When should my child begin taking communion?
If you have children and you are involved in the church, you have certainly reflected on the following question, "When is my child ready to take communion?" Is this a decision a child simply makes on their own or something a parent should encourage? Does the Bible have anything to say to the church in this regard. Of course, the answer is a resounding yes!
One of my favorite passages of Scripture to go to when I think about the call God has placed on each of us to disciple our children is found in Deuteronomy 6:4-7. There we read,
Hear, O Israel: The LORD our God, the Lord is one. Love the LORD your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength. These commandments that I give you today are to be on your hearts. Impress them on your children. Talk about them when you sit at home and when you walk along the road, when you lie down and when you get up.
In this ancient text, God instructs His people to remember their call to love him with all their being. Right along with this is the call to "impress" these things on our children by talking with them, sitting with them, walking with them, when they lie down. The point being that we are called to take every opportunity we can to encourage our children to love the LORD our God with all of their heart, soul, and strength.
Parents are God's main design in guiding children into understanding just how much He loves them and that life can be found in him. Not primarily programs. Not chiefly through entertainment or fancy curriculum. Rather, we encourage them in the faith as we simply live our lives in light of God's love for us.
So when you bring your children to church, they are learning about God's love. When you sing with them in worship, they are learning songs of redemption and promise. And of course when they see you take communion, they will eventually ask, "Why do you do that?" or better yet "Why can't I do that?" That question is the perfect opportunity to talk with your children about God's deep and abiding love for us through Jesus Christ. If you find yourself in this situation, then the next step is for you to begin to pray and seek counsel from an elder or pastor so that we can bring your child to the table.
"But when exactly are they old enough?" Well, that really depends on the child. You will not find in the Bible an "age of accountability" or a magic number that says, "Whey your child reaches 13, bring them forward." Some traditions in the church have in fact come to an understanding that a child is ready to celebrate the eucharist at a certain age and though there is some wisdom in this, it isn't mandated in the Scriptures. Other churches encourage children from their very earliest days to partake of the elements.
So what is our position on this at Redeemer? In short, we believe that when a child is old to reach, take, and understand that they should celebrate the supper. As a Session, we look for a faith commensurate with the age of the child. We look for a genuine desire in the child to celebrate Jesus' love for them in worship, in relationships, and in their daily lives.
Here are some questions you can use to discuss more:
- Is it apparent that my child knows Jesus Christ as Lord (King of their life) and Savior (Savior of their souls)?
- Can my child express this faith verbally?
- Could my child express why he or she wants to celebrate the supper?
- Does my child have an independent, personal desire to become a communing member of the church?
- Does my child understand to the best of his/her ability what it means to follow Christ and join His church (repentance, faith, hope, love)?
- Does he or she understand the importance of the Lord's table and the consequences to those who partake unworthily? Now, what this doesn't mean is that our children understand everything about the supper. After all, who does! It is a wonderfully mysterious thing to think that Christ body and blood are given to us to feast upon and in so doing, our faith is nourished. What it does mean is this: If you take the supper and you neither care about the love Christ has for you nor the call to love others in His name, then you are taking hypocritically. Faith must be united with the action or it is in vain.
- Am I willing, even after spending the time in discipling my child, to delay his joining until a later time if I have any doubt about his/her salvation or his/her genuine interest in church membership?
If you think your child might be ready, then discuss some of these questions with them. Pray with and for your child, that God would open his or her eyes to the depths of the riches of His grace. Please contact Pastor Brad or Pastor Wes and we would delight in speaking with you and your child more about this if the time is right. Jesus calls us to bring the children to him and to allow Him to bless them. I pray that you have an opportunity to take Him up on that promise!
