Holy Kiss

ESV Romans 16:16 Greet one another with a holy kiss.

I wanted to encourage us at Harambee to greet one another, not with a holy kiss but to understand the importance of genuinely welcoming one another and loving one another as a family in the scriptures. This encouragement is repeated 5 times to the body of Christ in the NT. We are part of something, a fellowship of those who believe in Christ. While in college I used to walk by the office on my way to some of my classes and the receptionist would always greet me like I was Norm walking into Cheers, remember the TV show? At first I would just give her a strange look and a nod because I thought the only way you know me is from my records or something, but I noticed that she greeted everyone in the same warm and welcoming manner. She genuinely greeted people. I began to see that you don’t have to “know” someone or even be super friends to be able to greet them. Greeting one another with a holy kiss is only an encouragement to use the culturally appropriate form of greeting in a sanctified manner. The people of Paul’s day already greeted each other with a kiss, it is roughly equivalent of a handshake in our culture. Could we say greet one another with a holy handshake? I think that is fair, but what does a holy handshake look like, what is a holy greeting?
Ok, step one: make holy eye contact. Step two: walk in a holy fashion toward the person you are going to greet. Step three: … Just kidding. Many people get hung up on how to do a holy kiss, what are the mechanics of it. Do we kiss the cheek? Both or just one, do we shake hands at the same time? While I living in Ecuador the common greeting for women was to shake hands and then kiss on the cheek. It took me a while to get the hang of the kissing on the cheek thing, you basically just touch cheeks and make a kissing sound. I remember practically head-butting one poor lady because I stumbled as we leaned in to greet. (Side note: If you are going to greet someone with a kiss make certain of your footing.) Initially, I didn’t do much for the reputation of Gringos, sorry. Eventually, I became comfortable with it and no more head-butts. It was just the way we greeted, as a good missionary I tried to fit into the culture. Of course there where some sisters at Church who also tried to be culturally sensitive to us gringos. They were the greeters at the Sunday services and would stand at the door warmly greeting everyone as they entered. When the got to us gringos they would stand up straight and stick out their hand to shake ours, with a knowing look of compassion for us who didn’t understand how to greet someone. The external mechanics of the cultural greeting are not the ultimate issue here. Once again it is the heart. The Pharisees accussed Jesus of not being ceremonially clean when he and his disciples ate. Jesus replied
5”And the Pharisees and the scribes asked him, “Why do your disciples not walk according to the tradition of the elders, but eat with defiled hands?” 6 And he said to them, “Well did Isaiah prophesy of you hypocrites, as it is written, “‘ This people honors me with their lips, but their heart is far from me; 7 in vain do they worship me, teaching as doctrines the commandments of men.’ 8 You leave the commandment of God and hold to the tradition of men.” 9 And he said to them, “You have a fine way of rejecting the commandment of God in order to establish your tradition!” Mark 7:5-9
The point here that bears constant reminder is that external practices do not make one holy. Even circumcision the sign of the Abrahamic covenant did not make one holy. God says circumcision is of the heart. The encouragement to greet each other in a holy way is speaking to our heart. Encouraging a heartfelt greeting, a sincere greeting that recognizes the individual and welcomes them with a genuine love and care. One might say, but I don’t genuinely love and care for everyone who comes to church I don’t have time, or…
“But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, 25 that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. 26 If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together. 27 Now you are the body of Christ and individually members of it.” -1 Corinthians 12:24-27

Remember Jesus taught the Apostles and us that our love for one another would be a distinguishing mark by which we would be recognized as His followers. What is our motivation in greeting each other in the Church? We are exhorted to let our love be genuine and not to show partiality in the Church. Ultimately we are greeting Christ, when Jesus said “And whoever gives one of these little ones even a cup of cold water because he is a disciple, truly, I say to you, he will by no means lose his reward.” (Matthew 10:42) and, “And the King will answer them, ‘Truly, I say to you, as you did it to one of the least of these my brothers, you did it to me.” (Matthew 25:40) In the body of Christ we are to think more highly of others than ourselves and take into account that we should treat the disciples of Christ in the way we would treat Christ. How would you greet Christ if he walked in the front door on Sunday morning?