What is the kiss of DEATH?
Do kisses have power?

This mother's advice to her daughters is not totally misguided. The power of a passionate kiss can lead the way to pregnancy, as many young people have sadly discovered.

There are all sorts of kisses. When Dad arrives home his kids may squeal with delight, and smother him with kisses. Mom may have to do with hubby's quick peck. And the family dog will likely give him sloppy, tail-wagging kisses.

Some nationalities kiss on both cheeks, and their men even kiss men this way. Then there's the thing in which two women touch their cheeks together and kiss the air, sometimes making a ridiculous "Mwah" sound.

Kisses can be enjoyable, but to the little boy who's told to kiss aunt Martha, a kiss is simply a "Yech." In childhood it's usually the little girl who kisses her favorite boy. "Yech," again.

When she gets a little older the little girl may send him a love note with S.W.A.K. (Sealed With A Kiss) on the envelope.

Kisses can raise memories, some happy, some sad, and some funny as my wife Betty and I discovered. Old Harry, who had a lifetime aversion to bath water, drove his rattletrap truck past our country home and threw Betty a big, toothless kiss. We've laughed about that often.

The apostle Paul adjures us to greet the brethren with a holy kiss (Romans 16:16; 1Corinthians 16:20; 2Corinthians 13:12; 1Thessalonians 5:26). There's been much speculation over the meaning of a holy kiss, or a kiss of charity as Peter called it (1Peter 5:14), but it certainly isn't a homosexual or lesbian-type kiss. God doesn't look kindly on that.

Kisses can say "Hello" or "Goodbye." And a gentle peck, when she least expects it, can leave the lady of the house with an inward glow. One marital counselor suggests kissing her – the wife, not the counselor – on the back of the neck three times a day. Imagine the effect that can have when the wife is feeling a bit blue, or is busy preparing supper, or is generally alone in her little world. Try it, husbands. It's dynamite!

Throughout the Bible we read of many kisses. The aging Isaac kissed his son Jacob, and blessed him (Genesis 27:24-27). Jacob kissed his cousin Rachel, and later married her (Genesis 29:11). Despite earlier chicanery, Esau greeted his brother with a kiss (Genesis 33:4). Joseph kissed his brothers (Genesis 45:14-15); Israel kissed his grandsons (Genesis 48:8-10); Joseph kissed his deceased father (Genesis 49:33-50:1); and Naomi kissed her daughters-in-law (Ruth 1:9).

The very FIRST recorded kiss in the Bible may have been when God (the Being who would be born as Jesus Christ) breathed life into Adam (the "kiss of life"):

"And the Lord God formed man of the dust of the ground, and breathed into his nostrils the breath of life; and man became a living being." (Genesis 2:7, NKJV throughout)

The MOST FAMOUS Biblical kiss, however, is the one Judas gave to Jesus (the kiss of betrayal or kiss of death). This kiss of death was given in the Garden of Gethsemane, the place where Jesus and the disciples went to after they finished celebrating their last Passover together:

"Then He (Jesus) came to His disciples and said to them, 'Are you still sleeping and resting?  Behold, the hour is at hand, and the Son of Man is being betrayed into the hands of sinners . . . '  

"And while He was still speaking, behold, Judas, one of the twelve, with a great multitude with swords and clubs, came from the chief priests and elders of the people.

"Now His betrayer had given them a sign, saying, 'Whomever I KISS, He is the One; seize Him.'  Immediately he went up to Jesus and said, 'Greetings, Rabbi!' and kissed Him.  But Jesus said to him, 'Friend, why have you come?'  Then they came and laid hands on Jesus and took Him." (Matthew 26:45, 47-50, NKJV)

Indeed, there is power in a kiss: the power to cheer; the power to hurt; the power to strengthen or destroy marriages; and the power to murder. There is the kiss of life and the kiss of death. But the best kiss is the one that says "Thank you," or "You're special," or "I love you."