I was watching TV the other day, and a famous preacher (Bishop TD Jakes) was on, during the usual commercial break where they advertise their products etc.
He was asking for partners and said something like – if you partner with me for a mere $30 a month, you will be sowing into good soil and the anointing that is on me will fall down on you.I jumped, because the statement disturbed me a little, actually I tell a lie, it disturbed me a lot…please don’t get me wrong, this is not a Bishop Jakes bashing party, not at all, it is just that he said something that others too have said and are still saying in error.
I think we have gotten the whole idea of being anointed post CHRIST versus pre CHRIST wrong… Before CHRIST, the anointing came upon and left when the work it was required for was finished, after CHRIST, the anointing came by way of the HOLY SPIRIT, which actually comes from within…
The idea of laying on of hands to pass on an anointing is very wrong, if it was right, then there ought to be a ton of TD jakes, Benny Hinns and so on, running around the place. It is also wrong to teach that the anointing can be transferred through the exchange of money. You cannot buy it…
Unfortunately we like to take instances in the bible and turn them into wholes…what I mean is this, there is a story of a prophet (Elijah) passing on his prophetic mantle to his understudy (Elisha) so we take that instance and make a doctrine out of it but no one ever asks the question, who anointed Elijah?
The bible first mentions Elijah in 1 Kings 17:1 and he came on the scene blazing, no rain for 3 years, being fed by ravens, raising a child from the dead et al, but not a mention of who laid hands on him…now even going to the transferring of his prophetic mantle, he said to Elisha, if you see me when I am being taken from you then it shall be so for you (2Kings2)
Elijah never laid his hands on Elisha and there was no guarantee that anything would happen… he told Elisha that if he did not see him being taken away, then his wish for double portion of Elijah’s spirit will not be transferred.
This was this way because at the time the HOLY SPIRIT was not in dwelling, but even still, there is no mention of laying on of hands to pass on an anointing, not here, not for Moses, Isaiah, Jonah, Ezekiel, etc etc.
In New Testament, there is a mention in Acts of the apostles laying hands on, but was that for their anointing to pass on to someone else? No, it was to pass on the HOLY SPIRIT to someone who did not have it or for healing purposes.
In fact, in Acts 8, a man called Simon saw that Peter and John by laying hands on people they received the HOLY SPIRIT, he offered them money so he could be able to do the same, but Peter said to him- your money perish with you, because you thought that the gift of GOD could be purchased with money-
I believe that there were instances where the apostles needed to lay hands for the HOLY SPIRIT, but they were not transferring it, it was simply a baptism that brought forth the HOLY SPIRIT in that person…does this mean every instance has to be done this way?
No, I actually believe that because of our awareness of the things of GOD, it is much easier in our day and age to receive the HOLY SPIRIT without a laying on of hands…
The bible never talks about any of the apostles laying hands on anyone to transfer a gift…the idea of an anointing falling down on someone signs into the doctrine that the person who has it, is above the receiver (nothing falls upwards) which makes that anointed person better than, more powerful than and even holier than the person in line paying for the anointing…all wrong!
JESUS did not lay hands on Peter before he walked on water, HE just asked him to ‘come’, nor did HE lay hands on the disciples when they went out and casted out demons, HE just asked them to ‘go’
Kehinde Dacosta-Lawrence is one of Paulina and Jonathan’s twin boys. He is a student of life, for life...
