“Consider the lilies how they grow; they toil not, they spin not; and yet I say unto you, that Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these. If then God so clothe the grass, which is to-day in the field, and to-morrow is cast into the oven, how much more will He clothe you, O ye of little faith?” Luke 12:27, 28.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.1

Jesus has sent us to school to the lilies, and has appointed them our teachers in the way of life. We have not by any means exhausted the lessons that they have to give us; indeed, few of us have made more than a beginning, for although the instruction that they give is so simple that a child can understand it, yet no philosopher of the schools can compare with them in depth of wisdom.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.2

What are we to consider about the lilies?—“How they grow.” It is not how they look, but how they grow. One would naturally suppose that, since Jesus was talking of clothing, and how we are to be provided with what is necessary, He would have directed us to the looks of the lilies, to see how tastefully they are dressed; but such a exposition is evidence of our need of instruction. We are so ignorant of the first principles of the wisdom which the lilies teach.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.3

“The Lord seeth not as man seeth; for man looketh on the outward appearance, but the Lord looketh on the heart.” It is not that the Lord despises outward beauty; far from it. “Strength and beauty are in His sanctuary;” and He has promised to “beautify the meek with salvation.” He delights in beauty; but He knows that as corruption comes from within, and not from without (Mark 7:18-23), so beauty, to be real, must come from within. He severely rebuked the scribes and Pharisees, because they made clean the outside of the cup and the platter, while within they were full of impurity, and said, “Thou blind Pharisee, cleanse first that which is within the cup and platter, that the outside of them may be clean also.” Matthew 23:25, 26.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.4

Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like a lily. How is that? Is a lily, then, so much more wondrously beautiful than other things? Jesus did not say so. Some lilies are most gorgeous, but others are very plain, and scarcely noticeable. It is quite likely that when Solomon was arrayed in his royal apparel on State occasions, his clothing would outshine a whole bed of ordinary lilies. Yet in all his glory he was not clothed like the most modest lily that grows. Why?-Because no matter how gorgeous and beautiful his clothing was, it was all put on; it was no part of himself; but the beauty of the lily’s dress is the lily itself. All that it looks to be, it is.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.5

Thus it is that the lilies, who are teachers by divine appointment, teach us that the only clothing that is of any real value is that which can not be put on and off, but that which grows; that which is formed from within. Even such clothing did the apostle Peter write about, saying to the women, “Whose adorning let it not be the outward adorning of plaiting the hair, and of wearing jewels of gold, or of putting on apparel; but let it be the hidden man of the heart, in the incorruptible apparel of a meek and quiet spirit, which is in the sight of God of great price.” 1 Peter 3:3, 4.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.6

How strange that people should proudly boast of that which is no part of themselves? Not only is our clothing no part of ourselves, but the very fact that we are obliged to wear manufactured clothing at all, is proof of our fallen and degraded state. God is clothed with light as a garment, for He Himself is light. His clothing is the beauty of His own character. His clothing, like that of the lily, is what He is. Even so it was with man in the beginning, for man was made in the image of God. It was not until they lost their first estate through sin, that our first parents had any need of clothing that must be put on from the outside. So that upon which most people bestow so much care and worry, and in which they take so much pride, is the mark of their shame.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.7

Until the kingdom is again restored as in the beginning, all mankind, the children of God as well as the wicked, will be obliged to wear manufactured clothing; but let them not worry about it, nor be proud of what is no part of them. What should they do?—“Seek ye first the kingdom of God, and His righteousness.” Then clothing and everything else that is necessary will be added.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.8

This agrees with the exhortation to us on apparel that is “the hidden man of the heart.” Where the King is, there is the kingdom; and the King is the Word of God, that “was made flesh.” This Word is in us, in our mouth, and in our heart, that we may do it. If we yield ourselves to it, we shall be filled with righteousness. We shall grow up “trees of righteousness,” and our clothing will be “the robe of righteousness,” the product of the growth from within. He who is able to supply us with this beautiful clothing, of which no one can boast, because it comes only with humility, can very easily provide the other necessary clothing. Temporal things are very easily managed by Him who handles eternities.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.9

The lesson therefore which we learn from the lilies is that absolute dependence and trust. “Consider the lilies how they grow.” How do they grow?-They simply grow. They grow by the power of God in them, which they do not try to resist. You will remember that the name “Israel” was given to Jacob when he cease all his struggling against the Lord, and cast himself wholly upon the Almighty. His strength was demonstrated to be nothing, and he let the Lord support him. Now the Lord says, “I will be as the dew unto Israel; he shall blossom as the lily, and cast forth his rose as Lebanon.” Hosea 14:5. That is, “they that wait on the Lord shall renew their strength.” Their beauty will be “the beauty of holiness.” Their clothing will be not simply that which can be put on and off, but, like that of the lily, it will be the product of the growth of grace within; it will be themselves, and will endure to all eternity. E. J. WAGGONER.SITI August 14, 1901, page 515.10

June 13, 1901

October 2, 1901