Product Placement in the Garden

Matthew 6:28-29
“And why take ye thought for raiment? Consider the lilies of the field, how they grow; they toil not, neither do they spin: and yet I say unto you, That even Solomon in all his glory was not arrayed like one of these.”

The purpose of an advertising billboard would be to grab the attention of the passerby – or, in today’s world, the person driving by. One way of attracting the attention of prospective customers might be to use bright colors. Suppose that the more brightly colored paint was more expensive. The increased business would be mitigated against by a greater cost involved in getting the necessary paint or ink.

This is the sort of situation faced by a flowering plant. The flowers are the organs of the plant used for reproduction. The plant needs some sort of mediator to transfer male pollen cells from one flower to the stamen of another. The mediator is a pollinator and would typically be an insect or occasionally a mammal or a bird. The flower has to attract the pollinator, who does not visit the plant out of the goodness of his heart. Therefore, the petals of the flower become advertising billboards. Different shades and brightness of hue will attract different insects.

However, what is not often considered is the amount of energy expended by the plant to produce such a colorful display. Consider that, in the early supposed evolution of a flowering plant, the plant would have had to use up a lot of energy to attract a pollinator. What if it hadn’t worked? The weakened plant would have wasted energy without any reproductive advantage. That clearly would not have occurred. In fact, from whatever angle you examine this, there is no evolutionary mechanism for the brightness of flowers. Instead, this is a clear design feature, illustrating the greatness of our Creator.

We are humbled and grateful, Lord, by Your great and wise provision for us because You consider us more important than the beautiful flowers of the field. Amen.

Author: Paul F. Taylor

Ref: Evolution of flowers, , accessed 8/29/2017. Image: Adobe Stock images, licensed to author.