Paul advised Timothy (1 Tim 5:22) not to lay hands on people hastily when he appointed leaders.
But he also mentioned a principle that applies in all ‘hand-laying’ circumstances. He said: ‘Do not share in the sins of others. Keep yourself pure.’
He was saying that if you lay hands on someone who is impure, you may pick up bad influences.
Now, we shouldn’t be afraid of ‘catching’ something. But the warning is there for a reason.
Laying of hands is not symbolic. It builds a bridge between the people involved, and an impartation takes place.
I always ask people’s permission before laying hands on them. And I’m careful who lays hands on me.
The bible says we should only lay hands to:
- Baptise someone in the Holy Spirit (Acts 19:1-6).
- Heal the sick (Mark 16-18).
- Appoint someone for a role, duty or task (Numbers 27:18–20 and 8:10; Acts 6:6 and 13: 2-3).
- Release a spiritual gift (1 Timothy 4:14).
- Bless someone (Genesis 48:14; Matthew 19:13–15).
Laying of hands was also used in the Old Testament (Leviticus 24:14) to lay a curse on someone, which shows the power behind it.
These days, people lay hands on others for all kinds of reasons. Many of them are unbiblical.
There is no scriptural basis for laying hands to impart:
Your spiritual legacy
Your legacy will survive you, but you can’t control it, impart it, or decide who gets it. King David’s legacy survived him … battles and psalms, victories and adultery, the lot. The same goes for us.
God’s favour and goodness
God promises favour to those children who obey him. But he imparts it, not us.
Your anointing, gift or ministry
Anointings, spiritual gifts, ministries and ‘mantles’ come from God. We cannot pass them on.
Some people believe that Elijah gave a Elisha a double portion of his own spirit. But you can’t give away what you don’t have.
If I possess £10, I can’t give you £20, especially if the tenner belongs to my dad.
Elisha’s double portion only represented the inheritance given by a father to his oldest son (see Deuteronomy 21:17).
And for Elisha, it worked! He did 28 miracles – Elijah did 14. But his power and anointing came from God, not from Elijah’s spirit, as this returned to God (Ecc 12:7).
And it didn’t come from Elijah’s mantle. This was a just symbolic garment made of animal skin, worn by prophets and kings.
The power came from God. It always does.
Never from us, never from our hands. We are the tap, not the water supply.