Such ceremonies had always been the special prerogatives of the priestly class and he did not belong to that family, nor assume any of its prerogatives, nor employ any of its ceremonies, so far as we know. But so far as we know, he neither instituted, nor used, nor commanded his followers to practice any ceremony of laying on of hands for any purpose whatsoever. When we come to the New Testament we find that Jesus often laid his hands upon the sick to heal them (Luke 4:40 Mark 6:5), and on little children in blessing them (Matthew 19: 15). These were the only uses of the ceremony of imposition of hands in the Old Testament. The sins of the people to the sacrificial animal. The hands of the officiating priest were laid upon the head of the scape-goat and some other sacrifices before the animal was slain, thus transferring Neither of these instances was in any sense an ordination, nor was the imposition of hands a part of the ceremony for ordaining priests.
This act was not, however, for the gift of the Spirit for he is said to be already ''a man in whom is the Spirit.'' The exact significance of the act is not made clear. Moses is instructed by Jehovah to lay his hand upon Joshua as a part of the ceremony by which he was to be recognized as Moses' successor. It appears first in Scripture when the people are commanded to put their hands upon the Levites and offer them as a wave offering to Jehovah.
The ceremony of laying on of hands is very ancient. Let us see what the Scriptural basis for these practices is. Not all Christians have had all or even any of these practices, but they have all been practiced from early, if not the earliest days of Christianity. No ground is afforded by this symbolical action for a sacrament of "Orders.Imposition of hands as a religious ceremony has been practiced in Christian history for three distinct purposes - on religious officers to set them apart for their special work, on the newly baptized for the gifts and graces of the Holy Spirit, and on excluded members when restoring them to the fellowship of the church. The act of laying on of hands was accompanied by prayer ( Ac 6:6 8:15 13:3), and the blessing sought was imparted by God Himself. Here again the fundamental idea is communication. The presbyters could hardly convey what they had not themselves received ( 1Ti 1:14). This is noticed as taking place in the appointment of the Seven ( Ac 6:6), in the sending out of Barnabas and Saul ( Ac 13:3), at the ordination of Timothy ( 1Ti 4:14 2Ti 1:6), but though not directly mentioned, it seems likely that it accompanied all acts of ordination of presbyters and deacons (compare 1Ti 5:22 Heb 6:2).
Specially the imposition of hands was used in the setting apart of persons to a particular office or work in the church. In the New Testament Jesus laid hands on the little children ( Mt 19:13, 15 parallel Mr 10:16) and on the sick ( Mt 9:18 Mr 6:5, etc.), and the apostles laid hands on those whom they baptized that they might receive the Holy Spirit ( Ac 8:17, 19 19:6), and in healing ( Ac 12:17). The primary idea seems to be that of conveyance or transference (compare Le 16:21), but, conjoined with this, in certain instances, are the ideas of identification and of devotion to God. The idea in these cases varies with the purpose of the act. The tribe of Levi was set apart by solemn imposition of hands ( Nu 8:10) Moses appointed Joshua to be his successor by a similar act ( Nu 27:18, 23 De 34:9). Im-po-zish'-un (epithesis cheiron, Ac 8:18 1Ti 4:14 2Ti 1:6 Heb 6:2): The act or ceremony of the imposition of hands appears in the Old Testament in various connections: in the act of blessing ( Ge 48:14 ) in the ritual of sacrifice (hands of the offerer laid on head of victim, Ex 29:10, 15, 19 Le 1:4 3:2, 8, 13 4:4, 24, 29 8:14 16:21) in witness-bearing in capital offenses ( Le 24:14).
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