Symbols of Salvation

OBJECTIVE

The objective of this module is to understand the various symbols of the story of our salvation. Each lesson in this module teaches our children how to identify the symbols of salvation in the Old Testament and how Christ fulfilled each one. In this lesson, we will look at the symbols of salvation in the story of the exodus from Egypt to the Promised Land and how it relates to our journey from life in the world to entering the Kingdom of Heaven.

INTRODUCTION & HOOK - 5 Minutes

Please review the previous week's lesson. (5 minutes)

The teacher can make a "Heaven Passport", using a piece of paper folded in half. The front cover would have the words "Heaven Passport" and the inside of the paper (the side the children see when they open the paper) would have a space for stamps next to words like baptism, chrismation, communion, repentance, and confession.

We explain to the children that a passport is issued by the country you belong to in order to show that you are a citizen of that country. When you travel to a different country, you must be very careful with your passport because it is what allows you to go home to the place you really belong. You can give an example of someone who travels to Europe for a long time. They may stay there for a long time and eat and drink there, things that are different from what they have in America, but eventually, the person will want to go back home to be with their family and friends and in their own bed in their own home. Bridge the analogy to the passport to Heaven. Our true citizenship is in Heaven, but we are now on a trip, living on earth. Earth is not our permanent home, it is just a place we visit until we go back to heaven. Our whole goal on Earth is to get back to Heaven because being in Heaven with God and the saints is our true home and the only place where our soul can be happy.

HOLY SCRIPTURE - 2 Minutes

Memory Verse - "Fear not stand firm and see the salvation of the Lord" (Exodus 14:13).

CONTENT (KEY POINTS) - 20 Minutes

The same way you have a Heaven passport, the Israelits had a passport to the Promised Land. God had promised Abraham that He would give the Promised Land to Abraham's descendants and now God was taking the Israelites out of slavery in Egypt, taking them through the Red Sea, and taking them to the Promised Land, which would full of all good things and happiness. This is just like how God wants to take us out of the slavery we are in to sin, help us get through this world, and go to Heaven to be with Him, because Heaven if full of God's joy and happiness. Let's take a look at some of the ways we see the similarities between the Israelite's journey and our own journey.

The Passover Lamb is a symbol of Christ, the Messiah.

When it was time for the Israelites to leave Egypt, God had them eat the passover meal, which had a passover lamb. When they participated in this passover meal, they were saved from the angel of death that killed all the firstborn of Egypt. The passover lamb is a symbol of Jesus Christ, the savior of the world. When we have communion, eating the body and blood of Christ, we are saved from death and become one with Christ. Let's look at some similarities between the passover lamb and our Lord Jesus Christ. 1) the lamb had to be without any blemish or defect and our Lord Christ was without blemish or defect. 2) They shed the blood of the lamb and by putting the blood on the doorpost, the Israelites were saved from death; Christ's blood was shed on the cross and by taking his blood in communion, we are saved from death. 3) The Israelites could not break the bones of the passover lamb and no bone of Jesus Christ was broken (instead of breaking His knees, the soldier pierced His side). This is why Christ was often referred to as a sheep or a lamb. Isaiah described Jesus as a "sheep before his shearer" and John the Baptist called Jesus "the Lamb of God". St. Paul even described Jesus Christ, saying: "For Christ, our Passover lamb, has been sacrificed" (1 Cor. 5:7).

The Red Sea is a symbol of Holy Baptism

In crossing the Red Sea, the Israelites transitioned from being slaves of Pharaoh to being a free people who were chosen by God. Ask the children if they can think of a Mystery (Sacrament) that we practice that changes people to become children of God? In baptism, we are saved from our original sin. Original sin made us a slave of the devil, but when we are baptised - when we go through the water - we are saved from that slaver and become children of God. Through baptism, we become God's chosen people and are set on the course to our Promised Land, which is heaven. Also, the same waters that opened up to save the Israelites (the holy) ended up closing on the Eygptian army and destroyed Pharoah and his army (sin). The water of baptism fills us with the Holy Spirit and all the good things of God and destroys sin and all the power of Satan.

The manna is a symbol of the Mystery of the Eucharist (i.e., Holy Communion)

The wilderness is a dry, hot and empty place. Nothing grows in the wilderness and there is no food or water. If the Israelites were left alone in the wilderness, they would have died of hunger and thirst. However, God made a miracle in providing the Israelites with manna to eat and by giving them water from the rocks. The manna which came down from heaven is a symbol of Jesus Christ, who came down from heaven in order to feed us with His body and His blood. Jesus Christ gave us His body and blood which He sacrificed on the cross in order to nourish us with the spiritual food we need to survive in the world. Jesus Christ Himself said: "He who eats my flesh and drinks my blood abides in Me, and I in him. As the living Father sent Me, and I live because of the Father, so he who feeds on Me will live because of Me. This is the bread which came down from heaven-not as your fathers ate the manna, and are dead. He who eats this bread will live forever" (John 6:56-58). The act of communion in our life reminds us that just as the Israelites ate manna in the desert every single day for 40 years we must eat the Body and drink the Blood of Jesus Christ regularly in order to renew our heart and nourish our spirit that we may have life with Him in Heaven.

The bronze serpent on the pole is a symbol of the Holy Cross

When the Israelites were in the wilderness, they murmured and complained against God. To punish the people for their lack of faith, God sent serpents which would bite the people and they would die. When Moses prayed to God, God told him to create a bronze statue of a serpent and to raise it up on a pole. If anyone looked at the serpent, they were healed and did not die. When you think of a bronze serpent horizontally placed on a pole, what shape does that seem like? It would look like a cross. This bronze serpent on a pole was a symbol of Jesus on the cross. In the same way that people who had been bitten by the poisonous snakes did not die if they looked at the bronze serpent on the pole, if we fall in sin, we do not die if we look at Jesus Christ on the cross. The cross heals our wounds from sin the same way the bronze serpent healed the Israelites' wounds from the poisonous snakes.

Can anyone think of another snake on a wooden pole or a tree? You can draw a parallel to the children that in Genesis, we saw the serpent in the Tree of Knowledge of GOod and Evil, leading humans to fall into sin, and then with Moses, we see a bronze serpent on a pole saving people from poisonous snake bites that were caused because they sinned against God, and then we see Jesus Christ on a tree (the cross), saving us from wounds of sin and conquering the serpent. Jesus Christ Himself compared himself to the bronze serpent, saying: "And as Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, even so must the Son of Man be lifted up," (John 3:13-15)

The Promised Land is a symbol of Heaven

God had promised Abraham that He would give the land of Canaan to Abraham's descendents. It was described as a land flowing with milk and honey. This tells us that the land would be perfect for providing the Israelites with everything they needed and that they would be very happy living there. This Promised Land is what the Israelites struggled to reach. Everything they did from the time they left Egypt was to get to this Promised Land. They never got distracted and thought that the wilderness should be their true home. They always knew that their home was the Promised Land and their journey in the wilderness had only one goal: to get to the Promised Land. It is the same with us and Heaven. Our time on earth is like the Israelites in the wilderness. The same way they only wanted to get to the Promised Land, we only want to get to Heaven. We understand that the earth is not our permanent home, it is just the place where we must journey to get to Heaven. Once we get to Heaven, we will see that we are so happy in God's light and that we enjoy His peace and love and we will never need anything else. That is why it is so important to remember that our passport is from Heaven. Our citizenship is in Heaven. We are only on earth temporarily, trying to finish our journey to get to Heaven.

DISCUSSION (Challenge) - 5 Minutes

  • What is a symbol?
  • What is the passover lamb a symbol of? Ask the child to explain how.
  • What is crossing the Red Sea a symbol of? Ask the child to explain how.
  • What is the manna a symbol of? Ask the child to explain how.
  • What is the bronze serpent a symbol of? Ask the child to explain how.
  • What is the Promised Land a symbol of? Ask the child to explain how.
  • Where is our citizenship, on earth or in heaven?

LIFE APPLICATION - 5 Minutes

Review the inside of the Passport to Heaven with the children and discuss how the Mysteries help us on our journey to heaven. Explain that when we participate in the Mysteries, it fills us with the Holy Spirit and helps us become one with God. Discuss with them how baptism, communion, repentance and confession help us to become closer to God. Encourage them to make a plan with their parents to take communion every week and to make a regular schedule for repentance and confession, preferably once every 30 - 40 days.

ACTIVITY - 5 Minutes

Write down the following words on small, separate pieces of paper: Passover, Jesus Christ, Red Sea, Baptism, Manna, Communion, Bronze Serpent, Cross, Promised Land, Heaven. Put the pieces of paper face down on a table and have each child choose two papers per turn. It will be like a memory game where the children will keep taking turns to pick two pieces of paper. When they pick two symbols that match, for example, Red Sea and Baptism, then that child gets a point.

SERVANT RESOURCES

PARENTS CORNER/HOMEWORK

Parents can look at the Passport to Heaven with their children and make a plan on how both the parents and the children can partake of the sacraments listed in it regularly and consistently so that they can make their way to the Kingdom of Heaven just like the Israelites made their way to the Promised Land.