Good Friday: Jesus is arrested, crucified, and buried

It seems strange that so many Christians would refer to this day of Holy Week as “Good Friday” when this was a day of injustice, torture, and death for our Lord. How could such ugliness be called good?

Perhaps Christians refer to it as good because this is the day we remember that there is no evil which can overcome the greatness of God’s self-giving love, shown to us in the life—and death—of Jesus. This is the day we remember God’s humility; though Jesus could have “powered up,” he instead chose to “let go.” This is the day we remember that God truly did become one of us, identifying with us even to the point of suffering and dying. This is the day we remember that God grants forgiveness, a grace which we all need, a grace that gives us all the opportunity to start again. This is the day we remember that God’s love binds us together in new ways, as Jesus entrusts his disciple John and his mother Mary to care for one another as family. And this is the day we remember the promise of future deliverance even in the face of certain death, as Jesus assures the criminal being crucified beside him, “Today you will be with me in paradise.”

Maybe Christians call this day good because it is a day when God shows that nothing is beyond the reach of God’s redemption. Ultimately, it is a mystery how the horrific events that took place on this day so long ago can be called good. And that’s what faith is for. Faith is the response that is perfectly suited for such mysteries and is itself a mystery…like love.

The video below tells the story of Jesus’ betrayal, arrest, trials, crucifixion, and burial. If you are watching this with children and they become upset, you may want to read to them the rest of the story in John 20:1-18. After watching the video, I invite you to take some time to wonder and reflect:

• I wonder who you would be in the story if you had been there?
• I wonder what you would have thought or felt at various points?
• I wonder what Jesus was thinking and feeling at different times?
• I wonder what the most important part of the story is?
• I wonder how you might respond to this story today?