When we approach 1 Peter 1 through Neville Goddard’s method, we step away from literal readings. Instead, we discover a profound symbolic description of the inner journey: the awakening of imagination, the evolution of consciousness, and the purification of faith.
Neville taught that the Bible is a psychological drama, not secular history. Every character and event describes movements within your own mind — your imagination, which he declared to be God.
Let’s explore 1 Peter 1 in that light.
Born Again to a Living Hope
“Praise be to the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, who in his great mercy gave us new birth into a living hope, by the coming again of Jesus Christ from the dead.”
(1 Peter 1:3, BBE)
Neville would say this "new birth" is the moment you awaken to the truth that imagination is God. It is not a moral or religious rebirth, but a radical shift of identity. You no longer see yourself as a powerless creature battling external conditions; you realise yourself to be the operant power, the creative "I AM."
An Inheritance Incorruptible
“And a heritage fair, holy and for ever new, waiting in heaven for you.”
(1 Peter 1:4, BBE)
This "inheritance" is not a far-off reward in the sky. It is the eternal creative power within you — imagination itself. It cannot fade or decay because it is not of this world. It is your inner wellspring, from which all external manifestations flow.
Trials That Refine
“Though now, for a little time, you may be sad with various trials.”
(1 Peter 1:6, BBE)
Neville taught that awakening does not eliminate trials. Instead, these trials test and purify your faith in imagination. Contrary appearances, fears, and delays all function as the "furnace" refining your loyalty to your inner vision. They force you to return again and again to your assumption until it becomes your natural state.
The Trial of Your Faith
“So that the true metal of your faith, being of much greater value than gold which, though it comes to an end, is tested by fire, may come to light in praise and glory and honour at the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
(1 Peter 1:7, BBE)
Faith, to Neville, is loyalty to the unseen reality. Just as gold is tested and purified in fire, your assumptions are tested in experience. Each challenge faced and overcome strengthens your conviction that imagination truly creates reality.
Receiving the End of Faith
“For so you have the true end of your faith, even the salvation of your souls.”
(1 Peter 1:9, BBE)
Salvation, for Neville, is not a promise of heaven after death. It is the moment you realise, here and now, that your imagination is creating your world. To save your soul is to redeem your imagination from bondage to appearances and reclaim it as the sovereign creative power.
The Prophets Spoke of This
“Of which salvation the prophets made search and inquiry, searching with care what time or what sort of time the Spirit of Christ which was in them was pointing to...”
(1 Peter 1:10-11, BBE)
The "prophets" here are not historical messengers but symbolic aspects of your own mind. They represent the faculties within you that hold to your chosen state of consciousness.
These inner "prophets" imaginatively stand in grace — the constant act of forgiving every stray thought or contrary appearance that tries to pull you away from your assumption. They are always calling you back to alignment, encouraging you to overlook doubts and stay loyal to your highest vision.
Gird Up the Loins of Your Mind
“So make your minds ready, keep on the watch, and put all your hope for grace on the revelation of Jesus Christ.”
(1 Peter 1:13, BBE)
This vivid phrase means: discipline and prepare your imagination. Neville would say, "Live in the end boldly." Guard your inner conversations, occupy the mental state of your wish fulfilled completely — not partially or hesitantly.
Be Holy
“But be holy in every part of your life, as he who has sent you is holy.”
(1 Peter 1:15, BBE)
To be "holy" in Neville’s language means to be set apart in consciousness. Separate yourself from the collective belief in limitation and external causation. Live entirely from the premise that imagination is the only reality.
Ransomed by the Precious Blood of Christ
“Being conscious that you have been made free from the foolish ways of life handed down from your fathers, not with things like silver or gold, but with the blood of Christ, as of a clean and unmarked lamb.”
(1 Peter 1:18-19, BBE)
Neville taught that Christ is your own wonderful human imagination. The "blood" represents life itself — the creative power that gives reality its living form.
The "vain conversation received by tradition" means inherited beliefs in outer causation and struggle. You are "redeemed" when you abandon these external dependencies and trust fully in your inner creative power.
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