2 Corinthians 13:11-13
Finally, brothers and sisters, farewell. Put things in order, listen to my appeal, agree with one another, live in peace; and the God of love and peace will be with you. Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you.
The grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the love of God, and the communion of the Holy Spirit be with all of you.
Reflection
Paul pulls us into this small passage of scripture. He makes us feel as if he is talking directly to us in person. It's a wonderful feeling when you realize that God's message is timeless and involves you as a person and also as a community of believers. His choosing of the word farewell, to many, also means rejoice. Think of that. Paul greets us towards the end of this letter as individual brothers and sisters as well as a group of believers and we rejoice. Just with the words brothers and sisters alone you feel the notion of the group, the family, the corporate sense of believers.
Now Paul wants us to continue in our growth... continue in our forgiveness... continue in our encouragement of one for another... continue to let God mold us and shape us and form us into what God wants us to me, both as a person and as a group. As God shapes us individually and corporately we begin to be of one mind. I don't take this to mean that we will all think the same way or even that we will agree on everything. We will and are all unique creations of God both as individuals and as churches in the body of Christ. We have our differences to be celebrated, but when you put it all together as only God can do... we are One. We live in harmony as One. Not that we become God but rather that God shapes us into what God desires for all y'all's to be. All of us belong to God and all we have is God's... so stop fighting over control and let God control. There's so much more joy in that attitude than the attitude that "I can do this myself!"
And then there is Peace. We can live in peace with one another and with God. For we greet each other with that wonderful and awesome holy kiss. An exchange practiced in the early church and today in the passing of the peace. I've noticed that in the southern United States this takes place more as a hug and in the northern United States it's a little more formal as a handshake and eye to eye contact. Both ways have their advantages. One seems to be contact heart to heart and the other seems to be a deep contact of the minds of one for the other. Although we shake hands or give hugs or sometimes kiss, we are giving this same "holy kiss" out of brotherly and sisterly love, exchanged unique saint to unique saint, all together in One faith. I've been in churches where it seems to stop the service and doesn't end until everyone has moved to all people and I've been in churches where only a brief amount of time is allotted before the service moves on. In each case, this exchange has deep meaning, especially in the consideration of this passage's plea or perhaps command from Paul.
"Greet one another with a holy kiss. All the saints greet you."
As we do this greeting individually we are joined with all the saints. And I think of it as ALL... past, present, future, because in this greeting we are one with each other and one with God's perfect peace and love.
What a wonderful passage of unity that God gives to us this day. God the Father, God the Savior, God the Holy Spirit... all each and all ALL. What a wonderful thought of God! Thanks be to God.
Song
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B67yS0GXT_g
Prayer
Lord, may you continue to grow me in faith, love, peace and service for what your will is for my life. Use me this day and each day in ways I can know and in ways I don't know or even understand. Unite my life with the life of those in your Church that together we may all become what you want each of us to be and all of us to be. As we have received that Holy Kiss only you can give with the coming, life, ministry, healing, teaching, serving, suffering, dying, saving, resurrecting and eternal life of Jesus; may we freely give of this kiss from ourselves to each other in the spirit of the Holy Spirit which you have firmly planted within us. Lead us in all we do and say... today... tomorrow... and forever. --- Amen
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