whatever you want, it's yours.
Is that, is that what the Bible says?
No, the Bible says in 1 Corinthians chapter 6 verse 19, what know ye not, your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost which is in you.
Now if you're saved, your body is the temple of the Holy Ghost, which ye have of God, and ye are not your own.
You know, your body is not your own to just do whatever you want with it.
For ye are bought with a price, and what was that price?
The blood of Christ as the precious blood of a lamb.
You are brought with a price, therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God's.
You know, it doesn't, you know, it disgusts me, obviously, I think I've expressed that.
When you see the nose ring, you know, in the whoever out there in the world, you know, it disgusts me, but it doesn't really shock me.
That's to be expected out there, but you know, in here, with God's people, we who have the indwelling of the Holy Ghost, we are not at liberty to just treat our bodies however we want.
And, you know, specifically tonight, all I'm bringing up is the point that, you know, getting tattoos, you know, is just cutting yourself.
You know, if you're cutting yourself, and I doubt anyone's doing anything, but you know what, if you know somebody that's doing that, man, reach out to that person, help them.
You know, but this is not something that we're supposed to be doing as God's people. It's condemned in scripture. Don't let the world influence you.
And to say, oh, that Baptist preacher, that's just, you know, he's just from a bygone era.
You know, hello, I'm not, I wasn't resurrected out of the 50s.
You know, I'm not some 90 year old that is trying to just relive his glory days when America was, everything was good and pure and wholesome.
You know, I grew up in a wicked generation, you know, and I saw a lot of these things take place. I know people.
I've been very, you know, closely associated with people that have been into these type of things.
And I've seen what happens. I see what comes along with it. And I see why they do it.
And then I look at the Word of God and I say, well, that makes sense.
You know, so don't ever let the world convince you that this is just, you know, some antiquated preaching. This is relevant.
This is 1 Corinthians 6. And if you have the Holy Spirit in you, you need to glorify God in your body.
Don't print marks on yourselves. And I pray no one's cutting themselves, you know, and glorify God in your body.
Glorify God in your body, not through getting some Jesus tattoo on you, but by being different.
You know, we're going to be, not having the tattoo is going to be the person that stands out. That's going to be the cool trend.
Because isn't that what these trends are always about, being different?
Well, we're right on that cusp where, you know, in a few more years, it's probably going to be over half of people have tattoos.
You know, and then you're going to have to go to the nose ring. But I'm not going there.
Because you know what? Eventually, if that catches on, more and more people are going to get toward not having the nose ring,
not having the tattoo, not having augmented yourself, or printed some mark on your body. That's what's going to be cool.
You know, and whether it's, and that's not the point anyway. Being cool isn't the point.
The point is obeying God's Word, glorifying Him in your body, and not printing marks, not cutting yourself. Let's go and pray.
Dear Lord, again, thank you for a very relevant book, Lord, that the Word of God, though written so long ago,
holds so many great truths for us, even today, very practical truths that we need to apply to our lives.
And Lord, I pray to help us to not be influenced by this wicked and adulterous generation that we're in the midst of.
That would be, we would guard our hearts, and that we would learn to, Lord, just find fulfillment in pleasing you,
and doing that which is right. We ask that you would just protect us as we go now. In Jesus' name, Amen.
Alright, that's going to do it. Tonight we'll go ahead and sing one more song before we go.
Let's do it one more time.
Let's do it again.
Let's do it one more time.