A burning stick snatched from the fire...so it is with each of us. Even at our best we are blackened; until we are taken home to the Lord we are nothing more than a smoldering stick saved out of the flames of hell. It is readily apparent that we are sinners—but Christ accepts us as we are! He shuts the Accuser's mouth and rebukes him: "You say, Satan, that My people are charred and blackened by sin—of course they are! Did I not know this when I pulled them from the fire? I am the one who rescued them! They were burning in the midst of it; they are black now they are out of it. They are not what I intend to make them, but they are what I knew they would be. And I have chosen them. What have you to say to that?" Such is the way of the Lord that when we were dead and burning in our transgressions, He Himself pulled us from the pit without a single ounce of effort from ourselves! He pleads our cause, though sin still clings like soot; He is our Advocate, though the heat of our transgressions can still be felt; He defends us, though we are still smoking with the stench of wickedness. We are but mute brands before the Lord, yet He speaks perfectly on our behalf. Jesus is in the business of making much of useless, castaway sticks such as ourselves. He tenderly lifts our gaze from our own unworthiness and sets it on Himself—the living, fruitful Branch of David! He removes the blackness of our sin and clothes us in the snow-white robes of His righteousness! He grants us the most intimate access to the throne of His grace, and allows us the invaluable privilege of ministering as priests before Him. And though others may regard us as worthless, the great Lover of our souls died for us that we may live. He deems us beautiful, precious, and irreplaceable—a smoldering stick that will one day bud, blossom, and thrive for all eternity!
[Based on an excerpt from Charles Spurgeon]