Let us come together this Good Friday to remember and celebrate the crucifixion of Jesus. Let us gather around the foot of the cross and ponder the suffering He endured as He was arrayed in a crown of thorns, beaten, mocked and forced to carry His own cross. As we hear our own voices among the mockers, let us hear above them all the voice of our crucified Savior crying out, “My God, My God, why have You forsaken Me?” As He breathed His last, let us echo those who gathered that day saying, “Truly this was the Son of God!” Let us join together in prayer and devotion to honor Him for His gift of grace and love to all mankind.

To start your Good Friday Service with a solemn tone, sing the first three verses only of the classic hymn Were You There acapella (no instruments.)

Choose the best key for your worship leader and congregation (I suggest C or D major) and pick the same key for the previous Call to Worship Underscore. When the Call to Worship Underscore finishes you’re ready to begin singing Were You There in the right key.

HYMNDEX link

Were you there when they crucified my Lord
Were you there when they crucified my Lord
Oh Sometimes it causes me to tremble tremble tremble
Were you there when they crucified my Lord

Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree
Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree
Oh Sometimes it causes me to tremble tremble tremble
Were you there when they nailed Him to the tree

Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb
Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb
Oh Sometimes it causes me to tremble tremble tremble
Were you there when they laid Him in the tomb

BibleGateway.com link

World English Bible:

1 My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?
Why are you so far from helping me, and from the words of my groaning?
2 My God, I cry in the daytime, but you don’t answer;
in the night season, and am not silent.
3 But you are holy,
you who inhabit the praises of Israel.
4 Our fathers trusted in you.
They trusted, and you delivered them.
5 They cried to you, and were delivered.
They trusted in you, and were not disappointed.
6 But I am a worm, and no man;
a reproach of men, and despised by the people.
7 All those who see me mock me.
They insult me with their lips. They shake their heads, saying,
8 “He trusts in Yahweh.
Let him deliver him.
Let him rescue him, since he delights in him.”
9 But you brought me out of the womb.
You made me trust while at my mother’s breasts.
10 I was thrown on you from my mother’s womb.
You are my God since my mother bore me.
11 Don’t be far from me, for trouble is near.
For there is no one to help.

Beneath the Cross of Jesus
You Are My King (Amazing Love)
The Power of the Cross
My Faith Looks Up to Thee
Mighty to Save

BibleGateway.com link

World English Bible:

3 He was despised
and rejected by men,
a man of suffering
and acquainted with disease.
He was despised as one from whom men hide their face;
and we didn’t respect him.
4 Surely he has borne our sickness
and carried our suffering;
yet we considered him plagued,
struck by God, and afflicted.
5 But he was pierced for our transgressions.
He was crushed for our iniquities.
The punishment that brought our peace was on him;
and by his wounds we are healed.
6 All we like sheep have gone astray.
Everyone has turned to his own way;
and Yahweh has laid on him the iniquity of us all.
7 He was oppressed,
yet when he was afflicted he didn’t open his mouth.
As a lamb that is led to the slaughter,
and as a sheep that before its shearers is silent,
so he didn’t open his mouth.
8 He was taken away by oppression and judgment.
As for his generation,
who considered that he was cut off out of the land of the living
and stricken for the disobedience of my people?
9 They made his grave with the wicked,
and with a rich man in his death,
although he had done no violence,
nor was any deceit in his mouth.
10 Yet it pleased Yahweh to bruise him.
He has caused him to suffer.
When you make his soul an offering for sin,
he will see his offspring.
He will prolong his days
and Yahweh’s pleasure will prosper in his hand.

The Old Rugged Cross
Hallelujah What A Savior
Blessed Redeemer
How Deep the Father’s Love for Us

BibleGateway.com link

World English Bible:

1 So Pilate then took Jesus and flogged him. 2 The soldiers twisted thorns into a crown and put it on his head, and dressed him in a purple garment. 3 They kept saying, “Hail, King of the Jews!” and they kept slapping him.
4 Then Pilate went out again, and said to them, “Behold, I bring him out to you, that you may know that I find no basis for a charge against him.”
5 Jesus therefore came out, wearing the crown of thorns and the purple garment. Pilate said to them, “Behold, the man!”
6 When therefore the chief priests and the officers saw him, they shouted, saying, “Crucify! Crucify!”
Pilate said to them, “Take him yourselves and crucify him, for I find no basis for a charge against him.”
7 The Jews answered him, “We have a law, and by our law he ought to die, because he made himself the Son of God.”
8 When therefore Pilate heard this saying, he was more afraid. 9 He entered into the Praetorium again, and said to Jesus, “Where are you from?” But Jesus gave him no answer. 10 Pilate therefore said to him, “Aren’t you speaking to me? Don’t you know that I have power to release you and have power to crucify you?”
11 Jesus answered, “You would have no power at all against me, unless it were given to you from above. Therefore he who delivered me to you has greater sin.”
12 At this, Pilate was seeking to release him, but the Jews cried out, saying, “If you release this man, you aren’t Caesar’s friend! Everyone who makes himself a king speaks against Caesar!”
13 When Pilate therefore heard these words, he brought Jesus out and sat down on the judgment seat at a place called “The Pavement”, but in Hebrew, “Gabbatha.” 14 Now it was the Preparation Day of the Passover, at about the sixth hour.* He said to the Jews, “Behold, your King!”
15 They cried out, “Away with him! Away with him! Crucify him!”
Pilate said to them, “Shall I crucify your King?”
The chief priests answered, “We have no king but Caesar!”
16 So then he delivered him to them to be crucified. So they took Jesus and led him away.

Jesus Paid It All
O Love That Will Not Let Me Go
There Is a Fountain
How Great Is Our God
Amazing Grace (My Chains Are Gone)

Suggested sermon ideas for Good Friday:

• The Sacrifice of Jesus Christ – A reflection on the ultimate sacrifice made by Jesus Christ on the cross for the forgiveness of our sins.
• The Suffering of Jesus Christ – A message on the physical, emotional, and spiritual pain Jesus endured on the cross, and how it brings comfort to our own sufferings.
• The Love of God – A sermon on the depth of God’s love for humanity, demonstrated through Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross, and how it calls us to love and serve others.
• The Power of Forgiveness – A message on the power of forgiveness, how Jesus modeled it on the cross, and how it frees us from bitterness and resentment.
• The Hope of the Resurrection – A sermon on the hope of the resurrection, the triumph of Jesus over death, and how it gives us hope in the midst of life’s challenges and struggles.

Heavenly Father,

We come before You to confess our sin and brokenness. We acknowledge that we have not loved You with all of our hearts, have failed to trust in Your perfect plan, and have not followed Your commands. We admit that we have been selfish, disobedient, and too easily swayed by the temptations of this world. We have allowed our pride to lead us astray and have neglected to serve those around us as You have commanded.

We’re sorry for the hurt we have caused, the pain we have inflicted, and the relationships we have broken. We seek Your mercy and grace as we turn away from our sinful ways and accept the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross. We know that through His death and resurrection He’s made a way for us to be reconciled with You.

We repent of our wrongdoings and ask for Your wisdom and guidance as we strive to live according to Your will. Renew in us a clean heart, O God, and give us the strength and resolve to live for Your glory.

Today we reflect on the sacrifice of Jesus on the cross, and as a symbol of that sacrifice, we will now partake in the Lord’s Supper. As we receive the bread, let us remember Jesus’ body broken for us. As we drink the cup, let us recall the blood that was shed for the forgiveness of our sins. This is a time for reflection and gratitude, so let us take a moment to quiet our hearts before we participate together.

Ideas:

• Play an Underscore softly as the elements are distributed.
• Play the music only of the closing song, then sing it at the conclusion of the service.
• Sing the closing song during the distribution of the elements.

A perfect closing song for your Good Friday Service (or any communion service) is my new melody for the traditional hymn lyrics of The Deep, Deep Love of Jesus. Download melody / chord / piano sheet music and stereo tracks.

Other closing songs:

When I Survey the Wondrous Cross
In Christ Alone
At the Cross (Love Ran Red)