higher stardard

The disciples wanted to be practical and help Jesus out
when things seemingly got our of control.
They told Jesus in Mt.14:15 to send the people to the near by villages
to find bread for themselves. Jesus responded saying:
“You give them to eat”.
As so many times before, Jesus was introducing them a new standard
of thinking, faith.
In Mt.18:21 Peter thought that he was doing pretty well in his changed
attitude as he recommended his view on forgiveness to Jesus. I think
he really stretched far by saying that he was willing to forgive seven
times, if so needed.
Jesus shocked them all by revealing the standard of grace :”Not seven,
but seventy times seven.”
Grace reaches further.
It’s easy to depart from this standard of grace.
Right after a failure, ours or others’,
we easily fall into dead works and other punishing operations
thinking to impress God by our sincerity. It’s easy to stop thinking in grace.
The Corinthians were convicted that one of the brothers had gone too
far in his immoral behavior, I Cor.1:5
They separated the brother and stopped fellowshipping with him.
It looks like this brother really repented and was looking for a way to
be restored. The Corinthians had changed their standard, from grace
to legalism.In his second letter Paul has to plead with them again,
now to forgive this brother and receive him back. II Cor.2:6-7
It’s easy to see faults and punish those who are responsible for it.
It’s an invitation to live in a higher standard when we a called to
forgive those who, according to our judgment, have not deserved our
forgiveness.
Therefore grace always brings a greater joy to our life than judgment.