Today, we continue our series entitled “Living the Grace Life,” where we will learn to embrace and walk in God’s unmerited, unearned, and often undeserved favor throughout 2025.
As part of this series, I am teaching a verse-by-verse exposition of the book of Galatians. Let’s get into it.
Key scriptures for this year:
2 Corinthians? ?9?:?8? ?TPT??
“Yes, God is more than ready to overwhelm you with every form of grace, so that you will have more than enough of everything—every moment and in every way. He will make you overflow with abundance in every good thing you do.”
Galatians? ?5?:?4? ?TPT??
“If you want to be made right with God by fulfilling the obligations of the law, you have cut off more than your flesh—you have cut yourselves off from Christ and have fallen away from the revelation of grace!”
Romans? ?6?:?14? ?ERV??
“Sin will not be your master, because you are not under law. You now live under God’s grace.”
1 Corinthians? ?15?:?10? ?NIV??
“But by the grace of God I am what I am, and his grace to me was not without effect. No, I worked harder than all of them—yet not I, but the grace of God that was with me.”
Scripture(s) we will study today:
Galatians 2:1 TPT
“Fourteen years later I returned to Jerusalem, this time with Barnabas and Titus.”
Acts 9:26-27 NIV
“When he came to Jerusalem, he tried to join the disciples, but they were all afraid of him, not believing that he really was a disciple. But Barnabas took him and brought him to the apostles. He told them how Saul on his journey had seen the Lord and that the Lord had spoken to him, and how in Damascus he had preached fearlessly in the name of Jesus.”
Setting the Stage:
Before we dive into Galatians chapter 2, I need to tell you about Barnabas. Since Paul is my favorite Bible character, the story of Paul and Barnabas is one of my favorite stories from the early church. This is a story of how grace not only transforms your own life but empowers you to be an advocate for others who need a second chance.
Barnabas literally means “son of encouragement.” He had the ministry of encouragement, and he lived up to his name. This is another reason why I like Barnabas; I also have the ministry of encouragement.
When no one else would give Paul a chance, Barnabas stood in the gap. When the apostles were terrified of Paul (and rightfully so—he had been terrorizing Christians!), Barnabas was the only person who believed grace could transform a terrorist into a teacher.
Think about this: There would be no Apostle Paul without Barnabas. Paul wrote half the New Testament and went on four missionary journeys, but none of that would have happened if Barnabas hadn’t been willing to risk his reputation to advocate for someone everyone else had written off.
So, what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. Grace Empowers You to See Potential Where Others See Problems.
When Paul first tried to join the disciples in Jerusalem, everyone was afraid of him (Acts 9:26). They saw a terrorist, a persecutor, a threat. But Barnabas saw something different. God blessed Barnabas to see what grace could do.
Barnabas took Paul to the apostles and told them Paul’s conversion story. He put his own reputation on the line for someone everyone else wanted to avoid. That’s what grace does. It gives you eyes to see potential where others only see problems.
How this applies to you:
— Grace gives you the ability to see people not as they are, but as they could be. When you’re walking in grace, you stop writing people off based on their past and start seeing them through the lens of God’s transforming power. You know God can transform because He transformed you!
— God will assign people to you who need someone to believe in them. Just as Barnabas was assigned to Paul, God may be calling you to be the one person who believes in someone everyone else has given up on.
— When no one else will give someone the time of day, God may use you to be their advocate. This requires supernatural grace because advocating for “problem people” can cost you your reputation.
— The person everyone else rejects might be the next world-changer. Imagine if Barnabas had joined the crowd in rejecting Paul. We would have lost one of the greatest missionaries and theologians in church history!
— Grace enables you to take risks on people that logic would tell you to avoid. Barnabas had every logical reason to stay away from Paul, but grace gave him the courage to embrace him.
— Your willingness to advocate for someone could be the turning point in their destiny. Paul needed someone to believe in him when no one else would—and Barnabas was that person.
— Living #TheGraceLife means being willing to sponsor people others have written off. Grace doesn’t just transform you; it makes you an agent of transformation for others.
2. Grace Gives You Courage to Stand Alone for What’s Right.
When Barnabas vouched for Paul, he was the only one. Think about the courage that took. The other apostles had good reasons to be afraid—Paul had been responsible for Stephen’s death and had imprisoned countless believers. But Barnabas wasn’t moved by popular opinion; he was moved by grace.
This is crucial: Grace often requires you to stand alone. When everyone else is operating in fear, suspicion, or unforgiveness, grace empowers you to be the one voice saying, “Let’s give them another chance.”
How this applies to you:
— Sometimes, being a grace-giver means standing alone. When everyone else wants to maintain the status quo, grace calls you to be the voice of redemption and reconciliation.
— Grace gives you the courage to challenge the consensus. The apostles’ consensus was to reject Paul, but Barnabas had the grace-fueled courage to challenge that.
— Your willingness to stand alone for someone could change the trajectory of their life. Paul’s entire ministry hinged on one man being willing to stand up for him.
— When you advocate for the “undeserving,” you’re demonstrating the heart of the Gospel. We were all undeserving, yet Christ advocated for us.
— Grace makes you willing to risk relationships to do what’s right. Barnabas risked his standing with the apostles to advocate for Paul.
— Sometimes, the most powerful ministry is being the one person who believes in someone when no one else will.
— True grace doesn’t wait for group approval before extending mercy. Barnabas didn’t take a vote; he just did what grace demanded.
3. Grace Raises Up People Who Build Bridges, Not Walls.
Barnabas’s name is first mentioned in Acts 4:36-37, where we learn he was a Levite from Cyprus who sold property and gave the money to the apostles. But his greatest contribution wasn’t financial—it was relational. He became the bridge between Paul and the apostles.
Grace makes you a bridge-builder. Where others see gaps that are too wide to cross, grace finds ways to connect. Barnabas literally became the bridge that connected the church’s greatest persecutor to its leadership.
How this applies to you:
— Grace positions you to connect people who need each other. Barnabas knew the apostles needed Paul’s gifts, and Paul needed their acceptance.
— The apostles had built a wall of protection against Paul, but Barnabas built a bridge of reconciliation.
— Sometimes, your greatest ministry is introducing people who will change each other’s lives. Barnabas introduced Paul to Peter, and that connection changed church history.
— Grace makes you a peacemaker. In a world full of division, bitterness, and unforgiveness, God needs people who will stand in the gap between opposing sides.
— Bridge-building often requires you to absorb the risk from both sides. Barnabas risked Paul betraying his trust AND the apostles rejecting his judgment.
— When you build bridges for others, you’re demonstrating the ministry of reconciliation that God has given us (2 Cor. 5:18).
— Grace empowers you to see connection possibilities where others only see conflict.
4. Grace Invests in People Before They “Deserve” It.
When Barnabas advocated for Paul, Paul hadn’t proven himself yet. He had no track record of faithful ministry, no letters of recommendation, no proven fruit. All he had was a testimony of transformation. That was enough for Barnabas.
How this applies to you:
— Grace invests in potential, not just proven performance. Don’t wait for people to “earn” your support; extend it based on what God shows you about their future.
— Sometimes, the best time to believe in someone is when they have nothing to show for it. Your early investment could be what empowers them to become who God called them to be.
— Grace takes risks on people that performance-based thinking would never take. If Barnabas had waited for Paul to “prove himself,” we might not have the book of Romans.
— Grace operates like the best angel investors. These are investors who invest in people based on vision and potential rather than proven metrics. The most successful VCs understand that billion-dollar companies often start with nothing but passion and promise. Barnabas saw what investors call “unicorn potential” in Paul when everyone else saw a risky investment with a checkered past.
— Your willingness to invest early could accelerate someone’s destiny by years. Paul didn’t have to spend years proving himself because Barnabas vouched for him.
— Grace sees the oak tree in the acorn. Where others saw a dangerous former persecutor, Barnabas saw a future apostle.
— When you invest in someone before they deserve it, you’re demonstrating the same grace God showed you. He loved us while we were still sinners (Rom. 5:8).
— The people who need your investment the most are often the ones who deserve it the least—just like us with God.
— I thank God for the Barnabases in my life. One of them is Bishop Richard B. Peoples Sr. When I met him, I was 24 years old in life and 1 year old as a Christian. I argued the scriptures with this man. I went back and forth with him (a man who was my Pastor), in ways that I know were not respectful at times. He could have given up on me. But thankfully, He did not. He actually invested in me, and He still is, 28 years later, helping me to be the man I am today. You should thank God for the people in your life who invested in your potential, even when you were causing them problems.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for the example of Barnabas, who shows me what being a conduit of grace looks like.
I declare that Your grace empowers me to see potential where others see problems.
I receive the courage to stand alone when grace demands it, even when popular opinion is against me.
I am a bridge-builder, not a wall-builder, connecting people who need each other.
I will invest in people based on their potential, not waiting for them to prove their performance.
Thank You for the people who were “Barnabas” to me—who believed in me when I didn’t deserve it.
Now I declare that I will be that person for someone else.
I will advocate for the rejected, stand up for the fallen, and believe in the transforming power of grace.
I don’t need group consensus to extend mercy—I just need Your grace flowing through me.
I am living #TheGraceLife, which means I freely give what I have freely received.
Living this way, I know GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
