{"id":52093,"date":"2019-09-02T13:47:28","date_gmt":"2019-09-02T10:47:28","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/?p=52093"},"modified":"2025-07-04T16:41:18","modified_gmt":"2025-07-04T13:41:18","slug":"what-is-confirmation-and-is-it-biblical","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/wingulamashahidi.org\/en\/2019\/09\/02\/what-is-confirmation-and-is-it-biblical\/","title":{"rendered":"What Is Confirmation and Is It Biblical?"},"content":{"rendered":"

Meaning of Confirmation:<\/strong><\/p>\n

Confirmation means \u201cbeing established.\u201d It is used in certain Christian traditions like the Catholic, Orthodox, and Anglican churches<\/strong> as one of their key sacraments. For example, the Catholic Church teaches seven sacraments<\/strong>, and confirmation is considered essential for a baptized person to be fully accepted before God.<\/p>\n

In these churches, after baptism, the person undergoes teaching, and then a bishop lays hands on them. This laying on of hands is believed to bring the Holy Spirit<\/strong> upon the person, similar to what happened in the early church:<\/p>\n

Acts 8:14\u201317<\/strong>
\n\u201cNow when the apostles who were at Jerusalem heard that Samaria had received the word of God, they sent Peter and John to them, who, when they had come down, prayed for them that they might receive the Holy Spirit. For as yet He had fallen upon none of them. They had only been baptized in the name of the Lord Jesus. Then they laid hands on them, and they received the Holy Spirit.\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

This passage is often used to support the idea that the laying on of hands is necessary for receiving the Holy Spirit.<\/p>\n

The Bible clearly teaches that faith precedes baptism<\/strong>. Baptism is a public testimony of repentance and faith in Jesus Christ. Infants cannot exercise faith or repentance, so infant baptism contradicts biblical teaching.<\/p>\n

Romans 10:13\u201315\u00a0<\/strong>
\n\u201cFor \u2018whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved.\u2019 How then shall they call on Him in whom they have not believed? And how shall they believe in Him of whom they have not heard? And how shall they hear without a preacher? And how shall they preach unless they are sent?\u201d<\/em><\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Therefore, baptism requires personal belief in Jesus as Savior and Lord.<\/p>\n

\n

The Holy Spirit and the Laying on of Hands<\/h3>\n

The apostles never set a fixed rule that the Holy Spirit only comes through the laying on of hands. The example in Acts 8 is one occasion where this happened under the Holy Spirit\u2019s guidance.<\/p>\n

However, there are other clear examples where the Spirit was given without laying on of hands<\/strong>:<\/p>\n