Baptism with the Holy Spirit

9. Is there a gift of laying hands upon the believers that they may receive the Holy Spirit?

Yes, there is such a gift. I deduce this from the answer Peter gave to Simon (a former wizard of Samaria, who had believed the Gospel preached by Philip the evangelist) when Simon offered Peter and John a sum of money to receive from them the power to lay hands on people so that they might receive the Holy Spirit. Here is the answer of Peter: “Thy money perish with thee, because thou hast thought that the gift of God may be purchased with money” (Acts 8:20). Peter and John therefore had that particular gift, that is, the power to lay their hands on believers that they might receive the Holy Spirit. Also the apostle Paul had that gift, for when he laid his hands upon the disciples at Ephesus they received the Holy Spirit and began to speak with other tongues (Acts 19:6), and through the laying on of his hands Timothy received the Holy Spirit (2 Timothy 1:6).

Instead, Philip the evangelist did not have that gift, even though he was a man filled with the Holy Spirit and preached with boldness the Gospel of Christ and did many miracles in the name of Jesus Christ; I deduce this from the fact that even though the believers of Samaria believed through him, they did receive the Holy Spirit only when the apostles Peter and John prayed for them and laid their hands upon them (Acts 8:15-17).

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