A Sunday School Lesson On The Fruits Of The Spirit

Here’s a Sunday school lesson or Bible study you can use when studying the Fruits of the Spirit.

Fruits of the Spirit

Galatians 5:22-24 “But the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control; against such things there is no law. And those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.”

If someone claims to be a believer but have none or just a few of the fruits of the flesh, they may either be a new Christian or they might be a false convert. No true believer will have no joy, not have peace, won’t be patient, won’t show kindness and goodness, is unfaithful, doesn’t display gentleness, and has no self-control. That’s because “those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires” and they are no longer dominating the life of the believer.

Which of these fruits of the Spirit is most important?

Did the Apostle Paul list the fruits in order of importance?

Which fruits to you bear the most in your life? Which are the least fruits you bear?

Fruits of the Flesh

Galatians 5:19-21 “The works of the flesh are evident: sexual immorality, impurity, sensuality, idolatry, sorcery, enmity, strife, jealousy, fits of anger, rivalries, dissensions, divisions, envy, drunkenness, orgies, and things like these. I warn you, as I warned you before, that those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.”

If you went into a prison ministry to visit inmates you’d find all sorts of the fruits of the flesh but you can find these in the world too. Again, if someone claims to be a believer in Jesus Christ but is living in sexual immorality, sensuality, idolatry, strife, jealously, anger, dissensions, drunkenness, and orgies, you can be sure of this; “those who do such things will not inherit the kingdom of God.” When we inventory our life and examine ourselves to see if we’re in the faith, write out the fruits that you display most. Are they the fruits of the Spirit or the fruits of the flesh?

What are the fruits of the flesh that you still bear even though you’re a child of God?

Does Paul list the worst fruits of the flesh first, for example, sexual immorality?

Can a believer still display some of these carnal fruits?

Fruits of the Spirit verses Fruits of the Flesh

Galatians 5:16-17 “But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not gratify the desires of the flesh. For the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit, and the desires of the Spirit are against the flesh, for these are opposed to each other, to keep you from doing the things you want to do.”

If you or someone you know claims to be walking with Christ, they won’t be gratifying or fulfilling the desires of the flesh because “the desires of the flesh are against the Spirit” and there would be a conviction from the Holy Spirit when they are gratifying the flesh. If there’s no conviction from walking in the flesh, there’s no Holy Spirit abiding in that person. The fruits of the Spirit and the fruits of the flesh are diametrically opposed to one another so that there should be no lusts of the flesh that are leading that person into sin. It’s as simple as that!

What is evidence of a person’s having the Holy Spirit?

What is evidence that the person doesn’t have the Spirit of God?

What fruits of the flesh that you still battle with?

Evidence of the Spirit

Eph 5:18-21“And do not get drunk with wine, for that is debauchery, but be filled with the Spirit, addressing one another in psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing and making melody to the Lord with your heart, giving thanks always and for everything to God the Father in the name of our Lord Jesus Christ, submitting to one another out of reverence for Christ.”

Here are evidences of the Spirit of God dwelling in a person. They are being thankful to God for everything He’s done for us, most of all the Lord Jesus Christ’s life for us (John 3:16) but they are also having joy and express it in songs and hymns to God and we address one another in the same way. Instead of being drunk with wine, we ought to “be filled with the Spirit” and those fruits of the Spirit will be made manifest to all who know you.

What does it mean to be “filled with the Spirit?”

Why should we be expressing thanks to God on a continual basis?

What is it that you are most thankful for?

Evidence of the Flesh

Ephesians 5:3-5 “But sexual immorality and all impurity or covetousness must not even be named among you, as is proper among saints. Let there be no filthiness nor foolish talk nor crude joking, which are out of place, but instead let there be thanksgiving. For you may be sure of this, that everyone who is sexually immoral or impure, or who is covetous (that is, an idolater), has no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”

I see plenty of the fruits of the flesh in television, the print media, on the Internet and in the way people live and talk. Sexual immorality is again placed first as if in the order of their importance but this also means there won’t be any course or crude, dirty jokes that are filthy. No believer in Christ lives in such a way as this (1st John 3) and they can be sure of this; they have “no inheritance in the kingdom of Christ and God.”

Have you seen these fruits of the flesh in people you know?

Have you seen these fruits of the flesh in the media?

Does what comes out of our mouth reveal what’s in our heart (Matt 15:11-20)?

Conclusion

I urge you in your study to look at all of the Bible verses and read them aloud in the class so that you can get the most out of these lessons because it’s vital that we know that our fruits will show our roots. If our roots are abiding in Christ, then we’ll bear fruits of the Spirit because we can’t bear anything good without Christ abiding in us (John 15:1-7). If our roots are in the world, then our fruits will be fleshly and corrupt and you can read for yourself where those fruits will lead a person to in the end (Rev 21:8).

Why can’t we bear fruit without Christ (John 15:4)?

How do we know for sure we’re abiding in Christ?

What do you consider the most important thing in this lesson about fruits of the Spirit?

Article by Jack Wellman

Jack Wellman is Pastor of the Mulvane Brethren Church in Mulvane Kansas. Jack is also the Senior Writer at What Christians Want To Know whose mission is to equip, encourage, and energize Christians and to address questions about the believer’s daily walk with God and the Bible. You can follow Jack on Google Plus or check out his book Teaching Children the Gospel available on Amazon.