by
T. Austin-Sparks
Chapter 1 - The Laying on of Hands in the Scriptures
(NOTE. We would earnestly ask readers of the following to
patiently read all that may yet follow on this subject before they
come to a final judgment. This is a matter in which premature
judgments may lead to false conclusions; so read all, and that
with an unprejudiced mind.)
"Wherefore leaving the doctrine of the first principles of Christ,
let us press on to full growth; not laying again a foundation of...
the laying on of hands." "For when by reason of the time ye ought
to be teachers, ye have need again that some one teach you the
rudiments of the first principles of the oracles of God." - Hebrews
6:1-2; 5:12.
It is not our wish to take up this matter in any controversial way,
although it may be impossible to avoid that element arising in the
minds of some who read. We desire only to pass on what light we
have, and be as constructive as possible. But contrasts are
inevitable, and there must of necessity be a corrective factor. The
present pressing in of this subject upon the notice of the Lord's
people calls for some faithful and spiritual facing of it, and
presentation of the truth concerning it: not, let us repeat, in the
way of controversy, but for clarifying, safeguarding, warning and
building up of the "Body." It would be the best thing for us first
to recognise the place which "The Laying on of Hands" has in the
Scriptures.
We leave the fuller explanation for later, and do little more than
refer to the fact.
In the Old Testament
Genesis 22. Abraham was elected as head of a chosen race, and the
promises were secured in him. These promises were inherited by the
son who was elected by God to become the head in his generation, and
were passed on by laying on of hands. Genesis 48:13-14. This was
repeated when Israel laid his
right hand upon Ephraim and his left
hand on Manasseh. (The right hand is always the
symbol of
strength and honour).
Exodus 29:10-15, etc., Lev. 1:4; 3:2,8,13; 4:24,29,33; 8:14,18;
16:21. Here we have one truth representing the many aspects of
fellowship with God, namely, the identification of the person with
the offering by the act of laying on of hands. The hands are the
symbols or tokens of the entire man and in laying them
on he
commits himself entirely.
Numbers 8:10. 2 Chron. 29:23. Here the whole people are represented
as laying their hands upon the Levites. Thus the Levites in taking
the place of the firstborn sons are identified with every family in
Israel, and every family is identified with them. They are in effect
Israel as a "Kingdom of priests," and foreshadow the whole priestly
company of the saints - "The Church of the firstborn ones." Hebrews
12:23.
Numbers 27:16,17,18,23. Deut. 34:9. Moses was commanded to appoint
his successor. Joshua was appointed, and the equipment for his
ministry came to him at the time that Moses laid his hands upon him.
There is another realm in the Old Testament which represents the
same principles of both identification and equipment. It is that in
which so frequently occurs the phrase "The hand of the Lord was
upon..." Usually this is connected with the Prophets.
They represented God and God was with them. Their words were His
words, and God stood by them. The way of expressing the wisdom,
power, acts, experiences, movements, revelations, etc., was "The
hand of the Lord - upon." See Daniel, Ezekiel, Elijah, Elisha, etc.
In the Gospels
In the Gospels the Laying on of Hands as to its practice is confined
almost solely to the quickening of the mortal body, and the bringing
into blessing. Thus we have the Ruler of the Synagogue asking the
Lord Jesus to come and lay His hand upon his sick daughter, or
rather upon his daughter who "is even now dead."
Mark tells us (6:5) that while unbelief paralysed Him amongst His
own people and He could do no mighty work in His own country, He did
lay His hands upon a few sick folk and healed them.
In Decapolis they brought to Jesus a man with an impediment in his
speech and besought Him to lay "His hand upon him." Mark 7:32. Again
in Bethsaida they brought to Him a blind man and "besought Him to
touch him" and "Jesus put His hands upon him." Mark 7:22.
At the close of Mark's Gospel the final commission is given to the
Apostles and the promise is given that "They shall lay hands on the
sick and they shall recover." Mark 16:18.
Similar instances are recorded by Luke (4:40; 5:13; 13:13). Then as
to blessing by identification, this was the portion of the children.
Mark 10:13,15,16. Luke 18:15. And finally the Lord at the time of
His Ascension "lifted up His hands and blessed them." Luke 24:50.
In the "Acts" and the Epistles
As there was a sovereign act of God in the case of Abraham, Moses,
and the Lord Jesus, without any act of man, thus constituting them
"Heads" in their respectively representative capacity, so Pentecost
was another such sovereign act in relation to the Headship of Christ
to the Church which is His Body. No human act is connected with that
initial constituting of God. God gave "Him to be Head of the Church
which is His Body" Ephes. 1:22; 4:15; 5:23; Col. 1:18; 2:19. As such
He was the Anointed Head and in the first setting up of the Church -
the Body - the fact of the anointing had to be spontaneous. The
House of Cornelius was the complement of Pentecost as the Gentile
half of one fact - the One Body, Jew and Gentile. So there also it
was spontaneous and the explanation of Peter was, "The Holy Spirit
fell on them
as on us at the beginning." Acts 11:15.
We cannot get very far until we recognise that God, apart, from any
act of man, has set up something and anointed that with the Holy
Spirit. There are no more Advents of the Holy Spirit from heaven,
but there is a coming into and under the anointing which is upon
what God has constituted. This word of explanation and warning is
necessary because the truth contained in what we have just said
governs everything from Pentecost onward.
It is now contrary to
the New Testament and an exceedingly dangerous thing to "wait" for
the "coming" of the Holy Spirit. We do not wait for Him, we move
into that where He is. After Pentecost there is not a single
instance of "waiting for the Spirit". The state created by this
"waiting" is often a psychical one which opens the door to any
inrush of false spirit power and delusion. But we must return for
the moment to the New Testament record of "the laying on of
hands." To take the matter in order it is as follows. (We include
also the connection of hands with the incidents, not only the
"laying on.")
In Acts 5:12 Luke mentions that many signs and wonders were done by
the
hands of the Apostles. Then Peter took the lame man by
the
hand. Acts 3:7.
In Acts 6 the deacons chosen to relieve the Apostles of the pressure
of temporal demands were identified with the house of God in that
capacity by the laying on of hands, so that their ministry was
recognised to be essentially spiritual, as it proved to be,
specially in the case of Philip and Stephen.
Acts 8 brings us to the case of the Samaritan converts who had also
been baptised (16). When the Apostles laid their hands upon them
following or during definite prayer, the Holy Spirit came upon them.
There is no mention of any peculiar manifestations or signs in this
instance, but they knew quite definitely that they had received the
Holy Spirit, and Simon the sorcerer saw something.
Chapter 9 brings the matter in in connection with Paul at his
conversion. Ananias -
not an Apostle - in obedience to a
declaration of the Divine Sovereignty in connection with Saul, went
to him and in recognition of the family truth of the house of God
laid his hands upon him and said "Brother" - thus identifying him
with the family, and there followed restored sight, baptism, and the
receiving of the Spirit. We do not know the exact order of things in
this instance, but we know that connected closely with the one were
the others.
Chapter 13 sees the great transition from Jerusalem to Antioch in
relation to the world extension of the testimony. Barnabas - a man
without prejudices or personal interests - is the Divinely chosen
link, making possible this delicate transition without a break in
fellowship. The great principle that all ministry is one and not
personal or separate, but the ministry of all, is brought
beautifully into view in this instance. There were five men -
not
Apostles - who ministered to the Lord and fasted and the Holy
Spirit said to them, "Separate me Barnabas and Saul unto the work
whereto I have called them. Then when they had fasted and prayed and
laid their hands on them, they sent them away. So they being
sent forth by the Holy Spirit..." That the great Apostle Paul, with
all the sovereignty of God back of his election, and all the
wonderful appearing of the Lord of Glory to him, and all that he had
been told as to his ministry, had to go out to his life work through
an act of representative men of the assembly - not Apostles, one of
them probably a coloured man, is something to think about.
As to direct references to laying on of hands, there remain Paul's
words to Timothy on two occasions.
1 Tim. 4:14. "Neglect not the gift that is in thee, which was given
thee by prophecy with the laying on of the hands of the presbytery."
(elders).
2 Tim. 1:6. "Stir up the gift of God that is in thee through the
laying on of my hands."
We do not know whether these references are to two different events
or to the same. What we do know is that Timothy was equipped for
ministry when the Holy Spirit operated in connection with prayer and
the laying on of hands, and that prayer was prophetic in its
substance as to what Timothy would especially fulfil as to the
nature of his ministry.
We should be justified, we feel, in linking in 1 Cor. 12 where gifts
of the Spirit are referred to as equipment for ministry to the
building up of the Body of Christ. It is not said so, but from these
last references of Paul and the other Scriptures cited, we may find
good reason to believe that these Divine Gifts within the "Body"
were connected with the laying on of hands. There is one thing that
we note as we pass on, it is that Paul did not repudiate this
procedure at the end of his life, any more than he repudiated
Baptism as no longer belonging to the dispensation. If he had come
to a time when what are called "ordinances" (we do not endorse the
term) no longer applied, then, as an honest man he ought to have
said so, and not referred to their validity as he did to the end.
His last letters "Ephesians," "Colossians," and "Timothy" refer to
Baptism and the Laying on of Hands rather with emphasis than with
dismissal.
There remains but the passage of Scripture with which this
consideration started, Hebrews 6:1,2. It is clear from the context
that the Apostle was handicapped in his writing by the unduly
delayed maturity of those to whom he wrote. In Chap. 5:11 he
deplored that after so long a time it was still necessary that
someone taught them the "first principles." Then in Chap. 6 he urged
that the "first principles" should be settled once for all and that
they should go on to full growth. He then enumerated those "first
principles" and called them "foundations." They are six, and the
fourth is "the laying on of hands."
So far we have just brought forward the Scriptures which refer to
the subject. Before we go on to the interpretation in the light of
the fuller range of truth we feel it necessary to say one or two
things by way of bringing the matter into its right place. Let us
stress very definitely the principle that the value of any one truth
depends upon its being kept in its right relationship to all the
rest of the truth, and of it being kept in its place. This we shall
show more fully later. If this law is not observed then the results
will be perilous to spiritual life. These results are for the most
part of three kinds.
The "Laying on of Hands" can be, and very often is, only A MERELY
RELIGIOUS ORDINANCE, gone through without any living inward
spiritual foundation or outcome. An institution as a part of a
recognised order, and unless family traditions or common religious
acceptances are to be violated or ignored it is expected to be
observed. It is a religion. Then secondly, the "laying on of hands"
with a certain implied or interpreted meaning can be, and very often
is, entered into and received in real and genuine religious
sincerity. The aspirations are good. The intentions are the purest.
There is reverence, solemnity and devoutness. In such cases the
surroundings and accompaniments - building, vestments tone, music,
aestheticism etc., leave a lasting impression, and the people
concerned always refer to that day as the most solemn in their
lives, and think of it as having been a great "blessing" to them.
Faithfulness requires that we shall point out that this also is
capable of being a great peril. We must never judge the spiritual
value of things by their impressiveness or the measure of religious
emotion which they bestir. Mysticism and aestheticism are often
confused with spirituality. There is a very wide gap between being
devoutly, passionately, sincerely abandoned to religion and being
truly born from above - born anew to the Holy Spirit. The artistic
temperament can conceive and produce the most sublime things and
pass through the most acute religious ecstasies. In the realm of
religion the artistic and emotional have put more people in a false
position than any amount of false doctrine. Indeed, false doctrine
has captured multitudes because it has been dealt out in beautiful,
fascinating, impressive, captivating forms and dress. The Serpent
depended upon such for the success of his first delusion. Not
religion but regeneration is the only safe foundation of any
"experience."
Much more ought to be said in this connection, and a whole
disclosure of the difference between soul and spirit is necessary to
make things quite clear, but we must go on, and when all is said we
shall see that not an experience on an occasion but the abiding and
ever growing inward knowledge of the Lord Himself is the proof and
test of the genuineness of such experiences.
There is, however, a further realm in which the laying on of hands
can be:
Positively Dangerous and Damaging.
This is the realm where things are psychic in a more intense degree.
In this realm the thing is usually something in itself, and is
detached and given an importance and emphasis which is bound up
almost entirely with the
experience which may come by it -
the experience as such. It is a matter of getting something,
experiencing something, feeling something, bringing spiritual things
into the sphere of the senses. The accompaniments and association of
the imposition of hands here are usually high-tensioned atmospheres
charged with emotion, worked up in some way, by singing, loud
praying, etc., manipulation and movement or pressure of the hands or
fingers and an assertion of soul force. Very often a mediumistic
state is produced, and too often a condition of seeking to possess
something is thought to be an exercise of faith. The soul is
stretched out or else it sinks into an unnatural quiescence and
passivity. Such a state exposes those who are concerned to an inrush
of spiritual forces which are not the Holy Spirit. The sensations
may be very wonderful and seemingly subliminal, other supernatural
elements may be present. Even the Lord Jesus may be praised and
extolled.
This may go on for a considerable time and then, without
explanation, it may all go just as suddenly as it came. Immediately
it is gone there is thrust into the mind the suggestion of the sin
against the Holy Ghost, which, of course, is unpardonable. When once
this suggestion has found lodgment and has been accepted or
entertained, the individual is under the awful and deadly weight of
condemnation with which it is well nigh impossible to deal. All
those blessed means of saving grace which are for the sinner who has
never known the Saviour are robbed of their virtue by this lie. The
Blood, the Word, the love of God, the Advocate; none can help when
things are "unpardonable." And so the delusion works. It is worth
the Devil's while to allow and even inspire an extolling of the Lord
Jesus if he can secure the ground for such a fatal blow at Him by
undermining faith in every one of His virtues by a lie and
deception. (Comp. Acts 16:16,17.)
This is the state of not a few dear children of God today and it is
one of the most difficult and exhausting tasks which the Lord's
servants have presented to them. Indeed, the enemy loves nothing
better than to get the laugh at the servants of God by presenting
them with these "cases." The chief weapon against him has been
paralysed by unbelief, namely, the Precious Blood. But it is not
only in those concerned directly that the enemy gains his advantage,
but because of such things abounding, many of the Lord's people
repudiate the whole matter and adopt the attitude that
in any
case or in
any way the "laying on of hands" is
essentially dangerous. Thus a blow is struck at truth because it has
been taken out of its right sphere and thereby exposed to false
influences. While the manifest
results in wonderful
ecstasies and psychic-physical manifestations prevail there is a
great vogue and a reputed "great Divine movement."
Let it be understood that we are not saying that everything
associated with the laying on of hands is invariably false, but we
are pointing out the basis of the dangerous. The normal level of
spiritual life has become so low that there is a reaction towards
the abnormal which is fraught with very many and great perils.
The Lord would have the life of His people to be a continuous
miracle and wonder. The true life in Christ
is this, and
therefore, abnormality may be rather a mark of disorder than of the
true work of the Spirit. It is significant and instructive to note
how when an organ is removed from its place and connecting tissue
and submitted to stimulants, from without it develops in an
extraordinary way. Experiments carried out by surgeons have shown
that if a portion of any organ of the body - say a piece of a kidney
- be removed from its connective tissue and placed in a test tube
with a nutrient medium it will immediately commence growing. While
in the body its growth was regulated because it was under
supervision and thus kept within limitations, when thus started
on
its own, however, and unchecked by the restraining hand of a
central control, it at once begins to increase in size. As it grows,
however, it changes its specific nature, becoming quite featureless,
so that it is kidney no longer!
The maintenance of specific nature and function depends absolutely
on continuance in corporate fellowship. Dr. J. A. Murray, of the
Imperial Cancer Research Fund has pointed out that the individual
cells of the various tissues are not independent, self-contained
units, each going its own way. They are subject to a general
controlling influence, the nature of which is still obscure, which
limits their rate and amount of growth, so that a uniform proportion
is maintained between the different organs and parts of the body. In
cancer the controlling power is wanting, so that something abnormal
and unbalanced results. It is something like that which ensues when
any part of truth is taken out of connection with all the rest and
made the subject of particular and unproportioned attention, having
stimuli focussed upon it from without. It develops abnormally, but
loses its real feature and becomes something in itself. The same
thing applies to movements and departments or sections of Christian
work. As in the Body of Christ all the rest of the members are
necessary to give the true value and feature to each one, so each
part of the "One Faith" needs all the rest and the central
controlling power of the Holy Spirit. This leads us, then, to seek
to see:
The Place of the Laying on of Hands in
Relation to all the rest of Truth.