‘Tattoo is not a sin’: Pastor Kingsley Okonkwo defends his tattoo and challenges what Christians believe about it

• Pastor Kingsley Okonkwo has defended his decision to get a tattoo after facing criticism from Christians.

• He pointed to Isaiah 49:16 and Revelation 19:16 while explaining his position.

• But Leviticus 19:28 explicitly mentions tattoo marks, raising a bigger question about how Christians interpret the verse today.

For many Nigerian Christians, a pastor getting a tattoo is enough to spark a debate. Pastor Kingsley Okonkwo has now weighed into the conversation, arguing that having a tattoo does not make someone a sinner.

The pastor’s comments come months after he caused a stir by revealing a tattoo on his arm. The tattoo, unveiled around his 50th birthday, carries John 3:16 in Roman numerals — “III:XVI”. He later said he was willing to get more tattoos despite the criticism.

In an interview with TVC, he said tattoos have been part of human culture for centuries and are not something unique to modern society.

“I was born and bred in Lagos. There were those older men all over Lagos then that you see tattoos,” Okonkwo said in a recent interview.

“It has always been part of human culture, not even just Nigeria. Everywhere in the world, there are tribal marks; there are different marks.”

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Tattoos and body markings are indeed not new to Nigerians. Long before modern tattoos became popular, different Nigerian communities used facial and body marks to show identity, family, status, beauty and belonging. 

Yoruba tribal marks, for example, could identify a person's family or community.

Some of these traditional practices were later frowned upon as Western Christianity and colonial ideas spread. 

Missionaries often viewed indigenous body markings as part of traditional practices that should be abandoned. 

This helped shape some of the negative attitudes Nigerians have towards tattoos and tribal marks today.

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Okonkwo, who is also the founder of the David Christian Centre, also pointed to the Bible to support his argument.

He referred to Isaiah 49:16, where God says, “I have engraved you on the palms of my hands.” Okonkwo said the imagery shows that people in biblical times understood the idea of permanent marks being used to remember someone.

He also mentioned Revelation 19:16, which describes the name “King of kings and Lord of lords” written on Christ’s robe and thigh.

However, that does not necessarily mean the Bible says Jesus had a literal tattoo. The passage is widely understood as symbolic, and interpretations differ among Christians.

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The bigger argument is over Leviticus 19:28, the Bible verse most commonly cited by Christians who believe tattoos are forbidden.

The verse tells the Israelites not to make cuts on their bodies for the dead or put tattoo marks on themselves. Okonkwo argues that the instruction was connected to practices among the people of that time and should not automatically be treated as a rule against modern tattoos.

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He also questioned why some Christians apply parts of Old Testament laws selectively.

“If there is no scripture that says tattoo is a sin, where did these people get it from?” he asked.

Okonkwo compared the debate with other things that were once considered unacceptable in some Christian communities, including women wearing trousers and makeup, wearing wigs, using perfumes and even watching television.

He said Christianity has changed in how believers understand some of these practices, and tattoos should be considered in the same way.

For Okonkwo, his tattoo is therefore not just body art. It has become part of a much bigger conversation about what the Bible actually says, what churches teach and what Christians have simply come to regard as wrong.