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 2:2 TPT
“I went there because God revealed to me that I should go. While I was there I spoke privately with those who were viewed as leaders and shared with them the wonderful gospel that I preach to the non-Jews. I wanted to make sure that my efforts had not been a waste of time.”
Galatians 2:7-8 NIV
“On the contrary, they recognized that I had been entrusted with the task of preaching the gospel to the uncircumcised, just as Peter had been to the circumcised. For God, who was at work in Peter as an apostle to the circumcised, was also at work in me as an apostle to the Gentiles.”
Setting the Stage:
After fourteen years of ministry, Paul made a critical trip to Jerusalem. This wasn’t a casual visit or some sort of political maneuver to get into the ‘good graces’ of the other apostles. Paul was led by the Holy Spirit to go there. Paul had been ministering powerfully to the Gentiles, but God led him to meet with the leaders who were ministering to the Jews.
Here’s what’s beautiful about this moment: Paul didn’t go because he doubted his calling or needed their approval. He went because God revealed to him that he should go. He shared his gospel message privately with the recognized leaders, not to get permission, but to ensure maximum Kingdom impact.
This passage reveals a profound principle about grace-based ministry and leadership: You can be confident in your unique calling while still maintaining strategic partnerships with others who have different assignments. Paul shows us how to run your own race while understanding that God’s overall assignment for the planet is BIGGER THAN YOU. So, there are people out there who are called by God, too, doing what God has called them to do.
Today’s message is about operating in your grace-given assignment while maximizing your impact through godly relationships and strategic partnerships.
So, what does this mean to you today? A few things.
1. Grace Gives You Confidence to Stay in Your Lane While Staying Connected.
Paul had been preaching to the Gentiles for fourteen years. He knew his calling, he was seeing results, and God was confirming his ministry. Yet when God revealed to him that he should go to Jerusalem to meet leaders who were called to do something different, he went. This shows the beautiful balance between confidence in your calling and being willing to connect with those who are called to do something else.
How this applies to you:
— God’s grace gives you the confidence to operate in your unique assignment without constantly seeking validation from others in different lanes.
— When you know what God has called you to do, you don’t need to abandon your assignment to prove you’re submitted to leadership—you just need to stay connected and communicate. In other words, don’t violate your God-given assignment out of respect for earthly protocol. The Holy Spirit can guide you in navigating protocol and His purpose for your life.
— You can be secure in your calling while still honoring relationships and maintaining strategic partnerships with others who have different assignments.
— Grace eliminates the insecurity that makes you either rebellious against authority or dependent on others’ approval for your sense of purpose. Your obedience to God will not lead you to rebel, but it will also not make you ultimately dependent on anyone but God.
— If your earthly leaders are led by the Holy Spirit, they will know when you are doing your best to honor and respect, while ultimately honoring God and your assignment above everyone else.
— Your purpose (your lane) is not a prison. If God has called you to do something that is not popular (like He did with Paul), then operating in your grace is your space for maximum impact and effectiveness. However, since you live on earth, God will also lead you to connect with others who are called to do different things, benefiting from friendship, camaraderie, and mutual support. You can be called to do different things and still support each other.
— Staying in your lane doesn’t mean isolation. It means operating in your area of grace while maintaining Kingdom relationships and communication.
— When you’re confident in your calling, you can receive input without feeling threatened and give input without being controlling. Both are necessary for us to maximize our purpose and potential. We are called to receive and also called to give.
2. Grace Enables You to Share Your Vision Without Needing Permission To Walk In It.
Notice that Paul shared his gospel privately with the leaders, but he wasn’t asking for permission to continue his ministry. He had already been doing it for fourteen years! He was sharing for the sake of partnership, not for the sake of approval.
How this applies to you:
— When you operate in grace, you share your vision to build bridges, not to get permission for what God has already told you to do.
— I love sitting down with other Christian leaders to share what God has called me to do and learn what God has called them to do. We don’t have to be the same to support each other. We can be unified without being uniform. Unfortunately, many people today only hang out with people who look like them, who do what they do, and who run in the same circles. They are missing out, and as a result, the Kingdom is missing out.
— You can be transparent about your calling and your methods without being defensive or apologetic about your unique assignment. I have had to learn to be okay with what God has called me to do, even though it may be different from what many of my friends do. You need God’s peace to walk in your purpose, especially when you know people will criticize what they do not understand.
— I am sure that Paul knew the other apostles, and the followers of the original apostles questioned whether or not he was a “real” apostle. Why? Simply because he was not like any of them. And Paul had to learn to be okay with his uniqueness. This is a lesson I have had to learn as well. I pray you do, too.
— The Holy Spirit will teach you that you don’t need human permission to obey God, but He will also teach you to use human connection to maximize your impact and effectiveness.
— Sharing your vision with other leaders creates opportunities for partnership rather than competition.
— Your goal in sharing isn’t approval. It’s alignment for maximum Kingdom impact and mutual support.
3. Grace Motivates You to Ensure Your Work Is Not in Vain.
Paul said he wanted to make sure his efforts had not been a waste of time. This wasn’t doubt about his calling. It was about seeking wisdom concerning his impact. He wanted to ensure maximum effectiveness for the Kingdom of God.
How this applies to you:
— The Holy Spirit will motivate you to be strategic about your calling, always looking for ways to maximize your impact for God’s glory.
— When you’re doing what God called you to do, you want to ensure you’re making the greatest possible difference, not just staying busy.
— You can be confident in your assignment while still being open to wisdom about how to increase your effectiveness and reach.
— Grace gives you the humility to receive input that can multiply your impact without compromising your unique calling.
— Your work is too important to do in isolation. God will lead you to connect with people who can amplify your effectiveness and extend your influence.
— Always be willing to evaluate and adjust your methods while staying true to your calling. Never marry a method. Methods change. This is where some churches get left behind. Keep the overall purpose the main thing. Being willing to adjust shows maturity, not insecurity.
— When you operate in grace, you understand that faithfulness includes being as effective as possible with what God has entrusted to you.
4. Grace Teaches You That Kingdom Advancement Requires All of Us Operating in Our Assignments.
The beautiful outcome of Paul’s meeting was recognition and partnership. The leaders saw that God was working through Paul among the Gentiles just as He was working through Peter among the Jews. This wasn’t a competition; it was completion. The gospel needed to go to the Jews AND the Gentiles.
How this applies to you:
— The Kingdom of God advances when each of us operates in our grace-given assignments, complementing rather than competing with one another.
— Your unique calling doesn’t diminish others’ callings—it completes the bigger picture of what God is doing in the earth.
— Grace eliminates the scarcity mentality that says there’s only room for one person to be effective in any given area.
— When you run your own race with excellence, you create space and opportunity for others to run theirs with equal effectiveness. It’s bigger than any of us. It’s ALL ABOUT HIM!
— The body of Christ grows strongest when each member functions according to their divine design and grace-given assignment. We have many members, but ONE BODY! We are not competing with each other.
— When everyone operates in their area of grace, the Kingdom impact is exponentially greater than any individual ministry or business could achieve alone. It takes ALL OF US to be the church.
— Partnership doesn’t require you to abandon your lane. It requires you to excel in your lane while supporting others in theirs.
Declaration of Faith:
Father, I thank You for the confidence that comes from operating in Your grace and calling.
I declare that I will stay in my lane while staying connected to other Kingdom leaders and partners.
I will share what You have called me to do, as You lead me to while knowing that I am not asking for permission to be me.
I will run my own race with excellence while celebrating and supporting others in their unique assignments.
I declare that there is room for all of us to succeed in our grace-given callings.
I choose partnership over competition, knowing that the Kingdom advances when we all operate in our areas of grace.
Thank You for the grace that makes me confident in my calling while keeping me connected to the body of Christ.
I am living #TheGraceLife, and GREATER IS COMING FOR ME!
I declare this by faith. In Jesus’ name. Amen!
This is Today’s Word! Apply it and Prosper!
