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Good Friday Stations of the Cross
STEP 1 Christ is condemned to death
Reading: John 19:1-16
Reflection: Sent to death by a crowd.
Imagine the chaos of the scene. No jury
or judge. No formalities of court. This
was a court shouting for blood. Many of
them may have welcomed Jesus with Palm
branches the week before. Maybe Jesus
just wasn’t the sort of King them wanted.
How do you react?
Prayer: Lord, when you were misunderstood,
You silently forgave: but we so often respond
in anger, Lord have mercy. Amen
-----------------------
STEP 2 Jesus is flogged by the soldiers and
the Cross is laid upon Jesus as he begins his
journey
Reading: Matthew 27:27-31
Reflection: Jesus’ journey begins with a cross.
One made by human hands. A cross made from
tools and materials created by the Father. The
cross wasn’t His. He was innocent. This was our
cross. This was the cross of me, you and all those
you can see around you now.
Prayer: When you were already hurting, You
embraced the cross. Thank you Jesus Amen.
-----------------------
STEP 3 Christ falls for the first time
Reading: Philippians 2:1-11
Reflection: Traditional Stations of the Cross
meditations have Jesus falling three times.
It’s hardly surprising. The weight of the cross.
A night of punishment and torture. The pain
he’s already enduring. The agony to come.
Imagine how it felt to fall. Sit at the bus stop for
a moment.
Prayer: Lord you embraced and shouldered Your
cross, but Your body was weak. Your Body is still
weak: Your people shrink from the weight of
suffering. In our weakness, Lord, we pray. Your
will be done. Amen
----------------------
STEP 4 Simon of Cyrene is forced to
carry the cross
Reading: Luke 23:26-31
Reflection: The streets of Jerusalem were
tight and close. Rammed with people. Walk
through the alley and imagine how it felt.
Simon was given the cross to carry. Here
was our Lord needing help. In pain.
Tortured. His cross carried. And we reflect
you carry us. And you call us to pick up our
own cross. To carry others.
Prayer: As Simon took the weight of the cross
from Jesus, You have taught us that we must
bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the
law of Christ. May we carry your cross. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 5 Jesus is stripped of his garments
Reading: Mark 15:24
Reflection: He was left with nothing.
Naked before the world.
Prayer: Lord, for our sake You left the riches
of heaven and became poor. You came within
our reach. May we be open to You, and to each
other. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 6 Jesus is crucified
Reading: John 19:16-27
Reflection: God crucified. Read the words.
Let them sink in. Shocking. Incredible.
Prayer: Father, what love is this of His ?
What love is this of Yours that His dying love
reflects ? Your forgiveness for me, as we gaze
upon His sacrificial death, is as truly an un-
deserved gift as the pardon He spoke of to the
dying thief. It is mine if I will only receive: He
was wounded for my transgressions. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 7 Jesus dies on the cross
Reading: Luke 23:44-49
Reflection: How can God die? How can the
Son of God breathe his last. Another wonder.
Another miracle.
Prayer: Be silent.
----------------------
STEP 8 Jesus is laid in the tomb
Reading: Luke 23:50-56
Reflection: Jesus was laid in a borrowed tomb.
It was sealed with Roman guards ensuring the
disciples didn’t try anything. The Jewish
leaders thought this was the end of the story.
We know it as the beginning of a new chapter.
To those who loved him it must have felt like
the end.
Prayer: When all is dark, and Hope is buried,
it is hard to trust His words that promised,
before the pain: He died that I might live. Amen.
+
STEP 1 Christ is condemned to death
Reading: John 19:1-16
Reflection: Sent to death by a crowd.
Imagine the chaos of the scene. No jury
or judge. No formalities of court. This
was a court shouting for blood. Many of
them may have welcomed Jesus with Palm
branches the week before. Maybe Jesus
just wasn’t the sort of King them wanted.
How do you react?
Prayer: Lord, when you were misunderstood,
You silently forgave: but we so often respond
in anger, Lord have mercy. Amen
-----------------------
STEP 2 Jesus is flogged by the soldiers and
the Cross is laid upon Jesus as he begins his
journey
Reading: Matthew 27:27-31
Reflection: Jesus’ journey begins with a cross.
One made by human hands. A cross made from
tools and materials created by the Father. The
cross wasn’t His. He was innocent. This was our
cross. This was the cross of me, you and all those
you can see around you now.
Prayer: When you were already hurting, You
embraced the cross. Thank you Jesus Amen.
-----------------------
STEP 3 Christ falls for the first time
Reading: Philippians 2:1-11
Reflection: Traditional Stations of the Cross
meditations have Jesus falling three times.
It’s hardly surprising. The weight of the cross.
A night of punishment and torture. The pain
he’s already enduring. The agony to come.
Imagine how it felt to fall. Sit at the bus stop for
a moment.
Prayer: Lord you embraced and shouldered Your
cross, but Your body was weak. Your Body is still
weak: Your people shrink from the weight of
suffering. In our weakness, Lord, we pray. Your
will be done. Amen
----------------------
STEP 4 Simon of Cyrene is forced to
carry the cross
Reading: Luke 23:26-31
Reflection: The streets of Jerusalem were
tight and close. Rammed with people. Walk
through the alley and imagine how it felt.
Simon was given the cross to carry. Here
was our Lord needing help. In pain.
Tortured. His cross carried. And we reflect
you carry us. And you call us to pick up our
own cross. To carry others.
Prayer: As Simon took the weight of the cross
from Jesus, You have taught us that we must
bear one another’s burdens, and so fulfill the
law of Christ. May we carry your cross. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 5 Jesus is stripped of his garments
Reading: Mark 15:24
Reflection: He was left with nothing.
Naked before the world.
Prayer: Lord, for our sake You left the riches
of heaven and became poor. You came within
our reach. May we be open to You, and to each
other. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 6 Jesus is crucified
Reading: John 19:16-27
Reflection: God crucified. Read the words.
Let them sink in. Shocking. Incredible.
Prayer: Father, what love is this of His ?
What love is this of Yours that His dying love
reflects ? Your forgiveness for me, as we gaze
upon His sacrificial death, is as truly an un-
deserved gift as the pardon He spoke of to the
dying thief. It is mine if I will only receive: He
was wounded for my transgressions. Amen.
----------------------
STEP 7 Jesus dies on the cross
Reading: Luke 23:44-49
Reflection: How can God die? How can the
Son of God breathe his last. Another wonder.
Another miracle.
Prayer: Be silent.
----------------------
STEP 8 Jesus is laid in the tomb
Reading: Luke 23:50-56
Reflection: Jesus was laid in a borrowed tomb.
It was sealed with Roman guards ensuring the
disciples didn’t try anything. The Jewish
leaders thought this was the end of the story.
We know it as the beginning of a new chapter.
To those who loved him it must have felt like
the end.
Prayer: When all is dark, and Hope is buried,
it is hard to trust His words that promised,
before the pain: He died that I might live. Amen.
+