"The trees of the Lord are full of sap; the cedars of Lebanon, which he hath planted" (Psa. 104:16).  

     On the mountains of Lebanon stand the mighty cedars that God has planted and they are all full of sap.  They are full of vitality and always green even in the middle of winter.  (This speaks of life, eternal life.)  The Master Gardener has planted them so they have no need of human help.  He waters them, keeps them, and protects them from harm.  Their roots grow deep and wide; their flourishing and majestic condition is the praise and glory of God, alone.

     And so it is with every child of God.  We are His garden; He has planted us Himself and promised us that He would be as "the dew of Israel" to us and that we "will grow as the lily and cast forth our roots as Lebanon" (Hos. 14:5).

     The lily grows fast and well, but it soon fades and is easily pulled up; therefore God has promised His people that they shall have the beauty of the lily, and the propagation of the lily, but their roots will be as the cedars - deeply rooted, hidden underground, spreading out very widely, not pulled up easily.  We must grow down (humble and meek) if we are to grow up into our Lord's image.  

     Spiritual growth mainly consists in the growth of the root which is out of sight.  The more we depend upon and draw sap and virtue from our Lord, the more stedfast and resolved we will be to do His will thereby "casting forth our roots."  

     God's cedars will never be pulled up and left to die (Amos 9:15).  He is keeping them, preserving them, and protecting them so that no harm will ever come to them.

     Praise the Lord fruitful trees and all cedars (Psa. 148:9).  Away with self-esteem - to God be the glory forever!  Our worth is in Him.  We are only His dust, and to dust we shall return (Gen. 2:7,19).  

     He can break the cedars with one spoken word (Psa. 29:5).  The object of lightening is always the highest tree.  Let us not get too high and mighty or we may hear the words spoken to us that were spoken to King Nebuchadnezzar (Dan. 4:19-37). 

     "Watch and pray, that ye enter not into temptation; the spirit indeed is willing but the flesh is weak" (Matt. 26:41).