More Tips When Considering Communion for Kids
One way a church may adopt the “parents-elder conference approach” is by having the pastor directly address the children to receive communion. After reading the words of institution from 1 Corinthians 11:23-26 and then giving the warnings in 1 Corinthians 11:27-32, I sometimes address the children.
I’ll say something like, “Maybe you haven’t yet made a profession of faith and can’t yet partake of the elements. Still, you can feed on Christ by faith as he has been presented to you in the preaching of the Gospel you’ve heard today.”
A pastor can also use this time to encourage parents. They can be talking with children about the precious truths of the Christian faith, preparing them to be admitted to the table. This, in turn, encourages parents to be thinking about this matter. Then they can approach the pastor or elders about the right time for their children’s examination.
After examining all the biblical teaching and historical church practices, we still face numerous difficulties. How do we proceed with an approach that’s faithful to Scripture, wisely instituted by church leaders, and fits the context of our local church?
Thankfully, several helpful resources exist to help pastors and churches know how to proceed. Ligon Duncan and Guy Waters edited Children and the Lord’s Supper, and Cornelius Venema wrote Children at the Lord’s Table? to tackle difficult questions from a biblical, theological, and historical perspective. J.W. Alexander wrote Remember Him to encourage newly admitted communicants.
I encourage all pastors and parents to work through this important subject as they seek to shepherd the hearts of children.
*This is an edited version of a post first published at the Christward Collective in October 2017.
This article about communion for kids originally appeared here.
