In this lecture Neville Goddard invites us to become living witnesses to the truth of scripture by directly experiencing its metaphors as inner realities. He focuses on the image of the Rock, explaining how when one unexpectedly ‘falls upon’ this Rock within, it shatters and then reassembles into a higher, perfect self. Goddard illustrates this through his own meditative vision of a quartz Rock fragmenting and reforming into a majestic version of himself. He emphasizes that every word of God is true on a higher level, urging listeners not to alter scripture but to test it in their own imaginal practices. The lecture includes a personal anecdote about his daughter’s success story, demonstrating how faith in one’s own creative imagination yields tangible results. Goddard also explores biblical motifs such as resurrection, the fatherhood of God, the ascension of the Son of Man, and the descent of the Holy Spirit, each paralleled by inner experiences. Ultimately, he challenges his audience to awaken to their own divine nature and to live out the Bible as a testimony of self-discovery.
…in which he asked the question, “Have I not told you from the beginning and declared it? Is there a God besides me? There is no God, I know not any” (Is. 44:8). Now the word translated God in the first is the Elohim; the second is singular, and it’s translated in the Revised Standard Version as Rock. So when we read it in the Revised Standard Version “Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock, I know not any,” we search the scriptures to find out what is it all about, what is this Rock of which he speaks?
Well, tonight, you and I are called upon to be witnesses, to witness to the truth of God’s word. For we are told, “Every word of God is true. Do not add to it lest he rebuke you, and find that you are a liar” (Prov. 30:6). So do not add to the words, just leave them just as they are until you actually have the experience of the words of God. Now what is this Rock of which he speaks here? In the 20th chapter of the Book of Luke a question is asked and the words are put into the mouth of Christ Jesus, and the words are, What does this text of scripture mean—and then he mentions the stone—“the stone that the builders rejected that becomes the chief cornerstone?” (verses 1-7). Then Paul in his 9th chapter of his letter to the Romans, “Behold, I am laying in Zion a stone.” He tells us it will be a stumbling stone to some and it will fall upon others. But the stone suddenly turns into a person: “He who believes in him will not be put to shame” (verse 33). I am laying in Zion a stone, and he who believes in him will not be put to shame.
Now, you and I are called to testify, to witness to all these things. Now, first of all, let us see what is a witness. A witness is one who has firsthand knowledge of a fact or an event. We are told in Deuteronomy, the 19th chapter, that unless there are two witnesses or three witnesses then a charge cannot be sustained (verse 15). There must be at least two, but, alright, have three or more, but not less than two witnesses to sustain a charge. Well, if two different persons agree in testimony then it is conclusive. We are told, “Write it, inscribe it in a book that it may be for the time to come as a witness forever.” We have that witness today in the form of our Bible. You who are not familiar with it possibly or you want to check it, the 30th chapter of the Book of Isaiah: “Inscribe it in a book, because it will be for the time to come as a witness forever” (verse 8). So we have an external witness called the Bible. You and I must now be the second witness; you and I must experience scripture. As we experience scripture, we form the second witness. And we stand self-judged. If our witness, our experience coincides with that of scripture, then we know how true God’s word is.
Now, can I really stand here tonight and testify to the truth of this strange statement concerning a Rock? “You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you and forgot the God who gave you birth” (Deut. 32:18). I begotten of a Rock? “You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you and forgot the God who gave you birth.” And they are associated, the Rock and God. Can I stand before you tonight and swear I have had that experience and tell you that it is true beyond the wildest dream of man? I can. So I’m called upon to testify to the truth of scripture. Here, what is this Rock? We are told in the 20th chapter of the Book of Luke: If this stone falls upon you it will crush you. If you should fall upon it, it will break you into pieces (verse 18). The word fall is “to alight; to come upon it suddenly, unexpectedly.” Well, one day, sitting in the Silence, thinking of nothing in particular, turning my attention inwards, as always happens with me, all the dark caverns of the brain began to grow luminous. As they grew luminous, suddenly before my eyes came the rock, a quartz. I never thought anything of it, just looked at it, and suddenly it shattered, it fragmented into numberless pieces. Then it was gathered together by some invisible force or hands, and as it was gathered together it formed itself into a lovely seated, meditating form. As I looked at this meditating being, I discovered I’m looking at myself: I am the Rock that was fragmented.
I came upon it. As I’m told in the 20th chapter of the Book of Luke, If you come upon it—and it’s called “if you fall upon it”—and the word fall is “to alight, to alight upon; to simply come upon, simply come upon it unexpectedly.” You come upon it and suddenly it fragments. But you are told in scripture you are broken. Well, if it that is broken into numberless pieces now are gathered together, all these pieces are gathered together and forming itself into one being, and I am the being that I’m looking at, then can I deny that I was broken? I’m looking at my own being and the being is the most majestic being that one could ever conceive—a strength of character, a beauty beyond the wildest dream of man, majesty, you couldn’t conceive of such majesty, all in this wonderful being that is meditating me. And I realized then that he is my very being. It glowed like the sun.
So here is this wonderful Rock spoken of in scripture, and everyone will have this experience. You are called upon to simply not touch the word of scripture, leave it just as it is. Do not add to it, do not take from it, leave it. What is it trying to tell me? Here are the words, “Is there a God besides me? There is no Rock besides me, I know no other.” You mean I must have such faith in myself, such complete confidence in my own wonderful imaginal acts that these are creative? I must! There is no other. I must actually believe in this Rock. And I saw the Rock…and the Rock fragmented, reformed; and when it reformed itself, it formed itself into a form, and I am that form. Here is a being looking at me and I’m looking at him…he’s not looking at me…I’m looking at it. Because it’s in profound meditation, deep, deep meditation: It’s dreaming me. And when it comes to the end and the whole journey is over, I am he.The journey begins with the call of Abraham, this wonderful state of faith. As we are told, “I told you from the beginning,” said he, “Have I not told you from of old?” Everything was foretold man, and the state called Abraham is the one that could say, I believe the most incredible thing in the world, I believe it; and then I enter the state called Abraham, and I move through the most horrible dream. This is all a dream. It comes to a climax and fulfillment in the little inn in Bethlehem, that’s the climax. It comes from Abraham who believes the most impossible thing to the climax of the little inn in Bethlehem. Everyone is going to have this experience.
Now, before we testify to other things tonight, let me tell you one simple little story concerning this fragmentation. How you and I…right now you must hear it and respond.You may not believe it. That is also stressed in scripture, that man is free to reject it completely or to accept it.If you accept it, go all out and let no one disturb it, no one. If you really believe that this Rock is your own being and there is no other God—when you say I am, that’s God, and there is no other God— believe it implicitly. I have experienced it. I saw the Rock fragment itself, gather together, form itself into the form of a meditating being, and I am looking at myself, and he is the one meditating me.I can suggest a change in pattern; I cannot change the ultimate dream. For you and I in the beginning, as we entered into that state called Abraham, we agreed to dream in concert, and we will not violate that covenant.All of us agreed to dream in concert. But within the dream I can change and modify certain states. But I am called upon to tell every person in this world that they can change anything within the framework of this little field in which we now operate.
Now let me be very, very personal. I told you the story of my daughter who when everyone tried to help her failed. They loved her dearly and tried to get her into certain jobs. All the doors were open, but there was no job, and on her own she answered a little ad, just a little box number to the L.A. Times. They responded and she got the job with Prudential Life, and they started her at a hundred and ten a week, her first little job, she’s never worked before.But on one of these many doors that opened prior to this, one lady said to her in a very insolent way, “What makes you think you can come in here and get a job in the script department before you have any experience?” When she came home that night, she was really burned up because of the attitude of this one who interviewed her. “What makes you think you can come in here and do these things?” And she said to us, “What must someone do to get a job? Here I’ve graduated from college, I’ve majored in English, I want to write, and this is what she told me, ‘Go and get something published before you can dare come in here.’”
Alright, there’s a lady present tonight…whether she knows this story or not I do not know, a very dear friend of ours…and she took my daughter into her confidence and told her a story of a horse, a blind horse that she owned, the family owned, that was brought into the High Sierras, and this other horse that was not blind would bring it down when the snows began to fall; and bring it down through all these crevices and all these rocks, all the way down to safety. My daughter went home and banged that story out, just in synopsis form, moved beyond measure, and then said to me, “Daddy, post this for me to Disney.” Alright, I think I’ll register it for you, so I did. And today, this very day, came a letter from Disney accepting the story, asking her to name her price and saying, “You must remember that it will take a lot of professional work to bring it to maturity,” but they liked the story and they want it, and asking her to name her price. So if she only got one dollar, at least she has a check from Disney for the story, and they will undoubtedly give her credit because it’s the idea that she presented. She can go back to the same woman and say, “Alright, you want some professional recognition, here it is.”
To whom did she turn? She didn’t turn to me; I never saw the script. Didn’t turn to her mother; her mother never saw the script. Didn’t turn to anyone. To whom did she turn?—that Rock that begot us. “You were unmindful of the Rock that begot you and forgot the God who gave you birth.” The Rock is God. I saw it. I saw the Rock inside, I fell upon it, and then the Rock fragmented. It gathered itself together in to a form, the human form, and here it was in deep, profound meditation. As I looked at it, I’m looking at myself, I am the Rock. There is no other God.That being is meditating me. That being—-looking just like you, raised to the nth degree of beauty and perfection—-is meditating you.You and I are the Elohim. We are the gods who agreed in the beginning to dream this dream in concert, and then we forgot the being that we are.
Well, that’s alright. May I tell you, the crowning infamy is not that you and I forgot God, but to apologize to anyone for the faith we have in God. All of the wise people of the world, they’re always apologizing for their faith in God. The wiser they get in the eyes of the world the more remote they become from this faith in God; there is no God to them. Half the world, two thirds of the world deny the existence of a God, and a very large section of the remaining third have little icons that they make and call that God. That’s not God. There is no God but your own wonderful human Imagination; that’s the only God. And when you see it, and you come upon it and you stumble upon this—-as the word fall means “to light upon”—-unexpectedly you light upon it, and here it is a rock, this huge quartz, and before your eyes it fragments. And before your eyes it gathers itself together forms itself in to a form. You look at it and you stand amazed that you’re looking at yourself, only glorified beyond the wildest dream of man. It’s yourself and he is meditating you.
You can modify his dream by wishing for wealth at the moment you may be impoverished, wishing for recognition when at the moment you’re unknown, wishing for an open door to get in and write a script when they all are closed against you. So don’t take it out on anyone. She drove my Vicki to go home and bat that thing out, and send it off in this amateurish way to have it accepted. So here is acceptance of a script. And the lady who gave her the idea happens to be here this night. Whether she’s heard it before this meeting, I do not know. It only happened today. And what she’s batting out now, I don’t know…maybe another Shakespeare ___(??). But I mean, this is the concept of this Rock that we are. There is nothing but God. But don’t think of a “him”—I’m speaking of you. Listen to the words, the Rock becomes a person: “I am laying in Zion a stone, and he who believes in him will not be put to shame.” I’m laying a stone…and suddenly a stone becomes a person…and the “him” becomes the being who is reading it. The whole vast Bible is about you. There is nothing in that book but you, and may I tell you, there’s nothing in the world that is not in that book. If it’s not in the book, it’s non-existent. That’s the story of scripture.
Now, let us now testify this night to other aspects of the great story, the 82nd chapter of the Book of Psalms. And here in this 82nd chapter we read that “God has taken his place in the divine council, in the midst of the gods he holds judgment” (verse 1). Is that true? May I tell you, I know from experience that is true; for I was taken in Spirit into that divine council and stood in the presence of the Ancient of Days, infinite love. Infinite love asked me a very simple question, “What is the greatest thing in the world?” and I answered,“Faith, hope and love, these three abide, but the greatest of these is love.”At that, he embraced me and we fused and became one body, one with infinite love who is God. So I can say to you standing here, I know that God is man. I don’t care what the whole vast world will tell me, I know God is man and that man is infinite love. You can’t conceive until you are embraced by him what such love is. And from that union you are never divorced. You are sent off to tell the story supported by that memory, but you are never separated from that love. So I know the truth of that statement of the 82nd Psalm that “God takes his place in the divine council, in the midst of the gods he holds judgment.” You are the gods. We are the Elohim and we are called, one by one, into that divine council and asked a very simple question. So that 13th chapter of 1st Corinthians is true; for when it comes to the summary and names all these things, it summarizes all the talents and all the powers of the world, and then it comes down to love is the greatest of them all. So he asked me a very simple question, “What is the greatest thing in the world?” and I answered correctly. Having answered correctly I was embraced by him. So I know that that is true.
Now, return ___(??) to the Book of Luke where he’s speaking now of bringing man forward towards a new concept of life altogether. First of all, the Pharisees asked a question, and then come the Sadducees; and the Sadducees are asking questions that they do not believe. They ask the question concerning resurrection. They said, “Moses in the law said that if a man marries and dies leaving no children, well then, if he has a brother, the brother should marry the widow to raise up offspring. Well, there were seven brothers; the first married and he died leaving no offspring; and the second took the widow and he died; then the third took her, and finally seven took her, and they all died leaving no offspring, and eventually she died. Whose wife is she in the resurrection?” Then he said, “The sons of this age, they marry and they are given in marriage, but those who are accounted worthy to attain to that age, to the resurrection from the dead, they neither marry, nor are they given in marriage, for they cannot die anymore. They are sons of God and sons of the resurrection” (Luke 20:27-36).
Now, I know from experience…I have had that experience, actually resurrected from the dead. It’s not at all as churches teach it. Hasn’t a thing to do with what the world tells you. I am only speaking from this platform of you. And know who you are?—you are Jesus Christ. There is only Jesus Christ in the world. Jesus Christ became us that we may become as he is. Jesus Christ is the power and the wisdom of God” (1 Cor. 1:24). And the power and the wisdom of God actually sunk itself or emptied itself or limited itself to take upon itself the limitations called man. In this limitation it travels for these unnumbered years—Blake calls it 6,000 years. The journey regardless of the years, the journey starts in Abraham and climaxes in the inn in Bethlehem. So I know from experience the climax. And the resurrection precedes that little picture of the inn only by moments. You awaken in a tomb and the tomb is your skull. You come out of your skull and find yourself in an inn. The inn, a very simple, very modest inn, and in this, here is the Christ child wrapped, just as you’re told, in swaddling clothes. It’s put into your hands and like Simeon you rejoice because you know now, “Let your servant depart in peace” (Luke 2:29). You’ve served him faithfully, served yourself faithfully, and now let your servant depart in peace. For I have held in my hands the infant Christ which is a symbol of my own redemption, my own, I would say, release from this world of recurrence. So that, I can testify to that as I stand before you.
I can testify to the fatherhood of God, for no one in this world will ever know truth, God the Father, unless it’s revealed to him by the Son. And the Son of God in biblical language is David: “Thou art my son, today I have begotten thee” (Ps. 2:7). And so, David comes into your world and David calls you Father. And there is no shadow of a doubt of this relationship. You know him more intimately as your son than you know anyone in this world. I who love my daughter Vicki dearly, and I trust my wife implicitly that I did sire that form called Vicki—but the relationship between Vicki and myself, dear as it is, is not as intimate as the relationship between David and myself. I know David so intimately…it was always so…before the beginning of the world this relationship was established. And then came this forgetfulness; I forgot the Rock that begot me. Then comes that very end of the journey, and when you come to the end of the journey, David comes back into your world, and here is your only begotten son. You know him so intimately and you love him beyond the wildest dream—all your whole spring of love rushes towards him, and it’s returned from David. So I know the truth of that statement in the 2nd Psalm, the 7th verse: “Thou art my son, today I have begotten thee.”
So I can testify to this—the outside word called the Bible, that’s one, and my inner experience parallels it. So I brought the two witnesses and if two different persons agree in testimony, it is conclusive. And so, I have the testimony to match that of scripture. So I know today beyond all doubt of the reality of the fatherhood of God, that I am truly that Father. So I can say with the 14th chapter of John: “When you see me, you have seen the Father. You ask me to show you the Father? Have I been so long with you and you do not know me? He who sees me sees the Father; how then can you say, ‘Show me the Father’” (verse 9). Everyone is going to have this experience, therefore, in the end everyone having had that experience will be the same Father and we will be this compound unity that makes one God. And we’ll understand that greatest of all commandments, “Hear, O Israel: the Lord our God is one Lord” (Deut. 6:4). The I AM, our I AMs, is one I AM. This is a compound unity; all of us together form the I AM. But each must have the experience of being father; for the I AM is the father of David, and everyone must have the experience of being that father. And you can’t know it unless David calls you Father.
And now the story of the ascension, I can testify to that. I can witness to the fact that the Son of man must ascend as the serpent ascended when man departed from Egypt. The Son of man must ascend just as the serpent did; and when he does ascend he ascends in the manner of the serpent (John 3:13). And that, I can attest to that, I’ve experienced it. I can attest to the fact that the temple of God which is man…as you’re told, “Ye are the temple of the living God” (1Cor. 3:16), and “the curtain of the temple must be split in two, from top to bottom.” (Mat. 27:51). And that I have experienced…the top to the bottom, from the top of my skull to the base of my spine. I know this day what it is to be saved by the blood of God; for when you are split in two you behold at the base of your spine this pool of golden light. It’s liquid, moving, living gold, unalloyed. And you know it’s yourself. You fuse with it; and as you fuse with it, you move up in the serpentine form right into your skull. And that I can attest to that.
I also can attest to the fact what he does when he completes his work and unveils it and is satisfied with what he has done, he descends upon that work in bodily form as a dove. So he comes down in the form of a dove, and he descends upon you and smothers you with affection, kissing you all over your face, the top of your head, your neck, all over from your neck up, and completely smothers you. There is a voice who does say to you—not what you read in scripture, it wasn’t my experience—-but there is a voice and the voice does say to you, “He loves you.” Scripture records it “This is my beloved Son, in whom I am well pleased” (Mat. 3:16). But there are many modifications of that phrase in scripture; none of them agree, and none can really be superimposed one upon the other. I will give you my own experience: There is a voice and a very objective voice, because she stands at your left, and she does speak and she makes a statement “He loves you.” Then you reply… it’s obvious that he loves me because you couldn’t deny the smothering of this affection of the dove that moves all over your face. Then she tells you what is not recorded in scripture, and so far I have not found it in recorded scripture. It may be in Apocryphal scripture, I do not know. But she said to me, “They avoid man because man gives off the most offensive odor, and to avoid the odor they avoid man. But he so loved you he penetrated the ring of offense, and came down to demonstrate his love for you.” Now, that I have not found in scripture. I only know the dove does come down and rests upon you and smothers you with love.
What I am trying to get over to you this night is that you are the Rock spoken of in scripture. I have experienced it. And that Rock when you light upon it fragments itself, as told. You’re told in scripture you are broken, well, you are broken. If the Rock breaks, and then you see the Rock reassemble itself into human form, and you are the form into which it is reassembled, was it not you that broke? So you’re told, “If anyone lights upon it”—-the word is called falls; the word “falls” means “to alight or alight upon, to come upon suddenly.” So if you do come upon it suddenly, then you are broken in pieces. But who is broken in pieces? The Rock was broken in pieces. But am I the Rock? Yes. Because I saw the Rock before my eyes…then reassemble all of these broken pieces into this wonderful human form, the most glorious vision; and I am looking at myself. So I was broken into pieces when I lit upon the Rock. How true scripture is! And then you look at this glorious being, majesty beyond the wildest dream. And then you return to the world of Caesar to tell it to anyone who will hear it. Alright, some will hear it and believe it; others will hear it and deny it. It’s entirely up to them. But the story of Jesus Christ must be told to everyone in the world. Everyone should hear it and respond to it.
So the little story I told earlier concerning Vicky, take it to heart. She didn’t turn to the left or the right, and here she simply trusted only herself, only herself, and the courage to send it off this way. And then in two weeks to get a response that it is accepted. She only trusted that one Rock…and the Rock is herself. “Of the Rock that begot you, you are unmindful, and you’ve forgotten the God (which is that Rock) who gave you birth.” For this is the emanation of this meditating being. I am meditating this for purposes not quite made clear in this world. For all of us, together, agreed to dream in concert and meditate all these forms, through all the horrors of the world, and then to awake. And awakening from it all, we have expanded beyond what we were when we agreed to this play. So all of us together—not one greater than the other, not one—all of us are one, for his name is one and God is one.So let no one tell you that one, because he actually encountered one of these words of God within himself and experienced it, that he is, because he preceded you in it, is better than you are. Let no one tell you that. Jesus Christ is called the faithful witness, the first fruits of those who slept, the first risen from the dead. But don’t let anyone tell you because it’s the first that Jesus Christ mentioned in scripture is other than the Jesus Christ in you. When you awake, you are that Jesus Christ. So in the end, all, only Jesus Christ awakes in everyone, and everyone is God.
Now tonight, you try it, you just try this simple thing of believing in this Rock that you are. For I’m testifying to the truth of scripture: the Rock is literally true. I think I mentioned it in my latest book that the truth is literal, the words used are figurative. But, nevertheless, on a higher level it is literal. So when you read the words that you are a Rock and God is a Rock and that Rock begat you, don’t let anyone tell you although it is figurative on this level it isn’t literally true on a higher level. For I speak from experience, it is literally true on a higher level. And so you see the Rock, so you can’t rub it out. So you’re told in the 30th chapter of the Book of Proverbs that every word of God proves true—-do not add to his words lest he rebukes you and calls you a liar. So the wiser you become in this world the more you tend to change the word of God to give it sense, to give it meaning on this level. It doesn’t belong on this level, because on this level you will find experiences related to the world of Caesar. But, may I tell you from my experience, every word of God is literally true on a higher level. “As Moses lifted up the serpent in the wilderness, so must the Son of man be lifted up.” On this level, it doesn’t make sense, and yet I tell you from experience that is true. Just as a serpent was lifted up on that rod that budded, so must the Son of man, which is the title of Christ, be lifted up. And you are lifted up in the same serpentine manner just as the serpent was lifted up.
So I ask everyone to come with me and believe me implicitly. As I stand before you, I’m only testifying to what I know from experience of the word of God. And it’s far more important than all the things in the world. What would it really matter if tonight you had a billion and you didn’t have any experience of the word of God? You would like the rich man of scripture be called this night and to leave it all behind, to be restored to life and inserted into another aspect or time sequence of this long 6,000 years. You leave here the billionaire to find yourself, still without loss of consciousness, inserted into a time sequence best suited for your awakening. Why not believe now and start to awaken? Now there is a passage in scripture that is very comforting. It’s the 5th chapter of John that “He who hears my word and believes him who sent me, will inherit eternal life…and pass from death to life” (verse 24). To hear it and to completely accept it seems to, in some strange way, bring it all together and one passes from death to life. Read that in the 5th chapter of the Book of John. I’m glad I’ve had the experiences, but if I standing here being very human could relieve the whole vast world (because it’s all myself anyway) of having experiences as witnesses, I would this night grant it. And the 5th chapter of John grants it, based only on the acceptance of his word. He who hears my word and believes in him who sent me will inherit eternal life and pass now from death to life.
Let us go into the Silence.
Now are there any questions, please?
Q: Would you please explain the Son of man and the Son of God.
A: Well, you’re told in scripture in the 7th chapter of 2nd Samuel, and the prophet is speaking to David, and the prophet said to David, “When your days are fulfilled and you lie down with your fathers”—which means when you die and you’re buried— “I will raise up your son after you, who will come forth from your body. I will be his father, and he shall be my son” (verse 12). So if it comes forth from man it is man’s son, is it not? But if now that which is brought forth from man is now adopted by God as God’s son, then it’s the Son of God. So he brings forth from man that which he adopts as his own son. But you can’t deny man the right of giving birth to him; were it not for man he couldn’t bring him forth. So, “I will raise up from you your son, who shall come forth from your body. I will be his father, he shall be my son.” So the third act of the unveiling of the story is Son of man. The last act when this dove descends upon man—and God sees his image and it’s perfect as he intended that it should be, and he smothers it with affection, and shows his appreciation for what is done, and his satisfaction—then that is Son of God. So there are four unveilings. The first is a double act, which is the resurrection and birth; they come together, resurrection preceded by a matter of moments. The second act is a single act which is the discovery of the fatherhood of God when David reveals you as his father, and David is God’s only begotten son. The third act is a double act. That is the splitting of the temple from top to bottom, and the ascension of the Son of man into a new creation. And then the fourth act is the satisfaction shown by God of his image—it’s good, it is very good, and smothers it with affection.
Q: Neville, we’re told that Jesus said to Peter, “Thou art Peter, a rock, and upon this rock I will build my church.” I don’t know Hebrew…exactly where the word Peter comes from. In French, literally, Pierre, which is the same word, same name, is rock or stone. Is this also true in Hebrew?
A: Yes, the word is Petros, which is rock. The first, he was introduced by his brother Andrew as Simon, which means “to hear.” And so, Andrew found Jesus Christ…and so “I found him of whom Moses and the law and the prophets spoke.” And so he brought his brother Simon, and he said to him, “So you are Simon…from now on your name is Peter.” And Peter means stone; it’s Petros, the petrified, the rock, the most condensed, the most congealed; but on this I will build…and the church is not any church on the outside in the world, for “Ye are the temple of the living God” (2 Cor. 6:16). And from this congealed state I will shatter it and show you the being that is really meditating the whole vast world. And that being happens to be you.
Well, until…now don’t forget we’re not here on the 18th but we are here until the 15th. Thank you. Goodnight.
In the opening of the lecture, Goddard sets the tone by defining the role of the witness: one who has firsthand knowledge. He intertwines this legal requirement of two witnesses with the idea that we must experience scripture internally to validate its truth. By doing so, he reframes the Bible not as an external authority but as a mirror of our own consciousness.
The central metaphor of the Rock functions on multiple levels. On the surface, it refers to biblical passages describing Christ as the cornerstone. On an imaginative level, it represents our own divine essence. When one meditates and ‘falls upon’ this Rock, it shatters limiting self-images and then reconstructs the psyche into a higher form, revealing the hidden creative power of imagination.
Goddard’s personal anecdote about his daughter’s scriptwriting success serves as a practical demonstration of his teaching. Rather than seeking external approval, she trusted her inner Rock, sent her story off in faith, and received affirmation from Disney. This real-world example underscores the lecture’s theme: inner belief precedes outer manifestation.
The lecture then maps major biblical events—resurrection, fatherhood of God, ascension of the Son of Man, and descent of the Spirit—onto corresponding inner experiences. Goddard testifies from personal experience, describing how he awakened in the mind’s tomb, ascended in a serpentine form, and felt the smothering affection of the Spirit. These accounts aim to demystify scripture and show it as a literal guide to self-realization.
Finally, Goddard issues a call to action: to accept the literal truth of scripture on a higher plane and to refrain from altering its words. He reminds listeners that every human being is part of a compound unity—“I AM”—and that each must awaken to his own divinity. The lecture closes by inviting a shift from intellectual assent to imaginative practice, so that the discovery of the inner Rock becomes an undeniable testimony to one’s own creative power.
The Bible Through Neville
Neville Bible Sparks
Neville Lecture Series
