Neville Goddard on 1 Peter 4:1-6 - Mystical Bible Interpretation

Read 1 Peter 4 in context

Scripture Focus

1Forasmuch then as Christ hath suffered for us in the flesh, arm yourselves likewise with the same mind: for he that hath suffered in the flesh hath ceased from sin;

2That he no longer should live the rest of his time in the flesh to the lusts of men, but to the will of God.

3For the time past of our life may suffice us to have wrought the will of the Gentiles, when we walked in lasciviousness, lusts, excess of wine, revellings, banquetings, and abominable idolatries:

4Wherein they think it strange that ye run not with them to the same excess of riot, speaking evil of you:

5Who shall give account to him that is ready to judge the quick and the dead.

6For for this cause was the gospel preached also to them that are dead, that they might be judged according to men in the flesh, but live according to God in the spirit.

1 Peter 4:1-6

Biblical Context

Peter links Christ’s suffering in the flesh to a new inner posture: if you endure the flesh, you turn away from sin and begin living to the will of God. Your former life, spent in sensuality and pursuits, is left behind as you awaken to life in the Spirit.

Neville's Inner Vision

To read this is to enter a simple inner transformation. The flesh is not a place but a state of consciousness; to have suffered in the flesh is to have already allowed the old identity to die in your imagination. When you arm yourself with the same mind, you are not performing acts so much as assuming a new inner state: that you are the I AM who wills only God. In this awareness, the rest of your time is not spent chasing the lusts of men but aligning with the divine will. The Gentiles you once walked with are simply beliefs you outgrow, memories that no longer command your attention. People may speak of you as strange, because you no longer move in the old currents; yet you judge not by others, you judge by the quick and the dead -- the inner and outer times of life -- by whether you live according to God in the Spirit. The gospel is preached to the dead that they might live according to God in the Spirit, meaning the inner life you are now choosing is already judged by God and found true.

Practice This Now

Sit quiet, inhale, and assume the mind that suffered in the flesh—identify with the I AM that wills only God. Then revise a current urge by declaring, 'I live to the will of God,' and feel the new life as already real in you.