Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.

Free Bible lesson for kids · Letters to the Churches

The Fruit of the Spirit

Paul wrote to the Galatians that when we walk in the Spirit, God grows good fruit in our lives, like a tree grows fruit.

Teach this lesson: film, sheets and guide Print the coloring page

Bible passage: Galatians 5:16–26
Big idea: God’s Spirit grows good fruit in us.
Memory verse: But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. Galatians 5:22–23 (KJV)
Ages: Preschool to preteen (3 to 12), with tips for each age
Time: About 45 minutes
Included, free: Animated story film, coloring page, class sheet, teacher guide, questions and answers, a game

The story

Paul wrote a letter to the churches of Galatia (Galatians 1:2). He told them, “Walk in the Spirit,” and they would not give in to the wrong desires of the flesh (Galatians 5:16). The flesh and the Spirit fight against each other (Galatians 5:17). Paul named some works of the flesh, like hatred, fighting, anger and envy. People who keep living that way will not inherit God’s kingdom (Galatians 5:20–21).

But God’s Spirit grows good fruit in His people, the way a tree grows fruit. The fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness and self-control (Galatians 5:22–23). People who belong to Christ have turned away from their old sinful desires (Galatians 5:24). “If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit.” We should not be proud or jealous of one another (Galatians 5:25–26).

Read it in the Bible: Galatians 5:16–26 (KJV)

¹⁶This I say then, Walk in the Spirit, and ye shall not fulfil the lust of the flesh. ¹⁷For the flesh lusteth against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh: and these are contrary the one to the other: so that ye cannot do the things that ye would. ¹⁸But if ye be led of the Spirit, ye are not under the law. ¹⁹Now the works of the flesh are manifest, which are these; Adultery, fornication, uncleanness, lasciviousness, ²⁰Idolatry, witchcraft, hatred, variance, emulations, wrath, strife, seditions, heresies, ²¹Envyings, murders, drunkenness, revellings, and such like: of the which I tell you before, as I have also told you in time past, that they which do such things shall not inherit the kingdom of God. ²²But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, ²³Meekness, temperance: against such there is no law. ²⁴And they that are Christ’s have crucified the flesh with the affections and lusts. ²⁵If we live in the Spirit, let us also walk in the Spirit. ²⁶Let us not be desirous of vain glory, provoking one another, envying one another.

Questions to ask

How many parts of the fruit of the Spirit are listed?
Nine.
Name three of them.
Love, joy, peace, longsuffering, gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance.
Who grows this fruit in us?
The Holy Spirit.

What this story teaches

God’s Holy Spirit helps us say no to sin (Galatians 5:16).
Our sinful self fights against what God’s Spirit wants (Galatians 5:17).
The Spirit grows love, joy and peace in God’s people (Galatians 5:22).
People who belong to Jesus turn away from their old sinful ways (Galatians 5:24).
God wants us to walk with His Spirit every day (Galatians 5:25).

Jesus Is the True Vine

Branches bear fruit only when they are joined to the vine. When we belong to Jesus and stay close to Him, He makes our lives fruitful.

John 15:1–5

A 45-minute lesson plan

5 min	Welcome and pray. Greet each child by name and pray: Ask God’s Spirit to grow His fruit in us.
10 min	The story. Play the story film: each verse appears on screen in the King James Version while the scene plays. Pause to ask what happens next.
10 min	Talk about it. Ask the three questions below. Then ask: “God’s Spirit grows good fruit in us.” What does that mean for us?
5 min	Memory verse. Say Galatians 5:22–23 together, covering one word at a time until the children can say it alone.
10 min	Activity. Younger children color the coloring page while you retell the story; older children do the class sheet (memory-verse fill-in, word search and questions).
5 min	Pray and send home. Pray together and send the sheet home so families can talk about the first question this week.

Preschool: keep it short and physical. Act out the story, use a simple prop, and repeat the big idea in one sentence.
Elementary: let children find the passage in their own Bibles. Ask “who, what, where” questions first, then “why.”
Preteens: read the verses before and after the passage, and ask how this story fits the whole story of the Bible.

Game time

For kids · game · indoors · about 10 minutes

Fruit of the Spirit Toss

You need: Nine buckets or baskets labeled with the fruit of the Spirit, bean bags

Label nine buckets: love, joy, peace, longsuffering (patience), gentleness, goodness, faith, meekness, temperance (self-control).
Kids take turns tossing a bean bag into a bucket.
Whatever bucket it lands in, the child names a way to show that fruit this week.

When God’s Spirit lives in us, He grows good fruit in our lives.

For youth group · activity · indoors · about 25 minutes

Fruit Salad Social

You need: Nine kinds of fruit, knives and boards for older teens, a big bowl

Give each fruit a name from Galatians 5:22–23.
As each person adds their fruit to the bowl, they share where they need that fruit to grow.
Eat it together.

Fruit grows when a branch stays connected. Stay close to Jesus and let His Spirit grow fruit in you.

Pray

Ask God’s Spirit to grow His fruit in us.