Pity

Dallas Willard states that God has pity on us. He remembers what we are made of and remembers that we are dust. He says this during his chapter on the Lord's Prayer (section on 'Don't Punish Us for Things We Do Wrong:'

"The word pity makes us wince, as mercy does not. Our current language has robbed mercy of its deep traditional meaning, which is practically the same as pity. To pity someone now is to feel sorry for them, and that is regatded as demeaning, wheras to have mercy now is thought to be slightly noble - just 'give em a break.' It is pure egotism to say 'I'm not a sinner, I just need a break.' No, I need more than a break. I need pity because of who I am. If my pride is untouched when I pray for forgiveness, I have not prayed for forgiveness. I don't even understand it."