In regard to the Kiss of death, the way I see it is that any person is extremely capapble of behaving in any fashion that suits him at the time. We are all aware how manipulative a very young child can be.
I always like the scriptures that use a certain metaphor when talking about Christ like love....the word are ...sincere or unfeigned
To me these word are not about acting a certain way but more being a certain way
G505 ἀνυπόκριτος anupokritos Thayer Definition: 1) unfeigned, undisguised, sincere Part of Speech: adjective
G1506 εἰλικρινής eilikrinēs Thayer Definition: 1) pure, sincere, unsullied 2) found pure when unfolded and examined by the sun’s light Part of Speech: adjective
Did you catch that last line...pure when examined by the Son's Light
The entymology of the word sincere came from...without wax...
You see back then pottery that was defective was treated with wax, when you bought it it looked good but after use, the wax deteriorated and the pot would leak or break
So quality pottery was marked "sincere" to insure that they were gettin the real goood...pottery with wax would never stand the heat or inspection is bright sun light
That is what we are to be .....sincere...the wear and tear from these discussions lately are showing us what kind of pots we are.
Contemplate these scriptures now
(1Pe 1:22) Your souls having purified in the obedience of the truth through the Spirit to brotherly love unfeigned, out of a pure heart one another love ye earnestly,
Php 1:10 That ye may approve things that are excellent; that ye may be sincere and without offense till the day of Christ;
When we are called out we need to become sober about what we say and how we act especially to brethern
(2Co 6:17) wherefore, come ye forth out of the midst of them, and be separated, saith the Lord, and an unclean thing do not touch, and I--I will receive you,
(Php 1:9) and this I pray, that your love yet more and more may abound in full knowledge, and all judgment,
(Php 1:10) for your proving the things that differ, that ye may be pure and offenceless--to a day of Christ,
Since we have all read Rays wrtitings, we should also realize that they are only the tip of the iceberg...God still has so much treasure to find...we should all be humble and constantly assuming that we lack knowledge.
We should be willing to listen to brethern who share their impressions. BUT we should also be extremely critical if what is said does not match up with scripture...it is of no matter what "ones opinion" is. How one feels about something is irrelevant, if it is not scipturally true. It is always Truth that we seek
If you see you were wrong on a topic then accept it graciously and go on,
if you are unsure then study more. Remember before we came out...we thought we had everything right...so it is possible that we still may be off base.
The great thing about sharing here is that people bring different views. We all have to be aware that not all of these are correct....there in only one truth.
Caveat emptor, quia ignorare non debuit quod jus alienum emit.
"Let a purchaser beware, for he ought not to be ignorant of the nature of the property which he is buying from another party."
That is why we are to
2Ti 2:15 Study to show thyself approved unto God, a workman that needeth not to be ashamed, rightly dividing the word of truth.
I love the challenge of leaning new things I know my socks get blown off when these new things are revealed to me by the Holy Spirit but they can only be seen or heard by my letting go of the false ideas, many of which were gained in babylon and in the world.
At any rate, the kiss of death is not just smiling a lot and acting nice or friendly to a brethern..... that is all vaneer.
To me it is what at the core...it is any act that places one self in a position of superiority. It is insincere love..it is not agape love where the other is more important than self.
It is the utmost act of agape love to correct a fellow believer...you love them so much that you want to help them overcome a false doctrine or downright lie that they are holding on to, knowing when you do, you will become their enemy. Agape love will correct even if during the correction they are despised and rejected and it will patiently pray while the Holy Spirit works on the person.
Remember Paul and Peter....Paul called Peter about a certain thing he was doing. We never heard Peter defend himself...or rebuke Paul. Instead he spoke graciously about him in other letters. Peter never again thought that he was better then anyone else after his fish breakfast with the Lord.
beloved