Greet One Another…With a Kiss?
“Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the churches of Christ greet you.” Paul (Romans 16:16)
Love and Lordship in Focus…There is great significance in how we greet one another…but do we have to do it with a kiss? Well, maybe. Let’s take a look at how we can be obedient to the “one another” that is “greet one another” and show Christ’s Love to them.
Our next “one another” may be difficult to grasp in today’s licentious culture but it is powerful as we see it in the context of God’s Word.
This “one another” is found five times with four of them in Paul’s letters to the Romans (16:16) and in both of the Corinthian letters in Scripture (1 Corinthians 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:12), his first letter to the Thessalonian church (1 Thessalonians 5:26), and finally, in Peter’s first letter to the churches (5:14)! Each of these confirms that there was a significance in this command that we need to seek more deeply to understand what God is calling us to.
This command is “greet one another with a holy kiss.” It is the same exact phrase in our English language in each of these commands by Paul and Peter…two pillars of our faith and of Christ’s Church (except where Paul to the Thessalonians tells them to greet all the brothers and sisters with a holy kiss).
In our culture this becomes difficult to embrace because of our sexualized, pornified society that may either ignore it or carry it too far. Simply explained, most scholars believe that this command was a form of salutation to do one or both of the following: 1) share a blessing of loving fellowship with each other by passing on the pneuma (breath of life and blessing) in The Spirit, and/or; 2) this kiss represented the symbol and a bonding of family…the Family of Christ!
We must never separate this act of a greeting and affection from the descriptor of “holy,” meaning pure and sacred. Many cultures still practice the literal kiss of some kind and in Christ’s Church it must be rooted in the holiness aspect above all else to express the affection, blessing and encouragement it is meant to share.
Probably the greatest example of this becoming perverted and twisted was in Judas’s kiss of betrayal with Christ, as he greeted Him, in pointing out to the authorities that He was the one they were to arrest (Matthew 26:49; Luke 22:48).
While we may not literally kiss one another, we offer other exchanges that represent this command as we shake hands, embrace, speak blessings in The Spirit and other cordial connections of fellowship and love.
Don’t allow your insecurities to keep you from genuinely connecting with those in the Body of Christ. In this way we show each other that we care just as Christ cares for us. In this way we show each other that we care.
Food for Thought…I want to have the heart of Christ for others. Evidently how I greet them is important when it comes to expressing His Love in and through me. May we take to heart how we are to greet and welcome others with the affection of the early church who learned from those who had been with Christ!
Love in Action –
- Spend time with Him in His Word and prayer daily – read and study the Scriptures in this post as a way to start
- Ask The Holy Spirit to teach you
- What do your welcome or greetings to others state as to what they mean to you?
- In what ways can you greet others to show them the Love of Christ?
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Love and Lordship Prayer Focus…Heavenly Father, as I grow in Your Love for me and mine for You may I learn to greet, welcome and engage with others in a way that expresses Your pure and Godly Love so they can see and know Jesus. In His Name. Amen.