A Love That Gives All

• Ask a member to be prepared to read Luke 23:32–49

• Provide for each member: 

  • A4 paper with the outline of a cross and pens/pencils/paint

  • a large wooden or cardboard cross; small pieces of card; pens, drawing pins and/or tape

  • a length of red thread or thin red ribbon 

• Find a large sheet of paper – perhaps in the shape of a cross or a cross outlined on it and marker pens

• Prepare to play the song ‘Jesus paid it all’, the live performance video (no lyrics) feat Brooke Ligertwood by Gateway Worship or the lyric video feat by Kim Walker-Smith by Zion Media

Good Friday is the solemn day when we remember Jesus’ crucifixion and death – his ultimate sacrifice for our sins so that we might receive forgiveness and new life. It’s important to take time to observe this most significant of days, because without the crucifixion there could be no resurrection, no Easter Day.

This session will enable us to explore the Good Friday account from the Bible and consider our response to Christ’s sacrifice.

ART

Provide A4 paper with simple cross outlines and coloured pencils/pens/paints. Invite members to decorate the cross with words or colours that represent what the cross means to them.

WRITE

Create a gratitude wall together. Provide a large sheet of paper including the shape of a cross and invite attendees to use marker pens to write on the cross one word or phrase expressing their gratitude to Jesus for his sacrifice on the cross.

REFLECT

Create a time for members to bring their worries to Jesus, and to ‘nail it to the cross’. Provide a wooden or cardboard cross, small pieces of card, pens, and drawing pins/tape. Invite members to write down something they want to surrender – fear, guilt, worry – and pin it to the cross.

REMEMBER

Give each member a length of red thread or ribbon as a reminder of the blood Jesus shed for each of us: a thread of forgiveness. Invite group members to tie it around their wrist or use it as a bookmark to remind them of his love and grace.

Luke 23:32–49

Invite a member to read an account of the crucifixion, Luke 23:32–49.

Good Friday is a day that can feel heavy. It’s the day we remember Jesus being crucified, a day of suffering and sacrifice. But it’s also the day that shows us the depth of God’s love. Romans 5:8 tells us: 

‘God demonstrates his own love for us in this: while we were still sinners, Christ died for us.’ 

The cross isn’t just a symbol, it’s a demonstration of absolute love.

Just a few days before, Jesus had entered Jerusalem and was welcomed as a king and Messiah. Yet now the crowd has turned on him and demands he be crucified. The Bible tells us that Jesus didn’t have to go to the cross. In the Garden of Gethsemane the previous evening, Jesus prayed, 

‘Father, if you are willing, take this cup from me.’ 

But he didn’t stop there despite knowing what was coming. Surrendering to what his Father God desired, Jesus went on to say, 

‘Yet not my will, but yours be done.’ 

(Luke 22:42) 

This is a love that gives all and holds nothing back. A love that steps into suffering for the sake of others. It’s a love that is beyond anything that we will ever experience in our human lives.

The cross cost Jesus everything, and with his crucifixion he takes all our failures and wrongdoing and pays the penalty for them. This love shows us God’s mercy, allowing us to experience forgiveness and to live in freedom.

Good Friday and the crucifixion is an invitation to us. But how will we respond to this sacrificial love that gives all? Our activities today have given us an opportunity to consider our response to Christ’s sacrifice. Do we need to seek forgiveness at the cross? Or surrender something at the foot of the cross? Or express our gratitude for Jesus’ sacrifice and accept his mercy? As we ponder on our response to Good Friday, we need to remember it’s not the end of the story but the beginning of the hope that comes with the resurrection.

PRAYER

Lord Jesus, thank you for the cross and for being willing to die for us. 

Thank you for holding nothing back and loving us completely. 

Help us to remember the cross, to live in the light of your love, forgiveness and mercy and to share it with others. Amen.

REFLECTION

Share the video of the song ‘Jesus paid it all’ and invite members to reflect on their own response to Good Friday. You might like to use the ‘Reflect’ activity ‘Nail it to the cross’ as a response time as you listen to the song.

• ‘Jesus paid it all’ 

Live performance video (no lyrics) feat Brooke Ligertwood by Gateway Worship (5:49)

Lyric video feat by Kim Walker-Smith by Zion Media (6:49)

• SASB 453       ‘Amazing grace! (how sweet the sound)’

  • Brass instrumental lyric video by Pendleton Corps (2:38)
  • Official video (press cc for lyrics) by Pentatonix (4:40)
  • Live performance video (press cc for lyrics) by Chris Tomlin (5:47)

• SASB 208       ‘When I survey the wondrous cross’

  • Piano instrumental lyric video by Stornoway Salvation Army (1:27)
  • Lyric video by Kate Simmonds (4:45)     

• ‘The power of the cross’ 

  • Official lyric video by Keith and Kristyn Getty (4:27)
  • Brass instrumental lyric video by Gloucester Salvation Army Band (3:22)
  • Lyric video by Stuart Townend by Worship Videos (Louange et adoration) (5:26)

• SASB 190       ‘O sacred head now wounded’

  • Lyric video feat Fernando Ortega by Scott Bacher (4:25)
  • Official lyric video by Reawaken Hymns (4:56)