The Power of a Holy Embrace

Jesus was immensely approachable - so much so that people swarmed Him, not just for His power, but for His loving touch. In Mark we see people running to Him simply to greet and embrace Him (Mk. 9), in Luke He beckoned the little ones to come to Him, enfolding them in His arms, and in Mark 41 compassion rose up in Jesus as He gently took the discolored and diseased hand of the leper into His own, embracing him with love.

An embrace or a loving touch establishes or increases trust and opens the heart of a person to further receive the love of God. Even medical science today has proven the emotional benefits of touch – some stating that ‘happy’ chemicals are released in the body through innocent, physical embrace, having positive health benefits (see Google Scholar). This is one reason why Judas’ betrayal of Jesus was so deeply cutting: he greeted Jesus in the garden with an embrace and a kiss - a sign of trust and love - as a signal to religious leaders that Jesus was the person he was betraying.

The Kingdom of God greatly depends on the touch of God by way of the touch of one person to another: the laying on of hands, the embrace of love, the tender holding of another’s hand. Today the Church is the living, physical touch of Jesus Christ and the Spirit of God is the inspiration for that touch.

As part of a touch we pass on the ‘fire’ or ‘kindling’ of the Light of God, according to Vincent’s Word Studies (Mark 1:41). There’s more that passes between us in a hug than a nice pat on the back – the Spirit can release healing power, encouragement, peace, comfort, reassurance and the love of God - all with minimal contact.

Sometimes a word of wisdom isn’t needed, or a correction, or instruction. Sometimes a hug or a reassuring touch is the prescription that God has written for a situation – it’s the very thing that will kindle the fire of God and the light of His glory in our lives.

If you want to light the fire of God in someone, reach out and embrace them – and watch the Spirit move!