Introduction
When John the Baptist began preparing the way for Jesus, his message was clear and urgent: the kingdom of God is at hand, and those who desire to be part of it must repent. His preaching struck a chord. Matthew tells us,
“Then Jerusalem, all Judea, and all the region around the Jordan went out to him and were baptized by him in the Jordan, confessing their sins” (Matthew 3:5).
This widespread response did not escape the attention of the Pharisees and Sadducees, who also came out to see what was happening.
What is especially important for our purposes, however, is John’s reaction to them. After sharply rebuking them—calling them a brood of vipers—John turns his attention to the nature of repentance itself, insisting that true repentance necessarily produces fruit: “Bear fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 3:8).
This raises an important question: What are these fruits, and what do they look like in real life? I submit that the fruit flowing from repentance is nothing other than the fruit of the Spirit described by the Apostle Paul in Galatians 5. These are the qualities the indwelling Spirit of God cultivates in the believer as part of sanctification, and repentance is a necessary and ongoing component of that sanctifying work.
With this foundation in place, we can now consider each fruit listed in Galatians and examine how it reveals true repentance. The underlying assumption throughout is that repentance is required when someone has sinned against God’s standard and, often, against their neighbor. What follows, then, is an exploration of how the fruit of the Spirit manifests itself against that backdrop.
Love
When someone is caught in sin, others often come alongside them to help bring restoration. This involves identifying the sin, urging confession, and developing a path forward. These conversations are difficult, especially for the person who has sinned.
Where repentance is genuine, however, the response to this help is love rather than resentment. A truly repentant person recognizes that those offering correction are motivated by love for God and love for them. As a result, their presence is not despised but appreciated.
Joy
Joy has everything to do with orientation—namely, to whom repentance is ultimately directed. Is repentance aimed primarily at repairing human relationships, or is it directed toward God? Scripture makes clear that repentance is first and foremost Godward.
Because of this, the repentant person can take hold of the promise of 1 John 1:9: “If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just to forgive us our sins.” Such forgiveness, secured by Christ, produces joy—joy that God has forgiven, removed guilt, and cast sin as far as the east is from the west.
Peace
While Paul lists joy first, it necessarily flows from the peace that a repentant sinner has with God. He or she can rest in the assurance that they are no longer at odds with God. His displeasure has been removed, and reconciliation has been accomplished.
Moreover, God often works—over time and with care—to restore broken human relationships as well. Scripture associates the coming of Christ with the restoration and healing of relationships (Malachi 4:6), and repentance positions us to participate in that peace.
Patience
The King James Version uses the word forbearance, which captures the idea well. In the context of repentance, patience is shown when the one who has sinned allows those they have wronged the necessary time to process what has occurred.
A repentant person does not demand immediate restoration or insist that everything return to normal simply because forgiveness has been requested or granted. Instead, they humbly submit to the slow, biblical work of healing.
Kindness
Kindness is both tender-hearted and active. In the context of repentance, it means that the offender seeks to understand how their sin has affected others. They do not minimize, excuse, or justify their actions or the pain those actions have caused.
Scripture repeatedly connects God’s kindness to repentance and salvation (Romans 2:4; Titus 3:4–5). When repentance is real, that same kindness begins to flow outward toward others.
Goodness
Goodness is less focused on the offended party and more on how the repentant person moves forward personally. Repentance is not merely about avoiding sin; it is about actively pursuing what God declares to be good.
This fruit reflects a decisive reorientation of life. While it inevitably affects others, goodness first shapes the individual’s desires, habits, and future conduct before God.
Faithfulness
Like goodness, faithfulness speaks to loyalty. When we sin, we align ourselves—however temporarily—with the enemy of our souls rather than the Creator of our souls. True repentance reverses that allegiance.
By repenting, we declare that God is right in His judgment of our actions and that we desire to serve Him rather than our fleshly desires. Faithfulness, then, is repentance lived out as renewed covenant loyalty.
Gentleness
Gentleness flows from humility, and humility inevitably accompanies genuine repentance. To confess sin honestly is to abandon self-defense and self-justification.
A humble heart produces gentleness—both toward those we have sinned against and toward others we seek to help. Gentleness reflects a posture that has been reshaped by grace rather than pride.
Self-Control
Perhaps the most obvious fruit in relation to repentance is self-control. True repentance results in changed words and deeds—Spirit-empowered restraint, especially in areas where sin once dominated.
This does not mean the repentant person will never stumble again, but it does mean there will be real victories along the way. The trajectory of life is no longer governed by unchecked desire but by submission to the Spirit.
Conclusion
John the Baptist’s call to “bear fruit in keeping with repentance” is not vague or abstract. When read alongside Galatians 5, it becomes clear that the fruit of repentance is the fruit of the Spirit itself. Where repentance is genuine, the Spirit is at work—producing visible, relational, and enduring change.
Repentance, then, is not merely something we say. It is something that grows.