Having shown that faith, repentance and baptism are essential to the
remission of sins, let us now consider the reception of the Holy
Spirit. That this should follow, and not precede, the birth of the
water must be evident to every thoughtful person. It is clear that a
man is not prepared for the indwelling of the Holy Ghost unless he
repents of his sins and becomes freed from them by obedience to the
laws of God. Some people may contend that, because Jesus stated that
man must be born again, in order to see the kingdom of heaven, such
a birth precedes baptism, and is synonymous with the birth of the
Spirit mentioned by the Savior in the third chapter of St. John; but
being born again, in order to see the kingdom, evidently shows that a
man must have some light above the natural senses, sufficient to the
light of Christ to make him see the kingdom of God. In other words, to
secure, and we may say, consistently constitute his conversion.
This light which guides him to the truth does not, however, forego
the absolute necessity of obeying the laws and ordinances of the
Gospel. As proof of this we cite the conversion of Paul. He received
a personal manifestation of the Savior's power, even hearing his
voice and witnessing a light from heaven. Notwithstanding this, Jesus
commanded him to go to Ananias, an authorized servant of Christ, who
should instruct him regarding his salvation. He was therefore required
to be born of water and of the Spirit. Cornelius, also, as related in
the tenth chapter of Acts, saw an angel and received a manifestation
of the Holy Ghost previous to baptism. Yet both men were required to
obey the ordinances enjoined by the Gospel of Christ. If they rejected
these requirements, undoubtedly the light they had received would have
departed from them and this would have added to their condemnation.
The historical fact of the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy
Ghost is not, in every instance, recorded in the Scriptures, and it is
not necessary that it should be, in order to prove that the ordinance
was established by the Messiah. In the matter of baptism He said to
John, "Suffer it to be so now, for thus it becometh us to fulfill all
righteousness." He made no exception of Himself, but gave the example
by his own obedience. How can others be excused? To show that the
laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost, by those having
divine authority was practiced by the ancient apostles, we refer to
Acts viii:14, 17: "Now, when the apostles which were at Jerusalem heard
that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent unto them Peter
and John, who, when they were come down, prayed for them, that they
might receive the Holy Ghost: (for as yet He was fallen upon none of
them: only they were baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus.) Then laid
they their hands on them and they received the Holy Ghost."
Philip did not have the authority to lay on hands for this gift, hence
Peter and John were sent from Jerusalem for the express purpose of
performing this higher ordinance of the Gospel. In the nineteenth
chapter of Acts is an account of Paul's visit to the city of Ephesus,
where he found about twelve men who claimed to have received the same
form of baptism as administered by John the Baptist. But in answer to
Paul's question, "Have ye received the Holy Ghost since ye believed?"
they told him they had not so much as heard of it, and his action
in re-baptizing them would strongly indicate that some imposter had
counterfeited in form the true baptism. This being performed without
legitimate authority, their sins were not remitted, and they were not
in a condition to receive the Holy Ghost. Hence Paul baptized them; and
the sixth verse says: "And when Paul had laid his hands upon them, the
Holy Ghost came upon them and they spake with tongues and prophesied."
An imposter can baptize in water by physical force, imitate the true
form at the submission of the candidate, but the gift of the Holy Ghost
cannot be given without authority from God; and while the water baptism
is equally destitute of its legitimate results when not performed by
authority, the imposture is not so readily detected because not usually
accompanied by the same manifestation of divine power; therefore
designing or ignorant men have taken pains either to deny the gift of
the Holy Ghost as being essential with its ancient spiritual powers, or
to tell the people that no outward ordinance was essential to confer
it, thus endeavoring to dispense with this sacred ordinance.
The following references also indicate the laying on of hands as a
sacred rite which would not have been adopted by the apostles unless
'commanded of God to do so: I Tim. iv: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." II Tim. i:6-"Wherefore I put thee in
remembrance that thou stir up the gift of God which is in thee by the
putting on of my hands." Also showing that this ordinance was laid
down as a positive doctrine, we call attention to the sixth chapter
of Hebrews, first and second verses: "Therefore leaving (another
translation, that of the prophet Joseph Smith, reads 'not leaving') the
principles of the doctrine of Christ, let us go on unto perfection, not
laying again the foundation of repentance from dead works, and of faith
toward God of the doctrine of baptisms and of laying on of hands."
That man might duplicate in form this divine ceremony without authority
and without effect, we do not deny; but we confidently assert that
without this ordinance being administered by an acknowledged authority
from God, the operation would be of non-effect. The undeniable facts
of religious history for seventeen centuries prove that men did not
receive the Holy Ghost. Where the tree is, there will the fruit be
produced, unless the tree is dead; and no one will contend that the
Holy Spirit is dead.
The following quotations will point out the fruits of the Holy Spirit:
"But the Comforter, which is the Holy Ghost, whom the Father will send
in my name, He shall teach you all things and bring all things to your
remembrance, whatsoever I have said unto you." (St. John xiv:26.)
"Howbeit, when He, the Spirit of Truth, is Come, He will guide you
into all truth: for He shall not speak of Himself; but whatsoever
He shall hear, that shall He speak, and He shall show you things to
come." (St. John xvi:13.) "As they ministered to the Lord and fasted,
the Holy Ghost said, 'Separate me Barnabas and Saul, for the work
whereunto I have called them.'" (Acts xiii:2.) "Wherefore I give you
to understand that no man speaking by the Spirit of God calleth Jesus
accursed: and that no man can say that Jesus is the Lord, but by the
Holy Ghost. Now there are diversities of gifts, but the same Spirit. *
* * For to one is given by the Spirit the word of wisdom; to another,
the word of Knowledge by the same Spirit; To another, faith by the
same Spirit; to another, the gifts of healing by the same Spirit; to
another, the working of miracles; to another, prophecy; to another
discerning of Spirits; to another, divers kinds of tongues." ( I Cor.
xii:3, 4, 8, 9, 10.) "But the fruits of the Spirit is love, joy, peace,
long-suffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance."
(Gal. v:22-23.)
The same cause will ever produce the same effect; a tree is known by
its fruits, and to be convinced that we need such gifts today it is
only necessary to look at the spectacle of jarring "Christianity" with
its many creeds. Where is the Spirit that guides into all truth, which
does not contradict itself, but teaches the "common salvation" of "one
Lord, one faith, one baptism, one God and Father of all?" That brings
us "to a unity of faith," and makes us one in Christ, as He prayed
that His disciples and all whom the Father should give Him out of the
world might be one even as I am one in the Father and the Father in me,
that they may be one in us, "that the world may believe that thou hast
sent me?" Where is the Spirit of prophecy? "The testimony of Jesus is
the Spirit of prophecy," the gifts of revelation, healings and all the
glorious powers enumerated in the Scripture quotations made. Well did
Isaiah say, "The earth also is defiled under the inhabitants thereof,
because they have transgressed the laws, changed the ordinances and
broken the everlasting covenant." (Isa. xxiv:5.)
Without further comment on the gifts of the Spirit, we will introduce
quotations to show that the laying on of hands was practiced also for
ordination to office in the Church of Christ, and for the healing of
the sick, as well as to confer the gift of the Holy Ghost: "Whom they
set before the apostles; and when they had prayed, they laid their
hands on them." (Acts vi:6.) This refers to the ordination of Stephen
and six others. "As they ministered to the Lord and fasted, the Holy
Ghost said, separate me Barnabas and Saul for the work whereunto I have
called them. And when they had fasted and prayed and laid their hands
on them they sent them away." (Acts xiii:2, 3.)
The same ordinance was also had in ancient times before the coming of
the Savior. Paul informs us in Gal. iii, that the Gospel was preached
before unto Abraham. "And the Lord said unto Moses, Take thee Joshua,
the son of Nun, a man in whom is the Spirit, and lay thine hands upon
him. And he laid his hands upon him and gave him a charge, as the Lord
commanded by the hand of Moses." (Num. xxvii:18, 23.) "And Joshua, the
son of Nun, was full of the Spirit of wisdom, for Moses had laid his
hands upon him." (Deut. xxxiv:9.)
It is most reasonable to conclude from the evidence presented that this
practice came down from the beginning, and was before and after Christ
a divine ordinance. That it was practiced for the healing of the sick
is evident from the following historical and doctrinal statements made
in the New Testament by the Messiah and His apostles: "They shall lay
hands on the sick and they shall recover." (Mark xvi:18.) "And He could
there do no mighty work save that He laid His hands upon a few sick
folk and healed them." (Mark vi:5.) "Now when the sun was setting, all
they that had any sick with divers diseases brought them unto Him; and
He laid His hands on every one of them, and healed them." (Luke iv:40.)
"And putting His hands on him, said Brother Saul, the Lord, even Jesus,
that appeared unto thee in the way as thou camest, hath sent me that
thou mightest receive thy sight," etc. (Acts ix:17.) "And it came to
pass that the father of Publius lay sick of a fever, and of a bloody
flux; to whom Paul entered in, and prayed, and laid his hands on him,
and healed him." (Acts xxviii:8.) "Is any sick among you? Let him call
for the elders of the church, and let them pray over him, anointing him
with oil in the name of the Lord: And the prayer of faith shall save
the sick, and the Lord shall raise him up," etc. (James v:14, 15.).
Although the laying on of hands is not expressly mentioned in the last
quotation, it is readily seen that the sick could not be anointed
without the imposition of hands.
The foregoing should be sufficient to convince all Bible believers that
the laying on of hands is a sacred ordinance for the purposes specified
in Holy writ, that it follows the baptism of water, and occupies
its relationship in the plan of salvation as the fourth essential
principle to fully establish men in the Church of Christ; the order
is, faith, repentance, baptism by immersion for the remission of sins,
and the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. This is the
door into the sheepfold; "he that entereth not by the door into the
sheepfold, but climbeth up some other way, the same is a thief and a
robber." (St. John x:1.)