Laying on of hands is a spiritual tradition that started with Jacob (Israel) in the Old Testament and was continued into the New Testament. The first appearance of the practice is in Genesis 48:14:
“And Israel stretched out his right hand, and laid it upon Ephraim’s head, who was the younger, and his left hand upon Manasseh’s head, guiding his hands wittingly; for Manasseh was the firstborn. And he blessed Joseph…”
It also appears in Numbers 27:18, 23 when Moses passed his ministry on to Joshua:
“And the LORD said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua the son of Nun, a man in whom is the spirit, and lay thine hand upon him; … And he laid his hands upon him, and gave him a charge, as the LORD commanded by the hand of Moses.”
According to Old Testament practices, laying on of hands was used to pronounce blessing on someone, to symbolically bestow on someone a God-given office, and to symbolize that a person was receiving spiritual gifts necessary to carry out their God-given charge. These symbols carry over into the New Testament and are expanded. The first appearance of this practice in the New Testament is the touching story of Jesus rebuking his disciples for trying to turn away the little children who wanted to be in his presence–
“But Jesus said, Suffer little children, and forbid them not, to come unto me: for of such is the kingdom of heaven. And he laid his hands on them, and departed thence.” Matthew 19:14-15
Jesus continued the tradition of blessing people through the laying on of hands, but added the new purpose of divine healing through the practice–
“Now when the sun was setting, all they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto him; and he laid his hands on every one of them, and healed them.” Luke 4:40
“And, behold, there was a woman which had a spirit of infirmity eighteen years, and was bowed together, and could in no wise lift up herself. And when Jesus saw her, he called her to him, and said unto her, Woman, thou art loosed from thine infirmity. And he laid his hands on her: and immediately she was made straight, and glorified God.” Luke 13:11-13
Our Lord then passed this on to those of us who believe in him–
“And these signs shall follow them that believe; In my name shall they cast out devils; they shall speak with new tongues; They shall take up serpents; and if they drink any deadly thing, it shall not hurt them; they shall lay hands on the sick, and they shall recover.” Mark 16:17-18
The church also continued the purpose Moses gave to the practice of bestowing God-given ministries and spiritual gifts on believers–
“And in those days, when the number of the disciples was multiplied, there arose a murmuring of the Grecians against the Hebrews, because their widows were neglected in the daily ministration. Then the twelve called the multitude of the disciples unto them, and said, It is not reason that we should leave the word of God, and serve tables. Wherefore, brethren, look ye out among you seven men of honest report, full of the Holy Ghost and wisdom, whom we may appoint over this business. But we will give ourselves continually to prayer, and to the ministry of the word. And the saying pleased the whole multitude: and they chose Stephen, a man full of faith and of the Holy Ghost, and Philip, and Prochorus, and Nicanor, and Timon, and Parmenas, and Nicolas a proselyte of Antioch: Whom they set before the apostles: and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them.” Acts 6:1-6
“As they ministered to the Lord, and fasted, the Holy Ghost said, Separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have called them. And when they had fasted and prayed, and laid their hands on them, they sent them away.” Acts 13:2-3
But God didn’t stop there, he added one more purpose to the laying on of the hands–
“And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the Holy Ghost came on them; and they spake with tongues, and prophesied.” Acts 19:6
Through the laying on of hands, the Holy Ghost in his power can come on a person who believes. This practice must be used with caution and should not be taken lightly. That’s why Simon the sorcerer was rebuked by Peter when he thought he could pay money to get it (Acts 8:14-20) and Paul warned Timothy not to be hasty to lay his hands on people (1 Timothy 5:22). This is also a practice that Satan has been known to mimic through witchcraft or other heathen practices. One common heathen practice that has crept into some churches is kundalini yoga where the person who prays over someone believes they have to touch a person on the center of the forehead, middle of the chest, parts of the back along the spine, or abdomen around the belly button to release God’s power. Actually, in kundalini it is called releasing the serpent power by placing hands on the “chakra” points of the body. These heathen practices should not be occurring in God’s church.
So, in summary, laying on of hands is a doctrine (Hebrews 6:1-2) and a spiritual gift (Acts 8:20) that can be used for the following:
- to speak God’s blessings on people
- to bestow a God-given office or ministry to someone
- to symbolically empower a person with a spiritual gift or gifts for carrying out a charge
- to heal, and
- to receive the Holy Ghost
–posted by Harry A. Gaylord–
John
/ August 8, 2011Thank you.