Day4
1 Thessalonians 5:26
“Greet all the brothers and sisters with a holy kiss.”
1 Thessalonians 5:26 TLV
Cross references
Romans 16:16;
1 Corinthians 16:20;
2 Corinthians 13:12
A Holy Kiss
Do you greet your loved ones with a kiss?
I do not. A hug yes, but not a kiss. I kiss my husband and sometimes my grown children, but that is the extent of kissing for me.
In western culture especially up north, this kind of greeting is rare.
In Jesus time, greeting with a kiss on the cheek was common.
Today, even a hand shake is questionable.
I remember visiting down south as a young adult and hiking on a mountain trail. When we passed by other hikers, they made eye contact and said, “Hello. How are you doing?”
I thought that was weird. It was nice, but a little uncomfortable for me. Up north where I am from, we don’t make eye contact. We pass by quickly and keep to ourselves. I think to protect ourselves from a possible predator.
How about you? What is normal for you?
What Paul is inferring is that we greet one another with a genuine, friendly greeting. He is talking about when we gather together to worship.
Think about how you enter your place of worship.
Do you rush in at the last minute, hurry to find your seat missing every opportunity to greet others? Maybe you get there early and slip into your spot unnoticed or pass by others quickly with a polite smile and take your seat.
Some of you may be “social butterflies” and talk to everyone.
We are all different and that’s okay.
What Paul is saying here is that it’s important to show love and respect for each other as fellow Christ followers.
The next time you prepare for your worship experience, before you leave your home;
Pray and ask God to prepare you for the experience. When you arrive, before you get out of your vehicle, ask God to help you with a genuine, friendly attitude.
Now walk in fresh and ready to greet everyone with a smile and a simple “Hi.” Maybe add, “God has something special for you today, are you excited about it?”
When we take the focus off of ourselves it is amazing what God can do!
Let’s try it!
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