Promises you can see

01 · GATHER ROUND

Start with a question.

“What’s something you wear or keep that reminds you of someone you love?”

A bracelet, a photo, a stuffed animal from Grandma—reminders make love visible.

03 · OPEN THE BIBLE

A rainbow after the rain.

After a big thunderstorm, the sun peeks out, and sometimes a rainbow stretches across the sky. In the Bible, after the great flood, God put a rainbow in the clouds and told Noah it was a sign of his promise: he would never again flood the whole earth. Every rainbow since then has been a reminder you can see.

God loves to give signs of his promises. And Jesus himself gave his church two special signs that Christians practice together: baptism and the Lord’s Supper. Some churches call them sacraments, from an old word for something holy. Others call them ordinances, because Jesus ordered, or commanded, his followers to do them.

Baptism is a sign of belonging to Jesus. Our first Bible verse says we were buried with Christ through baptism, so that just as Christ was raised from the dead, we too may walk in newness of life. Baptism pictures being joined to Jesus: the old life is buried with him, and a new life rises with him.

The Lord’s Supper is a meal of remembering. On the night before he died, Jesus took bread, gave thanks, broke it, and said, “This is My body, given for you; do this in remembrance of Me.” Then he took the cup and said it was the new covenant in his blood. A covenant is a promise that binds people together. Every time Christians share the bread and cup, they remember Jesus’s love and his promise.

These signs don’t save us—only Jesus does. We’ll talk more about that in the coming weeks. But they are gifts. They help us see, touch, and taste the good news. It’s as if God is saying, “Remember my promise. I am with you.”

The next time you see a baptism or watch your church share the Lord’s Supper, pay close attention. You’re watching God’s promises made visible.

04 · WONDER TOGETHER

Let’s talk about it.

1. Why do you think God gives us signs we can see and touch?
2. What does baptism picture about our life with Jesus?
3. What does the Lord’s Supper help Christians remember?

Try answering one yourself first. “I don’t know yet” is a fine place to start a conversation.

06 · TALK TO GOD

Let’s pray.

Faithful God, thank you for keeping your promises and giving us signs to remember them. Thank you for baptism, which shows new life with Jesus, and for the Lord’s Supper, which helps us remember his love. Help us treasure these gifts and, most of all, treasure Jesus, the one they point to. Amen.

Then invite everyone to add one thing they want to tell God.

07 · MAKE IT STICK

A little truth to learn by heart.

Two parts, two motions. For baptism, sprinkle your fingers like water drops. For the Lord’s Supper, pretend to break a piece of bread in half. Say the answer with both motions, then quiz each other: one person does a motion, and everyone else names the sign.