NOTE: ACTIONS DESCRIBED BELOW WERE PERFORMED AT THE CROSSING, BUT FEEL FREE TO ADAPT THEM TO YOUR ENVIRONMENT.

Betrayal

Luke 22: 1-6 & 47-62

Have you ever felt betrayed, used, or taken advantage of? Have you ever betrayed someone? Broken a promise? Broken someone’s trust?

Picture this situation, and describe it on a post-it note. As you place it in the basket, ask God to provide forgiveness, healing, and the courage to reconcile this situation.

Have you ever denied him or spoken poorly of those who love Him just to fit in? Ever failed to follow Him because of your desire to go your way?

Stamp a kiss onto the paper and sign your name by it, as a symbol of Judas’s betrayal of Christ, and our repeated denial of His power in our lives.

Gethsemane

Mark 14: 32-42, Luke 22: 39-46

Jesus was willing to suffer for us. Jesus was willing to die, to give Himself up, even to death on a cross. He chose to drink the cup of suffering because it was the will of the Father.

Are you willing to suffer for others? Are you willing to do God’s will even when it’s painful?

Take a cup of the bitter drink. As you taste it, allow the taste to bring to mind the cup of suffering Jesus took on our behalf.

Pilate

Matthew 25: 39-41 & Matthew 27: 11-26
John 9: 4-6 & John 14: 5-7

Pilate wanted to know the truth, but he cared more about what the crowd wanted. He cared more about his power and position than he did about Jesus.

Are you willing to give up power and position in order to follow Him? Are you willing to risk the rejection of the crowd in order to see the Light of the World? To see Jesus in others even when they don’t look, sound, or act like you think they should?
Wash your hands in the bowl as a reminder of the encounter between Jesus and Pilate, and of our ultimate allegance not to Rome, but to Christ and His Kingdom. Light a candle and be reminded of Jesus, the Light of the World.