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I. A foundational doctrine.
II. The meaning of the laying on of hands:
А. Joining.
B. Fellowship.
III. The kinds of laying on of hands:
А. The laying on of hands for acceptance:
1. After baptism.
2. For receiving into the Body of Christ.
3. The relationship between the laying on of hands and baptism.
B. The laying on of hands for receiving the Holy Spirit.
C. The laying on of hands for the impartation of gifts.
D. The laying on of hands for appointment.
E. The laying on of hands for sending out.
F. The laying on of hands for blessing.
G. The laying on of hands for healing.
IV. Caution in the laying on of hands.
The laying on of hands is something people should receive after believing and being baptized.
1. “The word of the beginning of Christ...a foundation of repentance from dead works and of faith in God, of the teaching of baptisms and of the laying on of hands, of the resurrection of the dead and of eternal judgment” (Heb. 6:1-2).
The Holy Spirit speaks here of six foundational teachings: repentance, faith, baptisms, the laying on of hands, resurrection, and judgment. These are divided into three pairs: first, repentance and faith; second, baptisms and the laying on of hands; and third, resurrection and judgment. The first teaching in each pair emphasizes escape on the negative side, and the second teaching emphasizes entrance on the positive side. Repentance is from dead works, and faith is in God. Baptisms enable us to escape from negative things, and the laying on of hands enables us to enter into a proper position and to obtain positive things. Resurrection enables us to be delivered from death and the realm of death, and judgment enables us to enter into a new world. Since the laying on of hands is one of the foundational teachings and is the positive aspect of the second pair of teachings, we should pay attention to it. Many stress repentance, faith, baptisms, resurrection, and judgment but neglect the laying on of hands. The Holy Spirit, however, lists the laying on of hands among these foundational teachings and considers it to be of equal importance with the others.
Many in today’s Christianity see the laying on of hands as a ritual and a rite of ordination. This view is not according to the Bible. In the Bible there are two important meanings related to the laying on of hands, which show that it exceeds the status of a rite or ritual.
1. “He shall lay his hand on the head of the sin offering” (Lev. 4:29, see also vv. 2-4; 8:14).
In the Old Testament, when a person came before God to present a sin offering, he laid his hand on the head of the sacrificial animal to signify that he was joined with the offering, making himself one with the sacrifice. Without being one with the sacrifice, the animal could not take his place and cause his sins to be expiated. This is because vicarious redemption is based on the joining of the one redeemed and the substitute. If we are not joined to the Lord, we cannot have Him as our Substitute. The redeemed one must be joined to the Substitute, or Redeemer, in order to be redeemed and for the redemption to be effective. Without this joining, there is no substitution. If a sinner wanted to put his sins onto a sacrifice in order for them to be expiated, he had to join himself to the sacrifice. Consequently, the person offering a sin offering had to place his hand on the head of the sacrifice in order to be joined to the sacrifice. This shows that joining is the first meaning of the laying on of hands.
2. “He shall lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering” (Lev. 1:4 see also 8:18).
In the Old Testament in order to signify the joining of himself to the sacrifice, a person not only had to lay his hand on the head of the sin offering, but he also had to lay his hand on the head of the burnt offering. The one presenting a burnt offering had to be joined to the animal being sacrificed for him in order to be acceptable to God. Thus, he had to lay his hand upon the head of the sacrifice in order to be joined to the sacrifice. Therefore, in the Bible joining is the first meaning of the laying on of hands.
1. “Lay your hand upon him...put some of your honor upon him” (Num. 27:18-20).
The second meaning of the laying on of hands is fellowship. When there is the laying on of hands, there is a spontaneous fellowship. When we lay our hand on a head, there is fellowship, that is, the giving of something that we have to others. Fellowship is similar to a battery that gives some of its electricity to a loudspeaker through its connection to it. In this passage God told Moses to lay his hand on the head of Joshua; this was for Moses to have fellowship with Joshua so that Moses could put some of his honor on Joshua. In the laying on of hands, the one laying on his hands and the person having hands laid upon him have fellowship, and the one laying on his hands passes some of his blessing to the person having hands laid upon him.
2. “The gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Tim. 1:6 see also 1 Tim. 4:14).
Paul had the gift of God, and when he laid his hands on Timothy, he had fellowship with him. He, thereby, gave Timothy some of his gift in that fellowship.
In the Bible the meaning of the laying on of hands is joining and fellowship. In 2 Kings 13:14-17 both can be found. Elisha laid his hands on the king of Israel and was joined to the king and had fellowship with the king. On the one hand, he was joined to the king of Israel to fight the enemies of Israel; on the other hand, he passed his overcoming power to the king of Israel through fellowship.
According to the Bible, there are at least seven kinds of laying on of hands.
The first kind of laying on of hands is the laying on of hands for acceptance.
1. “Baptisms and of the laying on of hands” (Heb. 6:2).
According to the order recorded in verse 2, the laying on of hands for acceptance should come after baptism. This indicates that after a person is baptized, we should lay hands on him to receive him.
2. “They were baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. And when Paul laid his hands on them” (Acts 19:5-6 see also 8:16-17).
The early believers in Ephesus were first baptized, and then the apostle laid his hands on them. It was the same with the believers in Samaria. The laying on of hands for acceptance should always take place after baptism. Because there was no one to baptize him when he believed, Saul of Tarsus first received the laying on of hands and then was baptized (9:17-18). In order to prove that he had been sent by the Lord, Ananias had to first lay his hands on Saul so that his eyes could be opened and so that he could receive the filling of the Holy Spirit. Ananias first laid his hands on Saul, and then he had Saul make up his baptism.
1. “He [the Holy Spirit] had not yet fallen upon any of them, but they had only been baptized into the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8:16-17).
The laying on of hands is also for receiving one who has been baptized into Christ in order to bring him into the church, the Body of Christ. The early Samaritan believers were baptized into Christ, but they had not received the outpouring of the Holy Spirit, because the apostles had not laid hands upon them. Later, when the apostles laid hands on them, it seems as if they merely received the Holy Spirit, but there is a deeper implication as well. The laying on of hands by the apostles caused them to receive the Holy Spirit because the anointing of the Holy Spirit was poured out upon the Head, Christ, and on the day of Pentecost it flowed from the Head to the Body, the church. Since the apostles are representatives of the Body, when they laid their hands on people, they represented the Body and received them into the Body. Thus, the anointing on the Body, which is the Holy Spirit, flows to the ones brought in through the laying on of hands. Therefore, hands are laid on believers after baptism to receive them into the Body of Christ and to allow them to participate in the Holy Spirit, which the Body received from the Head, Christ.
2. “When Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them” (Acts 19:6).
Paul laid his hands on the Ephesian believers, causing them to receive the Holy Spirit; this is the same thing that Peter and John did for the Samaritan believers. Paul was a representative of the Body of Christ, and through the laying on of hands, he received those who were baptized into Christ into the Body, causing the anointing, the Holy Spirit (Psa. 133:2), who flows from the Head to the Body, to flow through him to those on whom he laid his hands.
Thus, the laying on of hands is for receiving people into the Body of Christ; therefore, those who lay hands on others must be able to represent the Body of Christ, the church. When they lay hands on people, they represent the church, and their laying on of hands is the church’s laying on of hands in order to receive them into the church and to cause them to participate in the things of Christ and the church.
1. “Baptisms and of the laying on of hands” (Heb. 6:2).
We mentioned before that baptism and the laying on of hands have been connected as a pair by the Holy Spirit. This shows that the laying on of hands is related to baptism. The laying on of hands should be based on baptism, and baptism should bring in the laying on of hands. In its negative application, baptism causes people to escape from the self and the world, and in its positive application, it causes them to enter into Christ. The laying on of hands causes those who have escaped the self and the world and have been put into Christ through baptism to enter into the Body of Christ. Thus, baptism stresses individual salvation, and the laying on of hands stresses the building up of the Body of Christ. If we have only baptism without the laying on of hands, we will pay attention only to individual salvation but neglect the Body of Christ. God, however, saves individuals for the purpose of building up the Body of Christ. He led Philip to baptize the Samaritan believers into Christ, and then He sent Peter and John, who represented the Body of Christ, to lay hands on them and to receive them into the Body of Christ (Acts 8:12-17). He saves people in order to make them the Body of Christ. This is similar to a person who buys many stones for the purpose of building them into a house; if he does not build the house, his purchase has no meaning. He must build the stones into a house in order for them to be useful. Therefore, we should not only lead people to believe and be baptized into Christ but also lay hands on them to receive them into the Body of Christ. We want many not only to be saved but also to be brought into the Body of Christ so that everyone can be coordinated together, supply one another, and function corporately. We must pay attention to getting many people saved, and we must also pay attention to building up the Body of Christ. We must stress personal salvation, and we must also stress the service of the Body. Moreover, we must lead people to salvation with the goal of building up the Body of Christ. We are individually saved for the service of the Body. Thus, we should pay equal attention to baptism and to the laying on of hands; we must see that baptism is for the laying on of hands and that the laying on of hands completes baptism.
The second kind of laying on of hands is for receiving the Holy Spirit. This kind of laying on of hands is similar to the laying on of hands for acceptance, which also involves receiving the Holy Spirit. These two kinds of laying on of hands are actually one, and the results of their two functions are connected. The function of receiving people into the Body of Christ is connected to the function of receiving the Holy Spirit because when a person is received into the Body of Christ, he spontaneously receives the Holy Spirit, who is on the Body. Similarly, when a person receives the Holy Spirit, he becomes a part of the Body (1 Cor. 12:13).
1. “He had not yet fallen upon any of them...Then they laid their hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit” (Acts 8:16-17).
The Samaritan believers believed and were baptized into Christ, but the Holy Spirit did not fall upon any of them until Peter and John came and laid their hands upon them. Therefore, the apostles’ laying on of hands caused them to receive the Holy Spirit.
2. “Did you receive the Holy Spirit when you believed?...And when Paul laid his hands on them, the Holy Spirit came upon them” (Acts 19:2-6, see also v. 1).
The Ephesian believers, like the Samaritans, did not receive the Holy Spirit until the apostle laid his hands upon them. Paul laid his hands on them, causing them to receive the Holy Spirit.
3. “Ananias...laying his hands on him...said, Saul, brother, the Lord has sent me...so that you may...be filled with the Holy Spirit” (Acts 9:17).
The Lord sent Ananias to lay his hands on Saul so that Saul could be filled with the Holy Spirit, that is, so that he could receive the Holy Spirit.
The preceding three passages speak of representatives of the Body of Christ laying their hands on new believers so that the anointing on the Body of Christ could flow to them and so that they could receive the Holy Spirit who is on the Body of Christ. These representatives of the Body of Christ were living in the Body and had the Holy Spirit, who is on the Body, on themselves. Therefore, when they laid their hands on the new believers, they not only represented the Body to receive the new ones, but they also communicated the Holy Spirit who was upon them to the new believers. The Holy Spirit upon them was like electricity that could pass to those whom they laid their hands on, causing them to receive the Holy Spirit and to participate in the Body of Christ.
The third kind of laying on of hands is for the impartation of gifts by which a person with a gift imparts his gift to another through the laying on of hands.
1. “The gift of God, which is in you through the laying on of my hands” (2 Tim. 1:6).
Paul, through the laying on of his hands, imparted his gift into Timothy. The gift in Paul was transmitted to Timothy through the laying on of hands.
2. “The gift which is in you...by means of prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery” (1 Tim. 4:14).
This must refer to the matter in 2 Timothy 1:6. Paul laid his hands on Timothy with the elders in the church in order for Timothy to obtain a gift. Paul was an apostle, and an apostle represents the universal church. The elders of the church represent the local church. The apostle and the elders together represent the entire church, the Body of Christ. Christ gave all His gifts to the Body, the church (cf. Eph. 4; Rom. 12; 1 Cor. 12). The apostle and the elders joined together to lay hands on Timothy and were the representatives of the Body so that the gifts given by the Head to the Body could be dispensed to one of the members.
In ancient times Moses dispensed his glory and honor to Joshua through the laying on of his hand (Num. 27:18-20), and the angel Gabriel gave Daniel insight with understanding through the laying on of hands (Dan. 9:21-22, Chinese Union Version). In principle, these instances of the laying on of hands were for the impartation of gifts.
The fourth kind of laying on of hands is to appoint someone to do something.
1. “Appoint over this need...Whom they set before the apostles; and when they had prayed, they laid their hands on them” (Acts 6:3, 6).
In the early church in Jerusalem, the apostles appointed seven brothers in the church to be responsible for the daily dispensing of food; after praying for them, they laid their hands on them. The apostles’ laying on of hands was related to their appointment for the daily dispensing of food. This kind of laying on of hands can be called the laying on of hands for appointment. However, we must never think that the laying on of hands for appointment is some kind of ordination ritual. The purpose of this kind of laying on of hands is for fellowship and identification. When the early apostles laid their hands on the seven brothers, they were having fellowship with them, causing them to receive the grace needed for the daily dispensing of food. Simultaneously, they were joined to them, participating in their service and bearing the responsibility for this ministry with them in spirit.
The fifth kind of laying on of hands is the laying on of hands to send some out for the work, so it is the laying on of hands for sending out. The laying on of hands for appointment causes the recipients to receive a service within a church; the laying on of hands for sending out causes the recipient to go out into the work.
1. “When they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands on them, they sent them away” (Acts 13:3).
In the early church in Antioch, there were five prophets and teachers, three of whom laid hands on the other two in order to send them out to do the work to which God had called them. This kind of laying on of hands for sending out also has the purpose of joining and fellowship. The three who laid their hands on the two indicated that they were one with the two as they went out to do the work for God. They were joined to the two and had fellowship with them. When the two went out, the three also went with them. Although the three could not go out with them physically, they went with them in spirit through the laying on of hands. We must firmly grasp this principle, and we should imitate this practice. Every time some brothers receive a calling from God or are sent out for the work, we should be joined to them and have fellowship with them; their going should be the entire church’s going. The entire church, through its representatives, lays its hands on those going out in order to be joined to them and to go out with them. This kind of laying on of hands in the church is not an empty ritual; rather, it is a spiritual reality that causes the recipients of the laying on of hands to be supplied by the whole church in their service to God so that they would not be alone or act individualistically. Under the proper conditions, this kind of laying on of hands causes the recipients to receive the Lord’s blessing and the power of the Holy Spirit.
The preceding five kinds of laying on of hands are all related to the Body of Christ. Although their outward function is somewhat different, their inward meaning is the same. Whether it be the laying on of hands for acceptance, for receiving of the Holy Spirit, for the impartation of spiritual gifts, for appointment, or for sending out, the inward meaning is always joining and fellowship.
The sixth kind of laying on of hands is for blessing, which causes people to be blessed through the laying on of hands.
1. “Taking them into His arms, He fervently blessed them, laying His hands on them” (Mark 10:16 see also Gen. 48:14-16).
When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He laid His hands on the little children and blessed them. In the Old Testament Jacob laid his hands on his grandchildren and blessed them. This also implies fellowship.
There is yet another kind of laying on of hands, which causes people to be healed, so it is the laying on of hands for healing.
1. “He laid His hands on each one of them and healed them” (Luke 4:40).
When the Lord Jesus was on earth, He laid His hands on many sick people to heal them.
2. “They will lay hands on the sick, and they will be well” (Mark 16:18).
After the Lord Jesus ascended into the heavens, the disciples also laid their hands on people to heal them.
3. “Paul went in to him, and having prayed and laid his hands on him, healed him” (Acts 28:8).
Paul laid his hands on people to heal them. This kind of laying on of hands for healing also has the meaning of fellowship because it gives the sick one the gift of healing through fellowship with the one laying on his hands; this heals the sick one.
1. “Lay hands quickly on no man, nor participate in others’ sins; keep yourself pure” (1 Tim. 5:22).
Since the laying on of hands joins people in fellowship, if someone is sinful and unclean, the person laying on his hands would participate in the other’s sinfulness and uncleanness. Therefore, when we lay hands on people, we must be cautious and not act too quickly lest we participate in the sins of others. For the sake of keeping ourselves pure, we must discern before we lay hands on him whether the person whom we intend to lay our hands on has rejected sin and dealt clearly with evil before God and man. If he has not, we should not lay our hands on him.
