Listen.

Listen to the prerecorded Children’s Message together. You can find it at pacificunionchurch.org/churchsmall

Review.

How did trying to play soccer without any rules show Pastor Nate that freedom is NOT doing whatever you want?

Lesson.

Do you guys want to know what freedom is? To find out we have to learn what freedom is for.

Read Galatians 5:13 together.

What should we not use our freedom for? What should we use it for instead?

[Hint to parents: the sinful nature or flesh, depending on your translation, is what we feel like doing when we are not listening to God.] 

We are to use our freedom to “serve each other in love”. Is it fun to serve others, or would we rather have other people serve us? Why?

It is hard to serve other people with love. So God gave us a helper to give us the power to love others the way Jesus did. Do you know the name of this helper? 

[Hint to parents: We learned about him last week on Pentecost Sunday, the Holy Spirit.]

Last week we learned that the Holy Spirit gave Jesus’ disciples a special power to share Jesus’ message with others. They could speak languages that they had not learned. This week we will learn that the Holy Spirit gives us the power to be like Jesus in the way we treat others.

[Activity: Get a bowl of fruit together and label each fruit with one of the fruits of the Spirit: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. You might want to have the kids helped make the labels and put them on the fruit.]

Fruit comes from a tree: an apple tree makes apples, an orange tree makes oranges, and the Holy Spirit inside of us makes the fruits of the spirit. Read Galatians 5:22-23 together. 

Talk about each of the fruits with the kids. Here are some brief definitions:

• Love. Love is what Jesus is. He gave himself to others, and we are to do the same thing.
• Joy. This is the happiness we feel, even when things are sad, because God loves us no matter what.
• Peace. Because Jesus died for us, God is not angry with us. We have peace with God and we can give this same peace to others.
• Patience. Patience is when we are slow to get angry with others, the way God is with us.
• Kindness and Goodness. When we show kindness to others even when they don’t deserve it. 
• Faithfulness. When we trust God and we are there for each other without giving up.
• Gentleness. This is a special kind of gentleness when we are brave, strong, and gentle all at the same time. 

So the question is: how does the Holy Spirit make these fruits in us? Galatians 5:16 “says walk in step with the Holy Spirit.” The Holy Spirit talks to us. He tells us what is right and wrong. When we listen to the Holy Spirit, we are walking in step with the Holy Spirit. He leads us.

[Activity: Have the kids trace their shoe on a piece of paper and put the words “Walk in step with the Spirit.” on the paper. They can decorate the traced shoe.]

Respond.

How is the Holy Spirit talking to us today? Which of the fruits of the Spirit do you want to try to grow together this week?  How can God help us live out the fruits of the Spirit?

Share.

If the Holy Spirit has given us special powers to share the message of Jesus’ kingdom with others, with whom will we share this good news?