The Laying on of Hands

by Ronald E. Cottle

For most people, the laying on of hands is a useless tradition or empty ceremony without real meaning or purpose. Almost no one in the body of Christ today truly practices this "foundational principle" for going on to maturity. It is not taught as a principle of faith even though it lingers in our ceremonies as a meaningless act. It is now "religious" but not "spiritual." The laying on of hands is the basic practice for accrediting and establishing God's apostolic messengers and confirming that person's gift to others. This is the transfer of apostolic authority from one person to another, one generation to the next. This is the core of and key to "apostolic succession." The laying on of hands is fundamental to engaging the enemy with authority.