5在整个宇宙中，除了神以外，没有甚么比死更有权能。（歌八6。）死的权能太大，以致无人能抵抗。惟有复活的神能胜过死。每当死临到人，死是忍心、坚强和残酷的，不顾你的妻子、儿女或家庭。所以，每一个人都怕死，没有人会自愿到死地去。谁会心甘情愿的接受死?但在这两章中，我们看见主耶稣甘心乐意到死地去。祂决定到园子里，将祂自己交在人手中。祂知道逮捕的人要到园子里捉拿祂，祂却故意到那里去被人逮捕。祂这样作，表明祂乃是生命。生命得彰显惟一的路是进入死。在死里并藉著死，真实的生命就得了彰显。在十二章二十四节，主说到祂自己是一粒麦子。我们如何知道在一粒麦子里面有生命？乃是藉著将这麦粒置于死地。藉著将麦粒埋在地里，就是置于死地，我们便看见生命长出来了。因此，这麦粒中的生命藉著死得了彰显。你若将一粒沙子埋在地里，没有甚么会长出来，因为其中没有生命。因此，死是生命得著彰显的凭藉。我们已经指出，主耶稣在这两章所经历的每一件事，都是死亡的一面。但主既是生命，就不怕死亡。祂从不受死的惊吓或困扰，反而得胜的应付每次死亡的威胁和攻击。甚至当门徒想要救祂的时候，祂还告诉他们不要抗拒，说，『收刀入鞘罢！我父所给我的那杯，我岂可不喝?』（约十八11。）主耶稣问那些来捉拿祂的人要找谁?他们回答说，『拿撒勒人耶稣。』祂说，『我是。』（约十八5～6。）当祂说『我是，』捉拿祂的人因这话而害怕，『就退后，倒在地上。』（约十八6。）这证明主若不愿将自己交给他们，他们绝无法捉住祂。再者，当兵丁捉住主时，主还从容、冷静的照顾门徒。祂说，『你们若找我，就让这些人走罢。』（约十八8。）这一切都启示主是在死亡中所彰显的生命，死亡对祂无可奈何。
5Throughout the whole universe, nothing other than God is more powerful than death (S. S. 8:6). It is so powerful that no one can resist it. Only the God of resurrection can overcome it. Whenever death comes to a person, it is merciless, strong, and cruel. It does not care about your wife, children, or family. Therefore, everyone is afraid of death and no one would go into it voluntarily. Who would willingly offer himself to be visited by death? But in these two chapters we see that the Lord Jesus went into death willingly. He chose to go to the garden and to deliver Himself into the hands of the people. Knowing that His captors would come to the garden to seize Him, He went there deliberately for the purpose of being arrested. In doing this He showed that He is life. The only way in which life can be manifested is by entering into death. In and by death, the real life is manifested. In 12:24 the Lord referred to Himself as a grain of wheat. How do we know that there is life in a grain of wheat? We know it by putting the grain of wheat into death. By burying the grain of wheat in the earth, that is, in death, we see that life comes out. Thus, the life in the grain of wheat is manifested through death. If you bury a grain of sand in the earth, nothing will come out because there is no life in it. Hence, death is the means by which life is manifested. As we have pointed out, everything the Lord Jesus experienced in these two chapters was an aspect of death. But the Lord, being life, was not afraid to die. He was never frightened nor troubled by death. Rather, He victoriously met every threat and attack of death. Even when the disciples were attempting to rescue Him, He told them not to resist, saying, “Put the sword into the sheath; the cup which the Father has given Me, shall I not drink it?” (18:11). When the Lord Jesus asked those who came to arrest Him whom they were seeking and they answered, “Jesus the Nazarene,” He said, “I am” (18:5-6). When He said, “I am,” His captors, terrified by this word, “drew back and fell to the ground” (18:6). This proves that if the Lord had been unwilling to deliver Himself up to them, they could never have arrested Him. Moreover, as the soldiers were arresting the Lord, He easily and calmly took care of the disciples, saying, “If therefore you are seeking Me, let these go away” (18:8). All this reveals that the Lord was the life manifested in death and that death could do nothing to Him.