The next two fruit of the Spirit  that we will look at are kindness and goodness.

Galatians 5.22-23
“Now the fruit of the Spirit is love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, self-control …”

Kindness is chrestotes, which carries the idea of helpfulness. It is the willingness to serve the needs of others—it is an expression of love and a powerful example of Christ himself.  

 

Goodness is agathosune, a Greek word unique to the New Testament. One aspect of this virtue is integrity. It is living and working with consistent, principle-centered behavior. It is being the same person in every situation. As my mother-in-law used to say, “he or she is the same at all times” rather than behaving differently according to who one is with. It is the idea of “virtue in all circumstances.”  

 

 It’s especially important for kindness to be accompanied by goodness. That’s because kindness without goodness can become tolerant of sin — just as goodness without kindness can be harsh and legalistic. We show the fruit of the Spirit only as we develop these qualities together.

Paul describes kindness and goodness as a part of the fruit of the Spirit, which also includes love, joy, peace, patience, faithfulness, gentleness and self-control (Galatians 5:22-23). He speaks about the fruit of the Spirit, however, not as a list of isolated character traits, but as one thing. We can’t expect people to see Christ in us without living out all of the fruits of the spirit.