15 Free Printable 12 Apostles Coloring Pages for Everyone Who Was Ever Sent
The word apostle simply means someone who is sent, which is a much bigger idea than just being one of the original twelve who followed Jesus around Galilee. Paul was sent. Barnabas was sent. Even Mary Magdalene, the first person Jesus sent to tell the others he was alive, was sent.
The apostles didn’t just believe. They moved. They ran alongside chariots to explain scriptures to strangers. They sang hymns in chains. They knelt in rivers and opened their homes and stood in front of crowds and said things that got them arrested.
These free printable 12 apostles coloring pages put kids inside those moments—not as a history lesson, but as an invitation. Because the same Spirit that moved them is available to every child sitting at your kitchen table right now, crayon in hand.
A Note from Louisa (Founder of MyKidColors)
I did not know the difference between disciples and apostles for the longest time. I only learned it as an adult, and honestly, I still have to think it through every time the distinction comes up.
This story is part of something bigger…
Inclusive Bible Moments Coloring Book
If your child connected with this story, they’ll love the full collection.
This isn’t just coloring.
It’s quiet, faith-filled moments where kids see themselves in Scripture.
Inside you’ll find:
- 25 hand-drawn Bible scenes rooted in real stories
- Representation that helps children feel seen and included
- Devotional-style pages that invite calm, reflection, and conversation
- Easy, print-and-use pages for busy days
Less screen time. More soul time.
That gap in my own knowledge is part of why this set exists. I want my children to grow up understanding something I only pieced together later in life, that being sent out into the world is its own calling, separate from just being chosen in the first place. It felt worth building the set I wish I had growing up.
Conversation Corner: 3 Questions to Ask While Coloring
Turn this into a bonding moment. While your child colors, try asking:
- For “Paul and Silas in Prison” (Page 10): “If you were stuck somewhere scary and couldn’t leave, what song would you want to sing to feel better? Why that one?”
- For “Philip and the Ethiopian Official” (Page 12): “Have you ever explained something to someone who really needed to hear it? How did it feel to help them understand?”
- For “The Great Commission” (Page 15): “If Jesus told you to go tell the whole world one thing, what do you think the most important thing to tell them would be?”
The Collection: 15 Free 12 Apostles Coloring Pages
We’ve organized these into three sets to help you teach the full story of the apostles—from being called to being sent.
For Little Hands: Called and Chosen (Pages 1–5)
Best for toddlers and preschoolers. These pages center on faces, feelings, and the first moments of following—approachable compositions built for small hands and short attention spans.
- Page 1 — The Fisherman Called (Matthew 4:19): A fisherman holds a net in the water, glancing back at Jesus on the shore at sunrise. A warm, simple Jesus Calls His First Disciples coloring page that even the youngest children can engage with—the light, the water, the moment of turning around.
- Pages 2 & 3 — The Writer and the Door-Opener: Page 2 shows a young disciple sitting under a tree, writing on a scroll with a feather quill—a gentle image of someone paying careful attention. Page 3 (Acts 15:13) features a bearded man in a doorway with arms wide open, welcoming a small group—an accessible picture of what the apostles did with their homes and their voices.
- Pages 4 & 5 — Andrew’s Joy + Mary at the Tomb: Page 4 portrays a joyful fisherman by the sea, smiling as he works his net—Andrew, who found Jesus and immediately went to find his brother. Page 5 (John 20:16) shows Mary kneeling outside the open tomb, looking up into a flood of radiating light—not one of the twelve, but the first witness, and a scene children find instinctively moving.
Courage Under Pressure (Pages 6–10)
Perfect for elementary kids. These pages visualize what faith costs—and what it produces—when the stakes are real.
- Page 6 — Saul on the Road (Acts 9:4): Saul is on his knees, shielding his eyes from a blinding heavenly light beside a startled horse. This dramatic apostle Paul coloring page opens the door to one of the most important conversations in the New Testament: that the people who seem farthest from God are sometimes the closest to a turning point.
- Pages 7 & 8 — Peter in Prison + Barnabas the Encourager: Page 7 (Acts 12:7) depicts a glowing angel visiting Peter in a dark stone prison cell while the guards sleep—chains, darkness, and light all in the same image. Page 8 (Acts 9:27) shows Barnabas with a steady hand on a young man’s shoulder, introducing him to a wary group. Two kinds of rescue: miraculous and human.
- Pages 9 & 10 — Stephen’s Vision + Paul and Silas Singing: Page 9 (Acts 7:56) portrays Stephen kneeling on the ground, looking up at the open heavens while stones fly around him—a scene that requires a careful, honest conversation, and rewards it. Page 10 (Acts 16:25) shows Paul and Silas in chains, standing joyfully and singing hymns in their prison cell. One of the most quietly radical images in the entire set.
The Full Story & Application (Pages 11–15)
Designed for older kids or quiet reflection. These scenes show what the apostles built after Jesus—churches, relationships, communities, and a movement that crossed every border they knew.
- Page 11 — Lydia’s Baptism (Acts 16:15): Lydia kneels in a river to be baptized while her household watches from the shore—a following Jesus coloring page that introduces children to one of the New Testament’s most overlooked figures: a businesswoman whose household became a church.
- Pages 12 & 13 — Philip Runs + Pentecost Crowd: Page 12 (Acts 8:30) shows Philip sprinting alongside an ornate chariot to talk to an Ethiopian official holding a scroll—urgency, joy, and cross-cultural connection in one image. Page 13 (Acts 2:3-4) features a large, diverse crowd praying together as small tongues of fire rest above every head. The most visually complex and emotionally expansive page in the set.
- Pages 14 & 15 — Paul Writing in Chains + The Commission: Page 14 (Philippians 4:11) portrays an older man in wrist chains writing peacefully at a desk by lamplight—contentment as an act of defiance. Page 15 (Acts 1:8) shows Jesus with open arms before a diverse group of disciples under a stone archway, a city and sunrise visible behind them. The last word of the set, and the first word of everything that came after.
Perfect for Sunday School Teachers, Homeschool Families, and Every Child Learning That Ordinary People Can Do Extraordinary Things
- Children who feel overlooked or out of place will find their entry point in Page 12 — Philip running after a foreign official’s chariot, uninvited, to share something too important to keep. And Page 11 — Lydia, a businesswoman, kneeling in a river, her whole household watching. The message threaded through both: the movement was never just for the people you’d expect.
- Parents wanting to build Bible literacy beyond the Gospels will find Pages 6, 10, 12, and 14 — Paul’s conversion, his imprisonment, Philip’s roadside ministry, and his letter written in chains — as natural anchors for introducing the book of Acts as a story, not a textbook. These pages open the question: what happened after Easter?
- Sunday School teachers and homeschool educators will recognize Page 15 (the Great Commission scene) as a natural unit-opener or series closer, Page 13 (Pentecost) as a Confirmation or Easter season anchor, and Pages 1 and 4 (the fishermen) as entry points into a multi-week “called to follow” series — one apostle, one story, one session at a time.
Why We Hand-Drawn Our Coloring Pages
This set spans a much wider map than most Bible coloring pages attempt, a Cypriot, a Tarsian, several Galileans, a woman from Magdala, a North African official, a Macedonian merchant.
Getting each person’s specific look and setting right takes an illustrator actually researching who these people were and where they came from, not defaulting to one generic robe and beard repeated fifteen times.
One illustrator worked through the entire set, which is why Barnabas reads as broad shouldered and steady, Paul ages visibly from the Damascus road to the Roman prison, and Mary Magdalene shows up as a fully realized woman rather than a background figure.
That kind of specific, consistent detail only comes from a person tracking the whole story, not a generator starting fresh each time.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I use these pages to introduce the book of Acts to children who’ve never heard it?
Yes — and Pages 6, 7, 9, 10, and 13 are your best entry points for that. Start with Page 13 (Pentecost) to show children where Acts begins — with fire and an unlikely crowd — then work backwards to Page 6 (Saul’s conversion) so they understand who Paul was before he was Paul. For younger children, pair each page with one sentence from the scripture reference printed on it. For older kids, read the full passage aloud while they color and ask them what surprised them most.
How can I use these pages for a Confirmation class or a “Who Are the Apostles?” unit with middle schoolers?
Pages 8 (Barnabas introducing Paul), 11 (Lydia’s baptism), and 12 (Philip and the Ethiopian official) are especially strong for confirmation-age students because they feature lesser-known figures who operated outside the inner circle of the twelve. Assign one page per student, ask them to research the person depicted, and present their findings to the group. It reframes the apostles as a movement with more members than most curricula acknowledge — which is historically accurate and deeply encouraging.
Are any of these pages appropriate for an Easter season or Ascension Sunday lesson?
Several. Page 5 (Mary at the tomb, John 20:16) works beautifully for Easter morning — the open tomb, the light, the moment of recognition. Page 15 (the Great Commission, Acts 1:8) is a natural fit for Ascension Sunday, depicting Jesus sending his followers outward before his departure. And Page 13 (Pentecost, Acts 2:3-4) rounds out the Easter season arc for Pentecost Sunday. Used together across three weeks, Pages 5, 15, and 13 tell the complete post-resurrection story in images alone — which makes them especially useful for mixed-age services where attention spans vary.
Download Your Free Set
The apostles weren’t waiting to feel ready. They moved — imperfect, uncertain, and willing. These pages are an invitation for your child to meet them where they were.
Built for the kid who’s ready to learn the names that come after the twelve. Grab all 15 pages free for home, church, or classroom.
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