City Life Starter

Written by Stefan Johnsson

The Word

³ Therefore, brothers, select from among you seven men of good reputation, full of the Spirit and wisdom, whom we can appoint to this duty. ⁶ They had them stand before the apostles, who prayed and laid their hands on them. -Acts 6:3,6 (HCSB)

¹⁸ The Lord replied to Moses, “Take Joshua son of Nun, a man who has the Spirit in him, and lay your hands on him. ¹⁹ Have him stand before Eleazar the priest and the whole community, and commission him in their sight. -Numbers 27:18-19 (HCSB)

Reflection

When the seven Hellenistic Jews were chosen to serve their brethren, it was important that the entire church was there to see and understand the commissioning. These men were also chosen as ones who were full of the Spirit and wisdom. That is, their actions and deeds could be seen and felt within the Christian community. There is no doubt that these men practiced already what they would eventually be commissioned to do. Leaders tend to lead without the title of leadership, and true leadership is how Christ did it, by serving.

Now, once these men were selected, they were brought in front and commissioned, which included the laying on of hands. This goes back to what God told Moses that he should do when commissioning Joshua to lead the people of God to the promised land. Joshua was also full of the Spirit and wisdom, one who served the Israelites already through his dedication and obedience to God. Just like Nate talked about the correlation with Exodus in yesterday’s devotional, so it is with the laying on of hands in correlation with Joshua in the book of Numbers.

Laying on of hands does not necessarily mean a surge of power from God in this specific section because we do not see it mentioned, but it is important to understand that for both Joshua and the Seven, there was a Spiritual power there already. As Peter said in Acts 5:32, that the Holy Spirit is given to those who obey God. So it was with Joshua and the Seven, they were serving God in obedience and were full of the Spirit. So the laying on of hands has a lot to do in this specific situation with commissioning. Can this mean a refilling of spiritual power or additional spiritual strength from God for these men to do the work that they were commissioned for? Possibly, probably. Remember that prayer is powerful. Prayer is how we commune with our Father and God uses prayer to move in people and places. We will also see in future chapters of Acts how the laying on of hands brings other manifestations of the Spirit, so it has multiple uses and is an important part for the church to practice.

Application

Are you seeking leadership roles in church? If so, remember that your works and deeds should be noticed first by those around you. It is important that the church commissions leaders and missionaries thoughtfully and in prayer, but also that the church members agree and see that the people chosen are of good character and repute, that they are truly acting in accordance with Scripture and are obedient to the faith (see 1 Timothy 3:8-13).

Also, understand that the laying on of hands goes back to the Old Testament and is something God Himself asked for when commissioning Joshua. We should take this seriously as the apostles did when commissioning leaders and sending people out for ministry in our city and to the nations of the world.

Prayer

Father in heaven, I pray for the leaders of my church. Let them lead with the Holy Spirit and be guided by Your ways. Let not Satan catch them in any weakness, but to be obedient in faith and deeds. In the name of Jesus I pray, amen.