What's With the Branch?

"So, what's with the branch in the ETBC Header graphic?  Shouldn't there be a cross or a Bible or something?  We aren't botanists - we are a Bible church after all!  And, what is the branch - an olive branch or something? Oh, so I get it - the church wants peace...." Well, I suppose those are good questions. So, let me share the meaning of the branch.  

In the 1st chapter of Jeremiah, God called Jeremiah to ministry. He called him to be a prophet to the nations. As a sign, he asked Jeremiah to look around him.

"The word of the Lord came to me: 'What do you see, Jeremiah?' 'I see the branch of an almond tree,' I replied. The Lord said to me, 'You have seen correctly, for I am watching to see that my word is fulfilled.'" (Jeremiah 1:11-12)

The almond tree is the first tree to bud and flower in the spring in Israel. You can count on it. It is reliable. When the almond tree buds, spring has arrived and the season is about to change.

In the vision, God's Word was like the almond branch. It was reliable. When God said something, like the almond bud in the spring, Jeremiah could count on it being true.  

Notice God's promise.  He said to Jeremiah that He was watching to see that His Word would be fulfilled.

Now the context is judgment. God was going to use Jeremiah to speak the true and reliable word of judgment on the people. And He did. Jeremiah did it and God's Word proved true - just like the flowering almond branch in springtime.

Today, the almond branch in our logo helps us remember the principle fact that we at the East Troy Bible Church believe that God's Word is true, can be counted on and is useful for correction.

That's it!  Now you know.

Pastor Ron