SWORD OF THE SPIRIT                                                                                   1063

Kiss the Son

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry, and you perish in the way, for his wrath is quickly kindled. Blessed are all who take refuge in him. (Psalm 2:12)

There are three types of kiss mentioned in the Bible. There is the amorous kiss seen in the Song of Solomon. Let him kiss me with the kisses of his mouth! For your love is better than wine; (Song of Solomon 1:2)

There is the kiss of friendship which largely remains a custom to this day in many cultures. Greet one another with a holy kiss… (Romans 16:16)

The kiss from our reference Scripture in Psalm 2:12 is a kiss of respect and honor for someone in authority such as a king. We see an example of this when Samuel anoints Saul as king. Then Samuel took a flask of oil and poured it on his head and kissed him and said, “Has not the Lord anointed you to be prince over his people Israel…” (1 Samuel 10:1)

The most important kiss mentioned in the Bible is this kiss of allegiance. With respect to Jesus, this kiss is an act of worship. The purest and most touching example of this kiss I see in the Word of God is the example of Mary Magdalene. And behold, a woman of the city, who was a sinner, … brought an alabaster flask of ointment, and standing behind him at his feet, weeping, she began to wet his feet with her tears and wiped them with the hair of her head and kissed his feet and anointed them with the ointment. (Luke 7:37-38)

Kiss the Son, lest he be angry…What would anger Jesus? A divided allegiance would. And Jesus answered him, It is written, ‘You shall worship the Lord your God, and him only shall you serve.’ (Luke 4:8)

A divided allegiance can take the form of half-hearted worship and religious lip service. 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;’ (Mark 7:6)

The betrayal of Jesus by Judas Iscariot is the extreme example of such lip service. Now the betrayer had given them a sign, saying, “The one I will kiss is the man; seize him.” And he came up to Jesus at once and said, “Greetings, Rabbi!” And he kissed him. (Matthew 26:48-49)

Where am I in my allegiance worship relationship with Jesus? Is my allegiance divided between serving Christ and satisfying the desires of my flesh? Do I acknowledge Him from a distance with a wave or nod of the head? Is it a fist bump kind of relationship greeting? Or do I kiss the Son in worship as Mary did? Where are you in your worship relationship?

Kiss the Son…; Oh come, let us worship and bow down; let us kneel before the Lord, our Maker! (Psalm 2:12; 95:6)

Lord, I ask that You create an undivided heart of worship in me for You. I desire to worship You in spirit and in truth. I ask in Jesus’ Holy Name, Amen.