Section 16

in principle, with the tree of life resulting in life and the tree of knowledge resulting in death.

John 2:11 says that in this beginning of signs that Jesus did in Cana of Galilee, He also mani fested His glory, and His disciples believed into Him. The Lord's divinity was manifested in His changing death into life.

MARY SIGNIFYING THE NATURAL MAN

In the incident of the marriage feast in Cana, Mary, the mother of Jesus, signifies the natural man, which has nothing to do with life and which must be subdued by the divine life (vv. 3-5). When the wine was exhausted, the natural man came out and even prayed to the Lord. When Mary told the Lord, "They have no wine," He said to her, "Woman, what do I have in this that concerns you? My hour has not yet come" (vv. 3-4). Often we are exactly like the mother of Jesus. We are today's Mary, praying as a natural man accord ing to our natural life. Frequently, the Lord will allow the wine in certain situations to run out in order that He may have an opportunity to change death into life. In such a case the natural man will pray, "O Lord, do something to rescue the situation." If you pray in this way, the Lord will turn to you and say, "What have I to do with you?

You have nothing to do with Me in this matter." Nearly all of us would act the same way Mary did. What then should we do? We should not do any thing. Let the death come to the surface and be exposed. Then the Lord Jesus will come in.

Quite often I have received letters from indi viduals or from churches who are crying for help, saying, "Brother, we are so weak. Please come to help us." Whenever I have received such a letter, I said, "You are weak, but you are not yet dead. Even if you are dead, you have not yet begun to smell." We need to wait until the death situation comes to the surface; then the Lord Jesus will come in to change death into life. Everything that the Lord does is according to this principle of chang ing death into life.

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