Church Skits & Plays
A Good Friday skitA Hundred Pound Weight3 actors · 7–8 min

Easter · 3 actors · 7–8 minutes · Adult men (the gardener can be an older teen)

A Hundred Pound Weight

In the last hour before the sabbath, Joseph of Arimathaea and Nicodemus come to the garden with linen and a hundred pounds of myrrh, and the gardener who keeps the new tomb wants to know why they waited until now. A serious Good Friday skit for three men.

$8USD, tax included
  • Instant PDF download, yours to keep
  • Performance rights for your whole church
  • 30-day refund if it doesn’t fit your church
Running time7–8 minutes
Cast3 roles · Adult men (the gardener can be an older teen)
PrepLines learned, then two rehearsals: one for lines, one full run in the room with the stretcher and the stone. The gardener carries the most lines.
Best forGood Friday service, a Holy Week evening service, before a sermon on John 3:14–17 or John 12:32
ScriptureJohn 3:14; John 12:32; John 19:38–42; Mark 15:43–46 (KJV)
ThemeLifted up on the cross, Christ drew to Himself even the men who had been afraid for years to be seen with Him.
FormatPrintable PDF

About the skit

The gardener is sweeping the path in front of a new tomb nobody has ever used when Joseph of Arimathaea comes up the aisle out of breath. He has been to Pilate and asked for the body. Then Nicodemus arrives, bent under a sack of myrrh and aloes, “about an hundred pound weight.” The gardener works out what that cost under his breath, the way a man works out wages, and he can’t make sense of any of it.

His questions are honest, and the hardest one is why now: nobody ever saw either man with Jesus while He was alive. Their answers reach back to a night visit and John 3:14, and to John 12:32, “I, if I be lifted up from the earth, will draw all men unto me.” Then the stone turns out to be too heavy for two men, and the gardener has a choice to make.

Three adult men, about 7–8 minutes (about 6½ with the side-door option), and two rehearsals. There is no humor; it’s written for a Good Friday service and works before a sermon on John 3:14–17. The staging notes cover the covered stretcher (or how to do without it), building a cardboard stone that slides, and the law about touching the dead that the gardener keeps.

Read the first page

(THE GARDENER walks on with his broom and starts sweeping the path in front of the open tomb. He takes his time; it's the last job of the week. After a few seconds JOSEPH comes quickly up the center aisle, carrying the folded linen. He is out of breath.)

JOSEPH: Is it open?

THE GARDENER: Sir? (He sees JOSEPH's face and stops sweeping.) It's always open. There's nothing in it. Nobody's ever been laid in it.

JOSEPH: Someone will be. Before sundown.

THE GARDENER: Who's it for, sir?

JOSEPH: (looking back the way he came) The one on the hill. The one in the middle.

THE GARDENER: (looks toward the hill for a long moment) The one with the sign over Him. (beat) I've been watching that hill over the wall all day. I kept telling myself to get back to work.

JOSEPH: I've been to Pilate. I asked him for the body, and he gave it to me.

(At the back of the room, NICODEMUS starts up the center aisle, slowly, bent under the heavy sack. THE GARDENER doesn't see him yet.)

THE GARDENER: You went to the governor. For Him.

JOSEPH: Yes.

THE GARDENER: Sir, you sit on the council.

JOSEPH: I know where I sit.

THE GARDENER: People will talk.

JOSEPH: Let them.

THE GARDENER: And you'll handle Him. A dead man, during the feast. That's seven days unclean.

JOSEPH: I know the law.

THE GARDENER: Then I don't understand you, sir.

The script continues in the full PDF.

Characters

  • Joseph of Arimathaea, a rich council member and a secret disciple, just back from Pilate
  • Nicodemus, a Pharisee and a ruler who once came to Jesus by night; slow to speak, never hurries
  • The Gardener, keeps the garden around Joseph’s new tomb; practical, honest and careful to keep the law

Props

  • A yard broom
  • A folded white sheet for the fine linen
  • A heavy-looking cloth sack, about ten pounds
  • A covered stretcher made from two poles and a blanket
  • A gray cardboard stone that slides across the floor
  • A side door, or a doorway made from a dark sheet and two coat racks

What you get

  • The full script with stage directions
  • Cast list, props list and simple staging notes
  • Three discussion questions for a small group, youth group or Sunday school class
  • Performance rights for your church: perform it as often as you like and print copies for your cast

Performance rights

One purchase covers one church or ministry. Perform it as many times as you like, make copies for everyone in the cast and crew, adapt the lines and include it in your livestream. Please don’t resell the script or share the file publicly. Read the full license.

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Questions

Can I change the names or lines?

Yes. Change names and genders, trim lines for time or adapt a joke for your church. The script is yours to fit to your people.

Can we record and stream the performance?

Yes. You can include it in your livestream and post the recording on your church’s own channels.

How do I get the file after I buy?

Right after checkout you get a download link on the confirmation page and by email. It works for up to 20 downloads, and each copy is marked with your order so it stays licensed to your church.

Who is the seller on my receipt?

Payments are processed by Link, Stripe’s checkout, which acts as the reseller. Your card statement shows LINK.COM* CHURCHSKITS. Questions about the script itself come to us at hello@churchskits.org.

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