“There
once was a man named George Thomas, pastor in a small New England
town. One Easter morning he came to Church carrying a rusty, bent,
old bird cage & set it by the pulpit. Eyebrows were raised &,
as if in response, Pastor Thomas began to speak..."I was walking
through town yesterday when I saw a young boy coming toward me
swinging this bird cage. At the bottom of the cage were three little
wild birds, shivering with cold & fright. I stopped the lad &
asked, "What you got there, son?" "Just some old
birds," came the reply.
"What you gonna do with 'em?" I asked. "Take 'em home & have fun with 'em," he said. "Gonna tease 'em & pull out the feathers to make 'em fight. Gonna have a real good time" "But you'll get tired of the birds sooner or later. What will you do?" "Oh, I got some cats," said the boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them."
The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much you want for the birds, son?" "Huh?! Why, you don't want 'em, mister. They're just plain field birds; don't sing--ain't even pretty!" "How much?" pastor asked again. The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy & said, "$10?" The pastor reached in his pocket & took out a ten dollar bill & placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone.
The pastor picked up the cage & gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree & a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free.
"What you gonna do with 'em?" I asked. "Take 'em home & have fun with 'em," he said. "Gonna tease 'em & pull out the feathers to make 'em fight. Gonna have a real good time" "But you'll get tired of the birds sooner or later. What will you do?" "Oh, I got some cats," said the boy. "They like birds. I'll take 'em to them."
The pastor was silent for a moment. "How much you want for the birds, son?" "Huh?! Why, you don't want 'em, mister. They're just plain field birds; don't sing--ain't even pretty!" "How much?" pastor asked again. The boy sized up the pastor as if he were crazy & said, "$10?" The pastor reached in his pocket & took out a ten dollar bill & placed it in the boy's hand. In a flash, the boy was gone.
The pastor picked up the cage & gently carried it to the end of the alley where there was a tree & a grassy spot. Setting the cage down, he opened the door, and by softly tapping the bars persuaded the birds out, setting them free.
Well,
that explained the empty cage on the pulpit. Then the pastor began to
tell this story: One day satan & Jesus were having a
conversation. Satan had just come from the Garden of Eden, & he
was gloating & boasting. "Yes, sir, I just caught the world
full of people down there. Set me a trap, used bait I knew they
couldn't resist. Got 'em all!" "What are you going to do
with them?" Jesus asked. Satan replied, "Oh, I'm gonna have
fun! I'm gonna teach them how to marry & divorce each other, how
to hate & abuse each other, how to drink & smoke & curse.
I'm gonna teach them how to invent guns & bombs & kill each
other. I'm really gonna have fun!" "What will you do when
you get done with them?" Jesus asked. "Oh, I'll kill 'em,"
satan said with glee "How much do you want for them?" Jesus
asked. "Oh, you don't want those people. They ain't no good.
Why, you'll take them & they'll just hate you. They'll spit on
you, curse you & kill you. You don't want them!!" "How
much?" He asked again. Satan sneered at Jesus: "All your
blood & tears & even your life." Jesus said, "DONE!"
Then He paid the price.
The
pastor picked up the cage, opened the door, & walked from the
pulpit. “
