dW 07.31.07

story

 

The difference between passive mercy and active mercy: I remember hearing a story a long time ago about an old Jew that was pulling a wagon, a junk wagon on the street. And his poor old horse had seen his better days, and in fact he’d seen all of his days. He was swaying and miserable looking, and underfed. He collapsed and fell in the ropes. When they went over they found the old boy was lying there dead. The old Jew was standing there as a picture of grief since that was his only living, his little old wagon and that poor old horse. And the people gathered around and said “oh I am so sorry”. And another said “I am so sorry”. And yet another came over and said, “mister I am so sorry”. Then one fella, it sounds like he might have been Irish, I don’t know. It sounds like an Irishman. He walked over, took off his hat and said, “I am five dollars worth of sorry. How sorry are you?” And he passed the hat to get him money to buy another horse. And that’s the only kind of sorry-ness that I believe in. I believe in sorry-ness that will pass the hat. First put your own offering in. The sorry-ness that will do something about it.

A.W. Tozer

 

scripture

 

James 2:14-17

What good is it, my brothers, if a man claims to have faith but has no deeds? Can such faith save him? Suppose a brother or sister is without clothes and daily food. If one of you says to him, "Go, I wish you well; keep warm and well fed," but does nothing about his physical needs, what good is it? In the same way, faith by itself, if it is not accompanied by action, is dead.