Remember to Remember! Why Take Communion?
Remembrance Day provides an opportunity to teach the kids in your Kid’s Ministry about the importance of Communion and why we take it. Psalm 112:6 says ‘the righteous will be in everlasting remembrance.’ The righteous are worth remembering, their actions are of the kind which record themselves, and God himself takes charge of their memorials. (Spurgeon)
This Remembrance Day, the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month, is a good opportunity to teach the children about Communion. Remembering Jesus and all He has done…and learning there is something God chooses to forget!
Bible Lesson: Remember the Lord
Suggested Visuals for Flashcards or PowerPoint Presentation:
Visual 1: Eternal flame
Visual 2: Rainbow
Visual 3: Blood of the lamb on the doorposts and Israelites crossing the Red Sea
Visual 4: Birthday cake
Visual 5: The word: ‘Communion?’
Visual 6: Jesus and apostles reclining
Visual 7: Jesus and the bread
Visual 8: Jesus and the wine
Visual 9: Apostle Paul
Visual 10: Communion emblems
Words:
1. If you visit the city of Brisbane and walk down Ann Street towards the Brisbane River you‘ll come across the Anzac Square Memorial and the Shrine of Remembrance. Inside the circular shrine, a bronze urn houses the Eternal Flame. The Eternal Flame is fuelled by gas and never goes out. It is there to remember thousands of servicemen and women who died defending Australia in wartime. There are some things that should never be forgotten. That’s why Remembrance Day continues to be observed over one hundred years after the end of World War 1.
2. After the flood God told Noah the rainbow was a sign that He would never cover the whole earth with water again. Every time a rainbow appears that covenant, or promise, is remembered. God said, ‘Whenever the rainbow appears in the clouds, I will see it and remember the everlasting covenant between God and all living creatures of every kind on the earth.’ (Genesis 9:12-17)
3. After the Israelites left Egypt, Moses told them to take part in the Passover meal every year. ‘So this day shall be to you a memorial, and you shall keep it as a feast to the Lord throughout your generations. You shall keep it as a feast by an everlasting ordinance (law). (Exodus 12:14) God did not want the Israelites to ever forget how He had delivered them from Pharaoh.
4. God knows it is important to remember special or significant things. Remembering is keeping a piece of information in your memory or being able to bring back a piece of information into your mind. Aren’t you glad your Mum and Dad remember your birthday?
5. There’s something very important Christians remember whenever we meet. It’s called Communion. Why? Let’s find out!
6. Look up Luke chapter 22 starting at verse 14. Jesus and his disciples were meeting for Passover just as Moses had told Israelites to do all those years ago. When the hour came, Jesus and his apostles reclined at the table. (That’s how they ate meals in those days.) Verse 15. And He (Jesus) said to them, ‘I have eagerly desired to eat this Passover with you before I suffer.’ Jesus was saying goodbye to His disciples. He knew he was going to die for the sins of the whole world…it was why He came. His life on earth had been leading to this time.
7. Let’s drop to Verse 19: And He took bread, gave thanks and broke it, and gave it to them, saying, ‘This is my body given for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ As we eat the bread (the little piece of cracker or wafer) we should remember how Jesus was broken, pierced, and beaten and whipped so we could be redeemed.
8. Verse 20: In the same way, after the supper He took the cup, saying, ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood, which is poured out for you.’ As we drink the cup (our grape juice in the plastic cup) we should remember that Jesus’ blood, His life, was poured out for us.
9. Let’s turn to 1 Corinthians 11:23. Years later, the Apostle Paul was writing to the Christians in the city of Corinth. He wrote…The Lord Jesus, on the night he was betrayed, took bread, (Verse 24) and when he had given thanks, he broke it and said, ‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’ In the same way, after supper he took the cup, saying ‘This cup is the new covenant in my blood; do this, whenever you drink it, in remembrance of me.’ For whenever you eat this bread and drink this cup, you proclaim, the Lord’s death until he comes.’
10. So you can see, remembering is very important! We are going to celebrate Communion to remember Jesus in a moment.
Ministry to the Children:
Before we have Communion, I need to tell you about something God forgets. God will forgive your sins because Jesus died on the Cross and paid the debt for everything you did wrong. In Isaiah 43:25 God says, ‘I, even I, am He who blots out your transgressions (sins), for my own sake, and remembers your sins no more.’ God is not forgetful. He remembers everything. But when you ask Jesus to take away your sins, God chooses to forget every one of them. How wonderful to have every wrong thing you’ve ever done forgiven and forgotten!
Communion:
Lead the children in Communion. Songs to play from YouTube: Communion for Kids ‘Remember Me’ or Remembrance (Communion song) by Matt Redman.
Memory Verse: 1 Corinthians 11:24
‘This is my body, which is for you; do this in remembrance of me.’
Play ‘Erase a Word’. Write the Memory Verse on a whiteboard. Ask children to say it aloud a few times. Erase a word at a time, asking children to say the verse after each erasure, until all the words have been erased and they can remember the verse without help.
Craft: Decorate Last Supper Glass
You will need:
- Plastic stemmed glass per child
- Fine point permanent ink markers
What to do:
- Children decorate their cup
- Display designs to inspire: Cross, flowers, patterns