Use this Children’s Sermon message and Sunday School lesson to teach kids how “kindness” is a Fruit of the Spirit. We have just shared some new Bible crafts on Goodness to accompany this lesson pan. You may also enjoy our comprehensive 9-Week Curriculum on the Fruit of the Spirit for Kids.
That’s Really Good! The Fruit of the Spirit Part 6: Goodness Children’s Sermon Lesson
Main Objective: What is goodness? We might use the term “good” in a lot of ways, but what does it mean in terms of the Fruit of the Spirit? We want to aspire to live in Godly ways and to do the right thing, as God enables us. This message describes how goodness is found in God, and how we can strive for goodness when we live our lives according to His will. The story of the Good Samaritan is a helpful example of how exhibiting goodness involves a lot more than just talking about it.
Law/Gospel Theme: We know that none of us is good on our own. Only God is good, and He is entirely good. We cannot on our own power do all that we should, and it is only through the work of the Holy Spirit that we can do what is good. When we follow His Word and try to act as He wants us to, we can show others what goodness looks like.
Note: This is the sixth in a series of lessons on the fruit of the spirit. The focus this week is on goodness, with discussion of the Good Samaritan story to show how we can strive to do the right thing.
Optional Materials: Pictures or items representing things that would be considered “good” (athletes, books, weather, food, etc.)
Bible Passage: Galatians 6:9, Psalm 31:19, Luke 10:25-37
Message: Note: As with most messages, the details of how you choose to communicate this are adaptable and should cater to timing as well as to your audience and student needs.
Greet children, and talk about things that might be considered “good”…
Hello, children of God!
Today we are going to talk about goodness. What do you think of when you hear the word “good”? What is good? Hold up examples or pictures as you describe things. There are a lot of things we might call good. We might say someone is a really good athlete if they perform very well in sports. Or we might say someone is a good musician if they’re talented in singing or playing an instrument. You might say that you read a good book or saw a good movie. Or maybe you have some food that’s been sitting in the fridge for a while, and you wonder, “is this still good?”
But when we look at the Bible, goodness means something a little different. God is good, and all that He does is good. His goodness is abundant, meaning there is a lot of it! People, however, are not naturally good. We are born sinful, and it’s only through God’s spirit that we can do what is right and good. How do we know what that is? We read the Bible, and we pray to understand what God’s word says. Even if we aren’t “good” in every sense, we can still strive to do the right thing.
This reminds me (as so many things do) of a story from the Bible. Actually, it was a story that Jesus told. Some people were asking Him how they should act and who they should be nice to, and He responded with a story about a man who was in need. He said there was a man who was traveling, and got robbed and beaten up. He was lying on the side of the road begging for help. A priest and then a Levite, both people who had big parts in the church, passed him by and didn’t even slow down to consider helping him. Those men knew what God’s law said, yet they did not do the right thing. They might have talked a good game, but didn’t live it out. A third man came by, who was a Samaritan. The Samaritans did not get along well with the Jews, and were considered enemies. But this Samaritan man stopped and took care of the hurt man, bandaging his wounds and even paying for his hotel stay. Jesus wanted to emphasize that we are to treat all people with love and care, not just the people we like or get along with. He also wanted us to know that it’s not enough to just know the law and talk about doing the right thing. Goodness means following the Bible, obeying God’s rules and doing our best to live as Jesus did. When we love and serve others and care for them, we demonstrate the goodness that comes as fruit of the Holy Spirit.
Let’s say a prayer now, and ask that God help us to show goodness through His Holy Spirit.
Prayer:
(Have kids repeat each line)
Dear God,
Thank you for your goodness.
Help us to do the right thing
And try to demonstrate goodness with others
Through your spirit.
Thank you for your love
We love you, God!
In Jesus name, Amen!
Bible Verses/story to Reference:
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. -Galatians 6:9
Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! -Psalm 31:19
And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.”
But he, desiring to justify himself, said to Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” Jesus replied, “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, and he fell among robbers, who stripped him and beat him and departed, leaving him half dead. Now by chance a priest was going down that road, and when he saw him he passed by on the other side. So likewise a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. But a Samaritan, as he journeyed, came to where he was, and when he saw him, he had compassion. He went to him and bound up his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he set him on his own animal and brought him to an inn and took care of him. And the next day he took out two denarii[c] and gave them to the innkeeper, saying, ‘Take care of him, and whatever more you spend, I will repay you when I come back.’ Which of these three, do you think, proved to be a neighbor to the man who fell among the robbers?” He said, “The one who showed him mercy.” And Jesus said to him, “You go, and do likewise.” -Luke 10:25-37
It’s Good! Sunday School Lesson on Goodness
Lesson focus: This lesson examines goodness and what it means. We might call a lot of things “good,” but we want to consider the Biblical nature of goodness. As humans, we are not inherently good, but through God’s grace we can strive to do the right thing. God is good, and He helps us to know and try to do what is good.
This lesson is the sixth in a nine-week series on the Fruit of the Spirit. It elaborates on the virtue of goodness and what it means. This lesson looks at the story of the Good Samaritan to review what it means to do the right thing in various circumstances.
Passage: Galatians 6:9, Psalm 31:19, Luke 10:25-37
Target Audience: Kindergarten-6th grade
Optional Materials Needed: Items or pictures that represent “good” things; balloons; band-aids; Bibles.
Lesson Opening: This lesson focuses on goodness, and how we can aspire to that as a spiritual fruit. These potential openers highlight goodness in general, and also tie in with the story of the Good Samaritan. Here are some activities to get kids thinking (select the best ones for your audience and age group):
- Grapes of goodness relay: Have students gather in two teams and race to go back and forth across the room. Designate one member of each team to be the “grapevine,” and attach purple or green “grapes” to that person by rubbing the balloons for a static cling (if that doesn’t work, you can have the students hold or pin the balloons on). See which team can finish putting all of the “grapes” on the fastest. For added challenge, have older students blow up and tie the balloons prior to racing. Younger children can use pre-inflated balloons.
- Helper relay: have students line up in two teams and race to another side of the room, where they will each place a band-aid on a designated “hurt” teammate. See which team can bandage their friend fastest.
- Draw a large heart on a paper or white board. Have students come up with ways to help people and do the right thing, and write them on the heart, either writing directly or by sticking post-it notes to the heart. Younger children can call off items for the teacher to write.
- Brainstorm ways to do good deeds around the community. Consider people in need and how they can receive love and attention from people in the church.
- Goodness is inside illustration: show students several containers or gift bags/packages. Make sure they look plain and boring on the outside, but place awesome and exciting items within. Remind children that goodness comes from what lies on the inside, when the Holy Spirit abides within us.
Talk about what goodness is. We are not good by nature, but thanks to God, we can serve Him and try to do good things.
Bible Lesson: Begin the lesson with some general Bible verses on goodness, and then move on to a more specific story about doing good things. For the parable, encourage children to get involved by acting out the action in the story as you read or describe it.
And let us not grow weary of doing good, for in due season we will reap, if we do not give up. -Galatians 6:9
This verse encourages us to continually seek to do good, and “not tire” of it. Good things will come of doing good!
Ask: How can we do good things for others? What are the rewards that come from doing good?
Oh, how abundant is your goodness, which you have stored up for those who fear you and worked for those who take refuge in you, in the sight of the children of mankind! -Psalm 31:19
This verse reminds us that it is God who is good. His goodness is “abundant,” meaning there is a lot of it! Goodness overflows from God.
The Good Samaritan
Open up with the exposition of the parable. Someone came to Jesus to try tricking Him, asking what was required to go to Heaven. The answer Jesus gave surprised the people…
On one occasion an expert in the law stood up to test Jesus. “Teacher,” he asked, “what must I do to inherit eternal life?” “What is written in the Law?” he replied. “How do you read it?” He answered, “‘Love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind’; and, ‘Love your neighbor as yourself.’” “You have answered correctly,” Jesus replied. “Do this and you will live.” -Luke 10:25-28
This might sound simple, but it wasn’t enough for the questioners. The people had heard Jesus tell them before how important it was to love God and love others. But how far should that go, they wondered…
But he wanted to justify himself, so he asked Jesus, “And who is my neighbor?” In reply Jesus said: “A man was going down from Jerusalem to Jericho, when he was attacked by robbers. They stripped him of his clothes, beat him and went away, leaving him half dead. A priest happened to be going down the same road, and when he saw the man, he passed by on the other side. So too, a Levite, when he came to the place and saw him, passed by on the other side. -Luke 10:29-32
In the opening to this parable, Jesus set up a story of a man traveling, who was beaten and left for dead. That ought to arouse the sympathy of anyone, but not the first two men in the story! The church workers (explain, if helpful, what a priest and a Levite were) knew the right thing to do. They probably taught people about doing good. They should have been the most likely to help someone in need, but they didn’t even get close to the hurt man. They passed by on the other side of the road!
Ask: What do you do when you see someone who is asking for help or needs help? If you see a person begging on the street, how does it make you feel?
Continue the story…
But a Samaritan, as he traveled, came where the man was; and when he saw him, he took pity on him. He went to him and bandaged his wounds, pouring on oil and wine. Then he put the man on his own donkey, brought him to an inn and took care of him. The next day he took out two denarii and gave them to the innkeeper. ‘Look after him,’ he said, ‘and when I return, I will reimburse you for any extra expense you may have.’ -Luke 10:33-35
Explain that a Samaritan would not have been well-liked by the Jews. Samaritans were seen as outsiders, not believing all the same things as the Jews, and in a sense heretics or cult-like. The Samaritan would have been the least likely to help. Instead, he stopped, bandaged the man, and took him to be taken care of.
Jesus was actually our Samaritan. He was not liked by the church leaders, but He gave His life for us, sacrificing all of Himself so that we could live. He wants us to love and serve others, and used this parable to explain to people what it means to have mercy.
“Which of these three do you think was a neighbor to the man who fell into the hands of robbers?” The expert in the law replied, “The one who had mercy on him.” Jesus told him, “Go and do likewise.” -Luke 10:36-37
This doesn’t leave much room for debate from the original question the people had asked. “Neighbor” doesn’t just apply to those close to us, but to all of God’s people. Even our enemies need our good deeds. The man in the story who did the right thing was not who the listeners would have expected, but his actions showed that he understood goodness better than the church leaders.
We demonstrate our love and gratitude to the Lord by caring for His people.
Ask: How can we show people we care about them? Why is this important to God?
Review questions about the lesson:
- How can we try to do good deeds for others?
- How do we know that God is good?
- What benefits come from doing good?
Close with prayer, thanking God for His goodness, and asking Him to help us do the right thing and show goodness to others.
