Q: Why do you suppose it took the laying on of hands for the Holy Spirit to come on the believers who were baptized in Acts 8:9-17? It's something I've often wondered about. According to one author I frequently read, this is the answer:
A: The believers here, who had been baptized but had not received the Spirit promised in Acts 2:38, were Samaritans, members of the ten tribes of Israel. According to prophecy, these ten tribes must be reunited with the two tribes of Judah (Ezek 37:15-19), for the Lord had promised the 12 apostles that they would reign with Him over "the twelve tribes of Israel" in the kingdom (Matt 19:28).
But it was not enough that the ten tribes of Israel be reunited with the two tribes of Judah. The ten tribes of Israel had apostatized from the faith centuries before when they made Samaria their capital and set up their own temple at Mt. Gerizim. They had to renounce all that and recognize Jerusalem as the seat of God's authority. And so they did not receive the promised Spirit until two apostles from Jerusalem came and prayed for them with the laying on of hands.
Two apostles were enough, of course, since "on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed" (Deut 17:6; 19:15; 2 Cor 13:1). In fact, the Lord had instructed the apostles that where "two or three" of them were gathered together in His name, they had the authority to act officially in His absence (Matt 18:18-20).
A: The believers here, who had been baptized but had not received the Spirit promised in Acts 2:38, were Samaritans, members of the ten tribes of Israel. According to prophecy, these ten tribes must be reunited with the two tribes of Judah (Ezek 37:15-19), for the Lord had promised the 12 apostles that they would reign with Him over "the twelve tribes of Israel" in the kingdom (Matt 19:28).
But it was not enough that the ten tribes of Israel be reunited with the two tribes of Judah. The ten tribes of Israel had apostatized from the faith centuries before when they made Samaria their capital and set up their own temple at Mt. Gerizim. They had to renounce all that and recognize Jerusalem as the seat of God's authority. And so they did not receive the promised Spirit until two apostles from Jerusalem came and prayed for them with the laying on of hands.
Two apostles were enough, of course, since "on the evidence of two or three witnesses a matter shall be confirmed" (Deut 17:6; 19:15; 2 Cor 13:1). In fact, the Lord had instructed the apostles that where "two or three" of them were gathered together in His name, they had the authority to act officially in His absence (Matt 18:18-20).
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