then, between the boy or girl who belongs to the Lord Jesus and the one who does not. Those who believe in Jesus Christ are in this world as lilies among thorns, for the thorns represent the people who do not believe. Let us look at the beautiful white lily. How lovely it is! And God says that we who believe are “ as a lily.” The pure white petals might picture the Lord Jesus’ own righteousness which we received when we believed. You know, we were without any good thing in our lives; we had no right eousness. “ I will greatly rejoice in the Lord, . . . for he hath clothed me with the garments of salvation, he hath cov ered me with the robe of righteous ness.” The pure whiteness, too, might pic ture the cleansing that took place in our hearts when we received the Lord Jesus as Saviour. In Isaiah 1:18 we find a wonderful verse which I’m sure you would like to memorize. Read it aloud! “ Though your sins be as scar let, they shall be as white as snow.” Isn’t it wonderful to know that our sins are all washed away? A lily is delicately fragrant, too. In passing through a garden, one can often, by the lovely fragrance, know that a lily is growing there, even though it cannot be seen. The lily
makes itself known by its sweet per fume. And we, by all that we do and say, should let others know that we belong to the Lord Jesus. We are told in 2 Corinthians 2:15 that “ we are unto God a sweet savor,” or fragrance. No matter what the variety of the lily, there is always a bit of golden yellow about it somewhere. Gold is such an attractive color, especially with white! Gold seems to speak to us of glory and of the beautiful city that awaits us, with the streets of pure gold. Some day we are to share the glory of the Lord Jesus and be like Him. Then there are the fresh green leaves and stalks upholding the lily and nourishing it. Have these any message for us? They seem to say, “We are growing, growing.” And isn’t that what every boy and girl desires to do — to grow? “ Grow in grace, and in the knowledge of our Lord and Saviour Jesus Christ,” we are told in 2 Peter 3:18. And this we will be sure to do if we take time to read at least a chapter from our Bibles each day, for the Word of God is food and nour ishment to the Christian. Yes, He says we are “ as a lily,” and as we enjoy the beautiful lilies of this Easter season, shall we not desire more than ever before to be “ as a lily” for Him? —M.S.H.
As a Lily T h e pure white lily with its golden stamens and cool green leaves seems to blossom at just the right season of the year, Easter time, for what other flower could so beautifully tell the resurrection story? God teaches us in His Word that one who believes on the Lord Jesus Christ as Saviour is “ as a lily among thorns” (Song of Solomon 2:2). What a contrast there is between a lily and a thorn! There should be a great difference,
. . Give light to those that sit in darkness" — Luke 1:79
W H O w ill share in our L O R D ’S burdens fo r these relatively unevangelized and unreached m ission fields? Hundreds o f m illions in this area suffer the hunger fo r peace o f m ind and heart that Christ alone can bring. W ith ou t H im they w ill perish. O ur missionaries in the Philippines, India, Pakistan, Iran and East A frica need increased support and addi tional laborers. Christian literature projects and B ible training schools essential to evangelism lack sufficient funds. W ill you "g iv e ligh t to those that sit in darkness” ?
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THE KING'S BUSINESS
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