The Strand Study Bible

I KINGS I KINGS decorated with nets of checker-work, wreaths of chain-work, pomegranates, and a border of lily -work (vs 17-19). These two pillars were the first things people would have noticed before entering the Temple (God’s world). Flowers, according to the Bible, depict humans. Isaiah 28:1 says: Woe to the crown of pride, to the drunkards of Ephraim, whose glorious beauty is a fading flower … One of the reasons flowers depict the human race is because they are here today and gone tomorrow (Isa 40:8/I Pet 1:24 and Jms 1:10-11). Like a flower, man comes upon the scene, exhibits his being, and then disappears. Job said of mankind in Job 14:1-2: Man that is born of a woman is of few days and full of trouble. He cometh forth like a flower, and is cut down : he fleeth also as a shadow, and continueth not. Like a flower, man struts his stuff, as it were “for a day.” He flourishes for the moment, and then quickly fades away. Even the world seems to understand this. Ever see the t-shirt, “Life’s fast – Play hard?” According to botanists, there are over 200,000 different varieties of flowers in the world, each providing the onlooker with both loveliness and lessons for those who are looking for them. Not only can we drink deeply of the beauty that the Lord has so freely provided, but we can learn great truths from flowers as well. Did you know that flowers are the poor man’s gems? The poor may not be able to afford jewels with which the rich adorn themselves, but for him the splendor of blossoms with the added benefit of their perfumed aroma (something gems don’t have) reproduce every shade and variety of color that is found in the precious stones. And even though the man may be so poor that he cannot afford the price of a single package of seeds, still, he can walk freely throughout the meadows, and take in both the beauty and bouquet of the flower, which the Lord has made. Now whereas flowers in general depict humans, the lily , according to The Song of Solomon 2:1 , depicts believers. It is not only the first flower ever mentioned in the Bible; it is the only flower Jesus ever referred to in the Gospels (Mt 6:28-29). What is it about lilies that make them so special? Again, according to The Song of Solomon 2:1, lilies depict believers, and believers, if they live up to their flower, will: 1. Be the first thing people notice when they enter God’s world (I Ki 7:19,26) Question: Are you the first thing people think of when they think about God, or are you the reason why people don’t want to think about God? If we are to live up to the character of the lily, then we should be the first thing people think of when they think of God (I Pet 3:15). 2. Reproduce them selves (Psa 103:15) Interestingly enough, all flowers reproduce themselves by casting their seed. However, the lily is a perennial, not an annual. It doesn’t die and cast its seed; its life is in its bulb, which sprouts new life year after year. Like Abel (Heb 11:4), lilies appear to die only to keep speaking to us year after year after year. Question: Are you reproducing yourself spiritually (Jn 15:8)? Like Abel, are you going to keep speaking long after you’re dead? Are you a perennial or an annual? If we are to live up to the character of the lily, then we are to reproduce ourselves spiritually. 3. Be structured (Mt 6:28-29) According to historians, Solomon’s choicest robe was made of silk and had a purple hue to it. To the human eye it was stunning, faultless. Yet placed under the “eye” of a modern-day microscope, and its magnificence melts into patchy coarse rope-like structure. What the human eye sees as perfection is thus shown to be shoddy, faulty. Now place the lily under the same microscope, and you will notice that the more it is magnified the more perfect in its formation it appears. Truly, “ Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these .” Question: How structured is your life as a believer? Do you schedule spiritual activity into your life on a daily basis? Do you read the Bible and pray everyday? When the world places your life under a microscope, like it did Daniel’s life (Dan 6:1-4), can they tell whether you’re the real deal or not? If we are to live up to the character of the lily, then we are to be structured spiritually. 4. Smell good spiritually (SOS 2:12-13) Lilies, and especially lilies of the valley, are exceptionally fragrant flowers. Not only are we as believers supposed to be the salt of the earth and create a thirst in others for what we have, but we are supposed to take on the characteristics of lilies, which attract people with their fragrance ( Rev 2 :8- 9 ). Question: Do you attract people spiritually with how you smell? Are you like the Christians at Smyrna who smelled good to God and men? If we are to live up to the character of the lily, then we are to smell good spiritually. 5. Be hardy There are over 100 species of lilies in the world. They are so hardy that they can thrive in hostile environments and sub-zero temperatures (II Tim 2:1-3). Question: Are you knocked out of your race easily? Do you run to God or away from God after you are knocked down spiritually? If we are to live up to the character of the lily, then we are to endure hardness as a good soldier of Jesus Christ. NOTE – Flowers are God’s evidence of His existence and of His activity in creation, and so long as they live and bloom this earth will not be without witness of Him. Flowers are not only exquisite in their structure, splendor, and scent; they are educational to the mindful observer. Take the portulaca with its yellow, pink, or purple flowers. They are the best barometers in the vegetable kingdom, always closing up about a half hour before it begins to rain. To know your flowers is to know when to come out of the rain. Carl Linnaeus (1707-1778), the great Swedish botanist, physician, and zoologist, once noted that if he had a conservatory containing the right kind of soil, moisture and temperature, he could tell the time of day or night by the flowers that were open and those that were closed. 588