1 Thessalonians 5:26

Paul sends a warm instruction for their gatherings: 'Greet all the brethren with an holy kiss.' In that culture a kiss of greeting was a common sign of affection and welcome, and among believers it became a 'holy' kiss, an expression of the pure love that bound the family of faith together.

Notice the word 'all,' for the greeting is to leave no one out. The holy kiss was a sign that in Christ the usual divisions fell away and every believer was a brother or sister to be warmly welcomed. Whatever its outward form across times and places, the heart of the instruction endures: greet one another with genuine, holy affection. The church is meant to be a place of warmth, where members express real love for each other openly. Paul, even as he closes a letter full of weighty matters, takes care to encourage the simple grace of an affectionate welcome among the people of God, a love that is both heartfelt and pure.