Consider the lilies, how they grow: they neither toil nor spin, yet I tell you, even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.
Luke 12:27 (ESV)
Lilium is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large prominent trumpet-shaped flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. So it’s not surprising to see them referred to in the Bible.
I was reminded about the fragrance of lilies recently when friends took us out to dinner to celebrate a belated combination of my May birthday and our June wedding anniversary. When we walked into the restaurant, they presented me with a beautiful bouquet of lilies. The bouquet created quite a stir in the restaurant. I have to admit that I felt like Miss America as we paraded through the busy restaurant to our secluded table with the lovely fragrance trailing along behind us.
In the book of Luke Jesus asked His disciples to look at the lilies growing wild on the hillsides which cover the Palestine countryside in the springtime. He spoke about the ancient king, Solomon, who was Israel’s wisest ruler and who also was regarded as the richest king in all the earth. Jesus reminds His disciples that the gracious provision shown to the lilies of the fields made them even more beautiful than Solomon’s richest apparel.
We know that none of these flowers, as wonderful as they are, achieve beauty on their own. Their beauty and fragrance are bestowed on them by a loving and caring God. The word “consider” has the meaning of “notice, observe carefully, reflect upon, and contemplate.” In this verse Jesus is not asking for a casual glance at nature. Rather, He is asking His disciples to take seriously the fact that creation magnifies the Lord and can teach important aspects of God’s richness and love toward us.
When I lose perspective I need to be reminded once again of my wise tutelage in the lesson of the lilies—to “notice, observe carefully, reflect upon, contemplate.” Why? Because I am changed by what I behold! I pray the beauty of Christ will always surround me and leave a lasting lovely fragrance wafting in the breeze.