Kiss of love

“Greet one another with a kiss of love”  1 Peter 5:14

Kiss of love – At the end of my life, I want to be known for the kisses I left behind.  I want people to miss my affection and my care for them.  I want to be thought of as someone who left a holy and intimate mark on other souls.  And Peter has just the right word for this desire.  He calls it “philemati agapes” – a token of the deep and genuine friendship found in self-denial.

If you look closely at this phrase, “a kiss of love”, you will see two important words:  phileo and agape.  It is the combination in symbol of abiding friendship with sacrificial self-giving.  It is the action of human beings in concert with the gift of God.  Phileo – the love of brotherhood.  And agape – the love of God.  May my expressions of concern for you bring you into remembrance of our common brotherhood and shared redemption.  The kiss of love.

This year quickly passes.  Another 365 words have been examined.  None is more important than this “kiss”.  Knowledge may fade.  Enlightenment diminish.  Explanations expire.  But the feelings that accompany our fellowship will not slip from the heart.  We serve the God of great joy, the Master of mysteries, the Ruler of reality and the King of the philemati agapes.  The King of the kiss of love.

Greet one another for me.