What does each part of Les's plant analogy (bulb, stem, bud, flower) represent?
In the analogy, Genesis is the bulb where everything began. The stem represents the Old Testament period of progressive revelation. The bud is Christ at His first advent, ready to bloom. The flower is Christ in full revelation, especially through the revelations given to the apostle Paul.
Les teaches that Genesis is the bulb because it is where everything began. The stem is the Old Testament, where revelation grows and leaves out progressively, revealing things never revealed before. The bud is Christ at His first advent, ready to come into full bloom and fulfill the Old Testament covenant promises. But Israel cut off the bud, and even after God sovereignly put it back on through the post-resurrection and Acts period, Israel kept rejecting it. Instead of clipping it off again, God raised up the apostle Paul, and through the revelations given to Paul the full flower is seen. Christ is the flower, not Paul, but the revelation is unique, found nowhere else in Scripture.