Rooted’s mission is to transform youth ministry so that every student receives grace-filled, gospel-centered, and Bible-saturated discipleship in the church and at home. We hope this series of articles will be helpful to our friends serving in many different denominations and contexts.
Years ago I attended a conference workshop on adolescent development. The workshop leader suggested that the most difficult transition for students in church happens between fifth and sixth grade. This is when the highest percentage of students tend to drop out or switch churches. The comment stuck in my head harder than the first time I heard Defying Gravity.
I had naively assumed that if we built a great youth ministry, fifth graders would be counting down the days to move out of children’s church into the middle school group. However, my assumption didn’t match my experience. I watched as several families who had been part of our church for years simply disappeared once their oldest graduated from our Sunday morning kids program.
As I reflected on this problem, I realized that this wasn’t only a programmatic issue, but it was an ecclesiological one. We needed to help kids see themselves as a valuable, contributing part of the family of God by teaching them about what church is and why we go to church. I’ll admit, this is a particular challenge within non-denominational churches like ours because non-denoms are often a-traditional, fluid communities disconnected from proven ecclesial structures.
However, this is where the sacraments of baptism and the Lord’s Supper prove to be powerful pillars that strengthen participation in the body of Christ. A sacrament is a ritual instituted by Jesus that serves as a means of grace and sign of faith for the church. Since they are directly instituted by Jesus (Matt. 28:18-20; Matt. 26:26-28), they are not confined by denomination or tradition. They serve as primary ways of integrating people into the greater church body and grounding them in the powerful story of the gospel.
The Sacraments and the Story of Redemption
The sacraments help solve a key discipleship challenge by guiding teenagers away from the “beyond me,” story and into the redemptive story of the gospel. Ubiquitous access to digital devices and social media profiles that can be curated and customized teach teenagers that they are largely in control of their individuality and environment. When this approach is mistakenly mapped onto church, the bride of Christ becomes one of many endless choices for students to opt-in or unsubscribe. However, the sacraments are ancient practices, dating back to Jesus, and give us powerful rituals to imprint precious truths of the gospel onto students’ lives.
Romans 6:4 shows us how this works with the powerful imagery of baptism: “We were buried therefore with him by baptism into death, in order that, just as Christ was raised from the dead by the glory of the Father, we too might walk in newness of life.” Baptism teaches students to go “beyond-me” by depicting death to our self apart from God and union with Christ as a necessary act for renewed life.
Furthermore, by being baptized in the context of the church, a new believer is announcing his or her decision to join the community of faith, “for as many of you as were baptized into Christ have put on Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, there is neither slave nor free, there is no male and female, for all are one in Christ Jesus.” (Gal. 3:27-28). Likewise, during the ceremony, the congregation announces their decision to receive the new convert into their midst. Baptism works like a beautiful three-part harmony sung between the Triune God, the new believer, and the family of God, in which the individual parts unite together to form a new song.
Likewise, the Lord’s Supper works to connect students to the greater “beyond-me” story of redemption by demonstrating an ongoing need for the gospel of grace to be received among the gathered people of God. In 1 Corinthians 11:17-34, Paul addresses divisions in the church by reminding them that the Lord’s Supper is a communal act. He explains how weekly participation in Jesus’ broken body and poured out blood takes one’s perspective off individual needs and shifts it towards others in the church.
The Sacraments and the Whole Church
We began to integrate the sacraments into our student ministry through our sixth and eights grade theology classes. These semester-long classes are taught by our elders in order to connect the students to a trusted voice of pastoral authority. We provide the students with reflection assignments on the meaning of the sacraments to help them apply what they are learning.
As a result, we teach students that baptism primarily depicts one’s repentance, forgiveness of sin, and salvation (Mark 1:4-5; Rom. 6:1-14; 1 Pet. 3:18-22), and should be considered alongside a public profession of faith. Baptism also shows how union with Christ connects us to the covenant people of God (Gal. 3:23-29).
Parents often ask me when they should pursue baptism with their children. Since we do not have a structured ceremony based on age or development, parents and pastors need discernment to determine the sincerity of a student’s faith in Jesus. We invite all who are interested in baptism to sit down with a pastor and walk through the major tenets of the Christian faith and the meaning of baptism. This is also a great opportunity for our church to partner with parents, since they play a critical role in guiding their kids through this significant decision. We embrace the Spirit’s guidance in this process and do not hesitate to joyfully celebrate any student who decides to get baptized.
For the Lord’s Supper, our church participates weekly after the sermon as a response to hearing God’s Word. The presenting pastor makes it clear that all who profess faith in Jesus and trust him for forgiveness of sin, reconciliation to God, and life in the Kingdom of God, are welcome to receive the bread and cup. However, if anyone is not yet trusting in Jesus in these ways, they are encouraged to hold off until they can sincerely participate as an act of faith.
Since our sixth through 12th graders participate in our worship service, students who believe in Jesus are invited to come to the Lord’s Table and receive the grace and presence of Jesus. Most students sit with their parents on Sundays, so this weekly sacramental rhythm invites students and parents alike to contemplate their faith and talk about whether they are ready to take communion together.
Through a more systematic approach to teaching the sacraments, as well as creating meaningful milestones around when a student chooses to participate, we have seen teenagers take more ownership in their role in the family of God. They are far more active in Sunday morning worship, and serve in roles like Scripture reading, worship team, hospitality, and teaching children’s classes. Similar to how the rituals and memories of birthdays and holiday traditions strengthen family bonds, our teens’ embrace of the sacraments has deepened the fellowship of our church family.
The Sacraments and Rest
My encouragement to any youth minister, especially those in non-denominational churches, is to consider the sacraments as a powerful way to build up students’ faith in Jesus and participation in the body of Christ. Do not ignore them as empty rituals or undermine their communal element by only highlighting their personal aspects.
If you are feeling like you’ve dropped the ball on fully integrating these into your discipleship plans, please don’t feel guilty, but remember the whole point of the sacraments, which is Jesus himself. Receive from Jesus the grace he freely supplies in our baptism and partaking of the Lord’s Supper.
Teaching the sacraments will not guarantee your students’ salvation or validate you as the best possible youth minister. You are validated through your justification by faith in the broken body and poured out blood of Jesus Christ. His presence fills us because he has poured out his Spirit at Pentecost. Your new life is imperishable because it is united to the resurrected Lord. The more we can treasure the gospel truths revealed in the sacraments ourselves, the more effectively we will teach them to our students.
If you would value support learning how to integrate youth and their families into the life of your church, Rooted offers mentorship cohorts for youth and family ministry. Consider applying today.
