Laying On of Hands

Reading through Numbers 8 I gained a little insight into the practice of laying hands on an individual when commissioning him to a ministry. In that passage the Levites are being set apart to God for service in His temple.
Already in chapter 3 the Levites had been chosen in exchange for the firstborn of the Israelites. The cost (to the Lord) of Israel's freedom from bondage had been the death of all the firstborn in Egypt, and since those Egyptians were created by God and therefore just as valuable and precious to God as his chosen people, Israel was required, in effect, to repay the Lord by devoting to him all their own firstborn. Firstborn animals could be redeemed with cash, but firstborn sons could be redeemed only by means of a substitute. So, rather than inflict profound family and cultural disruption upon the people, and to facilitate a more efficient priestly ministry, the Lord chose one tribe from among the Jews, the tribe of Levi, in substitution for the firstborn of the rest of the nation.
Returning now to chapter 8, we find the Levites being set apart for the temple/tabernacle ministry and in the process the people, not the priests, are told to lay their hands upon them. They were, in effect, commissioning the Levites to function in that ministry as their substitutes. Likewise had the people done to their sin offerings and likewise had they done to the scapegoat. These all functioned as substitutes for the people.
Likewise do we do today when we ordain a man to local church ministry or when we send an individual out to proclaim the gospel among the lost. We recognize that it is not possible for all Christians to to head to the distant lands, nor are we all chosen by God for particular ministries. So we appoint substitutes to serve on our behalf. This is why it is so important to appoint good substitutes and why Paul warns, in 1 Timothy 5:22, not to be hasty in the laying on of hands. Whomever you appoint is your representative, and if they are sinful, lazy, or self-seeking you share in that sin.
This has given me a new approach as a pastor/elder. From now on, when it comes to commissioning an individual to ministry I am going to have the congregation lay their hands on him. I believe this will better convey the meaning of the appointment and I hope that it will cause all involved to consider more seriously the standards and expectations they apply to those they ordain.