In this 10/3/69 lecture Neville Goddard presents Jesus Christ as an inner, universal identity rather than an external historical figure. He teaches that Christ awakens within each individual as the light of the world, bringing about resurrection and a spiritual rebirth from above. The process is described as a sequence of inner events—awakening, resurrection, and birth into a higher realm—triggered by a peculiar vibrational ‘trumpet’ centered in the mind. Goddard emphasizes that this awakening transcends time, making all scripture an unfolding mystery of our own consciousness. He affirms universal redemption, insisting that every soul—from saints to sinners—will ultimately awaken and return to oneness with the divine. The lecture concludes with a call to dwell on these inner experiences rather than outward news, inviting listeners into silent meditation on their true identity as light and life.
In all the revelations which await you, there is none so fundamental as the revelation of Jesus Christ. He cannot be known outwardly, but must unveil himself from within. This experience will be yours when your immortal eyes are opened inward, into eternity, the world of thought.
He who awakens in you is the Lord Jesus Christ, but he is unseen by the mortal eye. As an individual the world knows you by your records. They know your date of birth, your parents, your brothers and sisters. Your friends know your weaknesses and limitations, but no one can know the being who awakens within you until the revelation is theirs.
Tonight I will try to show you the Lord Jesus Christ, for he is your true identity. His most fantastic claim: “I am the light of the world” was not claimed by one little individual, but by the universal being who is the life of every child born of woman.
The mortal mind, unable to understand this statement, questioned him, asking him to tell them who he really was and he answered: “Even what I have told you from the beginning.” The beginning of what? The year 1 A.D.? No. Before that the world was, you and I were told that we would descend into and experience death. Then we would return, enhanced by reason of our experiences.
Knowing me and my mortal beginning of only a few years, you may question my words, but I am not speaking about a physical being. The Lord Jesus Christ has unveiled himself in me, yet I remain here in this body of flesh until the silver cord is snapped.
Only then can I return to the world that was mine before that the world was and receive all the glory I was promised when I agreed to enter and experience death. Who is this being I know myself to be? The Lord Jesus Christ, of which we are all one.
Now, we are told: “You are born anew through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” Here we see that our birth is conditioned upon the resurrection of Jesus Christ. You may think this happened 2,000 years ago, but John tells us in his Revelation that “Jesus Christ is the faithful witness, the first born of the dead.” Do not think of this in terms of time, but rather in order of events, for we are dealing with a mystery.
There is only one faithful witness who declares himself to be the Alpha and Omega, the beginning and the end. That witness is Jesus Christ, he who came out from the Father and came into the world to bury himself in every child born of woman. He is in you right now, identifying himself as you. And when he awakes, in you, his first act is to resurrect from the dead. This is followed by your birth from above.
When the story of Christ awakens within you, you are no better than one who will awaken tomorrow for you do not precede him, as his story does not take place in time. I am speaking of the order of events.
Listen to the words carefully: “Jesus Christ, the faithful witness, the first born of the dead.” There are two events which take place here simultaneously. “We are born anew through the resurrection of Jesus Christ from the dead.” Christ must first awaken in you, then resurrect himself from the dream in which he died before he (as you) can be born from above. Christ is in you.
He is not some being who lived 2,000 years ago, was crucified on a wooden cross, and rose from the dead for your salvation. The Christ is buried in you individually. This is the age of the awakening and everyone is going to awaken. No matter what a man (or woman) has done here he is forgiven, because God played the part and all things are moving toward the fulfillment of a predetermined end.
We are told in the 15th chapter of 1 Corinthians, the 51st verse: “We shall all be changed, in a moment, in the twinkle of an eye, for the trumpet will sound and we shall rise from the dead.” At the end of your long, long journey you will be changed, individually. This I know to be true from experience.
You are so unique that you alone hear the trumpet which causes you to awaken and brings you back into the infinite being that you really are – to play your distinct part, for no one can take your place. We shall all – not just a few, but all – be changed – in a moment, in the twinkle of an eye, for the trumpet will sound and we will awaken and rise from the dead.
What is the “trumpe”? The word means “a vibration,” and may I tell you it is the most unusual vibration you have ever felt. I have heard numberless vibrations, as you have. A concert is a series of vibrations synchronised into harmony. The piano, the violin, the cello – all are vibrations; but the trumpet Paul refers to is a peculiar vibration which is centered in the head and cannot be stopped.
When the vibration occurred in me it continued until I awoke to find myself in my skull. How long I had been there I do not know. I will go along with Blake, but I do not know from experience. I only know that a peculiar vibration awoke me. This was followed by my birth from above. And it only took a moment for the trumpet to sound and Christ, in me to awaken.
Yes, Christ is the first born, for his birth begins the series of events which continue for 42 months. And when the revelation has completed itself in you, you will still be tied to your physical body by its silver cord, so you will tell your experiences to encourage others.
Nothing in this world is really important and will prove itself to be pure nonsense. Men are given Nobel prizes, money and honors relative to their findings here which are non-existent. No one will ever find life in a test tube, for life exists only within individual man.
The day is coming when you will feel an activity within you, arrest it, and see the world stand still. Then you will know that you are life itself, and the life you now know yourself to be will never be found in any test tube.
Jesus cannot be known or proved to exist externally. Only the incurrent eyewitnesses can know him. Only those whose immortal eyes are opened inward into the world of thought will see the truth of which I speak, for I have awakened from the dream of life and know myself to be the light of the world.
This is a fantastic claim, one I know you are going to experience. The day will come when you will know you are not only the light of the world, but that you are the sender of infinite, pulsing, living light of which there is no circumference. As light you will be pure, as not a thing will be in it; no worlds, no suns, no planets – but nothing! Just you, and you are infinite light. You will see me as light, yet we will know one another as beings of love, for God is love and in that awareness we are one with God.
Everything said of Jesus Christ in scripture you are going to experience, and those whose eye is opened inward into the world of thought will see you clothed in the garments of love, of power, of wisdom, and of light.
Then, eventually everyone will return to the one being, yet all will be individualized. There is no absorption into, just union with the one being of love, power, wisdom, and light, for this one being is the Christ of scripture. And so I repeat: of all the great revelations which await us, there is none so fundamental as the unveiling of Christ in us.
Let the world do all the unlovely things it is capable of doing, remembering that behind the mask of everyone here, a being is buried who will awaken, rise, and come out. And when he does all will be forgiven, because he will know he was the one who did the unlovely acts as he wore his many masks.
In last Sunday’s New York Times Magazine I read a story written by one of Hitler’s right-hand men. In it he said: “I can’t describe it, but Hitler had the capacity to make everyone obey his will. He seemed to have no centre and was in such complete control of himself that we were like puppets to him.”
Hitler slaughtered millions, yet blamed his own people when he did not succeed, saying: “The stronger power has succeeded. They will rule now. It serves my people right.” Here is the voice of hell which is always self justification. In the end Hitler failed and blamed the people he had controlled for many years. He thought he had control forever, but he lost it, for God has planned everything as it has come out and as it will be consummated.
Hitler was used for a purpose. To us it was a horrible purpose, but – as we are told in Genesis: “You intended it for evil, but God meant it for good.” Joseph (the dreamer in you) was sold into slavery, for God knew he could be used for His purpose. The brothers intended evil against him, but God meant it for good and raised Joseph to the level of the Pharaoh, where he saved civilisation from starvation.
Read the story of Job, and once again you read of an innocent man who was used. Everyone is Job, who in the end will bring forth that which is buried within, which is the plan of redemption, to say with Job: “I have heard of thee with the hearing of the ear, but now my eye sees thee.”
After you have gone through all of the furnaces, he who is buried within you (who is your reality of Being, your true identity) will erupt like a tree coming into blossom and bear its fruit. The first fruit to appear is your awakening and your birth from above. The second great event is to discover your Fatherhood. The third occurs as you ascend back into the heavenly sphere where you were before you came down, for no one returns to heaven but he who first came down from heaven, the Son of man.
You came down from heaven. That’s why you are going to go back, enhanced by the experience of this world of hell. The fourth act is a glorious one, when the seal of approval is placed upon your return, for then you are redeemed; and when you leave this sphere you will join your brothers to become one of the watchers from above, faithfully and lovingly awaiting their return.
No one will be lost, not one. Listen carefully: “All will be changed.” Paul begins his story by saying: “Behold I tell you a mystery.” The mystery is that all will be changed. It doesn’t take long. In a moment, in the twinkle of an eye, you begin to awaken and are born from above. Those with mortal eyes cannot see spirit, but those who witness your spiritual birth will see the sign of it. That sign is a child fulfilling scripture: “Unto you a child is born,” for your spiritual birth is when God is born. At that moment he brings back his son (which is yourself) – only now you are expanded from what you were prior to your descent into this world.
You will see your witnesses and read their thoughts. In fact, their thoughts will become objectified just as yours do here. As you think, God sees your thoughts and objectifies them. He sees everything you are thinking, every-thing you have planned, and projects them for you even though God you cannot see.
Take my message to heart and try to remember what was told you before that the world was. In the last chapter of the Book of Ecclesiastes, the Preacher tells of the snapping of the silver cord and the breaking of the golden bowl and pitcher before the dust returns to the earth. Then he calls upon us to dwell upon his words for “The sayings of the wise are like goads, like pegs firmly fixed are the collected sayings which are given by one Shepherd.” One who has had the experiences tells them and they become pegs driven into the minds of many. Beyond this he warns us not to think of anything, “For of the writing and the making of many books there is no end.”
I ask you to dwell upon my experiences. Tomorrow you may be carried away with the news of the day. Although it may be very exciting, it is not important. What someone did, does not matter, and the reason it was done should not interest you. Rather you should be interested in the collective sayings of the wise, all found in scripture and given to you by one Shepherd. Dwell upon the words recorded there and try to find out what is being said.“Who are you?” they asked. “Even what I have told you from the beginning.” Yes, I am the same being who spoke to you when we all gathered together in eternity. Before we came down you and I were one. Calling you gods, Sons of the Most High, I told you that we were going to have the experience of dying and falling as one man. And then I called you princes. And one day you will know yourself to be the prince of light, the prince of love, and the prince of power, for everything recorded in scripture will be experienced by you. That is your destiny.
It would be my pleasure to pass my immortal eyes on to you who are here, but I cannot do it from this level. It must be done from a higher level, done with the consent of the watchers in eternity, those who are already redeemed from this world. It seems stupid for a little man, weak and limited, to claim to be infinite, living, pulsing light; yet those to whom I have given my eyes have seen me as the prince of light, the prince of love, and the prince of power and wisdom.
I know myself to be the Lord Jesus Christ, yet I also know that I will continue to remain here in this mortal frame until the silver cord is snapped and the golden bowl and pitcher are broken. Only then can I return to those I have always known, those who are eagerly waiting for my return from the world of death.
So it is from death to life, from darkness to light, from bondage to freedom. We voluntarily came down and assumed this bondage of flesh. As we entered the world of darkness we forgot we were the light of the world. Eternally alive, we entered the world of death. We took it on in confidence that we possessed the power and the wisdom to return.
Everyone here will go back, regardless of what you have done, what you are doing, or what you are planning to do. Everyone, including Hitler and Stalin, including every monster who ever lived – all will be redeemed, for they were used for a purpose. No, you don’t love the individual who played the part, but beyond the mask of the body is God. One day the incurrent eyes will be yours and you will see the Lord Jesus Christ behind that mask.
Jesus cannot be proved as having ever existed or known by any outward means. No matter where you search, or what the priests tell you, you will never find any genealogy of Jesus Christ, for he is not to be found outward-ly. Only those whose immortal eyes are open into the world of thought can find him. They know the truth concerning Jesus Christ from experience, and in the world of men they will share their story for those who hear to believe or disbelieve.
When John told his story he said: “I am a witness to what I have heard and seen with my own eyes; which I have handled with my own hands concerning the word of life.” Now, John is not some professor who is trying to give society a convincing set of arguments. Rather he is simply telling what he heard and saw in a region beyond that which can be explained with the rational mind. He invites everyone who hears his story of redemption to believe him, but he allows the individual to decide whether he will accept or reject it, just as I do.
Now, the Christ that you accept on faith comes to you as one unknown, yet one who in some mysterious manner lets you experience who he is. In his letter to the Galatians, Paul asks this question: “Did you receive the spirit by works of the law or by hearing with faith? Are you so foolish, having received the spirit by faith, are you now ending with the flesh?”
Now I ask you: are you thinking of Jesus as a being of flesh and blood when you know that flesh and blood cannot inherit the kingdom of heaven? Are you thinking of a physical saviour? Didn’t you receive the spirit by hearing the story and accepting it with faith, for your acceptance was the spirit. If after hearing this incredible story you believe it, go your way and it will unfold within you. But if you reject it, your rejection will simply delay its experience, for you are destined to know the truth which will set you free from this bondage to decay.
All of the things that man is now discovering concerning the secret of life aren’t so at all. I tell you, you are the light of the world. One day you will come upon a scene, arrest it, and stop all of the intentions of those there. Then you will know that everyone is dead and you alone are alive and life itself. And as you release their activity in you, the scene will take on life once again, and then you will know from experience that you surely are the light of the world.
Now let us go into the silence.
Neville Goddard’s core thesis is that Jesus Christ is not to be worshipped as a distant historical savior but experienced as the innate divine presence within each person. By equating Christ with individual consciousness, he reframes traditional Christian doctrine into a psychological and metaphysical paradigm. The focus on inward revelation challenges believers to look beyond external rituals and scriptures to the world of thought where true transformation occurs.
Goddard details the order of spiritual events—awakening, resurrection, and birth from above—emphasizing that they unfold in a non-temporal sequence. His description of Paul’s ‘trumpet’ as a unique vibration in the mind bridges mystical experience with experiential psychology. This vibrational awakening serves both as a personal catalyst and as proof that spiritual rebirth is immediate and intrinsic, rather than a distant future hope.
The lecture extends universalism by asserting that every soul, regardless of past actions, plays a role in divine purpose and will be redeemed. Historic figures like Hitler and Stalin become instruments in a larger cosmic drama that leads all beings back to one unified consciousness. This inclusive vision underscores Goddard’s belief in the benevolent design of life, where even apparent evil propels individual growth and collective evolution.
Scriptural references—from 1 Corinthians to Genesis and Job—are repurposed as allegories of inner transformation rather than literal events. Goddard positions the imagination as the organ of creation, inviting practitioners to ‘arrest’ inner mental scenes and reshape them. This methodology anticipates his later teachings on the law of assumption, where believed inner states manifest outwardly.
Ultimately, ‘The Light of the World’ functions as both doctrinal exposition and guided meditation, urging listeners to cultivate silent, inner awareness. Goddard’s appeal to dwell on the ‘collected sayings of the wise’ over transient world events reinforces his emphasis on mental discipline. In doing so, he charts a practical path toward realizing Christ consciousness here and now, uniting theology with transformative self-practice.
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