Happy Valentine’s Day!
Have you kissed anyone today…has anyone kissed you? I hope so, but if not, there is still time to do some good kissing, with our Lord’s approval and to the benefit of the kisser and the one kissed.
If you didn’t know, there is a lot of kissing in the Bible. With notable but rare exceptions, kisses are genuine forms of affection, loyalty, romance, and restoration. I realize the Bible stories are a long time ago and reflect a different culture, but the act of pressing lips to skin of another seemed common.
Now, I’m not here for all of it, and I’m guessing my sons-in-law aren’t either. Remember Jacob? He’s the guy who wanted to marry Rachel (whom he kissed rather quickly after meeting her – Genesis 29:11) but ended up marrying her older and far less attractive sister Leah when their dad pulled a fast on Jacob. Well, before Daddy Deceiver passed off Leah as Rachel, Laban gave his future son-in-law Jacob a kiss (Genesis 29:13).
The Bible records a few times where the kisses of an enemy are deceitful (Proverbs 27:6). We all know about Judas kissing our Lord when Judas betrayed Jesus in the Garden of Gethsemane. There’s a crazy scene in 2 Samuel 20 where Joab (one of King David’s generals) lays a kiss on a dude seconds before he slits the man’s belly with his sword. Another time, David’s son Absalom kisses citizens after they show allegiance to him when he’s plotting to take David’s throne. So, there is a lesson here than not all kisses are what they seem to mean, but I’ll leave that for another time. Back to the good kissing.
In Genesis 45 Joseph kisses his brothers when he reveals his identity to them years after they sold him into slavery. The kiss expresses restored relationship.
In Ruth 1 the widow Naomi kisses her widowed daughters-in-law. The kiss expresses shared grief and self-sacrifice.
In 1 Samuel 20 Jonathan kisses David and David kisses Jonathan. The kisses express loyalty to each other in the face of King Saul’s rage.
In the Song of Solomon, the bride kisses her groom and the groom his bride. The kisses express their beautiful and exclusive passion for each other.
In Luke 7 a woman known in the streets to be a sinner comes to home where Jesus is having dinner. There she kisses our Lord’s feet. The kisses reflect her humility that Christ would forgive and accept her.
Later in Luke 15 a longing and joyful dad kisses his prodigal son when his son comes home smelling like pig slop. The kiss expresses a father’s unconditional love.
Five times the apostles Paul and Peter instruct Christians to “greet each other with a holy kiss” (Romans 16:16; 1 Corinthians 16:20; 2 Corinthians 13:12; 1 Thessalonians 5:26; 1 Peter 5:14).
I can’t tell you the Bible commands you to kiss people like the Old Testament examples, but I can say the Bible examples show us kissing and physical affection is really good for relationships. So, let’s turn up the physical affection, and here’s some suggestions:
If you’re married and you’re home when your spouse walks through the front door, wouldn’t it be great if the first thing that happened before anything else was a welcome home kiss! The kiss says “Whatever happened in your day or mine and whatever needs to get done around this house, there’s nothing more important to me than you.” I am here to tell you that one of the best things you can do to improve your marriage is to kiss your spouse every day, multiple times a day.
If you’ve got kids, a great practice is to greet them with a kiss when they come home from school or a friend’s house or to give them a kiss when you come home. The kiss says, “I’ve missed you and I’m really happy to be back with you.”
When you kiss or hug your older dad, mom, or in-laws, you do more for them than you can possibly know. The kiss says, “I’m not a child anymore, but I love you because I am your son” or “because I am your daughter.”
When you embrace a fellow Christian, your embrace conveys unity because of Christ and a relationship that will be eternal.
When you hold your wife’s hand or when you take your husband’s arm, your touch reminds each other that you are not merely roommates; you are lovers.
When your kids see you and your spouse kiss and hug and hold hands and sit close to each other, they see an example to follow, and they breathe the joy of their parents’ love.
There a more examples, but you get the idea. Most of us could do a lot of good to those around us by doing a little more kissing, a little more hugging, a little more hand holding, and little more cuddling.
But what if you have no one to kiss and no one who will kiss you?
Psalm 2 instructs the kings of the world and all the people of the world to “kiss the son.” It is a reference to our Lord Jesus. A psalm is poetic literature so the reference is not to a physical act but is a visual expression of one’s approach to Jesus. To kiss the son is to express to him love, loyalty, submission, gratefulness, and worship. That he receives our kisses further demonstrates his love and loyalty to us.
Let’s do the work of Christians and give a holy kiss.
As always, thanks for reading, and I welcome your feedback and any suggestions you might have for an upcoming Lunchtime Musing.