A Kissing Church?
“Greet all the brothers with a holy kiss”
~ 1 Thess. 5:26
by Rev. Dr. Stephen E. Jordan
If Paul tells us that we ought to be kissing, hold on while I grab a breath mint? What is a holy kiss anyway? Should we institute a time for smooching during the worship service? Should we become a kissing church? When we find a command in God’s Word, we are called to do it, are we not? Paul doesn’t command that we greet one another with a simple kiss. The command from the Lord is that we are to greet one another with a “holy” kiss.
What makes the kiss holy?
While it is true that believers, in their failings and sins,do not accomplish holy interactions, Paul is calling believers to the same holiness that is found elsewhere in Scripture.
“Therefore, preparing your minds for action, and being sober-minded, set your hope fully on the grace that will be brought to you at the revelation of Jesus Christ. As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it is written, ‘You shall be holy, for I am holy’.” (1 Peter 1:13-16)
We are called to live holy lives. And when we get together with other believers, it is meant to be holy work, or work that is set apart.
But what about the kissing part?
In the Jewish community, especially in the ancient world, they greeted one another with a kiss. As many in Europe still practice this form of greeting, most notably in Italy. Kissing has been part of the human experience.
Dr. Robert Cara notes, in his commentary on this passage, that Greek and Roman cultures exchanged kisses (Cara, 2009). Justin Martyr wrote in AD 155 that part of the worship service would have a time of the kiss greeting (Cara, 2009). While some modern churches may have a greeting time during worship called “The Right Hand of Fellowship,” can you imagine suggesting this ancient custom? Tertullian notes that platonic kisses were exchanged between all Christians including opposite genders, specifically during Communion (Cara, 2009). The Apostle’s Constitution, written around 375 AD, limited holy kisses to believers of the same gender (Cara, 2009).
What Paul is conveying is that believers need to express love for one another as they would for their closest friends and dearest family members. Is it wrong to kiss one another? Absolutely not. Would it be a bit odd in our culture? Absolutely yes.
Therefore, what are we to do? We ought to strive to experience a profound connection with other believers. The fellowship within the church should be so warm and so loving, and we should greet one another with such joy and fervor that no one would ever want to miss the weekly family get-together that we call Sunday Worship.
We should live out Psalm 133:
“Behold, how good and pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity! It is like the precious oil on the head, running down on the beard, on the beard of Aaron, running down on the collar of his robes! It is like the dew of Hermon, which falls on the mountains of Zion! For there the Lord has commanded the blessing, life forevermore.”
How desperately this world needs places that are good and pleasant for believers to come together in unity–agathering of believers who are genuinely and powerfully loving towards one another; a place where no wrong is too great to extinguish that love because grace and forgiveness are always free; a place that is always calling one another to strive in walking the path of righteousness laid by Christ that comes from and leads to His cross.
Just how good is this head, beard and body saturating oil?
Being around other believers should be like the precious oil upon Aaron’s beard. How precious was that oil? The anointing oil for the high priest was to be made under strict conditions and could only be put upon the high priest. The mishandling of that precious oil would bring a death sentence.
Those born last century may remember the glories of commercial marketing. Do you recall the commercial that promised a moment of bliss for weary moms? The mom would be overwhelmed by kids, and husband, and chores, and life, but then she would cry out “Calgon, take me away!” She would leave this world behind as she slipped into a bath. The ancient world did not bathe like we bath. In fact, it was common to wash with olive oil. This was such a common practice that Roman gladiators would put scented olive oil on their bodies and scrape it off with steel bars. (Fun fact: these oils were collected and sold as souvenirs at the games.) Believers have something far superior to olive oil baths or even Calgon. Believers must strive to be like this precious oil that washed from Aaron’s head down to the edges of his garments.
What’s so pleasant about the mountain dew?
The church should also be like the dews that descend upon Zion from Mt. Hermon. Mt. Hermon is the mountain range that feeds the Jordan River. The heavenly dews fall upon the Hermon Mountain range and its springs feed the Jordan River.
Do you recall the promise made by the York Peppermint patty? We were told that if we took a bite into a York Peppermint Patty, we would be teleported from a hot, miserable climate to a refreshing winter wonderland. The church must be a place that teleports believers from the trials and tribulations of this world to a place of cool, refreshing rest.
This can all be accomplished when believers pursue falling in love with His commands to love God and to love our neighbor as ourselves. However, this must be done by faith and not works. The key is for believers to strive to walk in the path of Christ and manifest the fruits of the Spirit;
“The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things, there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires. If we live by the Spirit, let us also keep in step with the Spirit. Let us not become conceited, provoking one another, envying one another.” (Galatians 5:22-26)
We may not live in a culture that would be able to handle adding holy smooches to the order of worship, but the church ought to strive to offer one another metaphysical holy kisses. The church does its best work when we treat one another in a way that there is not a single believer who would walk in the doors of our church and not feel the love of Christ. This is how we greet one another with a holy kiss and this is how we honor Christ. To love whom He loves and to serve whom He saved.
Cara, R. J. (2009). A Study Commentary on 1 and 2 Thessalonians. Evangelical Press.