Branches on the Road

A pavement of palm branches marks Jesus’ final descent into the Kidron Valley the week of His crucifixion. When we think of palms, these branches were not from the standard tree that enters the mind of the average American. Usually, our brain takes us to a tropical island with white, sandy beaches and blue water. Our mind travels normally to the coconut palm. But the reference in the Bible is to the date palm. The land of milk and honey is a land with hillsides of goats and endless groves of date palms from which date honey is extracted.

In the twenty-third chapter of Leviticus, the children of Israel were required to observe the feast of tabernacles or “booths,” as it was sometimes called. This Jewish tradition was designed to remind the children of Israel of their wandering in the desert before entering the Promised Land. They were to camp in their temporary houses for one week. Periodically, it is healthy for all of us to remember where we came from and how we got to where we are.

If these branches that lined the road from the Mount of Olives into the Kidron Valley were taken from the booth of temporary dwellings, they provided three serious illustrations of what our lives ought to be. The first illustration is functional. They kept the dust down. They covered the road so that the donkey’s steps did not stir up the dirt. The Christian life is a life of cover-up. It is not covered up in the sinister sense, but rather in the glory of our Lord’s grace. He covers our sin and so ought we to cover the sin of one another.

The second illustration is that of beauty. Dirt is ugly. Anyway you want to sweep it, it still comes up ugly. The Christian life, when lived as it should be lived, is a thing of beauty. Unselfishness and sacrifice are common commodities in the life of the healthy Christian. That descending road into the Kidron Valley must have been a thing of beauty, as the ugliness of the dust was buried beneath the beauty of green palm branches.

The third illustration is one of sacrifice and availability. If those branches were taken from the booths they lived in, then their houses were literally being destroyed in the process of making a path for the Savior. Almost nothing needs to be added in the way of explanation. The life that provides the best path for Jesus is the life of sacrifice and availability. Leaving self-interest for service is what spiritual maturity is all about. When the dirty part of life is covered by loving service to the Master, no cloud of dust will hide Him from view. Others will be able to see Him coming, and He shall be glorified.

Branches on the Road

In The Garden

1. The issue of design

2. The issue of disaster

3. The issue of decision

On The Mount

1. The dust

2. The beauty

3. The blessing

In Your House

1. The crowd

2. The impression

3. The issue