'Who is he who condemns? It is Christ who died, and furthermore is also risen, who is even at the right hand of God, who also makes intercession for us.' Romans 8:34

In the local shopping area, near to where I live, there is a certain shop that always seems to have a new owner every few months. Probably you know the kind of premises. One day it is a pet shop, a couple months later it is a bargain basement shop – the type where you have to check the expiry dates before purchase. Anyhow, one of the incarnations of this particular shop, which for the month stands empty, was a tattoo and body-piercing parlor.

I have to admit that I was a little surprised when I found his out because as I didn’t think that the area had enough foot fall traffic i.e. enough of the right kind of people walking by to keep it in business.

For many reasons, mainly my conservative Christian bringing and not seeing tattoos or piercings in my house, this ‘type of thing’ has never appealed to me. So I was somewhat puzzled on the way to work the other morning when I saw a newspaper type banner next to a church, which read,

‘Breaking news. Body-piercing saved my life!’

That was until I saw the picture of Christ with his outstretched hands on the cross underneath it.

It grabbed my attention all right and got me thinking about body piercing in a whole different way. Ok, yes it is a clever play on words, as body piercing today is not in any way religious, more for fashion or self gratification. But now I can’t seem get the picture of Jesus on the cross out of my mind when I see a body piercing. By the way, this is not a blog condemning what people do or have done to their bodies. I stand to be corrected but as far as I know the bible only speaks indirectly on the subject in 1 Corinthians 6:19-20

‘Or do you not know that your body is the temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and you are not your own? ²⁰ For you were bought at a price; therefore glorify God in your body and in your spirit, which are God’s.’

Whilst it doesn’t mention tattoos or body piercing, the text does imply that once we come to God, we give Him our all, including our bodies. However many of us come with visible body markings from days before we knew the Lord and they all mean something. But also many of us carry around scars in our hearts and minds, which although cannot be seen, nevertheless are there. God loves us just as we are. And remember like doubting Thomas, we will know him by the nail prints in his hands.

So next time you see a tattoo or a body piercing remember the breaking news ‘body piercing saved MY life’. I will.

The song today is 'Remember me' by Wintley Phipps. Click on the picture to listen.